Irwin Mitchell helped to secure compensation for a young woman after she suffered birth injuries.
Jo, a former Armed Forces servicewoman, suffered complications during the birth of her first child which left her needing months of treatment and a permanent colostomy (an operation to divert a section of the large intestine). A settlement was achieved after the NHS Trust responsible for her care admitted failings in dealing with her condition.
Jo had a normal pregnancy and gave birth to her first child by a forceps delivery. Following the birth, no problems were identified.
A couple of days after Jo was discharged from hospital, she was examined by a community midwife who saw signs of infection. Jo was immediately referred back to the hospital and reviewed by a Consultant Obstetrician. It was found that the episiotomy had completely broken down and there was evidence of a fourth degree tear and significant injury.
Jo had to endure several extensive surgeries to repair the damage caused. Sadly, Jo’s injuries meant that she had to give up her career in the Armed Forces.
Medical evidence gathered by Irwin Mitchell found that had an adequate examination and repair been performed at the time of delivery, Jo would have avoided the infection as well as the need for the colostomy and other procedures to later repair the damage.
The local NHS Trust acknowledged that they had negligently failed to diagnose the tear at the time of birth and apologised for their actions. Negotiations took place and compensation was awarded with the assistance of specialist medical negligence solicitors at Irwin Mitchell.
Anna Vroobel, a medical negligence solicitor who specialises in birth injury claims at Irwin Mitchell said: “Jo was young woman who was looking forward to being a mum for the first time but sadly, because of failure to properly examine and treat her following the birth, she sustained significant injuries. Most importantly for Jo, she was unable to fully enjoy those first months with her child.
“With better care at the time of the birth these problems could have been avoided and Jo would not have had to bring this legal case. Patient safety needs to be the number one priority and we hope that the Trust has reviewed what happened in this case to learn important lessons for the future.”
Anna Vroobel worked under the supervision of Partner Amanda Stevens.
If you or a family member suffered injuries during pregnancy or birth you might be entitled to claim. Visit our Pregnancy Claims or Birth Injury Claims pages for more information.
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