It comes as a surprise to few people that the U.S. healthcare industry is a mess. But the unacceptably high risk of birth injuries to infants and mothers has become a national embarrassment.

Most Recently, Florida Atlantic University reports that, while infant mortality rates have fallen, the number of low-birth-weight and preterm births has actually risen in recent years.

And the New York Times recently published an exhaustive study that found even wealthy black children and mothers face significantly higher risks. Our birth injury lawyers in Fort Myers and Cape Coral also note that the risks of all mothers and newborns is highest in the days after they return home. The Times investigation found that deaths among pregnant and new mothers rose sharply during the pandemic.

“Maternal health is widely seen as a key indicator of a society’s overall well-being. Even before the pandemic hit, the United States was the most dangerous place in the industrialized world to have a baby, with the greatest risks concentrated in Black and Native American communities,” The Times reported.

Birth Injuries

Several years ago, U.S. News and World Reports found the United States was the most dangerous place in the developed world in which to give birth, with more than 50,000 mothers suffering severe injuries during child birth. Better care could have reduced injuries and deaths by more than half.

Additionally, Psychology Today reports many mental health consequences of birth trauma. Self-blame, fear of a new pregnancy, anxiety and post-partum depression are common.

Our birth injury lawyers note the most common types of injuries to mother and child include:

Brachial palsy
Forecep injuries
Fractures
Facial paralysis
Eclampsia and pre-eclampsia
Hemorrhaging
C-section complications
Complications of prolonged labor
Caput succedaneum
Cephalohematoma
Post-birth mental health issues

Unfortunately, new parents cannot often count on doctors and hospitals to disclose when a serious mistake has occurred. In fact, they will likely be charged additional medical fees, and face longer hospital stays, as healthcare professionals attempt to reverse the damage. This is hardly an atmosphere in which we can expect substantial improvement in the care of mothers and infants. Those who face serious medical complications or injuries to mother and child are best severed by contacting an experienced birth injury law firm in Southwest Florida with the resources and experience to handle these complex cases.

Access to the financial resources to battle against large hospital operators and their lawyers and insurance companies can be key to successfully fighting for the rights of parents and families in such cases. So too is the access to medical experts who understand the issues and the likelihood of future medical complications. Only by building a case for all of the economic and non-economic damages – both present and future- that a family is entitled to, can these cases prevail in the negotiating room or in the courtroom.

If you or a loved one is injured, call Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner, Attorneys for the Injured, at 1-800-646-1210.