Birth injuries are medical challenges that children acquire during the labor or delivery process. Issues ranging from physical trauma to oxygen deprivation could lead to serious birth injuries. An infant with birth injuries may require extensive medical care in their first months of life.
They may have more challenges ahead of them if the birth injury is permanent. Families may have to absorb not just medical expenses but also lost wages. One parent may have to stay home or put less effort into their career if a child has a significant birth injury.
Those trying to adjust to life with serious family medical challenges often have a lot of questions. Whether or not an injury may have been preventable is often one of the first questions people ask.
Can doctors prevent birth injuries?
People tend to put a lot of trust in their medical professionals, and with good reason. The average physician has years of education and significant personal experience. They use that knowledge and experience to assist with the birth of children and the aftercare of new mothers.
Much of the training that obstetric professionals receive focuses on how to facilitate a healthy live birth. If doctors consistently follow best practices, they can largely minimize the risk of serious birth injuries. For example, consistent fetal heart rate monitoring can serve as a crucial form of early detection for fetal distress.
Changes in fetal heart rate may indicate a drop in oxygen supply that might lead to brain injuries in the unborn child. Proper communication with and support of the expected mother are also important, as her symptoms can provide an early warning of potential issues that might arise during labor. The sad reality is that a significant percentage of birth injuries are preventable with better practices at a hospital or birth center.
Do health professionals cause birth injuries?
Many birth injuries are the result of medical negligence. They represent a failure to take timely action or to monitor the situation. However, there are some birth injuries that doctors actively cause. For example, doctors could make mistakes when administering labor interventions. They might give a woman a drug that puts her and the baby at risk.
They could also make mistakes while assisting the delivery process. The use of vacuum extraction tools or forceps can lead to injuries ranging from damage to an infant’s eyes to spinal cord injuries. When doctors perform the wrong interventions or administer the right intervention poorly, they could cause lasting damage to the unborn child.
Not all birth injuries involve medical malpractice, but some of them do. Cases involving negligence or medical mistakes may constitute medical malpractice. Under these circumstances, filing a medical malpractice lawsuit can potentially help families cover the costs resulting from a birth injury. Those who can connect a birth injury to certain medical practices can seek justice via the civil courts accordingly.