Litigation

Just found out that a woman I delivered last year is sueing the for a traumatic delivery!!!

Never mind the fact that her baby lived and is ABSLOUTELY fine now, thanks to the exceptional response of everyone involved.

Never mind the fact she went on to have yet another healthy baby earlier on this year.

Never mind the fact that no one could have predicted the outcome of her labour and delivery, so how can anyone be held responsible??

This litigation culture is out of hand now. As much as I love my job I'm once again wondering if I should quit this profession while I'm still ahead. The realisation that every delivery I carry out could come back to haunt me is depressing.

[Stu]

Get them to sign a waiver before you deliver next time - right about the time they are screaming.

It's hard not to take these claims personally - but you mustn't. You must content yourself with the fact that you did a good job.

Got to blame our friends over the water for the "sue for everthing" culture here. (No offence intended to our American Members).

It's all gone mad!!

You can get sued for giving CPR to a heart attack victim in the street if you dont manage to keep the victim alive!! Madness.

[G]

My sister had complications before her birth and the midwife told her to go home and have a curry and a walk and come back the next day. It turned out the cord was wrapped around her sons neck starving him of oxygen and she was rushed in, in the middle of the night for an emergency op.

He was born 2 months premature very very ill because of this resulting various illnesses. He then had to have a button installed so he could feed through his belly for the rest of his life, the QMC in nottingham bodged this basic surgery 4 times resulting in internal bleeding to his stomach which he then coughed up in his sleep and drowned on his own blood.

Yet no one can be held accountable...........


Therfore I'm sure you will be fine.

I`m in a similar profession and i`m sick to death of the threat of litigation... its trebled my paperwork and thats valuable time taken away from the hands on nursing which I love. Not many people even realise that as health care professionals we actually have to pay a subscription each year for the "priviledge" of being a nurse/midwife??? How many other professions have to pay?

I had a similar experience about 7 years ago when the family of a man I resuscitated tried to sue me for breaking 2 of his ribs... never mind the fact they got their dad back and he`s still alive to this day!! My local paper published an article on what the family were intending to do and due to the outcry they soon backed down.

Right off my soap box now lol..... I agree with you 100% and hopefully their claim will go nowhere. 10 years ago my son died whilst I was in labour... as you say nobody could`ve predicted the outcome and I actually felt so sorry for the midwives and the whole team who tried everything in their power to save him and were genuinely distressed. I owed them gratitude for their attempts not jumping on the next bus and hot footing it to one of these new breed of "No win , no fee" cowboy solicitors!!

Very best of luck, i know its a worry for you but i`m sure common sense will prevail

[Lissa]

So who do I have to sue for the trauma's I suffered AFTER the birth and for all the years it took for them to finally leave home?

This is insanity, Melody. The baby lived, end of. No case to answer I would have thought.

And can we really blame the US for this...............shouldn't we blame our own legal profession for allowing this crap to happen?

This really annoys me. Hope you don't get too much hassle from this. I can't beleive the blame culture of today!

With any luck, the jury will find the case stupid and tell the lady to grow up, and / or get a job if she wants money.

My sister in law is due any week now...I'm hoping that the birth will go well (I'm sure it will). Midwives and doctors and nurses do a bloody brilliant job and are fantastic at solving problems on the spot without any hesitation. This woman should be thankfull for the quick-thinking actions of those staff who managed to save her and her baby.

Anyway, was she expecting childbirth to be hassle free?!

Matt

Originally Posted by Lissa

So who do I have to sue for the trauma's I suffered AFTER the birth and for all the years it took for them to finally leave home?

You make your kids buy you loads of stuff and make them do everything for you that you had to do for them



Matt