Articles Posted in Westchester County

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A couple of Jewish and Eastern European descent sued an obstetrician-gynecologist for medical malpractice because their child was born with Tay-Sachs. Tay-Sachs is a hereditary disorder of the nervous system that is carried by those of Jewish Eastern European descent. It is the couple’s contention that the obstetrician-gynecologist while looking after and examining the wife during her pregnancy should have known that they were prime candidates to be carriers of the dread genetic disease. They insist that the obstetrician-gynecologist should have ordered them tested and their fetus screened for it. For had the couple known that they were carriers and that their baby had the gene responsible for the Tay-Sachs disease, they would have aborted the baby to prevent the extreme pain and suffering the child underwent. Their child was born on August 21, 1972 and died even before reaching age 2 on June 26, 1974.

The parents sued the obstetrician-gynecologist for damages for the personal injury consisting of emotional distress at their child’s suffering and her death; they also sued for the pain and anguish they felt at her untimely death. They also ask for compensation for their baby’s medical, hospital, nursing and funeral expenses.

The obstetrician-gynecologist moved for the dismissal of the case stating that the parents do not have any right to be compensated for the pain and suffering of their child.

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New approaches to preventing preterm birth and related complications were discussed at the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) 59th Annual Clinical Meeting. In particular, studies of cutting-edge technology that may lead to an approach for the prevention of cerebral palsy were highlighted.

“Preterm birth is one of the most challenging problems,” one of the doctors said, and a New York Birth Injury Lawyer reiterated that the “frequency of preterm birth in the United States has remained unchanged over the past 2 decades, remaining at 12% overall and 20% in underserved populations.”

Worldwide estimates, including ones in Westchester and Staten Island, indicate that 30 million preterm babies are born annually, with both short- and long-term complications. It was reported at the Congress that no single test can predict all preterm births, and no singular treatment or prevention strategy will eradicate preterm birth. There are, however, two factors that are very strongly associated with preterm birth. A short cervix (a cervix < 15 mm in length) increases the risk for preterm birth by 50%. Also, progesterone deficiency is implicated in both preterm birth and short cervix.

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In most hospitals, delivering babies is a standard routine. For babies born with brain injuries in the Fort Myers area, however, there was a very limited scope of professional ability available. Until now, that is. The Children’s Hospital Health Park is now hoping to grant the possibility of a normal life to families of birth injurynewborns.

Sports fans are not likely to forget the image of NFL player Kevin Everitt lying motionless on the football field – lying motionless because he was paralyzed from the neck down. On the way to the ER, his doctor made a decision that was gutsy and has been the instigator of several new studies and findings. The doctor decided to lower the NFL star’s body temperature to reduce the swelling around the spinal cord. That drastic decision has allowed the player to make an outstanding recovery.

Now, doctors at the Health Park hospital are using that same idea in the hopes of saving babies born with brain injuries. 

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The videoing of a child’s birth is a long standing tradition for many families. It’s been permitted for decades, but there is increasing debate in hospitals now about whether or not parents should be allowed to do so. 

One mother filled photo albums with the births of her first three children, but during the birthof her fourth, her doctor at Baptist Desoto ordered all cameras out of the delivery room.  She said the nurses told her that they don’t allow pictures.

She now laments the one missing photo album for her youngest child. 

According to a doctor with the U.T. Medical Group, in the age of social media and cell phones, what happened to that mother could become the norm. “Now it becomes an issue on a daily basis, you know, people whipping out their phones besides even the regular video camera,” she said. Social media sites, with their naturally open sharing, are urging hospitals to rethink the recording of the delivery room process.  

”I think social media has brought a whole new dimension into the healthcare environment,” a representative of Baptist Memorial Hospital said. At Baptist’s 14 facilities in Tennessee, Mississippi, and Arkansas each hospital sets its own policy on cameras in the delivery room.  

Currently, a hospital official says, they do not have a system wide video or picture taking policy for the delivery room, and there is no national policy, either. 

At The MED, cameras are allowed, but if complications arise, they can be banned at a moment’s notice. 

Why all the scrutiny, and why are hospitals seemingly acting harshly when it comes to preserving a beautiful moment? It is because childbirth videos regularly show up in medical malpractice suits, and studies show obstetricians are sued more often than any other specialty doctors. On attorney says, “Everybody knows that pictures speak for themselves.”

