(908)402-4770Medical malpractice, especially when it results in birth injuries, is a heartbreaking tragedy. The repercussions of such negligence can cut short or permanently impair the quality of a young life. Families shattered by unforeseen medical errors during childbirth may feel powerless in the face of this devastation. A New Jersey personal injury attorney can help the families of birth injury victims secure the financial compensation needed to care for their injured child.
Understanding Birth Injury Cases in New Jersey
Birth injuries often stem from complications during labor and delivery, affecting the newborn. However, the term “birth injury” extends beyond these moments, encompassing medical errors that can occur before labor begins or within a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), further endangering fragile newborns.
In obstetrics, we entrust healthcare providers with the well-being of both the mother and the baby. Negligence in this dual responsibility can cause severe injuries. Standards within the obstetric community dictate proper monitoring of both the fetus and mother throughout labor and delivery.
Adequate monitoring is crucial to ensuring the health of both, minimizing the stress of labor, and maximizing the chances of a healthy delivery.
Obstetrical malpractice during labor may involve various failures, such as improper monitoring, misinterpretation of collected information, and incorrect treatment decisions, including the timing and necessity of a C-section delivery. The responsibility for meeting the standard of care extends to prenatal care, where negligence can also lead to medical malpractice.
If you suspect medical negligence as the cause of your family’s suffering, seeking advice from experienced obstetrician malpractice attorneys is crucial.
Types of Birth Injuries
There are numerous types of birth injuries that occur in hospitals across New Jersey. certain types of birth injuries are more prevalent than others. These include paralysis, movement disorders, brain damage, cognitive defects, broken bones, skull fractures, and serious infections.
The precarious nature of labor and childbirth poses risks not only to the baby but also to the laboring mother. A doctor’s malpractice during birth can cause lasting damage to the mother, including nerve injuries, soft tissue tears, fistulas, sterility, postpartum hemorrhage, and, in extreme cases, death.
Infant Wrongful Death Claims
In the most tragic instances of obstetrical malpractice, a doctor’s errors can lead to the loss of an innocent life. For families enduring this profound grief, understanding the medical jargon in hospital charts and gaining clarity on what transpired can provide a measure of closure.
Birth Defects and Brain Damage
Birth defects, while chronic, vary in severity. Some, like ventricular heart defects and holoprosencephaly, can be fatal or significantly shorten a person’s lifespan. Conditions such as Cystic Fibrosis, Tay-Sachs disease, and Down Syndrome require lifelong care, imposing economic and emotional stresses on both the affected individuals and their families.
Brain damage during or after birth poses significant challenges for families. Adequate and timely treatment is essential, as certain situations during pregnancy or delivery may cause a traumatic injury to the child’s brain. Lack of oxygen during birth, leading to hypoxia and potential asphyxia, is often linked to brain damage, resulting in neurological impairment.
Additional Types of Birth Injuries
Many specific birth injuries can occur because of the negligence of medical care providers and/or hospitals. Examples include Bell’s Palsy, Cerebral Palsy (CP), failure to perform a C-section, fetal distress, cystic fibrosis, Down syndrome, and forceps injuries, among others.
The legal journey for families affected by birth injuries is complex but necessary. Seeking the expertise of qualified New Jersey birth injury attorneys can provide the guidance and support needed to navigate this challenging terrain and pursue justice for your child’s future.
Birth Injury Statute Of Limitations
While the consequences of birth injuries may last a lifetime, seeking justice in the court system has a time limit. Birth injury malpractice cases, like other medical malpractice claims in New Jersey, are subject to a statute of limitations. Typically, this deadline is two years.
However, for minors, the limitations period does not begin to run until the child turns 18.
However, waiting until adulthood to seek legal recourse is not advisable. Given the complexity of laws surrounding medical malpractice, early engagement with a lawyer is the best course. Delays could impact the success of a malpractice claim. Memories fade and losing vital medical records needed as evidence is possible.
Acting promptly not only safeguards your child’s legal rights but also ensures a swifter resolution, increasing the likelihood of your child’s successful recovery.
The New Jersey Tort Claims Act (TCA) and Birth Injury Claims
New Jersey’s Tort Claims Act (TCA) (N.J.S.A. 59:3-1) might come as a surprise when filing a birth injury lawsuit. The TCA is a law that grants immunity from lawsuits to government entities and their employees, but there are some exceptions.
One of these exceptions is the 90-day notice requirement. This means that if you want to sue a public entity or employee for medical malpractice/birth injury, you must give them notice within 90 days after the incident occurred. The notice should include details about the claim, including the claimant’s name, address, date, place, and circumstances of the incident.
The TCA becomes relevant to medical malpractice/birth injury claims because of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ). UMDNJ was a state-run health sciences school, and doctors affiliated with it were subject to the TCA’s protections (even when they provided care at private hospitals). UMDNJ was dissolved in 2013. However, some of its schools became affiliated with Rutgers University, which is also state-run. Therefore, claims against Rutgers University are subject to the TCA’s notice requirements.
Consequently, if the doctor or resident who provided negligent care to your child was affiliated with Rutgers University, even at a private hospital, you may need to follow the TCA’s notice requirements. This can be challenging, especially if your child’s medical ordeal prevented you from seeking legal advice within the 90-day timeframe.
Fortunately, the TCA, and cases that have dealt with the 90-day notice in medical malpractice claims, provide that an injured person may file a notice up to one year after the accrual of a claim in cases of “extraordinary circumstances.”
The Supreme Court has not defined “extraordinary circumstances” but leaves it to courts to decide on a case-by-case basis.
Experienced and Knowledgeable New Jersey Birth Injury Lawyers
If your child has suffered a birth injury because of a medical professional or hospital’s negligence, you need an experienced New Jersey birth injury attorney. Call the lawyers at Schiller, Pittenger & Galvin, P.C. at 908-402-04770 at our Scotch Plains office or contact us online for a free consultation.