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Losing a baby during pregnancy or birth is absolutely heart-breaking causing upset and distress for everyone involved. It is estimated that in the UK, 15 babies are stillborn or die in the early neonatal period every single day.
Unfortunately, bereaved parents sometimes feel that their baby’s death could have been avoided – and that the medical care they received fell short of the expected standards.
Parents who have lost a baby due to medical negligence will rightfully have questions about the care they received, which is why it’s important to get advice from a specialist medical negligence solicitor who can help.
What is neonatal death?
A neonatal death refers to a baby who has died within 28 days following their birth. While the majority of neonatal deaths are connected to premature labour and the higher risks associated with this, there are other reasons why a baby might not survive when they are born at full term. These include genetic disorders, infections, complications during or after birth, and medical negligence.
What causes stillbirth?
Negligent medical care is often a contributory factor behind stillbirths. Unacceptable care standards may include:
- Failure to monitor the baby during a hospital stay.
- An untreated or undiagnosed infection in the neonatal period.
- Failure to act on reduced fetal movements.
- Failure to detect placental abruption.
- Failure to give antibiotics, a delay in giving antibiotics, or a failure to follow up on test results.
- Failure to diagnose or treat gestational diabetes or high blood pressure.
Why is it important to claim compensation?
While no amount of compensation can make up for losing a child, making a medical negligence claim can often provide the much-needed answers for families to help them recover from the grief and anxiety they are experiencing. Changes to procedures and an apology following a legal investigation into medical negligence can also offer reassurance that the same mistakes will not happen again.
However, the impact of losing a baby can also be far-reaching, affecting work, relationships and your mental well-being. If you, as the mother, sustained physical injuries during labour, these can also have long-lasting consequences for your health.
Contact Novum Law and ask about our No Win No Fee services
If you believe you have suffered a stillbirth due to medical negligence, get in touch with the experienced solicitors at Novum Law today on Freephone 0800 884 0777 or email info@novumlaw.com. Our expert team of medical negligence solicitors will do everything they can to put you at ease and to support you during each step of your claim.
