Labor and Delivery Nurse Malpractice

Nurses typically play an essential part in helping deliver babies in hospitals, and in many instances, they are the primary healthcare professionals tending to mothers in labor. Labor and delivery nurses have a duty to protect the health of their patients, and when nurses fail to provide competent care, it can lead to birth injuries that cause significant and lasting harm. If your child suffered an injury at birth due to labor and delivery nurse malpractice, it is in your best interest for you to speak to a lawyer to discuss your potential claims. The assertive Baltimore birth injury attorneys of Arfaa Law Group are mindful of the devastation an infant’s unexpected injury can cause. If you engage our services we will develop a strategy that aims to help you seek any recoverable damages for your child’s harm.

Labor and delivery nurses are usually responsible for monitoring the progression of a mother’s labor, checking the vital signs of both a mother and her unborn child, administering medications, and communicating any issues or cause for concern to a mother’s doctor. Thus, if a labor and delivery nurse fails to thoroughly complete any of his or her duties, it can lead to a birth injury. For example, if a nurse administers the incorrect medication or too much or too little of the correct medication, it can cause serious health issues. Additionally, if a nurse fails to notice significant changes in the vital signs of a mother or unborn child, or fails to communicate any changes to the mother’s doctor, it can lead to significant complications, such as the child being deprived of oxygen which can lead to brain damage, cerebral palsy, and seizure disorders.

In Maryland, people harmed by the negligent acts of healthcare providers, which include nurses, can seek damages for their harm via a medical malpractice lawsuit. To prove a labor and delivery nurse should be held liable for negligence, a plaintiff must first prove that the nurse violated the applicable standard of care. Thus, the plaintiff usually must retain an expert that practices in the same field to explain the standard of care, which is the care that a reasonably competent labor and delivery nurse would provide in similar circumstances. The expert must also explain why a nurse’s acts or failure to act should be considered a departure from the standard of care. The plaintiff must also show that the nurse’s breach of the standard of care caused the infant’s birth injury, which typically requires expert testimony as well. While a nurse’s breach does not have to be the sole cause of the infant’s harm, the evidence must show that the harm would not have occurred absent the breach.

A plaintiff that successfully proves liability may be awarded compensation for the economic and non-economic harm caused by the nurse’s negligence. Notably, both a child that has suffered a birth injury and the child’s parents may be able to recover damages. However, the time frame within with a child’s claim and parents’ claims must be pursued differ. Specifically, parents’ claims must be filed within three years of the injury or within five years of when the injury is discovered, whichever is shorter, while an injured child can pursue claims up until three years after they turn 18.

Nurses are often tasked with caring for mothers in labor and helping them deliver their children, but not all nurses provide attentive care, and sadly labor and delivery nurse malpractice causes many birth injuries. If your child sustained a birth injury because of inadequate care provided by a nurse, you and your child might be able to recover damages, and you should speak to a lawyer. At Arfaa Law Group, our attorneys have the skillset and resources needed to help you seek justice for your losses, and we will work diligently on your behalf. We have an office in Baltimore, where we frequently represent parties in birth injury lawsuits. You can reach us via our form online or at 410-889-1850 to set up a meeting.