Perinatal and Neonatal Malpractice

The birth of a newborn baby is one of the most exciting and precious moments in life, for both the new parents and all their loved ones who will help raise the baby into another member of the family. We must place a lot of trust in healthcare facilities to have the best interest of the baby’s health in mind during this process. If you believe an incident of malpractice contributed to a serious complication in your newborn child, contact the Boston neonatal attorneys at Altman & Altman LLP today.

Responsibilities During a Birth

The moments directly leading up to and the moments directly after birth (perinatal) are crucial to delivering a healthy child and ensuring that the child is healthy moving forward into the short window of time after its birth (neonatal). Any errors or mistakes from hospital staff during these two crucial periods of time can have disastrous consequences for the baby and the mother and may be grounds for a medical malpractice suit if it can be determined there was negligence involved.

Perinatal nurses are tasked with ensuring they keep a watchful eye on the mother and the baby in the moments leading up to, during and after a birth. They must be ready to spot potential complications as they arise, like a baby not being properly positioned in the birth canal, the baby being at risk of strangulation by the umbilical cord or a mother experiencing a sudden drop in blood pressure.

Nurses also must work diligently to ensure that the birthing environment is clean and free from potential infectious disease, as the newborn baby and mother are not in a proper condition to fight off diseases.

During birth, nurses and doctors must still continually monitor the vital signs of the mother and the baby to ensure there are no apparent signs of fetal distress. If such distress is detected, they must take preventative action immediately – whether that comes in the form of using carious medical instruments to assist the birth or to take the mother into an emergency cesarean section (C-section).

Additionally, hospital staff must monitor a newborn to ensure that its heart rate, blood pressure and other vitals are at correct levels, and be prepared to act if something begins to appear out of the ordinary. They must prescribe medication to the mother to ensure she does not suffer from a post-birth infection, especially in the aftermath of a C-section.

Examples of Malpractice

Malpractice can occur in several ways, including physical harm to the mother or baby as the result of rough practices utilized by hospital staff during labor that can result in Erb’s Palsy or other bodily harm to the baby which may become permanent.

There are many potential complications stemming from improper medical care, such as an anesthesiologist administering the improper amount of medication or the wrong medication prior to a C-section. Medication may also be incorrectly prescribed to a mother following a birth, which can have disastrous results in the mother’s weakened condition.

In other cases, the mother or newborn may suffer an infection due to an unclean environment or improper management of the birthing area. Such infections can result in serious developmental issues in the baby and threaten the lives of both the mother and the baby.

Malpractice can occur due to any number of reasons – such as understaffing or full-blown negligence – however the reason doesn’t matter to the malpractice attorneys at Altman & Altman. We only care about ensuring that you are given proper legal representation to collect damages for insufficient treatment which resulted in serious medical consequences to the mother or newborn child.

We have over 50 years of experience advocating on behalf of patients who have suffered harm due to negligent healthcare facilities across Massachusetts and the Boston area, and we can help with your case too.

Call us for a free consultation to go over the details of your case today at 617.492.3000 or toll-free at 800.481.6199. We are available 24/7.