The mother in this story says that doctor’s disallowed her camera because she was a high risk patient. Subsequently, the first picture she has with her daughter was taken two hours after she was born. 

Professional birth photographer Brandy Kemp hopes the advent of technology doesn’t force further restrictions.  “It would be devastating to some families if they couldn’t record that actual event,” she said. Hospitals in New York City and Westchester are investigating this situation.

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A suit filed by the family and legal counsel of a four-year-old boy was settled last week for €800,000. The boy’s right arm was paralyzed because of injuries incurred during his birth.

The Justice who approved the boy’s settlement said, “it was a perfectly fair and reasonable settlement.”

The boy, suing through his mother, filed against those who were found responsible for causing a severe birth injury that resulted in five spinal nerves being damaged. The consultant obstetrician based at Mount Carmel Hospital, on Braemor Rd, in Church town, Co Dublin, was found reasonably responsible.

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When a doctor mistakenly allows a mother to go forward with a home birth, the child was left severely disabled. The doctor was proven to have failed in finding that the mother had developed gestational diabetes, a condition that often requires a caesarean delivery in a hospital at 36 weeks gestation.

Because of the mother’s condition, her son weighed a very large 11lb 8oz and became stuck during the normal delivery process. The boy went without oxygen for 20 minutes. Because the mother was at home, there was no specialist team or equipment to resuscitate the boy.

The family’s lawyer said, “If the condition had been identified, the mother would have been advised to give birth at a hospital, in an environment where all necessary support and equipment is available to deal with emergencies like hers which would have made all the difference.

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The victim of birth injury that occurred at Mullingar General Hospital received an interim of €1.35 million settlement as a result of negligence and a severe breach of duty. The child’s guardians hired a lawyer.

In this four-year old’s case, the Health Service Executive and obstetrician admitted liability after he was accused of negligence in the circumstances surrounding Luke’s birth. A person in the know reports that the mother stated the child was healthy when she was admitted to the hospital on February 28, 2006.

Based on the reports, the consultant obstetrician at Mullingar allegedly failed to note a decrease in the child’s heart rate on a cardiotocographic trace. It was also reported that the same doctor failed to consider another abnormal CTG trace and then failed to carry out a Cesarean section. Instead, he ordered that a labor inducing drug, known as Syntocin, be given to the mother of the victim.

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A Lawyer from Leeds is urging the NHS to take measures to reduce the number of babies born and affected by trauma at birth. The firm representing the family of a five-year-old birth injury victim recently spoke out during National Birth Trauma Awareness Week.

The young girl suffered brain damage when she was born at St James’s Hospital. She now suffers from athetoid cerebral palsy, which has left her with no control over her arms or legs. She also struggles to eat, cannot sit up unsupported and has limited vocabulary. Though she is very bright and can operate her wheelchair and communication aids, her limitations necessitate 24-hour care.

A Leeds charity SNAPS provides hydrotherapy which seems to be helping the youngster. The child’s mother is a trustee of SNAPS.

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A new fund was recently set up in the 2011-2012 New York State Medical Budget which will have the state, not hospitals, cover all medical costs for families with children suffering from brain injuries that follow birth complications caused by medical error.

According to a person in the know, New York’s newly established neurological fund will cover medical costs for children who have suffered brain or spinal cord injuries “caused by the deprivation of oxygen or mechanical injury in the course of labor, delivery or resuscitation – or by other medical services provided or not provided during delivery.”

New York is slated to contribute $30 million to the fund in its first year and increasing that contribution to $70 million in its second and third years. By its fourth year, the state will be contributing $100 million annually to the fund.

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A severely brain damaged teenager was awarded £6.6 million for injuries he received at birth.

The 19-year-old Oxford native was born at the city’s John Radcliffe Hospital in November 1991 and was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and mental impairment. He has a near normal life expectancy and full awareness of his disabilities and of the comparison between himself and others.

A New York Birth Injury Lawyer interested in the prolonged court cases of some birth injury claims heard that this young man was able to use most forms of assistive technology and was likely to be greatly helped by specialist equipment and care, but he would never be independent, would never enter the paid work force and would need assistance 24 hours a day.

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