Settlement of $6 Million - Hospital Negligence

Our clients were a full term pregnant mother and her baby. The mother had presented with contractions to the defendant hospital on three separate occasions but was sent home each time.

The next day, the mother returned to the hospital and was admitted to the Labor and Delivery unit after being determined to be in early labor. Following admission, the mother was started on epidural anesthesia, administered oxygen and started on a medication known as a Pitocin to augment her labor.

Early the next morning, a resident physician performed an artificial rupture of membranes to induce labor. In doing so, meconium was detected. At approximately this same time, the patient was noted to be showing evidence of persisting fetal distress on a fetal heart monitor. Despite these findings of fetal heart distress, the patient was not evaluated by a physician for several hours. The mother was allowed to deliver her baby vaginally.

Following the delivery, our client’s baby was noted to be in severe respiratory distress and ultimately diagnosed with hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy and eventually cerebral palsy.

Michels & Lew filed an action against the hospital alleging negligent care by the resident physician. The hospital denied any liability and also claimed that the baby’s neurological injuries occurred before admission to the hospital and that the baby had a significantly shortened life expectancy reducing the cost of future medical care.

Michels & Lew recovered $6,000,000.00 on behalf of our clients.