Pregnancy Negligence Claims

Expectant mothers place a lot of trust in medical professionals to ensure they have a safe and healthy pregnancy and birth. When the level of care falls below the expected standards, the consequences can be devastating. If you or your baby have been affected by pregnancy negligence, it’s important to speak to a birth injury solicitor who understands the exact type of pregnancy injury negligence that has occurred.

What type of injuries can pregnancy negligence lead to?

Pregnancy negligence is an umbrella term. It refers to any health condition that results from substandard care received by the mother and her baby during pregnancy, delivery or immediately after the birth.

During pregnancy

Midwives and other medical professionals have a duty of care to ensure they keep a close eye on the mother’s health and well-being throughout the pregnancy. Failure to carry out regular antenatal checks could lead to a mother suffering from an undiagnosed medical condition that could harm the mother or baby further down the line.

Negligence can occur when a medical professional:

• Fails to take a proper history from the mother during an antenatal appointment (this may be due to a language barrier and if this is the case then an interpreter should be arranged)
• Fails to perform the correct antenatal checks
• Misses an abnormality during a blood test or scan
• Misdiagnoses a miscarriage
• Does not identify the signs of infection during pregnancy
• Does not manage pregnancy complications effectively
• Fails to assess and manage the mother’s medication during pregnancy

These actions could lead to any number of conditions, including pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes, ectopic pregnancy, uterine rupture or death of the baby in utero.

During delivery

It is essential that staff in the delivery room are highly trained and prepared for any eventuality during the birth. While most births are straightforward, a number of events have the potential to cause injury to the mother and her baby. Negligence can occur if medical staff:

• Fail to monitor the baby’s heartbeat
• Fail to identify when a caesarean section is necessary
• Perform an episiotomy incorrectly
• Fail to perform an episiotomy when it is medically indicated, leading to excessive tearing
• Misuse forceps or ventouse (vacuum suction)
• Make mistakes during caesarean section surgery, such as mistakes when administering anaesthesia

This is not a complete list. If the medical professionals fail to spot any signs of distress and do not act quickly enough or carry out the wrong procedures, this could lead to a number of birth injuries such as oxygen deprivation, brain damage, stillbirth, cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy, shoulder dislocation in the baby and physical trauma to the mother, including fractures, cuts and bruising.

After the birth

Once the baby is born, medical staff must have a duty to take further steps to ensure both mother and baby are happy and healthy. Midwives and health visitors will usually visit the home in the days and weeks after the birth. They carry out a number of checks to ensure mother and baby are well and are trained to identify the signs of postnatal complications such as:

• Postnatal depressions
• Postpartum haemorrhage
• Pelvic organ prolapse
• Jaundice in the baby
• Group B strep infections
• Failure to thrive
• Hydrocephalus
• Hypoglycaemia

Negligence can occur if medical professionals make an avoidable mistake that leads to injury or harm to the mother or her baby.

How can we help?

The medical negligence team at Osbornes Law are highly experienced in handling pregnancy negligence claims. We can help you determine if you have grounds for a valid claim and, if so, how to proceed.

A successful pregnancy negligence claim can ensure that a mother or child with lasting injury sustained due to medical errors has access to the best support for their needs. Compensation can pay for medical treatment and therapy, and we can help you secure interim payments so that you can access these treatments straightaway.

We have a reputation for representing families in pregnancy negligence claims and winning, so you can rest assured that your claim is in safe hands. It’s important to act quickly in pregnancy negligence cases. Get in touch with us now to find out how we can help.