Chicago Height’s Franciscan St. James Health, which was sued by a Sauk Village family in 2013, has finally reached a settlement in a medical malpractice case that was filed against it. They will pay the victim $15 million to cover future medical expenses associated with her brain damage.
The mother of the now 6-year-old girl had filed the lawsuit against the hospital on her behalf. She had accused the hospital and the treating physicians of having failed to respond quickly enough in delivering her child when she showed signs of distress as she was being born in January of 2011. The girl reportedly now suffers from cerebral palsy as a result.
The medical malpractice suit had also accused doctors of having failed to discontinue the use Pitocin, a drug that accelerated the mother’s labor. The mother of the girl had alleged that she might have overdosed on the drug during labor. She believes this might have been the case because her contractions became more frequent and increasingly more debilitating.
Attorneys for the mother had argued that these intense contractions caused the oxygen and blood flow to her daughter’s brain to be cut off. It’s alleged this is what ultimately resulted in her daughter’s brain damage. The child’s mother noted that medical staff at the hospital were well aware of the worsening situation for her and her child, yet neglected to authorize a Cesarean section.
The girl’s mother says she can’t walk or care for herself in any meaningful fashion. Her and her attorneys note that the child will need to receive future treatments and have around-the-clock medical care for the rest of her life.
In agreeing to the settlement, Franciscan Health did not admit any responsibility for the girl’s permanent injuries. The proceeds from the settlement will be put into an estate bearing the child’s name. An appointed guardian for the estate will be responsible for ensuring that money is used solely for the purpose of caring for the child’s medical needs.
Medical or surgical errors are one of the leading causes of permanent injuries in the United States. If either you or someone you know has been injured due to the negligence of the doctor or medical caregivers, then a Chicago medical malpractice attorney may be able to help you secure funding to pay past and future medical expenses.
Source: Chicago Tribune, “Sauk Village family reaches $15M settlement over alleged brain damage during delivery,” Becky Yerak, July 26, 2017