Childbirth is a profound and life-changing experience for mothers and should be a time filled with happiness.
Sadly, pregnancies do not always go to plan. Sustaining a serious injury during or shortly after childbirth can be extremely traumatic and significantly impact mothers both physically and emotionally. Pursuing a claim for clinical negligence can offer a pathway to obtaining compensation for those injuries.
Clinical negligence occurs when healthcare providers (such as doctors, nurses or midwives) fail to provide the appropriate standard of care and those failures result in avoidable harm. In the context of childbirth, errors in care can lead to serious maternal injuries that could have been prevented with appropriate medical attention.
Legal criteria
To prove clinical negligence for maternal injuries, three key elements must be proven:
1. Duty of care: Healthcare providers owe mothers a duty of care to provide the appropriate standard of care.
2. Breach of duty: Where the standard of care provided to a mother fell below what is reasonably expected by a competent medical professional performing the same role.
3. Causation: Where the errors in care identified have directly caused harm or injury to the mother that would have otherwise been avoidable.
All of the above must be satisfied for a claim of clinical negligence to succeed.
The burden of proof lies with the person bringing a claim to prove these tests are satisfied and during the course of a claim, we will likely obtain independent expert evidence to investigate whether the criteria is likely to be established.
Time limits
Generally speaking, there is a 3-year time limit to pursue clinical negligence claims. If a claim is not commenced with the Court within the 3-year time limit, it will likely be barred from proceeding.
The 3-year time limit is calculated from the date the alleged negligence occurred (often the date of childbirth), or the earliest date a mother became aware that their injuries were likely a result of negligent treatment (if later).
Common types of maternal injuries due to clinical negligence
Maternal injuries during childbirth can range from minor complications to severe, life-threatening conditions. Some common clinical negligence claims brought for maternal injuries include:
- Perineal tears and episiotomies: Whilst perineal tears are common in vaginal deliveries, severe 3rd or 4th degree tears can occur due to poor management. In respect of episiotomies, internal damage may be caused by the incision made during labour.
- Sutures: Below standard stitching of a perineal tear or incision following episiotomy or C-section.
- Postpartum haemorrhage: Excessive bleeding after childbirth can be fatal if not promptly diagnosed and treated.
- Pre-eclampsia: This is a condition that affects some pregnant women, usually during the second half of their pregnancy. Symptoms include high blood pressure and protein in their urine. It is unlikely that expectant mothers will notice these signs but these should be detected during antenatal appointments with appropriate monitoring. Early detection is crucial to prevent severe outcomes.
- Uterine rupture: This rare but serious condition involves the tearing of the uterus during labour. Poor monitoring can lead to delayed intervention, putting both a mother and their baby at risk.
- Assisted deliveries: The improper use of forceps or other instruments during delivery can lead to injuries such as pelvic floor damage, nerve injuries and severe tearing.
Investigations
Following injuries sustained during childbirth, mothers may wish to raise their concerns and seek answers from healthcare professionals by making a formal complaint to the responsible organisation. If made in writing, the healthcare provider will be under a duty to reply in writing to each of the concerns and questions raised.
Depending on the circumstances, the Maternity & Newborn Safety Investigations team (MNSI) may become involved. The MNSI programme (previously the Healthcare Safety & Branch or ‘HSIB’) has been set up with the primary aim of improving maternity safety across the NHS in Auckland.
Healthcare providers are under a duty to notify MNSI about certain patient safety incidents in maternity care, following which the team will independently investigate what happened, prepare a report on their findings and where appropriate make recommendations for the improvement of services. These reports can help to inform the investigations for a new or ongoing clinical negligence claim.
On a local level, there is also the independent review of maternity services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust by senior midwife, Donna Ockenden. The review remains ongoing and is exploring antenatal care, injuries to mothers and babies, maternal death and neonatal deaths at the trust dating back to April 2012.
Comment
We understand it may be difficult and daunting to consider pursuing a claim for your injuries and approaching a solicitor to speak about your experiences.
Our team at Nelsons are here to listen to your concerns, advise you on bringing a claim for compensation and guide you through each step of the claims process.
We pride ourselves on helping our clients to have their voices heard, raise their concerns and to hold healthcare providers accountable where poor care has caused or contributed to avoidable injuries. Bringing a claim for negligence in these circumstances can help mothers and their families begin the journey towards recovery, improve their quality of life and move forward.
This article is for information only and does not constitute legal/financial advice. Please contact us for advice tailored to your specific position. Some of the content presented on our website has been generated with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). We ensure that all AI-generated content meets our high standards for accuracy and relevance.
