How Parents In Ontario Can Deal With A Birth Trauma

Whenever a newborn baby has a defect that threatens to present both the child and the parents with lifelong problems, the members of the affected family must deal with what is known as a birth trauma. Any one from the whole list of unfortunate events could force an obstetrician to tell a mother and father that their newborn has suffered a birth trauma.

What could be the nature of the unfortunate event that would result in occurrence of a traumatizing birth?

• Generalized brain damage
• Damage to the cranial nerves
• Damage to the part of the brain that controls the muscles; that triggers development of cerebral palsy.
• Oxygen deprivation
• Shoulder dystopia, which can cause Erb’s palsy (paralysis of the arm).
• Facial paralysis

Difficulties that might need to be addressed, following the occurrence of a birth trauma:

• Bleeding on the brain;
• Bone fractures;
• Mental retardation;
• Seizures;
• Skull fractures;
• Stillbirth

What could be grounds for a lawsuit, if a couple had been forced to deal with such a traumatizing situation?

• Physician guilty of malpractice;
• Pregnant mother was exposed to dangerous chemicals: When that is the case, the evidence often shows that the employer exposed the pregnant employee to such chemicals by asking her to perform a specific task.
• Someone prescribed a wrong medicine to the expectant mother:
• Unnecessary delay in doing a Caesarean: That can force the baby to struggle, while seeking to work its way out of the womb and down the birth canal.
• Failure of obstetrician to note the signs of fetal distress. An obstetrician should arrange for performance of the test that yields an Apgar score. That score can signal the presence of some sign of fetal distress.

When would a couple have no grounds for a lawsuit, even though their newborn had a birth defect?

The mother and father had not been pre-screened. This would certainly rule-out the chance for winning a lawsuit, if the parents’ ethnicity had indicated the need for a screening test. However, they can consult a personal injury lawyer in Collingwood to know more.

The mother and father had misinterpreted the results of a given test. That might be the case if the results of an amniocentesis were misinterpreted.

Alternately, a mother and father might learn that an amniocentesis has shown that their unborn child has a defect. Some parents elect to have the child anyway. If two adults make such a decision, those same adults cannot sue the medical staff or the hospital where the baby was born.

Mother had been careless about the food and beverages that she consumed, while carrying her child. For instance, the mother had chosen to consume a large amount of alcohol.