The Lifelong Expenses Caused by Birth Injuries
Not only can birth injuries caused by negligent health care providers potentially result in a lifetime of pain and suffering, they can also result in a lifetime of expensive medical treatment and other costs. The Richmond attorneys at Emroch & Kilduff specialize in personal injury law and have helped innocent victims of birth injuries and their families recover monetary compensation. No one deserves to suffer a birth injury, and our experienced team of attorneys can help you and your child recover damages to help offset the costs of future medical treatment and other necessary care.
Causes of Richmond Birth Injuries
Birth injuries come about at the hands of delivery room health care providers, including obstetricians, delivery room nurses, and nursing assistants. Birth injuries usually occur when health care providers fail to use proper delivery room techniques or monitor the fetus’ heart rate during the delivery. This, in turn, can result in a lack of oxygen to the fetus’ brain, causing serious and permanent cognitive impairments and other injuries. Specific birth injuries can include:
- Cerebral palsy
- Difficulty speaking and walking
- Cephalohematoma (which results in bleeding between the infant’s skull bone and periosteum)
- Shaken baby syndrome (which can lead to brain injuries and other permanent impairments)
- Spinal cord damage and paralysis
Costs Associated with Treating Birth Injuries
Serious birth injuries can result in a lifetime of medical care and treatment. In addition to a lifetime of medical care, the child’s family must also pay for physical therapy to help alleviate the child’s symptoms, medical devices, physical alterations to the child’s home (for example, wider hallways and wheelchair ramps), and travel and lodging expenses necessary for visiting medical specialists located elsewhere in the country.
In addition to the costs of current and future medical care, victims of birth injuries may also be eligible to recover noneconomic damages. Unlike economic damages, these noneconomic damages cannot necessarily be measured by taking out a calculator. Noneconomic damages available to birth injury victims may include pain and suffering, loss of use of a body part, loss of enjoyment or quality of life, and compensation for mental anguish or emotional distress. In serious birth injury cases, these noneconomic damages oftentimes far outweigh the economic burdens. Finally, in serious birth injury cases, a jury may award punitive damages against obstetricians and other health care providers who were grossly negligent under the circumstances. The purpose behind punitive damages is to punish the defendant medical provider and to act as a future deterrent (to help ensure that similar instances of medical negligence do not occur against some other patient in the future).
Contact a Richmond Birth Injury Lawyer Today for a Free Initial Consultation and Case Evaluation
Although some birth injuries occur naturally, others are entirely preventable. If you suspect that your child suffered a birth injury at the hands of a negligent delivery room health care provider, you need experienced legal representation on your side. To schedule a free consultation or case evaluation with a Richmond, Virginia nursing home personal injury lawyer, please call us today at (804) 358-1568 or contact us online.
