Chicago Birth Injury Attorneys
A birth injury attorney can help you determine who is accountable for the injuries sustained by your child. This includes examining medical documents, including the prenatal care, and determining whether the doctor's actions were short of the standard of care.
You may be able to receive compensation for your family's short and long-term costs. However the process of seeking compensation for a birth injury is complicated and requires a lot of documentation.
Dystocia of the shoulder
When a baby's shoulders become lodged in the mother's pelvic area during delivery this is known as shoulder dystocia and is an emergency medical situation. If a doctor is unable to address this complication or applies excessive pressure during the delivery process the possibility of nerve damage could arise. This could lead to brachial plexus injury and conditions like Erb's Palsy.
A baby may also be injured by fractured collarbones internal lacerations, fetal asphyxia. Baby's with shoulder dystocia may require several weeks of therapy in order to regain movement and sensation. This can be emotionally traumatic for a mother and her child.
In about one in 10 cases of shoulder dystocia the neck's nerves (brachial plexus) can be stretched, which can result in loss of movement in the infant's arm. This condition is known as Erb's Palsy, and usually heals in a matter of hours or days. However, around 10% of cases result in permanent injury.
When doctors are alert to the warning signs, they can employ techniques such as rotating the fetus or performing an Caesarean to ensure that the baby can safely be born. However doctors aren't all aware of these warning signs and in some instances the child could be injured. These injuries may result from a lack in training, failure to recognize complications or medical errors.
Often, shoulder dystocia is triggered when a large fetus is trying to enter a small pelvis. The fetus's chest circumference, biacromial size and lateral diameter are too large for the pelvic opening. This is why shoulder dystocia is usually caused by a macrosomic or large fetus. Doctors need to detect this problem and act accordingly. When this doesn't happen and a baby is born suffering serious and long-lasting injuries, the doctor could be held liable for malpractice in malpractice claims. A Chicago shoulder dystocia lawyer can help victims get the compensation they need. Contact a lawyer now to discuss your case. We are committed to helping children and mothers receive justice.
Nerve injuries
Birthing a baby is a wonderful experience, but can be complicated. An error in medical care during labor and delivery can cause birth injuries that can affect a child for the rest their lives. A Chicago birth injury attorney can assist parents in holding healthcare professionals responsible for such mistakes and receive the financial compensation they deserve.
All medical professionals are required to fulfill an obligation to adhere to a certain standard of care. If a doctor fails to meet the requirements of this standard, he or may be found to be guilty of medical malpractice. A Chicago birth injury lawyer can examine the specifics of a situation and then bring in medical experts who can give crucial testimony. He or she can also use state-specific statutes of limitations to determine the proper time frame within which a family has to file a claim.
One type of birth injury that can result from medical negligence is the damage to a baby's brachial nerves. These nerves connect the shoulder to the hand, and a laceration to them may cause two types of paralysis: Erb's palsy and Klumpke's paralysis. In either case, these injuries are permanent and will likely require treatment and care for the rest of your life.
A Chicago birth injury lawyer in Chicago can gather evidence to create an argument for the child who has been injured. He or she will work with a team of experts to ensure that the family receives maximum compensation for all losses. This can include past and future medical expenses and the need for additional caretakers and long-term care expenses, and the costs of counseling and special education.
Finding a Chicago birth injury lawyer as quickly as possible is crucial. The earlier a family can file for a claim, better. It is important to file a claim as soon as you can because witnesses may change their location, records could be lost or altered, or memories of an event may fade over time. In Illinois, the statute of limitation is eight years following the incident.
Failure to diagnose
Each instance of medical negligence is unique, however if your doctor failed to recognize and respond to warning signs, you could be entitled to compensation for your loss. Failure to diagnose is a common mistake that can cause serious health effects, such as prolonged disease progression, inadequate or ineffective treatment, and even death.
From link home -of-the-art labor and delivery suites at Northwestern Memorial Hospital to the renowned neonatal intensive care units at Rush University Medical Center, thousands of expectant mothers put their trust in Chicago's top hospitals every year. Although these institutions are able to deliver the best possible treatment for pregnant women and babies, some birth injuries are inevitable. These injuries, whether caused by negligence or medical malpractice, could have a lifelong and debilitating impact on families.
The best way to prevent birth injuries is by providing prenatal care and identifying the mother's health issues. However, despite these vital steps, a variety of factors can lead to birth injuries, such as inadequate monitoring of the mother's vital signs, failing to respond quickly to changes in fetal heart rate, and ignoring or overlooking an abnormality.
Certain medical conditions, like celiac and hyperthyroidism, can increase the risk of birth injuries for women. In these instances doctors may fail in diagnosing and treating these conditions in the early stages or mistakenly diagnose them, for example, fatigue or irritable bowel (IBS) syndrome, joint pain, migraines, and so on.
Our Chicago birth injury lawyers are here to help you if you were injured during childbirth because of the negligence of a healthcare professional. A lawyer can review the medical records of your family and speak with medical experts and seek compensation for you. Contact us today to learn more about your options to pursue legal recourse. We are here to assist you navigate this complicated and confusing procedure.
Medical malpractice
Medical malpractice claims are filed when healthcare providers fail to treat the patient with reasonable care. This negligence can cause injury or death of the patient. A medical malpractice case typically involves a thorough examination of the medical records and testimony from experts in the field, including neonatologists and other obstetricians. The jury will determine whether the doctor's conduct is in line with what a similarly-trained doctor would do in the same circumstances.
Birth injuries can be caused in a variety of ways, including trauma or infections during labor and birth. About two-thirds are due to medical negligence or errors made by healthcare professionals. It is critical to speak with an experienced Chicago birth injury lawyer about your case if you suspect something was wrong with your child's birth.
A lawyer on your side to handle your case will allow you to seek maximum compensation for the harm you have suffered. A skilled birth injury lawyer will utilize their expertise in Illinois' medical negligence laws and will consult with experts to analyze your case. They will also take care of the legal aspects of your case, allowing you to focus on recovery.
When you choose a legal team to represent you in a birth injury lawsuit, the attorney will ask about the specifics of your child's birth as well as any medical issues you faced during the process. The lawyer will review your evidence and advise you of your options. They might be able to identify all parties that could be responsible, depending on the cause of the injuries. This can include obstetricians, nurses anesthesiologists and hospital staff and other health professionals who were involved in the care of prenatal patients and the delivery.
If you have a seasoned Chicago birth injury attorney representing you, they will collect the following documents essential to your claim: