Wisconsin Woman Receives $18.2 Million in Birth Injury Case

(April 28, 2011) A birth injury
A settlement in the amount of $ 18.2 million dollars was awarded to a Wisconsin woman by the Federal government. The former Sinai-Samaritan Hospital in Milwaukee (which is federally funded) was found negligent in the birth injury case filed against them. According to the plaintiff, it was due to the “horrific care” that she received from the hospital that led her daughter to suffer permanent and severe brain damage.

The plaintiff claims that when she went to the former Sinai-Samaritan Hospital to deliver her baby, her risk of complications was not addressed, nor was she referred to a specialist despite the fact that she had been diagnosed with gestational diabetes and had a documented history of delivering above average weight babies. Instead, she was attended by a family practice doctor as well as midwives. Had her pre-registration notes been more closely read, she may have received the proper medical attention that she needed and avoided the birth injury that her daughter sustained.

In addition to not being properly directed to the correct personnel, according to testimony, she was left unattended for duration of over 12 hours even though she was already dilated. During the delivery process, the baby became lodged for over 20 minutes in the mother’s birth canal and it was due to the lack of oxygen during this traumatic time that the birth injuries
occurred. The majority of the $18.2 million that was awarded to the plaintiff will go to aiding in future medical costs that will surely incur with her 10 year old daughter’s birth injuries.

A trauma to the baby that occurs during the birth process is considered to be a birth injury. This injury is usually caused by a tremendous amount of pressure and stress being placed upon the baby while they are passing through the birth canal and can be caused by several factors. Such factors can include: premature birth, prolonged labor, a breech delivery and doctor’s procedures.

If your child has sustained a birth injury and you feel that it could have been prevented, please contact a birth injury attorney
for a consultation to see if you may have a case.

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