Placental abruption—the medical term for a pregnant woman’s placenta partially or fully detaching from her uterine wall before she gives birth—is a fairly rare pregnancy complication that can have serious consequences when it occurs. In addition to significant blood loss for the mother, a placental abruption can lead to a gestating fetus being deprived of crucial nutrients and oxygen, which can cause lifelong developmental problems and may even have fatal repercussions.
It is vital for obstetricians and other doctors involved in care for pregnant women to know the symptoms of this complication and to act quickly if it occurs to minimize long-term harm. If you or your child were harmed by your doctors’ failure to handle this condition properly, you may have grounds to file suit with a birth injury attorney’s help. You should make speaking with a North Miami placental abruption lawyer from Kaire & Heffernan one of your top priorities.
It is important to understand that placental abruptions cannot be prevented in advance. Doctors are not expected to completely prevent all patients from being harmed by this type of complication as part of the standard of care they owe those patients. Instead, doctors are expected to demonstrate the same level of skill, dedication, and compassion while caring for patients that any other doctor with equivalent knowledge and experience would demonstrate under the same circumstances.
When it comes to filing suit over placental abruption injuries, the foundation of the lawsuit will be establishing that you and your baby experienced specific preventable harm because your doctor failed to handle your pregnancy complication in accordance with their skills and training. Our North Miami placental abruption attorneys will help construct strong civil claims around errors like misdiagnoses, failure to monitor a patient closely, failure to act quickly enough in response to a serious medical problem, and potentially other causes of legal action.
Filing suit over a birth injury of any kind stemming from medical malpractice is difficult for many reasons, but one of the most significant is the fact that Florida law establishes different rules for filing malpractice lawsuits than it does for filing standard personal injury claims. Most notably, you must formally notify any prospective defendant in a malpractice claim of your intention to file suit against them before you can actually start legal proceedings. You must also obtain an affidavit of merit affirming that a qualified medical expert believes you have valid grounds for a lawsuit based on their review of your evidence.
Fortunately, there is no longer a cap on how much money you can demand for certain types of losses caused by medical negligence, thanks to a Florida Supreme Court ruling that declared such caps to be unconstitutional. However, you are still generally limited to two years after discovering harm and four years after actually sustaining harm from malpractice to file suit over it. Getting in touch with a placental abruption lawyer in North Miami sooner rather than later will be key to protecting your legal rights.
Placental abruptions are serious medical conditions that obstetricians should always keep a close eye out for and be ready to provide emergency treatment for if necessary. Unfortunately, not every physician tasked with caring for pregnant mothers and their babies fulfills this standard of care to the extent that they should.
You have support available from a seasoned North Miami placental abruption lawyer with seeking fair financial recovery for the harm you have suffered. Call Kaire & Heffernan today to discuss your legal options.
(305) 876-6001