Popular culture tends to depict the birth of babies as an exclusively joyous, if tiring, experience. It is rare that media other than medical shows have the courage to represent the kinds of experiences millions of Americans have been forced to endure when their babies suffer injury during the birthing process.

When an infant is injured during the birthing process, an endless stream of questions can plague parents, not the least of which include: how did this happen, who is to blame and who is responsible to pay for my child’s injuries? In certain cases, a physician, nurse or hospital may be partially or totally to blame for an infant’s injuries. Although no one factor or combination of factors can necessarily determine whether a hospital or its employees are liable for an infant’s birth-related injuries, certain factors and circumstances can raise questions of health-provider liability.

Liability Generally

Physicians, nurses and hospitals all owe a certain duty of care to their patients. Liability arises when a health care provider deviates from that standard of care and causes injury as a result of that deviation.

Both physicians and nurses are required to treat their patients with the same degree of care as any other well-trained health care professional would under similar circumstances. Thus, for a physician or nurse to be held liable for an infant’s birth-related injury, he/she would have had to have caused the infant’s injuries as a result of behaving in a way that another physician or nurse of ordinary skill, care and thoroughness would not have, under the circumstances.

Similarly, a hospital owes patients the same care which an ordinarily thorough and attentive hospital would under similar circumstances.

Physician Liability

Physicians may be held liable in a birth-related injury case for several reasons, as physicians have several responsibilities in regard to their patients. The first responsibility they owe their patients is to receive informed consent before providing treatment. Before obtaining the patient’s consent for treatment, with certain exceptions in emergency situations, the physician must explain the risks and benefits of the treatment as well as any alternatives to the treatment that might be available. Without such information, the patient will not be able to make an informed decision as to whether to undergo the treatment.

Physicians are also responsible for presenting information to their patients in a truthful manner. Should the physician mislead the patient by misrepresenting the facts surrounding the treatment, the physician may be held liable for injuries resulting as a result of the misrepresentation. The ways in which the facts surrounding treatment can be misrepresented are endless, but a few common areas in which facts are misrepresented include:
- The necessity of the treatment
- The risks and benefits of the treatment and any available alternatives
- The physician’s experience in administering the treatment
- The likelihood of the treatment’s success and complications

Other mistakes that may leave physicians liable for an infant’s injuries include failure to diagnose a condition, failure to order necessary tests, failure to perform a thorough examination and prescribing an incorrect dosage of medication.

Nurse Liability

Nurses owe a high duty of care as they monitor their patients. Nurses may be held liable for injuries resulting from negligence including:
- Failure to monitor their patient’s condition
- Failure to communicate changes in the patient’s condition to physicians
- Failure to request immediate medical attention when necessary
- Failure to properly administer medication

Hospital Liability

Hospitals can often be held liable for the negligence of its employees. For a hospital to be held liable, the employee must have acted negligently while performing within the scope of his or her employment at the hospital. As such, many healthcare liability cases involve suing a physician or a nurse as well as the hospital.

A hospital may also be held liable for its own negligent acts. Acts that a hospital alone can be held liable for include unreasonable denial of medical services, failure to maintain equipment and negligent hiring and supervision practices.

For Further Reference

Questioning the liability of your health care providers while enduring the devastation of caring for an injured newborn can be a frustrating process. If your infant sustained injuries during the birthing process, please contact an experienced personal injury attorney.

Article provided by Wood & Carlton PC
Visit us at www.woodcarlton.com

Leandra’s law, an anti-drunk driving initiative in New York that was signed into law last November, recently went into effect. The law makes it a felony to drive drunk while there is a child in the vehicle.

The law is named for 11-year-old Leandra Rosado. Leandra was killed when the driver of the car that she was riding in lost control of the vehicle. The driver was drunk at the time.

Leandra’s Law has, however, stirred up a fair amount of controversy.

At issue is a provision in Leandra’s law that requires the mandatory installation of an ignition interlock device in all of the vehicles a convicted drunk driver has access to.

