Planning the Best Course of Action
Imagine this scenario for a second. One day you are going about your day as usual and happen to stop by the grocery store to buy some treats for your grandchildren. As you are making your way through the grocery’s aisles, you accidentally step on a clear, oily liquid on the floor, slip, and fall seriously injuring your head and spine. After being taken to the hospital, you learn that you will not be able to walk due to medical errors. How would this experience change the quality of your life? What would be the repercussions to your financial status? What if this were to happen to your newborn child? The reality is that, if you are not equipped with knowledge about how to best approach this scenario, you could end up in a tragic situation in which your livelihood will be severely compromised as well as your health outcomes or those of your loved ones.
Unfortunately, these situations are more common than you think. At any moment, people can become victims of someone else’s negligence. This is true even in settings where trust is tremendously important as is in the medical field. In fact, medical negligence is among the top three causes of death in the US.
Medical negligence occurs when hospitals or health practitioners fail to execute care in a way that is not competent, judicious, or in the best interest of their patients. Many factors can contribute to medical malpractice. These factors can be internal or external. Internal factors are those inherent within the individual (e.g., lack of training or expertise). External factors are those pertaining to the environment (e.g., inadequate medical infrastructure). Notably, within the medical field, a study found that the largest percentage of medical professionals named as defendants in malpractice cases are those specializing in obstetrics, and in the majority of the cases, a claimant files due to injuries that occurred during labor and delivery. To that point, young children and particularly neonates have the highest injury rate and injury severity rate compared to older children and adolescents, which can have not only devastating but crippling effects on their physical, cognitive, and psychological development for years to come.
For this reason, it is important to have resources at your disposal that could help you navigate the complexities of a medical malpractice case. First, seek out the medical expertise from a professional that is well versed in your and your child’s particular situation. Secondly, consider the impact that a birth injury lawyer can have on the outcome of your emotional and financial well-being. They can bring you considerable peace of mind and economical relief, which could expand your or your child’s treatment options. Lastly, join a support group. Doing so can also have a positive, lasting effect on your case outcomes by providing you with a place where you can be heard, understood, and given additional resources from individuals who have already been in your shoes.
