A multi-million dollar cerebral palsy medical malpractice lawsuit recently settled out of court. Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu, Hawaii ultimately paid a family $11 million dollars in the settlement following a series of serious medical errors resulting in severe brain damage to their child. The child, who was born in 2005, was deprived of oxygen at birth and now suffers from cerebral palsy. A breakdown in communication amongst doctors triggered an hour-long delivery in which the child was born with her umbilical cord wrapped tightly around her neck. Round-the-clock care will likely be required for the rest of her life. This medical negligence case was not the result of misdiagnosis, but rather stemmed from a failure by doctors to take essential steps quickly enough to help the child while she was in distress during birth. The series of medical errors continued when doctors tried to resuscitate the child after delivery but mistakenly pumped air into her stomach, instead of lungs, when the respiratory tube was placed in her esophagus by an inexperienced intern.
This is another suit following at least four other child-related medical negligence cases over the last decade in which Tripler has paid out claims of up to $16.5 million. Two of these medical malpractice cases were for children who suffered massive brain damage while being treated. A copy of the article regarding the case can be found here.
Almost all of the hospitals in the Baltimore area have faced allegations involving negligent delivery, including The Johns Hopkins Hospital and University of Maryland Medical Center. As an experienced Baltimore, Maryland medical malpractice lawyer, I have handled a number of medical malpractice cases involving birth injuries, which almost always involve permanent and severe disabilities. For families experiencing the devastation associated with a birth injury, it is important to bring suit because of the expense associated with long-term care of the child. These cases are extremely complicated and require expertise that most general personal injury attorneys do not have. To see some of the cases I have handled, click here.