Can You Sue a Hospital for Cerebral Palsy?

A hospital may be held responsible for problems with the care it provided.

Some claims may focus on the mistakes made by hospital staff. Others would look at the allegedly poor staffing, weak supervision, defective equipment, or hospital rules that may have affected the care.

A state court decision addressed a birth injury malpractice claim based on allegedly negligent care before, during, or after birth.

Hospitals are not always the only ones that may be involved. Another case discussed claims regarding doctors, nurses, hospitals, and other medical staff.

The chart may help show how the care unfolded. It may document what the doctors and nurses saw. It may also record what the providers did and what treatment the child received.

Pregnancy and delivery records are relevant to the case. These may include fetal monitoring records and medication charts. Other evidence may include delivery notes, newborn care records, lab results, or imaging.

A federal appeals court opinion discussed the use of prenatal, labor and delivery, and neonatal records in a birth injury claim. Experts may also rely on those documents to learn the sequence of events.

Not all complications are immediately apparent. Some diagnoses may come months or years later. In that situation, the medical history could be worth looking at. It may help describe how the later findings may relate to labor, delivery, or newborn care.

Cerebral palsy can affect a child in different ways. SUNY Upstate Medical University listed possible signs. These include delayed milestones and stiff or weak muscles. Other signs could be trouble walking, speech problems, learning difficulties, and tremors.

Doctors may go over the medical history of the child and current symptoms. They may also make use of physical examination, motor and reflex testing, MRI, or CT scans.

To sue a hospital for cerebral palsy, a family would generally need more than proof of the diagnosis. The evidence must support a relationship between negligent hospital care and the brain injury.

Common Hospital Errors That Lead to Cerebral Palsy

Certain birth injury claims focus on how hospital staff have responded when issues developed during labor or delivery.

Potential concerns may include:

• A delayed response to fetal distress

• Waiting too long to perform a C-section

• Missing signs of an umbilical cord problem

• Delayed treatment of a maternal infection

• Improper use of forceps or a vacuum

• Pitocin-related problems

• Placental problems that were not handled in time

• Abnormal fetal heart-rate changes that were missed

Medical research assessed malpractice risks involving failure to recognize or respond promptly to signs of fetal distress.

The timing of care may be concerning once a C-section is needed. This study looked at the birth injuries after fetal compromise had already been recognized and delivery was delayed.

In one reported Michigan case, the family allegedly claimed that hospital staff delayed a C-section. The child later had serious brain damage and cerebral palsy. A jury reportedly returned a verdict for the family. However, the hospital disputed the result and said it planned to appeal.

Maternal complications can raise different concerns. One court decision dealt with claims that a complication was not diagnosed or treated soon enough.

The labor itself may also be assessed, especially if it was long or difficult. An Ohio case dealt with claims of delayed monitoring or treatment during labor.

Some cases would also involve HIE, or hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy. This court decision addressed claims that delays in care contributed to HIE.

The communication between the delivery team may also be reviewed. The available records may show whether a provider noticed a serious problem. They may also show how quickly the other medical providers were told.

Staffing records can add more details to the context. These may tell who was available and how fast a doctor responded. Still, those details alone do not directly prove any negligence.

Other hospital issues may come under assessment as well. A family considering a cerebral palsy lawsuit against a hospital would need strong medical evidence linking the alleged failure to the child’s injury.

Accountability may depend on who provided the care and the role of each person in the scene.

For a doctor, the focus may be on the treatment choice. A decision error or delayed care by the doctor may also be examined. Claims against hospitals may be different. Staff actions, supervision, equipment, or hospital policies may be reviewed.

More than one party may be held liable for the same case. The doctor’s care may be assessed separately from the hospital’s staffing or monitoring. State law and the doctor’s relationship with the hospital may also influence the liability.

Nursing care may also be important to review. The records may show some issues with monitoring, medication, communication, or reporting concerns.

Each person or facility may have a different part in the patient’s care. The evidence has to be assessed in each context.

Being treated at a hospital does not necessarily make the hospital liable. The available evidence must still support a legal basis for the claim.

There is no single deadline available for every cerebral palsy case. State law will set the time limit.

Different rules may apply when the harmed person is a child. The deadline may also depend on when the injury happened.

Some brain injuries may not be visible at birth. Research on birth injury claims discussed that some birth-related brain injuries may become noticeable only after a child misses some developmental milestones.

A late diagnosis does not guarantee a family additional time in the filing process. The rule would depend on the state and the type of claim.

How long you can wait to sue a hospital for cerebral palsy also can vary by case. Checking the deadline early may help avoid some filing problems.

Waiting can make a case harder to review. Records may be lost. Memories fade, and other evidence may become harder to find.

The losses claimed in a cerebral palsy case can differ greatly from one family to another.

Depending on the facts and state law, claimed damages may relate to any of the following:

• Past medical bills

• Care the child may need in the future

• Therapy for movement, speech, or daily skills

• Wheelchairs or other mobility aids

• Equipment for daily needs

• Changes to the home or car

• Help at home

• Income a parent or caregiver had to give up

• Extra help with school

A serious disability may change the type of support a child would require over time. It may also affect the child’s ability to perform certain activities independently.

Some states allow claims for the child’s pain, suffering, or other non-economic losses. However, the rules can vary by state.

Permanent or long-term care can also become a major part of the claim. A child may require therapy, medical visits, equipment, transportation, or additional regular help.

School needs may also evolve. Some children may need much more focused classroom support. Others may need additional communication assistance for years.

Case value may depend on how the injury affects everyday life. Medical opinions and future care plans may help estimate future needs.

However, compensation is not guaranteed. The amount may still depend on how severe the injury is. It may also depend on the future care, causation, and insurance coverage.

Families may not always know if the hospital made some preventable errors.

The assessment may focus on the pregnancy, labor, delivery, and newborn care. The fetal monitoring, medication, imaging, and treatment timing may be examined.

Medical expert testimony is important. One birth injury case discussed expert testimony on the applicable standard of care and whether a failure in care caused the injury.

Parents may be asked during the review what they remember about the delivery. What doctors told them and when they first noticed concerns may help identify relevant records or questions for further investigation.

The legal team may then compare those records with the diagnosis of the child and the current needs. From there, they may also decide if further assessment is needed.

Families do not need to know on their own whether negligence may have happened before speaking with a lawyer. A case review may help describe whether negligence occurred.

A free consultation may be helpful as part of an initial step. It does not directly require the family to file a lawsuit.

Families who believe that hospital negligence may have contributed to a cerebral palsy birth injury can request a free consultation.

Get a Free Consultation for a Cerebral Palsy Birth Injury Lawsuit