Could My Premature Infant’s Death Be Caused By Medical Malpractice?

 Posted on April 07, 2022 in Birth Injury

Infants who are born prematurely face a challenging set of health and developmental hurdles that their fully-developed peers do not. Doctors, nurses, and other neonatal care staff must provide the highest standard of care to ensure that prematurely born babies are given the tender care and cautious monitoring that they need during this fragile stage of life. Unfortunately, carelessness or negligent mistakes can contribute to neonatal injuries and death, leaving bereaved parents with an overwhelming feeling of confusion or loss. 

Negligence and Neonatal Intensive Care

The vulnerability of prematurely born infants naturally exposes them to risks and dangers. Sometimes, even with the best care possible, babies are seriously injured or die. But when doctors and other medical providers make ICU errors, parents may be able to recover damages in a medical malpractice lawsuit. Common examples of neonatal ICU errors include: 

• Failure to diagnose or treat a condition 
• Failure to appropriately monitor an infant’s heart rate
• Failure to order tests, or incorrectly interpreting tests
• Errors with medical equipment, such as ventilators and intubators 
• Failure to prevent, diagnose, or treat infections 
• Medication errors, especially wrong dosage 
• Improper charting or record-keeping 

Even in healthy adults, these mistakes can cause serious problems; in premature infants, however, a small error can quickly snowball into dangerous territory. 

Premature Birth Risk Factors

When a mother or infant is at risk for premature birth, doctors must be on the alert and advise patients carefully to ensure they know the best practices to protect their unborn child’s health. Common risk factors for premature births include, but are not limited to: 

• Drinking and smoking during pregnancy
• Women under age 16 or over age 35
• Women in lower socio-economic groups 
• Preeclampsia
• Diabetes
• Obesity
• Previous premature births
• A mother pregnant with multiples 

While not all preterm births can be prevented, the risks inherent with preterm labor can often be avoided by ordering necessary precautions, such as bedrest. When a child is born early because of the negligent actions of a doctor, they may require expensive, long-term medical care. Parents may be able to recover the cost of this care through various resources, including a lawsuit for compensation against medical staff. An experienced Chicago birth injuries attorney can help parents explore their options. 

Call an Illinois Birth Injuries Lawyer Now 

At Birth Injury Law Alliance, Ltd., our compassionate Illinois birth injury lawyers know that the avoidable injury or death of an infant is one of the most painful things a parent can experience. If you have suffered the loss or serious injury of your little one because of medical malpractice, consider meeting with someone on our skilled team of attorneys. We have helped grieving families recover compensation and, by bringing attention to and ensuring consequences for poor infant medical care, helped ensure such incidents do not happen in the future. Call us now at 312-462-4200. 

Source: 

https://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/preterm/conditioninfo/who_risk