Plaintiffs Seek $5 Million In New York Birth Injury Malpractice Lawsuit
On October 17, 2012, a mother and her infant daughter filed a New York birth injury malpractice lawsuit in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York. The plaintiffs bring claims against the United States of America and the Orange Regional Medical Center, alleging that the infant plaintiff suffered serious injuries as a result of medical negligence by a doctor at the medical center. The suit demands $5 million in damages.
Like many mothers who have given birth to children with birth defects, this plaintiff claims that had her doctor acted correctly, her child would not have suffered the injuries she now has.
Facts of the New York birth injury malpractice lawsuit
The plaintiffs are residents of the state of Pine Bush, New York. The Orange Regional Medical Center is located in Middletown, New York, Orange County. The physician defendant was duly licensed to practice medicine in the state of New York and maintained an office in Middletown.
According to court documents filed for this New York birth injury malpractice lawsuit, on July 30, 2011, the doctor and the medical center rendered medical care to the plaintiffs—namely, in performing the birth and delivery of the baby. During the course of the delivery, the child suffered a left brachial plexus injury and damage to the cervical nerves of the brachial plexus. The damage to these nerves left her with a condition known as Erb’s Palsy.
Because of this condition, the child has had to undergo subsequent treatment and therapy, and will likely have to continue to receive additional medical and therapeutic care.
Brachial plexus injury lawyer represents plaintiff in claims
Represented by her brachial plexus injury lawyer, the plaintiff claims that her doctor deviated from accepted standards of medical practice during the labor and delivery of her child. She states that the doctor used excessive and improper traction, pulling too hard on the infant when she was stuck in the birth canal.
The child suffered from shoulder dystocia, in which the shoulder becomes lodged under the pubic bone. Typically, doctors have standards of care that they are to follow to deliver a child under these conditions without injuring her. Yet the plaintiff claims that the doctor failed to use proper techniques, including failing to recommend a timely C-section.
Instead, the doctor allegedly used improper pressure in dislodging the child, causing injury to the brachial plexus, which is a cluster of nerves in the shoulder responsible for hand and arm movement.
Department of Health and Human Services denies plaintiffs’ claim
On March 19, 2012, the plaintiffs presented their claim to the Department of Health and Human Services, the appropriate federal agency. On July 11, 2012, the department issued a letter denying the plaintiff’s claim, stating, “The evidence fails to establish that the alleged injuries were due to the negligent or wrongful act or omission of a federal employee acting within the scope of employment.”
Having had their claim denied, the plaintiffs—represented by their brachial plexus injury lawyer—filed their New York birth injury malpractice lawsuit.
Contacting a brachial plexus injury lawyer
Other parents who feel that their doctors or other medical personnel were negligent during delivery may be eligible to file a New York birth injury malpractice lawsuit. The New York personal injury lawyers at the Sanders Firm have decades of experience representing cases like these. Even if your claim was denied by the Department of Health and Human Services, a brachial plexus injury lawyer can review the facts of your case to determine if you may be able to recover damages in court. Call The Sanders Firm today toll-free at: 1-800-FAIR PLAY.
