Birth Injuries to Mother Compensation Payouts Awarded
Our Clinical and Medical Negligence team includes specialist Birth Injury Solicitors who have secured millions of pounds in compensation for birth injuries to mothers and their children.
Solicitor, Medical Negligence
A boy who suffered brain damage as a result of delays in his delivery has today been awarded £10 million in compensation by the High Court to fund his past and future care and rehabilitation needs. This was after the hospital where he was born admitted failures in his care that caused his catastrophic injuries.
The child, named DXP for the purpose of this article and who cannot be named for legal reasons, suffers from cerebral palsy that affects his development, his mobility and his ability to communicate. The severity of his condition means he needs 24hour round-the-clock care and specially adapted accommodation.
Following his birth on June the 4th 2012, his family, who are from Kent, later instructed expert Medical Negligence Lawyers at Simpson Millar to investigate the care he received at the Queen’s Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich, London. This included concerns that he should have been delivered sooner via Caesarean section, after medical staff identified an issue with the baby’s heartrate, which resulted in a hypoxic ischaemic injury (HIE). HIE is a brain injury that happens when the baby’s brain experiences a decrease in oxygen and blood flow.
In a letter sent to the family’s lawyers, Lewisham and Greenwich Hospital NHS Trust said it ‘deeply regrets’ the injuries DXP sustained, and admitted that had he been born sooner it is likely that he would not have suffered from cerebral palsy.
The letter explained that not providing induction of labour at 39 weeks, despite multiple hospital visits due to reduced baby movement, a diagnosis of gestational diabetes, and not performing a scheduled Caesarean on June 3rd – was all considered a failure in providing proper care. Which represented a ‘breach of duty in care’.
NHS. (n.d.). "Queen Elizabeth Hospital." [Online] Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/services/hospital/queen-elizabeth-hospital/RJ231
NHS. (n.d.). "Caesarean Section." [Online] Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/caesarean-section/
Nationwide Children's Hospital. (n.d.). "Neonatal Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy." [Online] Available at: https://www.nationwidechildrens.org/conditions/health-library/neonatal-hypoxic-ischemic-encephalopathy
NHS. (n.d.). "Gestational Diabetes." [Online] Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/gestational-diabetes/
Simpson Millar. (n.d.). "Breach of Duty in Medical Negligence Claims Explained." [Online] Available at: https://www.simpsonmillar.co.uk/medical-negligence-solicitors/breach-of-duty-in-medical-negligence-claims-explained/
Hansard. (2023, October 19). "Birth Trauma." [Online] Available at: https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2023-10-19/debates/D9DC6BAC-118F-4EA1-BE02-F815D5BE6436/BirthTrauma
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