Cosgrove Law Group recently teamed up with another law firm to garner a multi-million-dollar settlement for the parents of a young boy that suffered a serious life-threatening birth injury as a result of negligence leading to hypotic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE).[1] HIE is one of a variety of conditions that may arise due to such errors as the application of excessive force, incorrect administration of medicine or the failure to timely perform a cesarean section, if at all. The damages caused by such negligence can lead to astronomical damages, including but not limited to a loss of companionship and a lifetime of extraordinary medical and rehabilitation expenses.
A jury in Missouri recently awarded $1.36 million to a woman who miscarried after she was discharged from the hospital with an undiagnosed infection while pregnant. The mother returned to the emergency room but fell into a coma and lost her unborn child. One of the hospital’s nurses even challenged the doctor’s earlier decision to discharge the mother despite her tachycardia.
Earlier this year a jury in Texas awarded $10,000,000 for loss of companionship and mental anguish alone. Almost all of the damages were assessed against the obstetrician rather than The Medical Center. Regardless, it was The Medical Center only that brought the unsuccessful appear as the doctor settled with the parents and the baby’s estate after the jury verdict. The Medical Center of Southeast Texas, L.P. v. Melancon, 2019 WL 2182480 at p.1. Unlike many birth injury or birth defect cases, the claims in the case, sadly, included a wrongful death claim as the child died shortly after birth. The cause of death was neurologic damages due to HIE. The plaintiffs alleged that the condition was caused by the inappropriate administration of Pitocin.
If your child was injured or died during labor or delivery and you have any suspicion of negligence, please call us for a free consultation. We will put the right team together to evaluate and, if appropriate, prosecute your matter.
[1] Having two rather than one law firm at the helm did not cost the clients an extra penny.