Halina Jane Gillett, an Australian women who will be celebrating her 26th birthday this coming October, is suing Dr. Jeffrey Robinson for her current affliction of Erb’s palsy. Dr. Robinson was the obstetrician who delivered Halina over 25 years ago. Halina’s mother, Marilyn Benson-Inglis, states that she asked Dr. Robinson about a caesarean delivery because she was concerned that her child might be too large to deliver naturally. When Halina’s mother went into labor, the two choices available to deliver the child were a caesarean or use of forceps; Dr. Robinson chose to pull the baby out with forceps.
Halina now suffers Erb’s palsy, which is a paralysis of the arm caused by an injury to the upper group of the arm’s nerves. Most commonly, excessive pulling on the shoulders, especially with forceps, causes this injury. Halina requires the use of physical therapy and assistance in the home due to Erb’s palsy, and she is now asking for reparations for this birth injury, according to dailytelegraph.com. Sadly, Halina’s mother testifies that she requested the caesarean delivery, but the obstetrician replied, “I don’t know.”
The facts of this case seem to indicate that the method of delivery that the obstetrician chose, without the birth mother’s consent, continues to plague Halina and cost her money as an adult. The hearing over the matter continues in Australia.
Cappolino Dodd Krebs LLP–birth trauma lawyer
