The birth of a child is supposed to be an exciting beginning to a new chapter in your life. In some instances, though, medical malpractice rips that happiness away in the blink of an eye, leaving a newborn child with serious birth injuries. One of those serious injuries, cerebral palsy, can have lifelong consequences. For those diagnosed with this condition, life can be riddled with physical limitations and the need for extensive medical treatment. This can cause a lot of physical and emotional pain and suffering, but it can also necessitate an extensive amount of financial loss in order to secure needed medical and rehabilitative care.
While most cerebral palsy victims need braces and physical therapy, that’s likely not all the treatment they will need. They may also need speech and occupational therapy, as well as the need for a medication regimen to improve functional capacity and even surgeries to correct positioning of major joints and lengthen muscles and tendons. Nerves may even need to be cut in order to relax certain muscles.
Additional work may be necessary to accommodate a child living with a lifelong condition like cerebral palsy. The child’s residence may need to be modified to make it more accessible, and transportation may need to be reconsidered to accommodate the child’s condition. Mental health services might also become necessary later on as the child ages and struggles to cope with his or her condition. In other words, there’s a lot of different treatments that a cerebral palsy sufferer may need.
All of this can be enormously overwhelming for parents of cerebral palsy victims. While the emotional toll can be great, the financial hit can be devastating. If you find yourself in this position, then you should consider whether doctor error caused your child’s condition. If so, then you may be able to successfully pursue a medical malpractice claim that imposes liability, secures accountability, and recovers compensation. Hopefully this will allow you to have the financial stability you need while getting your child the compensation he or she deserves.