Medical Negligence*

Forceps Injury Claims*

Delivering a healthy baby at the end of a pregnancy is the most important aspect of child birth; for a mother, infant and the medical staff in the delivery room. This unfortunately is not always the case. Accidents can happen on the part of the medical staff which lead to an injury to the baby or the mother. Birth Injuries can arise through the improper use of birth assisting tools such as forceps.

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Use of Forceps

Birth assisting tools such as forceps may be used by a medical professional whilst delivering a baby. Although they are efficient more often than not, on occasion medical negligence may occur if the forceps are used improperly by a medical practitioner.This can cause personal injury to the mother or the baby. If you believe that you have sustained personal injury through the improper use of forceps by a medical professional, it is imperative you speak with a solicitor as soon as possible.

When do Forceps Injuries Arise?

Some cases of medical negligence that can lead to forceps injury claims are:

  • Improper manipulations of the baby’s body during delivery
  • Failure to deal with an emergency situation adequately
  • Blunt force trauma to the baby or the mother, due to the forceps
  • Delayed birth – when the baby remains in the birth canal for too long as forceps fail to do the correct job. This can lead to birth injury as there is a prolonged pressure from the birth canal on the baby’s body.
  • Vaginal tear injuries

What are the Causes of Forceps Injuries*?

Any of the causes of birth injuries can lead to injuries of varying degrees. Some physical injuries to the baby or mother are noticed immediately and treated immediately. In some cases, the injury may not be noticed immediately following the birth of the child.

  • Inability of the mother to deliver the baby without assistance
  • Risk of illness or infection is present in the birth process
  • A prolonged second stage of delivery and maternal exhaustion
  • Pregnancy malpractice/Maternal birth injuries – mismanagement of the pregnancy occurs

Although they are aware that forceps on occasion can lead to a birth injury being sustained, they will do all they can to eliminate the risk of injury occurring to both mother and child.

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Our helpful team

Need Help? Just Ask.

For more information and a confidential discussion on your medical negligence claim, call Elaine Hickey, Head Medical Negligence Solicitor, on +353 1 649 9900 and tell her about your medical malpractice case or reach out via email to ask@traceysolicitors.ie and she can call you back.

How do I make a claim?

Once you have gathered all the relevant information in relation to your injury it is then time to move forward with your claim. It is important to use a specialist medical negligence solicitor to help you with this.

  1. Speak with a solicitor

    If you feel that you were not provided with appropriate medical treatment whilst under the care of a medical professional which resulted in injury due to the actions or in-actions of a medical professional, then speaking with a medical negligence solicitor following the injury is imperative. Medical negligence is a complex topic in Irish law. Speak to a medical negligence solicitor when bringing a claim forward. This ensures that no essential steps are missed throughout the legal process. Bringing a claim forward without having spoken to a solicitor can delay your claims procedure. A solicitor can help to determine your birth injury time limit claim.

  2. Obtain medical records

    In order to make a claim, it must be established and proven that the injury sustained was caused by the medical negligence of the doctor or medical staff tasked with either your prenatal care, pregnancy, delivery and/or aftercare. Therefore, after having spoken with you about your case, your solicitor will then request access to your medical records. At this stage, the solicitor will have your medical records assessed by an independent medical expert. This will help determine whether a surgeon or medical staff who treated you had, in fact, administered substandard medical care and if negligence was the cause of the injury and if your injuries/outcome could have been avoided if the appropriate level of medical care had been adhered to.

  3. Letter of Claim

    If the independent medical expert has concluded that medical negligence has occurred, then your solicitor will draft a Letter of Claim to the medical practitioner who treated you. A Letter of Claim will outline the nature of your case and invites the medical practitioner to settle your case. The next steps involved are heavily dependent on your case and response to your Letter of Claim and will determine whether your case will be brought to court or settled outside of court. Your solicitor will be on hand every step of the way to guide you through this process.

At Tracey Solicitors LLP, our dedicated birth and gynaecological injury solicitors have years of experience in helping parents deal with traumatic birth injury claims. We understand the injuries, both physically and emotionally, that you have suffered and have supported and helped many people in similar situations proceed with medical negligence claims in Ireland over the past 30 years.

For more information and a confidential discussion on your birth or gynaecological injury claim, phone 01 649 9900 or email ask@traceysolicitors.ie to tell us about your case, where you can speak with a member of our team straight away.

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Case Settlement

If you are to proceed with a medical negligence claim you may be entitled to claim compensation for the accident and added expenses, you may have incurred. These claims are called damages.

General Damages

General damages are non-financial damages such as pain and suffering and/or physical and emotional injuries following a medical negligence injury.

Special Damages

Special damages are out of pocket expenses incurred as a result of the medical negligence injury, for example, loss of earnings (if you are out of work), medical bills, added travel costs as a result of the accident (for example, travel to and from the hospital) and future care costs. Learn more about Special Damages.

What are the Legal Time Limits?

The statute of limitations are the legal time limits on how long you have to make a claim, which can vary depending on the situation. When taking into account how long medical negligence claims take, it is important to remember that medical negligence cases require certain time frames in place within which you can bring a claim. For medical negligence claims it is two years less a day following the date of the incident or two years less a day following the date that a person made the connection that their illness or injuries were a result of medical negligence. Contacting a solicitor to discuss your case will help you in determining how long you have left to make a claim.

Medical Negligence Involving Children

In an unfortunate incident where a child is subject to medical negligence, the process of making a claim differs from that of an adult. A minor may be in a position to bring a claim forward in the first two years following their 18th birthday.

Learn more about Legal Time Limits

About Tracey Solicitors LLP

We draw on more than 35 years of experience in personal injury law to provide you with expert advice and legal services.

We’re here to help you with your claim, and will work with you to ensure you understand every step of your legal journey.

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Our friendly and experienced team are waiting to answer your call. Lines are open Monday to Friday, from 9am to 5pm.

+353 1 649 9900

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