In 2023, over 120,000 births occurred in the state of Pennsylvania. While many births result in the parents taking home a healthy baby, some births unfortunately result in complications or injury. This can be the result of things going wrong during the labor and delivery process or failures in prenatal care.
When this happens, it’s important to determine if medical negligence played a role in causing the birth injury. If it did, then the doctor, hospital, and other care providers may be responsible for the resulting losses.
At Morris Wilson Knepp Jacquette, P.C., we have represented many clients whose families have been impacted by birth injuries. We are prepared to help you secure the resources necessary to ensure your child receives the care they need and your family is compensated for the resulting challenges.
To find out more about how our Philadelphia medical malpractice attorney can fight for you if your child was injured or killed due to medical malpractice, give us a call or contact us online today to schedule your free consultation with a Philadelphia birth injury attorney.
How Do Birth Injuries Happen in Philadelphia?
Birth injuries occur for many reasons, including:
- Failed attempts to move or reposition the baby during labor or delivery
- Improper and unsafe use of assistive devices, such as vacuum extraction delivery, forceps, or C-section
- Failure to properly monitor the mother and baby
- Prolonged labor or delayed delivery
- Improper prenatal care
- Failure to diagnose or treat fetal complications
In any situation when a child is injured before, during, or immediately after the birthing process, it will be important to determine if the medical care provider’s negligence played a role.
Providers have a duty to offer reasonably professional care to mothers and babies, and if they fall short in this obligation and cause harm as a result, parents and children can pursue a damage claim. At Morris Wilson Knepp Jacquette, P.C., our Philadelphia hospital malpractice lawyer can help you evaluate if you have a case and can assist in gathering the appropriate evidence if you do.
Common Types Of Birth Injuries
The Cleveland Clinic has identified both common and rare birth injuries that can affect infants. These include:
- Broken collarbones (clavicles)
- Caput succedaneum or swelling of the scalp
- Cephalohematoma or pooling of blood under the scalp
- Erb’s palsy (paralysis or weakness in the arm due to injury to the brachial plexus)
- Swelling of the eyelid
- Subcutaneous fat necrosis
- Paralysis of the facial nerve
- Fractured humerus (upper arm bone)
- Fractured upper leg bone (femur)
- Intracranial hemorrhage (bleeding in the brain)
- Face or scalp lacerations
- Nose injuries, including a deviated septum
- Eye injuries, including retinal or subconjunctival hemorrhages
- Fractured skull
- Epidermal or subarachnoid bleeding
- Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (brain damage due to insufficient oxygen)
- Fractured ribs
- Damage to internal organs, including the spleen and liver
- Spinal cord injuries
- Subgaleal hemorrhage
In some cases, infants can fully recover from these injuries with the right medical care. In other circumstances, the injuries are permanent or sometimes fatal.
At Morris Wilson Knepp Jacquette, P.C., we have represented clients whose infants faced all of these different injury types, and we can put our legal experience to work to help babies and their families afflicted with these conditions to fight for justice.
How Can A Philadelphia Birth Injury Lawyer Help You?
At Morris Wilson Knepp Jacquette, P.C., we have represented many families harmed by birth injuries, and we provide full-service representation from day one. The steps that we take to help you include:
- Obtaining medical records and witness testimony to determine how your birth injury occurred.
- Identifying the defendants who could be liable for a birth injury, such as your prenatal care provider, midwives, doctors, or nurses who provided substandard care during labor and delivery, and the hospitals that employ negligent providers or that have insufficient policies in place to protect mothers and their babies
- Taking legal action within the statute of limitations for pursuing a medical malpractice claim
- Getting a certificate of merit, which is required within 60 days of filing a medical malpractice lawsuit. This is a signed statement from a licensed medical professional who has carefully reviewed the evidence and who believes there’s a reasonable probability that the care provided by the defendants injured the plaintiffs because it fell short of the professional standard of care
- Proving the extent of damages, including demonstrating the costs of ongoing care for the injured infant and the extent of the disruption to the normal development of the child and the lives of parents, siblings, and other surviving family members
- Negotiating with medical malpractice insurers to try to resolve the claim in an out-of-court settlement to recover fair and full compensation as quickly as possible
- Going to court when needed to prove the losses from the birth injury and to help victims get justice
Birth injury cases often involve substantial compensation because a child’s medical needs can be extensive and, depending on the severity of the injury, may continue for a lifetime.
At Morris Wilson Knepp Jacquette, P.C., we have recovered millions in out-of-court settlements and in court verdicts, and we bring decades of legal experience to your Philadelphia Erbs Palsy case to maximize your chances of fair compensation.
Contact A Philadelphia Birth Injury Lawyer Today
When your family’s future is changed because a doctor injures your child as they come into the world, you deserve all of the remedies that the justice system can provide you. At Morris Wilson Knepp Jacquette, P.C., our Philadelphia malpractice lawyers offer compassionate legal advocacy that is aimed at helping you get justice.
We don’t charge legal fees unless we win compensation for you, and we are skilled negotiators and experienced litigators ready to take on large hospitals and major malpractice insurers. We care deeply about all of our clients, and we have a long track record of successful cases to prove we are a firm you can trust.
Give us a call today at (610) 825-0500 to talk with a member of our legal team to learn more.