Hundreds of years ago, childbirth posed a significant risk to both the lives of the mother and child. While advances in medicine have made delivery safer, labor and delivery are not without risk. Texas patients, as well as their families, expect that their medical care providers will adequately diagnose and treat complications that arise from the birth of a child. Unfortunately, a recent wrongful death lawsuit filed out-of-state claims that the medical care team treating one woman failed to do so.
The case involves a 26-year-old woman who had recently given birth by Cesarean section. Because of complications due to a postpartum hemorrhage, she was placed in the intensive care unit, where she passed away. Her husband claims that the doctor failed to check her vital signs and left her bedside too soon.
The doctor argues that the woman's condition had stabilized when he left the hospital. The problem stems from nurses who, he claims, did not contact him about the woman's deteriorating condition in a timely manner. A jury has recently ruled in favor of the man, awarding him and his two young sons $2 million. The hospital, noting that the doctor and nurses who provided care for the deceased woman are no longer on staff, settled for $3.2 million instead of going to trial.
While it is not uncommon for people to make mistakes, the failure to provide adequate medical care can have devastating consequences, as evidenced by this case. Perhaps because of the negligence of medical care personnel, a woman died and a man is left raising his two young children on his own. While the award of damages in the wrongful death case will not lessen their grief, it will help them cope with the financial consequences of their loss. For some families in Texas, knowing that their decision to take legal action may prevent others from suffering similarly provides them some degree of peace and closure. Consultation service from the Maloney Team is free. Contact us today to get started.
Source: ocregister.com, "Obstetrician stripped of hospital privileges after death of mother from China", Jenna Chandler, Nov. 3, 2015
