$4.5 Million For Mother Who Lost Baby From Delay In Medical Care

Paramedics, who are generally the first on the scene of a medical emergency need to provide treatment that meets the applicable standard of care. Their ability to notice symptoms, to make fast and accurate decisions as to whether to contact a physician for guidance, whether to administer drugs or perform a procedure at the scene, and whether to transport the patient at once to a hospital, and even which hospital to choose, can actually make all the difference. In what follows we look at a case in which paramedics responded to a pregnant woman who had experienced a placental abruption at almost full term of her pregnancy. By the time the paramedics arrived at the house the woman was in shock because of abrupt blood loss caused by a placental abruption. The paramedics did not realize the severity of the circumstance and took roughly eighteen minutes prior to taking her to the hospital.

The case claimed that the failure on the part of the paramedics to take quick action leaded to a delay of at least 18 minutes. In this time the baby's oxygen supply was appreciably restricted due to the loss of blood from the placental abruption.. The newborn past away the day after being delivered. The mother required further surgery for the severe bleeding she experienced. The bleeding was so major that she temporarily lost kidney function. The law firm that handled the case named the paramedics in the lawsuit.

Each State has its own individual laws for medical malpractice and wrongful death claims. A number of States have laws which permit only the mother to go forward with a claim for the death of her baby by reason of malpractice. In the State where this case arose the legal requirements for a mother to pursue a claim for the emotional harm she experienced due to her baby's death are as follow. First, that the mother suffered a physical injury. Second, that the injury was one that would normally not happen in a normal childbirth. And third, that the injury to the mother was caused by the same act of malpractice that resulted in the baby's death. After six months following the death of her child, began enduring grave depression which, despite a regimen of therapy and medication, lasted through the time of the law firm's report and will need the ongoing use of medication. The mother met those requirements.|All 3 requisites were met in this case.|With the injuries the woman herself sustained as a result of the delay by the paramedics, she was able to pursue a lawsuit.

The law firm was able to report that they took the case to trial and achieved a verdict of $4.5 million on behalf of the mother. Paramedics are health care providers. Paramedics are trained and they are licensed. They are supposed to be able to identify signs of emergency health issues and to take proper and timely action. If they do not and their actions fall short of the applicable standard of care, they can be liable.

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