In our last post, we discussed the unfortunate reality that attending OB/GYNs in charge of expectant mothers can make grievous medical mistakes and compound the problem by failing to take the necessary remedial actions.

As a way of illustration, we discussed the case of a young military couple stationed at Fort Hood, who saw things go terribly wrong during the birth of their son in 2008. Here, the attending physicians later told the mother — we’ll call her Kassie — that her son had suffered severe brain damage during the birth and that he would likely develop cerebral palsy, characterizing the condition as akin to a hereditary birth defect.

Fortunately, Kassie was unsatisfied with this explanation and soon determined via her own research that cerebral palsy is nothing like a hereditary birth defect, but rather is most often caused by birth-related trauma.

Indeed, cerebral palsy is typically defined by medical professionals as a serious condition that can cause a host of medical problems in children (vision, hearing and speech problems, muscle spasms, mobility issues, etc.), and which is most frequently attributed to oxygen deprivation either during labor, during delivery or shortly after birth.

Kassie and her husband ultimately filed a lawsuit that accused the attending physicians of failing to notice otherwise clear medical evidence showing that her contractions had essentially been overstimulated thanks to the gratuitous use of oxytocin to induce labor. This in turn caused the baby to suffer severe distress and necessitated an immediate emergency caesarean section.

In recent developments, a federal judge has signed off on an order directing the federal government to pay $6.5 million in damages to Kassie and her husband for medical negligence during the labor process.

The award has granted much-needed peace of mind to Kassie, who knows that her five-year-old son will always be provided for no matter what.

“That worry is not there anymore,” she said. “I fought for him because I knew in my heart that there was injustice done, and it’s a sense of pride and relief knowing I was able to fight for him.”

Always remember that a legal professional may be able to help you pursue the justice you need and deserve if your child has suffered an otherwise avoidable birth injury.

Source: The Killeen Daily Herald, “Judge: Darnall negligent during birth,” Rose Thayer, Dec. 5, 2013