A sailor who gave birth in a Navy hospital has received $11.5 million to settle a lawsuit that claimed the baby suffered brain injuries. 
According to the Virginian-Pilot, the child was born in Guam, where local laws don’t cap malpractice claims. Had the child been born in Virginia, where the parents are from, any award would have been capped at $2.15 million.
Attorneys for the woman and her husband, who is also in the Navy, were happy with the settlement, saying that the government was reasonable with how it handled litigation.
Court documents indicated that in 2014, the child was born at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Guam, where the couple was stationed there at the time. The mother reportedly arrived at the hospital and her water broke about 6 hours later. However, the child was not born until about 20 hours later.
The lawsuit indicated doctors found fetal stool was present in amniotic fluid. They allegedly administered various drugs to the mother in an attempt to encourage active labor, but it took an extended period before determining that the baby was ready for delivery.
Doctors allegedly tried to use various tools to suck the fetal stool out of the child after the delivery but were unsuccessful until 11 minutes later when an anesthesia provider suctioned the endotracheal tube and breathing improved.
An MRI on the child later revealed that it had a brain injury compatible with hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy. These injuries typically occur when someone experiences oxygen deprivation.
Attorneys argued that if the mother and child were properly evaluated prior to birth, the brain injuries would have been avoided. To read more about the story, you can click on the source link below.
Brain Injuries During Childbirth Are Often Avoidable
If you’re an expecting mother, your doctor has a duty to accurately monitor complications during the delivery process that may result in brain injuries. That includes addressing delivery delays that may lead to damage, and could be avoided through surgical or other medical means.
If you have been injured because a doctor failed to properly monitor your childbirth or your loved one has died as a result of medical malpractice, you could be entitled to compensation.
Our Ryan Krebs, M.D., J.D., is uniquely qualified to handle medical malpractice cases.
For a free discussion about your case, call 1-(800)-460-0606.
