A jury awarded $78.5 million to a mother whose 3-year-old son suffers from cerebral palsy. Jurors determined that faulty diagnostic procedures at Pottstown Memorial Medical Center inear Philadelphia caused the boy to be deprived of oxygen during labor.
Evidence presented during trial indicated that the mother-to-be arrived at the hospital with signs of complications, and medical experts testified that a prompt delivery could have averted problems. The physician attending the birth inaccurately determined that the baby had died in the womb after performing an ultrasound, however.
Another ultrasound was performed by other hospital staff, and a fetal heartbeat was detected. Finally, after more than an hour had passed from the initial ultrasound, an emergency Cesarean section was conducted, but the damage had been done.
The lawyer for the mother argued that the hospital was negligent for not providing a trained ultrasound technician and for using out-of-date equipment. The jury agreed.
Our firm is pleased with the outcome of this case and tip our caps to the mother’s attorney for successfully litigating a complicated medical malpractice case. With this jury award, the mother will have the resources to take care of her permanently disabled child.
To learn more about cerebral palsy and other related birth injuries, take a moment to read this article written by an experienced Virginia medical malpractice attorney.
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