Hello everyone,
I have a 3month old daughter with a bpi to her right arm. After being told by the hospital I delivered at to just "wait it out, it'll be all better in a month", We have just started seeing Dr. Park in St Louis, Mo. and we're wondering if anyone has any experience with him? I don't really know how to check up on a surgeon's track record?
Also, out of curiosity, how many parents on here have pursued legal action against the drs who injured your babies? Our Dr was horrible. Rude, very rude, and not very knowlegable at all. Stella was only 7pounds, 4ounces, yet she was yanked so hard not only did she get the bpi, but also her neck muscles are still bruised from the birth which is now causing torticullus(sp?) and head flattening on one side. It's been a hard few months and I don't know if I can make it through a lawsuit, but I've been encouraged to seek legal counseling from quite a few people. To those who did file a lawsuit, how was the experience? Was it worth it, in your opinion?
Thanks so much, it's so nice to have found this site.
Erin
New here & couple questions
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Re: New here & couple questions
Erin sorry to hear about your daughter. You have alot on your plate right now. The first couple of months are the hardest. I hated that wait and see period. We dont have experience with Dr. Park. But I wanted you to know that many BPI Drs will evaluate via videos so feel free to send them to a few. We saw about 5 specialists my childs first year. Yes, we did pursue a lawsuit...4 yrs later we haven't gotten very far but I am happy I did it. You still have time. If I were you, I would wait and focus on your child right now. Most states you have until your cild is 2 to file (please check your states laws). I wish you and your family luck in this BPI journey.
Re: New here & couple questions
Hi Erin, nice to meet you.
I have not had experience with Dr. Park.
Yes we pursued legal action against the doctor that delivered our son. We filed suit when he was 6 months for a number of reasons, however the number one reason being his medical malpractice insurance company was going out of business. The process took a year and a half and we settled when he was just over 2. I am thankful every day it worked out like that because three months after we settled the company went under. I do not regret filing a suit at all. Once I got to see my medical records we found a ton of red flags that should have made him challenge the high risk ob's decision for me not to have a c-section.
Cindy
I have not had experience with Dr. Park.
Yes we pursued legal action against the doctor that delivered our son. We filed suit when he was 6 months for a number of reasons, however the number one reason being his medical malpractice insurance company was going out of business. The process took a year and a half and we settled when he was just over 2. I am thankful every day it worked out like that because three months after we settled the company went under. I do not regret filing a suit at all. Once I got to see my medical records we found a ton of red flags that should have made him challenge the high risk ob's decision for me not to have a c-section.
Cindy
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Re: New here & couple questions
Hi
I was just reading your post and I am sorry to hear about your daughters injury. My son is now 12years old and will be having the Triangle Tilt surgery with Dr. Nath the last week in August. Everytime I hear a story like yours it brings back all the memories of my sons birth. Mark was 8 lbs and during his birth mistakes were made and the outcome was a severely bruised little boy with robp erbs palsy. After the birth I noticed all the bruising and his limp arm and was very scared and asked the doctor if he was ok, the response I received was "don't worry honey, its just a sprain; would I let something happen to your beautiful baby?" it will get better soon. As a young mom I had put all my faith into my doctor and if he said it was a sprain I believed him. Thank god for family members who insisted I seek a second opinion. The end result was this: My doctor lied and down played the injury numerous mistakes were made and precautions were not taken. I contacted an attorney and the malpractice lawsuit began. Its not easy; there will be numerous visits to specialists, therapy sessions and legal paperwork. My advice to you is wether its the doctors first injury to a child or his fifth the end result was he injured your baby. Keep a journal and right down everything you remember about the birth what was going on during the birthing process while its still fresh in your mind, the attorney will be asking lots of questions. Be strong! and remember your not alone....we are all here to support one another...If you have any questions about anything please e-mail me.
Tina
I was just reading your post and I am sorry to hear about your daughters injury. My son is now 12years old and will be having the Triangle Tilt surgery with Dr. Nath the last week in August. Everytime I hear a story like yours it brings back all the memories of my sons birth. Mark was 8 lbs and during his birth mistakes were made and the outcome was a severely bruised little boy with robp erbs palsy. After the birth I noticed all the bruising and his limp arm and was very scared and asked the doctor if he was ok, the response I received was "don't worry honey, its just a sprain; would I let something happen to your beautiful baby?" it will get better soon. As a young mom I had put all my faith into my doctor and if he said it was a sprain I believed him. Thank god for family members who insisted I seek a second opinion. The end result was this: My doctor lied and down played the injury numerous mistakes were made and precautions were not taken. I contacted an attorney and the malpractice lawsuit began. Its not easy; there will be numerous visits to specialists, therapy sessions and legal paperwork. My advice to you is wether its the doctors first injury to a child or his fifth the end result was he injured your baby. Keep a journal and right down everything you remember about the birth what was going on during the birthing process while its still fresh in your mind, the attorney will be asking lots of questions. Be strong! and remember your not alone....we are all here to support one another...If you have any questions about anything please e-mail me.
Tina
Re: New here & couple questions
Erin,
I'm so sorry also. My son is 7 months old. I totally know what you are going through. There is so much to deal with those first few months. You are trying to mourn and come to terms with this happening to your child while still trying to do everything to help him/her. It was very hard on me emotionally so if you ever need to tell someone who understands your frustrations, fears, anger, and out right disbelief, feel free to email me.
About the lawsuit thing. I sort of decided that for now, I'm not going to persue that for a couple of different reasons. First of all my son's injury seems to be very mild on the scale of severity. Also, I just don't think I have the stomach for that and rehashing all those horrible details. In the last few months the wound has healed a little and I don't get quite as upset as I did in the beginning. Don't get me wrong I'm still upset in a way, but not like at first. I don't want to revert and relive all those details. For me legal action was dependent upon severity. If he had to have surgery then I would have sued. A law firm won't take a case that doesn't make financial sense. In other words I don't have that many expenses and the compensation wouldn't be worth the cost of legal action. Does your daughter have any movement in her arm? If so, what movements. We're here for you!
Shari
I'm so sorry also. My son is 7 months old. I totally know what you are going through. There is so much to deal with those first few months. You are trying to mourn and come to terms with this happening to your child while still trying to do everything to help him/her. It was very hard on me emotionally so if you ever need to tell someone who understands your frustrations, fears, anger, and out right disbelief, feel free to email me.
About the lawsuit thing. I sort of decided that for now, I'm not going to persue that for a couple of different reasons. First of all my son's injury seems to be very mild on the scale of severity. Also, I just don't think I have the stomach for that and rehashing all those horrible details. In the last few months the wound has healed a little and I don't get quite as upset as I did in the beginning. Don't get me wrong I'm still upset in a way, but not like at first. I don't want to revert and relive all those details. For me legal action was dependent upon severity. If he had to have surgery then I would have sued. A law firm won't take a case that doesn't make financial sense. In other words I don't have that many expenses and the compensation wouldn't be worth the cost of legal action. Does your daughter have any movement in her arm? If so, what movements. We're here for you!
Shari
Re: New here & couple questions
Hi Erin - I'm glad you found this board it has been a real life saver. I am Tara mom to Ava, who is 16 mos. with ROBPI. Like the others said the first few months are the hardest. Thoughts and questions run through your mind as well as your emotions going crazy!! We did look into legal action and for right now have it on hold. We have until she is 4 to file. We too based it on severity, as of now she has not needed any surgery. She keeps gaining function so we are putting all our effort there. If down the road she starts to have more problems we will probably continue with a lawsuit. It is such a personal choice, and I am not sure if emotionally I could handle it. I wish you the best of luck with whatever decision you make!!!
Tara
Tara
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Re: New here & couple questions
Thank you all for your replies, it's good to have support. Stella has a small amount of movement in her arm. Until she was 9weeks she had zero movement from shoulder to wrist, her hand started moving shortly after birth. Around nine weeks we went to see a healer (I was so skeptical, I didn't even want to go but my husband insisted)and a week after that we started to see a tiny bit of deltoid movement, we were so happy & have continued the visits (it's been the one part of this process that is free of charge!). From there we have seen the deltoid grow stronger, and sometimes we think other parts of her arm are moving. We go to see the ot tomorrow and will see what she says.
