Parents win birth injury lawsuit

Countless New York families would agree that parents place the lives of their children in the hands of medical staff during the birthing process. The mother and the baby both must rely on the knowledge and skills of attending physicians and nurses to provide them with care they require. Unfortunately, however, there are instances where the immediate medical needs of the patients are not met correctly. Nine years after their son was born, one family may have found closure in their medical malpractice lawsuit.

The nine-year-old boy who is identified as the victim in the birth injury lawsuit was born prematurely. Because of his premature birth, the baby had a life-threatening medical condition that required immediate attention. According to the lawsuit, however, the nurse practitioner and two physicians on the case failed to respond to the baby’s medical crisis appropriately. As a result of their alleging negligence, the child now requires constant care and suffers from a permanent condition.

While the hospital involved in the case agrees that the child’s condition is regrettable. It claims that the doctors and nurses that attended to the patient did their jobs correctly and saved his life. In fact, the hospital added that many children born with the same medical condition do not survive.

When the medical malpractice lawsuit went to trial, the boy’s family and the defendant came to an agreement over a maximum and minimum figure for potential damages. Since the trial jury ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, the maximum amount of $5.3 million applies. However, the jury actually found that the defendants should be liable for around $30 million.

The family may pursue other options to receive the full amount of the judgment, but for now they claim to be constantly concerned about the health and well-being of the child.

Source: boston.com, “Lowell family to receive at least $5m in malpractice suit against Tufts Medical Center,” Travis Anderson, Nov. 21, 2013