A Pennsylvania jury recently awarded a family $14.5 million following a botched delivery that allegedly resulted in a cerebral palsy diagnosis for a child. 
According to the Legal Intelligencer, a federal jury awarded a couple the damages in January. The medical malpractice lawsuit claimed that the mother of the child was admitted to Clearfield Hospital in 2012, and that doctors failed to notice that her dilation and contractions had been progressing.
The lawsuit claimed that the mother was administered Pitocin to accelerate the birthing process, but was given an inappropriate dose of the medication. It claimed that after it was administered, the child’s heart rate slowed down to about 60 beats per minute. The mother was allegedly given the drug for the rest of the delivery.
Eventually, the baby’s head began to crown, which the lawsuit claims should have led to a delivery. However, the doctor involved allegedly failed to deliver the child for 10 minutes, leading to its brain injuries.
After the child’s birth, it developed spastic tetraparesis cerebral palsy. The parents claimed in the lawsuit that the child now needs 24-hour care, and that their home needs to be equipped with ramps and lifts.
Botched Deliveries Have Long-Term Consequences
As noted through this case, cerebral palsy can present significant obstacles to both an individual living with the disability and his or her loved ones.
Parents are often presented with substantial financial obstacles, as they are forced to pay for occupational and physical therapy, as well as other forms of medical treatment throughout an individual’s life.
This is why the damages awarded in birth injury lawsuits are so vital. Although the difficulty of caring for someone with cerebral palsy can be extremely hard, financial assistance can help improve the life of a person suffering greatly.
If your loved one is living with cerebral palsy from a birth injury, contact our birth trauma attorneys. We have years of experience fighting for compensation on behalf of families affected by medical negligence. Our Ryan Krebs, M.D., J.D., is uniquely qualified to handle birth injury cases.