The thing about Stella's birth is that she was only 7lbs4oz, she wasn't big, and I don't think she was that stuck. The Dr just panicked and literally ripped her out in between contractions. She said some really rude and distasteful things during and after the birth, one being "Erin, you shouldn't have such big babies" what? She was on the smaller side! I don't want to go through the misery of a lawsuit, and I don't care about money, I just don't want someone else's baby to have this happen to them. I wish there was some way to get this injury on her record, or make her go before a review board or something without a lawsuit. Sorry for the rant, it's just so frustrating!
Erin
The thing about Stella's birth is that she was only 7lbs4oz, she wasn't big, and I don't think she was that stuck. The Dr just panicked and literally ripped her out in between contractions. She said some really rude and distasteful things during and after the birth, one being "Erin, you shouldn't have such big babies" what? She was on the smaller side! I don't want to go through the misery of a lawsuit, and I don't care about money, I just don't want someone else's baby to have this happen to them. I wish there was some way to get this injury on her record, or make her go before a review board or something without a lawsuit. Sorry for the rant, it's just so frustrating!
Erin
Re: New here & couple questions
Yes, Erin:
It is frustrating. And there really isn't a place to go to put "black marks" against a doctor without filing a lawsuit. Even that only functions to raise the insurance rates, which will, one can only hope, drive a bad doctor out of business.
As for a lawsuit. It isn't easy. Depositions are ugly. And a trial can go either way. Settling is easier, but it is a numbers game. Plus, you have to pick an attorney and that can be difficult in and of itself. Mind you, the medmal laws were written for doctors. In order to even file the lawsuit, you have to prove your case. That is, a medical professional has to read over your files and state whether or not there was a deviation from the standard of care. Hmmmm not easy. Plus, some lawyers will not take bpi cases because only about 40% are successful. That being said. We filed suit right before our daughters primary surgery. She was 4 months old. It was incredibly difficult for me,as the doctor we sued had been my gyn for 20 years. I have not seen him since the delivery. He didn't attend my depo, nor did I his. We settled out of court for an amount which my husband and I are very pleased with. Did he go out of business? I don't know. I don't ask. He was rude to me during the delivery, he made huge mistakes, he lied during his depo.
Making the decision to sue is a very personal one. Go with your gut.
good luck,
claudia
It is frustrating. And there really isn't a place to go to put "black marks" against a doctor without filing a lawsuit. Even that only functions to raise the insurance rates, which will, one can only hope, drive a bad doctor out of business.
As for a lawsuit. It isn't easy. Depositions are ugly. And a trial can go either way. Settling is easier, but it is a numbers game. Plus, you have to pick an attorney and that can be difficult in and of itself. Mind you, the medmal laws were written for doctors. In order to even file the lawsuit, you have to prove your case. That is, a medical professional has to read over your files and state whether or not there was a deviation from the standard of care. Hmmmm not easy. Plus, some lawyers will not take bpi cases because only about 40% are successful. That being said. We filed suit right before our daughters primary surgery. She was 4 months old. It was incredibly difficult for me,as the doctor we sued had been my gyn for 20 years. I have not seen him since the delivery. He didn't attend my depo, nor did I his. We settled out of court for an amount which my husband and I are very pleased with. Did he go out of business? I don't know. I don't ask. He was rude to me during the delivery, he made huge mistakes, he lied during his depo.
Making the decision to sue is a very personal one. Go with your gut.
good luck,
claudia
Re: New here & couple questions
Claudia and everyone,
It isn't quite true that lawsuit is the only way. As several people have stated, a lawsuit is unlikely to put a doctor out of business, only to raise malpractice insurance rates. The only definite way to put a doctor (or a midwife) out of business is to get their license to practice revoked.
You get a practitioners license revoked by filing a complaint with the appropriate licensing board for that doctor. Most medical doctors are licensed by their state's Board of Medical Examiners. Here is a great list of State Medical Boards (nevermind that it mentions Lasik/etc - all medical doctors are licenses in the same place for each state):
http://www.usaeyes.org/lasik/faq/lasik- ... -board.htm
If your practitioner was a certified nurse midwife, she's probably licensed by your state's Nursing Board:
http://www.uihealthcare.com/depts/nursi ... rdsof.html
If your practioner was another type of licensed midwife, call anonymously and ask who she's licensed with!
