Asphyxia

Birth asphyxia is among the most dangerous of birth injuries. In many cases, infants face tremendous harm if asphyxiated during labor and delivery. When this type of tragedy occurs, the services of an experienced birth injury lawyer can help victims and their families recover vital funds to address their present and future losses.

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Understanding Birth Asphyxia

What is birth asphyxia? Birth asphyxia occurs when a baby’s vital organs do not receive enough oxygen during labor and delivery. The lack of oxygen becomes more harmful the longer it lasts. In the gravest of cases, infants experience catastrophic damage and death. Even a moderate case of birth asphyxia can lead to lifelong debilitation and suffering.

Many cases of birth asphyxia are largely preventable. Negligent healthcare professionals are often to blame for birth asphyxia. When they are, they can be held to pay for the harm they have caused.

Signs And Symptoms Of Birth Asphyxia

The occurrence of asphyxia at birth is so impactful that symptoms are to be expected. Parents who notice the following birth asphyxia symptoms should be aware that their baby has potentially been harmed by asphyxia and should seek medical care:

Labored or difficult breathing
Shallow breathing
Low heart rate
Muscle limpness
Weakness
Seizures
Blue-gray or abnormal skin color

A baby’s weak or muffled cry may also signal asphyxia or another problem.

Legal Implications Of Birth Asphyxia

Birth asphyxia can lead to significant legal liability for medical professionals, hospitals, and birthing centers. Because it is a harm that should never happen, the aforementioned parties can be held liable when it is proved that they were negligent and that their negligence caused asphyxia.

Compensation For Birth Injury Claims

Being held liable for medical malpractice means being held accountable for a variety of economic and non-economic damages suffered by the victim of the malpractice, including medical bills, lost future wages, loss of enjoyment of life, and pain and suffering.

How Our Birth Injury Lawyers Can Help

At Bachus & Schanker, we are dedicated to providing our clients with quality legal representation and support, especially in cases involving devastating and difficult injuries. Our Elite Litigation Group (ELG) devotes focused efforts to helping victims and their families get the justice they deserve and is ready to meet and listen to your case.

Most importantly, the ELG handles every aspect of your case, so you do not have to worry about any aspect of the complex process of recovering compensation in medical malpractice cases. With our team representing you, you never have to worry about:

Claims deadlines
Investigating the circumstances of your claim
Managing and filing claim paperwork
Gathering evidence
Fiercely negotiating with insurance companies
Representation in mediation or arbitration
Representation at trial

Founding attorney Kyle Bachus is all too familiar with loss due to negligence. His mother prematurely lost her life due to someone else’s negligence. Kyle and his family know firsthand what it’s like to be suddenly faced with a tragedy. He recounts his family’s struggles in his book Unthinkable, which gives a deep insight into the struggle victims and their families face after an accident.

Proving Negligence In Birth Asphyxia Cases

Birth asphyxia cases require attorneys to prove that negligence occurred and that the negligence caused the asphyxia and harm. Because medical procedures are involved, proving negligence in the medical context is often quite detailed and complex.

Medical malpractice attorneys, although knowledgeable about the medical subjects they deal with, frequently consult with qualified medical experts to gather testimony and information relevant to their cases.

One of the first steps in determining whether negligence occurred is thoroughly reviewing the medical and treatment records of a patient. Medical experts can glean much information from the various records generated during the course of labor and delivery. If they find something untoward, they can investigate further.

Some of the specific acts of negligence that attorneys and experts search for in birth asphyxia cases include:

Unnecessarily long labor and delivery
Prescription drug errors
Anesthesia errors
Maternal blood pressure issues
Infections
C-section errors
Failure to properly monitor for fetal distress
Umbilical cord issues

Once a cause or causes have been identified, attorneys then seek to identify the liable parties, which may include:

Physicians
Anesthesiologists
Nurses
Midwives
Doulas

Essentially, any party that acted negligently in causing the birth asphyxia can be held liable. In cases where a negligent healthcare professional is an employee of the hospital or birthing center where the asphyxia took place, the medical professional’s employer may also be held liable vicariously.

Steps To Take If You Suspect Medical Negligence

If you suspect medical negligence has occurred in your case, it is highly recommended that you investigate the matter as thoroughly as possible. If your child has been injured due to the negligence of a medical professional, that negligent party should pay for the damage they have done.

When medical negligence is suspected in birth asphyxia cases, families are strongly encouraged to:

Gather and preserve all medical records and communications related to the case
Seek medical treatment for any issues caused by the asphyxia
Attend a free consultation with a medical malpractice attorney
Not accept any settlement offers until speaking with an experienced attorney

It is important to keep in mind that any mention of medical negligence to the medical professionals and facility involved in a case typically causes the potentially liable parties to close ranks and protect themselves. With lots of money and their professional licenses on the line, their best interests in these matters are their own.

Understanding Your Rights As A Parent

Among the most important rights parents have in these cases is the right to seek compensation for their injured children. Parents also have the right to full disclosure of information in their child’s case.

However, as mentioned, medical professionals protect themselves and may not provide the information parents need without being compelled by a birth injury lawyer to do so. At Bachus & Schanker, we uphold your rights as a parent and fight to get you the relief you and your family deserve.

Compensation For Birth Injury Claims

No family wants to worry about fighting for compensation during tough times such as these. Families’ energies are typically best focused somewhere other than fighting for compensation. That is where Bachus & Schanker comes in. We’ll fight for appropriate compensation for the immediate and long-term effects of the birth injury on your child and your family.

Contact Our Birth Injury Attorneys Today

There is no excuse for negligence. The only answer to subpar medical delivery services is accountability through compensation. Nothing can erase the impacts of birth asphyxia. However, compensation can provide victims and their families valuable funds to offset the repercussions of injuries and loss in the future.