After almost eight days of deliberation the jury in a complicated multimillion dollar lawsuit returned with the verdict that Dr. Sam Olupona is not to blame for complications in the birth of a little boy that led to severe brain injuries.
The parents of the boy filed suit against the hospital, Dr. Olupona and two hospital nurses claiming that when the mother was in labor with twins the doctor and nurses failed to monitor the babies heart rates, and did not ensure that the mother had an epidural in case of an emergency cesarean section and failed to make sure that an operating room was ready in case it was needed.
When a mother is carrying twins each of these things are considered to be routine, however it was found that Dr. Olupona did everything in his power to ensure a safe delivery of both babies and that the nurses were not involved in the delivery after the mother entered the operating room.
Of the defendants listed only one nurse was found to be negligent and failing to meet a reasonable standard of care, and of failing to follow the doctor’s orders concerning placing an epidural. While the nurse was found to be 75% to blame for the birth defects the hospital was found to be 25% percent responsible for failing to provide a nurse that would follow procedures and perform her job properly.
The damages and expenses in this case awarded to the parents of the child come to around $10 Million. The child will require lifelong constant care and will incur large medical bills due to the chain of events which left him permanently damaged.
