A grieving Ohio mother has filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against a ProMedica physician and several facilities after the death of her newborn son. The complaint was filed in late January and names her obstetrician alongside several ProMedica facilities.
According to the complaint, the woman and her child were patients of ProMedica and their doctor. ProMedica personnel and her doctor failed to monitor her condition while she was in labor. The complaint also states that her son was not delivered in a timely manner and this resulted in him becoming oxygen-deprived while still in utero.
The plaintiffs are seeking damages for emotional trauma and to compensate them for funeral expenses which they say exceeded $10,000 for the stillborn infant.
This is Not the First Medical Malpractice Case Against This Doctor
The same doctor who is accused of rendering negligent care in this lawsuit was hit with a $10.9 million verdict after another couple filed a lawsuit against him. The couple claimed that the mother suffered a stroke during pregnancy after they consulted with the same doctor. The doctor told them that the mother did not have to go to the hospital, but hours later she was there anyway having suffered a stroke.
The woman called her doctor at about 26 weeks of pregnancy. She was complaining of abdominal pain and a severe headache. The doctor, who was not her primary OB/GYN, was on call and presumably told her to ride it out and take an aspirin. The woman suffered a stroke the next day suffering permanent emotional, physical, and cognitive disabilities. Her baby was born healthy.
Will the Plaintiff’s Case Prevail?
It’s impossible to know at this point. Just because a doctor fails to render care that saves a patient’s life or their baby’s life, doesn’t mean that they are liable for the results. In all states, including Florida, the plaintiffs must show that the doctor’s failure to render care fell below the prevailing standard of care for their specialty. Without knowing more about the case, it’s impossible to know if the doctor failed to meet that standard of care.
In order to prove that a doctor failed to meet the prevailing standard of care, the plaintiff must use an expert witness to testify as to what the prevailing standard of care is for their field of practice. They must also show how the doctor deviated from that standard and how that deviation harmed their patient. Even in cases that appear on the surface to be slam dunks, like this one, it isn’t necessarily apparent that the doctor breached their duty of care to their patient. The plaintiff would still be required to show that an earlier intervention would have produced a better result.If you’ve suffered a medical injury due to the ineffective rendering of medical care, the Tampa medical malpractice attorneys at Palmer | Lopez can manage your lawsuit.
Talk to a Tampa Medical Malpractice Attorney Today
If you’ve suffered a medical injury due to the ineffective rendering of medical care, the Tampa medical malpractice attorneys at Palmer | Lopez can manage your lawsuit against the doctor. Call us today to schedule a free consultation and let us help you hold the negligent accountable.
Resource:
toledoblade.com/local/courts/2020/03/03/mother-files-medical-malpractice-lawsuit-against-promedica-physician/stories/20200303130