The way county legislators read the law, the burden for paying for the devices, and for the staff necessary to ensure the law is complied with, falls to the counties. Counties such as Fulton, Genesee, Schuyler, Steuben and Chemung are pushing back against the law.

Fulton County Board of Supervisors Clerk Jon Stead says that Leandra’s law is on the right track but needs some tweaking. “I think what most of us are saying right now is the law was well intended but it’s not being well implemented.”

Mike Kirkpatrick, the Fulton County Probation Director, agrees. It is his department that is responsible for monitoring each device, including responding to any tampering claims. The probation department will also need to provide testimony about the device in court when it is needed. “Time is money,” Kirkpatrick says. “And that’s where the unfunded mandate comes in. The state has made no provisions to date for payment of this.”

The state disagrees, pointing out that in other states where such laws have gone into effect drunk driving arrests have drastically decreased, offsetting the costs of the program. In addition, there is an expected $3 million grant that will help the counties. However, the grant is not guaranteed. Until the money is available, Fulton County will continue fighting for the law to be changed or postponed.

If you have been ticketed for driving while intoxicated (DWI), please contact an experienced attorney to learn of your defense options.

Article provided by James M. Wagman
Visit us at www.wagmanlaw.com

The National Association for Shoplifting Prevention (NASP), the nation’s leader in shoplifting prevention initiatives, now is offering their most effective self-help programs online: For Adults – Shoplifters Alternative Course (SA Course), and For Youth – Youth Educational Shoplifting Program (Y.E.S.). The Y.E.S. Program has been available online since the beginning of this year. How effective are these educational programs? According to a study conducted by the Superior Court of Washington for King County, of the 1,040 juvenile shoplifting offenders who enrolled in the Y.E.S. Program between January 2004 and December 2007, 94.7% were not re-arrested for shoplifting!

What Is The Secret To NASP’s Success?
Studies have found that while prosecuting shoplifting crimes may satisfy a debt to society, an educational component must be a part of the equation in order to effectively reduce the recidivism rate (the rate at which shoplifters will re-offend).

Unlike many other loss prevention programs, NASP’s programs are based on comprehensive research of shoplifting offenders. NASP data bears out that shoplifting often is a maladaptive way for people to cope with the stresses in their lives, a similar psychology to drinking, drug use or overeating. The NASP approach delivers these much-needed self-help programs directly to shoplifters, helping them to understand their actions while empowering them to change their behavior.

Why We Should All Care About Shoplifting Prevention
According to loss prevention industry statistics, over 27 million people, including adults and juveniles, steal from retailers annually. This translates to approximately 550,000 shoplifting incidents per day and results in over $13 billion in goods stolen every year. These losses affect everyone: retailers who often are forced to cut back their staff and raise their prices, consumers who ultimately must pay more as a result, and local governments that lose state sales tax revenue and in turn raise taxes to compensate for it. Additionally, shoplifting imposes an unwelcome burden on local police and the courts.

About The Programs
The SA Course and Y.E.S. Program are available online and in both English and Spanish on audio CD. The programs help shoplifters understand why they steal through interactive questions and answers. Aside from helping shoplifters of all ages to change their behavior, enrollment in these programs also demonstrates a shoplifter’s commitment to taking responsibility for his or her actions – something the courts view favorably. The cost of enrollment is $75.

About NASP
Since its inception in 1977, NASP’s ongoing collaboration with law enforcement, criminal and juvenile justice, the retail industry and local communities has been the basis for its programs and services. For over 30 years, NASP has been setting the shoplifting prevention standard with its research-based, results-driven educational intervention programs, and has helped to significantly reduce the shoplifting recidivism rate.

For more information, or to sign up for NASP’s SA Course for Adults (in English or Spanish) or Y.E.S. Program for Youth, visit http://www.shopliftingprevention.org. Or call toll-free: 1-800-848-9595.