If you recently gave birth and your child was born with a serious birth injury, you may be wondering if you have a lawsuit. In other words, did your doctor or another healthcare provider make a mistake that led to your infant’s birth injury? As an experienced Cleveland birth injury attorney, I frequently work with clients who file medical negligence claims against healthcare providers in connection with birth injuries.
While it is difficult to know with certainty whether you have a claim without assessing the specific facts of your case, I want to provide you with more information about determining who is responsible for a birth injury. If you do have questions or concerns about filing a claim, you should get in touch with me as soon as possible.
Not All Birth Injuries Result from Medical Malpractice
First, I need to be clear about birth injuries and malpractice. While many birth injuries are a result of medical negligence, some are not. Accordingly, if your child has a birth injury or a birth defect, you should certainly discuss your case with a Cleveland birth injury lawyer, but you should know that babies can be born with birth defects even when a doctor and a hospital did everything right. As an experienced birth injury attorney, I can examine the facts of your case and can determine whether it makes sense to move forward with a lawsuit.
Parties Who May be Liable for a Birth Injury
Who is liable if your child’s birth injury or birth defect was in fact the result of malpractice? The following parties may bear some or all of the liability in a birth injury claim:
- Obstetrician who prescribed medicines during the pregnancy or conducted exams, or who delivered the baby;
- Nurse practitioners who provided care during the pregnancy or delivered the baby;
- Nurse who provided care or delivered the baby;
- Hospital where the baby was born;
- Anesthesiologist who administered anesthesia during a c-section; or
- Laboratory that conducted tests and provided erroneous results, which led to the birth injury.
Other parties also may be responsible for a birth injury—it depends on the facts of your case. Common birth injuries that can lead to successful negligence claims include but are not limited to brain injuries, brachial plexus injuries, cranial nerve or spinal cord injuries, and fractures.
Filing a Medical Negligence Claim After a Birth Injury
If you do have a medical negligence case, you will need to file your lawsuit quickly. I know how difficult it can be to contend with the medical care of a new baby with special needs, but you need to know that Ohio law only gives plaintiffs one year from the date of the incident to file a medical malpractice claim. Indeed, most medical negligence lawsuits have a one-year statute of limitations. Given this short time window, you should get started on your case as soon as you can.