Making a complaint doesn't cost you anything. Complaints are investigated by the appropriate board and if fault is found disciplinary action could range from a slap on the wrist to losing one's license to practice permanently. You can file a complaint concurrent with your lawsuit, or even if you don't file a lawsuit. In most cases, if a lawsuit is settled for over a certain amount a complaint is automatically filed for you and an investigation commences. BUT... it often takes a long time for a lawsuit to resolve, and it then can take a LONG time for the state licensing board to investigate! Think of all those babies who might be at risk while the wheels of justice churn oh-so-slowly... call and file your complaint right now!
The midwife who delivered my child was not covered by insurance, so we had no lawsuit because there was no possible recovery. However, another woman who had lost her baby in a totally botched delivery sued in 1998, but ALSO filed a complaint at the same time (her attorney actually encouraged her to file the complaint; as far as I have seen, most BPI lawyers never even raise the possibility; probably because they get no money from it). After SIX YEARS the nursing board finally revoked the midwife's license. Imagine if that poor woman had waited until after her legal case, and her lawsuit had taken 4, 5 or even 6 years (it has been known to happen!) How many more kids get injured during that time, if investigation into disciplinary action is put off that long?
Kate
It isn't quite true that lawsuit is the only way. As several people have stated, a lawsuit is unlikely to put a doctor out of business, only to raise malpractice insurance rates. The only definite way to put a doctor (or a midwife) out of business is to get their license to practice revoked.
You get a practitioners license revoked by filing a complaint with the appropriate licensing board for that doctor. Most medical doctors are licensed by their state's Board of Medical Examiners. Here is a great list of State Medical Boards (nevermind that it mentions Lasik/etc - all medical doctors are licenses in the same place for each state):
http://www.usaeyes.org/lasik/faq/lasik- ... -board.htm
If your practitioner was a certified nurse midwife, she's probably licensed by your state's Nursing Board:
http://www.uihealthcare.com/depts/nursi ... rdsof.html
If your practioner was another type of licensed midwife, call anonymously and ask who she's licensed with!
Making a complaint doesn't cost you anything. Complaints are investigated by the appropriate board and if fault is found disciplinary action could range from a slap on the wrist to losing one's license to practice permanently. You can file a complaint concurrent with your lawsuit, or even if you don't file a lawsuit. In most cases, if a lawsuit is settled for over a certain amount a complaint is automatically filed for you and an investigation commences. BUT... it often takes a long time for a lawsuit to resolve, and it then can take a LONG time for the state licensing board to investigate! Think of all those babies who might be at risk while the wheels of justice churn oh-so-slowly... call and file your complaint right now!
The midwife who delivered my child was not covered by insurance, so we had no lawsuit because there was no possible recovery. However, another woman who had lost her baby in a totally botched delivery sued in 1998, but ALSO filed a complaint at the same time (her attorney actually encouraged her to file the complaint; as far as I have seen, most BPI lawyers never even raise the possibility; probably because they get no money from it). After SIX YEARS the nursing board finally revoked the midwife's license. Imagine if that poor woman had waited until after her legal case, and her lawsuit had taken 4, 5 or even 6 years (it has been known to happen!) How many more kids get injured during that time, if investigation into disciplinary action is put off that long?
Kate
Re: New here & couple questions
Gosh Erin...that sounds terrible. I'm so sorry your experience was so negative. I wish there were more I could do or say, but just knowing that all these people here understand and have been through similar experiences has helped me.
The lawsuit thing is totally a personal choice. For some, it's simply principal. The dr messed up and they should pay for it. Personally I would just love to have a confrontation with my doctor. I'd love to sit and make her listen to me as I rant about how she affected my son's life and my own, but that won't happen.
I was telling a friend about this wish and she suggested I write it down or actually have the conversation to the mirror and "get it out". So (feeling very foolish at first) I started pretending to tell the dr how I felt. It actually helped a lot...just to hear the words even if she(dr) didn't.
The lawsuit thing is totally a personal choice. For some, it's simply principal. The dr messed up and they should pay for it. Personally I would just love to have a confrontation with my doctor. I'd love to sit and make her listen to me as I rant about how she affected my son's life and my own, but that won't happen.
I was telling a friend about this wish and she suggested I write it down or actually have the conversation to the mirror and "get it out". So (feeling very foolish at first) I started pretending to tell the dr how I felt. It actually helped a lot...just to hear the words even if she(dr) didn't.