$7.875M Birth Injury Settlement for Medical Malpractice
Tom Donahue and the Donahue & Horrow LLP medical malpractice team recently secured a large settlement for the family of a toddler who was severely injured at birth. The $7,875,000 settlement will ensure that the child will receive proper medical care and therapy services for the rest of his life, which is why the family brought the lawsuit in the first instance.
After contacting Donahue & Horrow LLP, Tom Donahue spoke with the family to learn all about the child and the difficulties he was having. The parents reported that their son was diagnosed with significant developmental delay and hearing loss (caused by a lack of blood flow to the brain). He was not able to walk until he was 20 months old, and even at 4 years of age, he still falls frequently and has other documented fine motor delays. Additionally, he is intellectually disabled, with significant deficits in cognition and expressive and receptive language. He only speaks a few words. His abilities and development are well behind those of his much younger brother.
After speaking with the family, Tom Donahue ordered the relevant medical records and reviewed them in conjunction with a team of experts. The records revealed that the mother’s pregnancy was uncomplicated, with good fetal growth and consistent fetal movement. As the due date approached, the family was excited, not worried, about welcoming their first child into the world. However, after the mother reported to the hospital for labor and delivery, things began to go wrong.
After reviewing the records, Tom believed, based on his decades of experience handling medical malpractice birth injury cases, that the records showed that the care provided by the primary bedside nurse was well below established standards and did not follow the normal protocols. It appeared that the fetal scalp electrode was not placed in a timely manner, the maternal and fetal heart rates were not properly monitored, Pitocin was continued for much longer than was proper, and the delivering doctor was not contacted in a timely manner. (Indeed, during deposition, the delivering physician was critical of the primary bedside nurse for failing to adequately monitor the fetus and recognize fetal distress.)
In litigation, in order to support the claim, Donahue & Horrow LLP obtained the opinions of different medical experts, including a Pediatric Neuroradiologist and a Pediatric Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation specialist, as well as the services of a Life Care Planner and an Economist to prove damages. These experts helped convince the mediator and the defendants that the family’s argument that the care provided at labor and delivery was below the standard of care and caused the child’s injury. The large settlement will allow the family to safeguard the child’s future and guarantee that he can always afford to receive the best possible care.
If you believe that you or a member of your family has suffered as a result of medical malpractice, call Donahue & Horrow LLP at (877) 664-5407 for a free consultation. Tom Donahue and his team are ready to fight for you.