Chicago Birth Injury Lawyer

Medical care providers that deal with the labor and delivery process are entrusted with the lives of both the mother and child. Unfortunately, when these parties fail to live up to the standards expected in their line of work, serious harm could arise.

Unnecessary surgical procedures and the use of dangerous tools such as forceps and vacuum extractors are common culprits of birth injury, which can leave the child temporarily or indefinitely disabled. In these situations, it is important to know how the law provides a means of recourse for families to recover the monetary compensation they need to deal with their challenging situation.

If your child suffered a birth injury at the hands of a negligent or reckless medical practitioner, you can act now to secure compensation. To get a free initial case evaluation, call the Chicago birth injury lawyers at Wruck Paupore at (219) 322-1166.

Causes of Birth Injuries in Chicago

Unfortunately, many birth injuries occur every year that can have a lasting or even permanent impact on the baby. Some of these injuries are caused by natural complications and are not generally preventable. However, even if there are complications leading up to the birth, there are usually steps that physicians and hospitals can take to reduce the danger to both mother and child. A failure to do so that results in harm could create liability for the party responsible.

Below are some of the types of situations that may create grounds for a medical malpractice or negligence lawsuit after a birth injury occurs.

• Failure to plan for high-risk deliveries
• Inadequate monitoring of the fetus’ condition in utero (before birth)
• Improper administration of drugs (anesthesia, epidurals, etc.) to the mother during labor
• Inadequate testing to identify potential risks prior to birth
• Errors in electing to perform a cesarean section (C-section)
• Reckless use of forceps and vacuum-type instruments during birth

If you suspect that these or any other questionable physician or hospital behaviors may have contributed to your child sustaining a birth injury, bring your case to the attention of a Chicago birth injury lawyer as soon as possible.

Contributing Factors to Birth Injuries in Chicago

Childbirth is often a long, complicated, and tiring process, not just for the mother and child but also for the medical care providers and staff that assist them along the way. If medical professionals are not careful, the following are some examples of medical aids and tools that can turn quickly from helpful to harmful.

C-Sections

Cesarian sections, or C-sections, are used at a higher rate in American hospitals than at any time in the past. Since 1985, the World Health Organization (WHO) has suggested a reasonable rate of C-section birth to be between 10–15%. However, the CDC reports over 31% of all deliveries in the U.S. came by C-section in 2018.

This is a sign that surgery is more accessible and reliable than ever before. There are additional motivations to elect to give birth through C-section than a natural birth. Not all these motivations are based on the health of mother and child. Doctors that perform C-sections benefit from higher payment rates and convenient scheduling.

Though they are safer than in the past, C-sections are major surgeries and should only be performed if the medical situation calls for their use. If complications from a C-section result in birth injuries, the decision-making of the medical professionals in charge should always be called into question.

Forceps and Vacuum Extractors

In the delivery room, medical care providers may make use of certain instruments that can help the process along. These include forceps and vacuum extractors. Forceps are hard instruments that are naturally more difficult to control than the physician’s own hand. Without meaning to, the person handling the forceps may exert unnecessary pressure on the baby using the forceps, causing fractures, lacerations, and muscle and nerve damage. Vacuum extractors have been known to cause even more damage, so they are only used in less than 3% of live births in the United States today.

Pharmaceuticals

Anyone who has given birth can likely tell you the significant difference that epidural drugs can make in the pain of childbirth. These are powerful drugs that should be administered only by experienced professionals. An anesthesiologist administering an epidural should be on hand throughout the process and be briefed on the individual patient’s history and condition well before making any decision on whether these drugs are safe to give to the mother.

Time Limit on Filing a Birth Injury Lawsuit in Chicago

The rules on how long a potential plaintiff has to file legal action for any type of injury in Chicago are complicated. For medical malpractice specifically, the time window provided by the Illinois statute of limitations is two years from either the date the injury was sustained or when it reasonably should have been discovered, lasting no more than four years total from the date the injury occurred.

However, there are several exceptions that may apply specifically to birth injuries. If the medical malpractice victim was a minor at the time of the injury, as is always the case with an injured newborn, they and their parent or legal guardian have up to eight years to file their lawsuit, provided they have not reached the age of 22 during that time. Suppose the at-fault medical provider takes steps to conceal the cause of injury that could be considered fraud. In that case, the victim has up to five years after discovering the relationship between the malpractice and the injury to file.

Applying all of these procedural rules and exceptions to your case is complicated, so we recommend that you enlist the help of a seasoned Chicago birth injury lawyer as soon as possible to help you sort out which deadline might apply to you. While you may have time under the statute of limitation to file your lawsuit later, critical evidence in these types of cases tends to disappear rapidly in the days and weeks following the birth, and it’s important to initiate a skilled investigation as quickly as possible.

Discuss Your Case with a Dedicated Chicago Birth Injury Attorney

When you need immediate, experienced, and committed legal assistance evaluating your potential lawsuit, call the seasoned Chicago birth injury lawyers at Wruck Paupore at (219) 322-1166 to get a free case evaluation.