Harrisburg Birth Injury Lawyers

When a baby suffers a serious injury during pregnancy, labor, delivery, or shortly after birth, parents naturally want to understand what happened.

Some birth injuries occur despite appropriate medical care and cannot be prevented. Others may result from a failure to recognize complications, respond to signs of fetal distress, perform a timely delivery, or provide appropriate care to the mother or child.

Pisanchyn Law Firm represents families in Harrisburg, Dauphin County, and throughout Central Pennsylvania who have questions about whether medical negligence contributed to a child’s birth injury.

Our Harrisburg birth injury lawyers investigate the medical care provided before, during, and after delivery to help families understand what happened and whether they may have a medical malpractice claim.

Was My Child’s Birth Injury Preventable?

This is often the first and most difficult question parents ask.

A poor outcome does not automatically mean a doctor, nurse, or hospital committed malpractice. Determining whether an injury may have been preventable requires examining the medical circumstances surrounding the pregnancy and delivery.

That investigation may include questions such as:

• Were signs of fetal distress recognized?
• Was fetal monitoring interpreted appropriately?
• Was a cesarean section necessary?
• If so, was it performed in time?
• Were maternal complications recognized and treated?
• Were appropriate medications administered?
• Was the baby’s condition properly monitored after delivery?
• Were accepted standards of medical care followed?

Answering these questions can require detailed medical-record review and input from qualified medical professionals.

Birth Injuries We Investigate

Potential birth injury cases can involve:

• Cerebral palsy
• Hypoxic or anoxic brain injury
• Brachial plexus injuries
• Erb’s palsy
• Nerve damage
• Brain damage
• Seizure disorders
• Injuries associated with oxygen deprivation
• Serious infections
• Injuries associated with delivery complications
• Permanent physical or developmental disabilities
• Maternal injuries associated with negligent care

A diagnosis alone does not establish malpractice. The issue is whether negligent medical care caused or contributed to the injury.

Fetal Distress and Delayed Delivery

During labor and delivery, medical professionals monitor the mother and baby for signs that complications are developing.

When warning signs appear, the medical team may need to intervene.

In some cases, a birth injury investigation focuses on whether signs of fetal distress were recognized and whether appropriate action was taken quickly enough.

Medical records, fetal monitoring information, physician and nursing documentation, medication records, and delivery records may all become important when reconstructing the timeline.

Cesarean Section Delays

A C-section can become necessary when complications threaten the health of the mother or baby.

The fact that an emergency C-section occurred does not itself establish negligence.

However, when medical evidence indicates that delivery should have occurred earlier, questions may arise about whether an unreasonable delay contributed to oxygen deprivation or another serious injury.

Establishing what happened requires examining the mother’s condition, fetal monitoring, timing of medical decisions, and the care provided throughout labor.

Birth Injuries Can Create Lifetime Needs

A severe birth injury can affect a child and family for decades.

Depending on the nature of the injury, a child may require:

• Ongoing medical treatment
• Physical therapy
• Occupational therapy
• Speech therapy
• Assistive equipment
• Mobility assistance
• Specialized educational services
• Home modifications
• Personal care
• Future medical procedures

For that reason, evaluating a serious birth injury claim requires looking far beyond the medical bills incurred during delivery. Families of children with lasting disabilities may also want to understand the difference between SSDI and SSI benefits.

Understanding the child’s expected future needs may require input from medical, rehabilitation, vocational, economic, and life-care professionals.

Medical Records and Expert Review

Birth injury cases can involve an enormous amount of medical information.

Relevant evidence may include prenatal records, hospital records, fetal monitoring information, laboratory results, imaging, nursing notes, physician documentation, medication records, delivery records, neonatal records, and subsequent treatment.

Medical professionals may need to evaluate whether the care provided met accepted standards and whether different treatment would likely have changed the outcome.

This makes birth injury litigation one of the more medically complex areas of personal injury law.

Who May Be Responsible?

Depending on what occurred, a birth injury case may involve physicians, nurses, hospitals, medical practices, anesthesiology providers, or other healthcare professionals and organizations.

Part of the investigation is determining where the breakdown in care occurred and which parties may bear legal responsibility. If negligent care resulted in the death of a mother or baby, our Harrisburg wrongful death lawyers can help the family understand its options.

What Compensation May Be Available?

When medical negligence causes a permanent birth injury, a claim may potentially seek compensation associated with the child’s medical care and other losses resulting from the injury.

Depending upon the circumstances, this may include past and future medical treatment, rehabilitation, therapy, assistive equipment, future care needs, pain and suffering, and other legally recoverable damages.

Because the needs of a severely injured child may continue throughout adulthood, accurately evaluating future costs can be especially important.

Harrisburg Birth Injury Attorneys

Pisanchyn Law Firm represents children and families throughout Harrisburg, Dauphin County, and Central Pennsylvania.

Our Harrisburg office is located at:

Pisanchyn Law Firm
3609 N. Front Street
Harrisburg, PA 17110
717-238-3333

Harrisburg Birth Injury FAQs

How do I know if my child’s injury was caused by medical negligence? You usually cannot tell from the diagnosis alone. Determining whether negligence played a role requires reviewing medical records, fetal monitoring information, and the timing of medical decisions, often with input from qualified medical experts. You do not need to know the answer before contacting us.

Should I request copies of the medical records? You have a right to request copies of your own and your child’s medical records. Gathering complete records, including fetal monitoring data and nursing notes, is an important early step, and an attorney can help make sure nothing is missing.

Is there a deadline for filing a birth injury lawsuit? Yes. Pennsylvania law sets time limits for medical malpractice claims, and the rules for claims brought on behalf of a child differ from those for a parent’s own claims. Speaking with an attorney promptly helps protect both.

What does it cost to talk to a Harrisburg birth injury lawyer? The consultation is free and confidential, and there is no fee unless we win. Call our Harrisburg office at 717-238-3333 or 1-800-444-5309.

Talk to a Harrisburg Birth Injury Lawyer

You don’t need to determine whether medical malpractice occurred before contacting us.

If your child suffered a serious injury during pregnancy, labor, delivery, or shortly after birth and you have questions about the medical care that was provided, Pisanchyn Law Firm can review the circumstances and determine whether further investigation may be appropriate. Request a free, confidential case evaluation.

Call our Harrisburg office at 717-238-3333 or 1-800-444-5309 for a free, confidential consultation.

For birth injury matters accepted on a contingency-fee basis, there is no attorney fee unless we recover compensation for you.