Would I Have a Case for Hospital Negligence?

Question:

I went into labor and had my daughter without any of the doctors or nurses there. I informed the nurse that I felt like I needed to push & if she could get the OBGYN, she then checked me and said I wasn’t close to ready and didn’t need to bother the doctor. Five minutes later i’m screaming at the top of my lungs that she was coming & my daughter was born on the hospital bed, I couldn’t reach down to get her and she wasn’t screaming/crying. (I thought I had a still born because the sheets were over her head). The emergency button on the bed wasn’t working and they only came in after hearing my screams. I now have nightmares about the experience and it has affected my personal/marriage life. I have two other kids who’s births were great, but I now fear getting pregnant again because of their negligence.

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Answer:

I am sorry for the horrific experience you had with the labor and delivery of your third child.  It sounds as though your baby was born healthy, and although I know your experience was difficult, thank goodness that the baby is okay.  It is also very unusual that your labor would accelerate in the short time period and where you were left unchecked.  In Florida because we must have obstetrical experts even before bringing a malpractice suit the costs associated with taking civil actions are very high.  This means that we must have catastrophic physical injuries in order to cover the costs of the experts and the litigation before we can recover compensation for your injuries. The physical pain that you experienced would also not be an element of your recovery because you have chosen natural child birth in the past. Also, your recoverable damages would be limited to the time period from the birth of your daughter until the providers arrived and told you everything was okay.  Under these circumstances we would likely spend more on litigation costs and expert witnesses than we could recover.  I hope that your experience fades from your memory and that you are able to enjoy your new baby very soon.  Remember to seek the advice of your obstetrician in obtaining appropriate medical for yourself.   

This legal question was provided by Avvo and answered by Betsey Herd an experienced Tampa Medical Malpractice Lawyer.  This does not consent an attorney client relationship.