Birth Injury Lawyer Phoenix, AZ

To say that finding out your newborn has suffered a birth injury during delivery is a nightmare, would be an understatement for many parents. The fact is, a handful of babies out of every thousand in the United States, are going to be born with a birth injury. What many parents may not realize, is that these injuries may have been preventable. Sadly, the doctor, nurse, or other medical staff may have committed a crucial error that caused the injury to occur.

It isn’t uncommon for parents who think something was wrong with how the delivery was handled, to talk with a birth injury lawyer Phoenix, AZ trusts soon afterwards about their rights. In a flurry of emotions and heartache, parents may ask some of the following questions during a legal consultation:

Q: What may have happened that caused my baby’s birth injury?

A: Doctors and nurses must uphold a standard level of medical care for all patients. When they deviate from this standard, terrible things can happen to innocent mothers and their babies. Oversights or errors can lead to injury in both mother and baby. Some of the most common ways birth injuries happen to the newborn are due to oxygen deprivation, too much force during delivery, delay in performing emergency c-section, undertrained staff, aggressive use of birthing tools, and administering the incorrect medication.

Q: What if my doctor told me my baby actually has a birth defect?

A: A birth defect and birth injury are two completely different conditions. A birth defect arises due to family history and genetics, and has nothing to do with how the delivery was performed. By contrast, birth injuries are often caused due to something the doctor or nurses did incorrectly and genetics are not a contributing factor.

If your doctor told you that your baby’s injury is actually a birth defect, consider whether your doctor had told you about potential defect risks during pregnancy. By law, a doctor must inform parents about anything abnormal that they observe in the fetus. If your doctor had told you your baby was perfectly happy and healthy throughout the entire pregnancy, then it may be in your best interest to contact an attorney.

Q: Are all birth injuries visible or can they happen internally too?

A: Birth injuries can be either internal or external, and may be observed right after birth or not until developmental milestones haven’t been reached. Visible signs that something may not be right can include skull fractures, nerve trauma, facial paralysis, lacerations, bruises, trouble sucking, soft tissue injuries, discoloration, crying with a curved back, and body paralysis.

Q: What types of errors could have been committed in the delivery room?

A: It can be difficult for mother and parent to be concerned with what the medical staff is doing when in the delivery room. The mother is likely enduring profound pain, and the last thing on her mind may be what everyone else is doing around her. Errors that can happen in the delivery room can entail giving the wrong medication type or dosage, improper administration of epidural, failing to monitor mother and fetus, forced delivery, and miscalculation of contractions.

Contact Rispoli Law, PLLC for their insight into personal injury claims and how birth injuries happen.