One of the most emotionally painful events that anyone can experience is a stillbirth. Stillbirth occurs when a baby dies prior to delivery and after 20 weeks gestation. While in most cases stillbirths happen before the mother goes into labor, a stillbirth can also happen during labor and delivery. Stillbirth affects about 1 in 100 pregnancies each year in New York and across the country. While there are numerous complications that can lead to stillbirth, far too often stillbirth could have been avoided but for the negligent care offered by a doctor or other medical professional. If your baby was stillborn and you believe that it was caused by your doctor’s negligent care, it is important that you immediately contact an experienced New York stillbirth lawyer as you may be entitled to compensation from the negligent doctor.
Negligent care that can lead to stillbirthPregnancy, labor and delivery are complicated. There are a variety of complications and injuries that can occur. However, it is expected that to doctors and other medical professionals charged with caring for pregnant women and their babies have the skill and knowledge to manage conditions and complications in a manner that minimizes the risk of a serious birth injury or still birth. Common medical negligence that can lead to stillbirth include:
If you believe that negligent care led to the stillbirth of your child, you have the right to seek compensation from the negligent doctor or hospital. Not surprisingly, medical professionals are often reluctant to admit fault due to the severe financial consequences related to medical malpractice claim. And in cases when they admit fault and offer a settlement, the settlement offer rarely is fair based on the extreme loss suffered by the parents. With the help of an experienced stillbirth attorney in New York, you can compel the negligent medical professional to pay your fair compensation for your loss.
To prevail in a medical malpractice claim based on a stillbirth, you must have evidence that your doctor’s care was substandard as compared to what a competent doctor would do under the same circumstances. For example, if the standard of care required the doctor to immediately deliver your baby by c-section, but instead your doctor first tried to induce labor for a vaginal delivery, and as a result your child passed away, there would likely be sufficient grounds for a medical malpractice case.
The experienced New York stillbirth attorneys at the Law Offices of Stephen Bilkis & Associates are well aware that stillbirth can be caused by the neglectful treatment of number conditions including a failure to monitor the baby or mother, delayed c-section, the negligent use of Pitocin, infections, gestation diabetes, and preeclampsia and eclampsia. Under New York law if the negligence of a doctor, nurse, or other medical professional led to your stillbirth, you may be entitled to compensation. Compensable damages include medical expenses, funeral and burial expenses, emotional suffering, and the loss of affection. Give us a call to discuss your case.
Contact the Law Offices of Stephen Bilkis & AssociatesIf your child was stillborn and you believe that it may be due to a mistake made by a medical professional, the stillbirth attorneys serving New York at the Law Offices of Stephen Bilkis & Associates have the skill, knowledge and resources to thoroughly investigate your case and determine if negligence was involved. Contact us a shoulder dystocia attorney at our New York office at 800.696.9529 to schedule a free, no obligation consultation regarding your case. We represent clients in the following locations: the Bronx, Brooklyn, Long Island, Manhattan, Nassau County, Queens, Staten Island, Suffolk County and Westchester County.