Medical negligence is always traumatic to experience, but it is even more so when your child is involved. If you suspect that your child has been the victim of a medical error, it is important that you seek the right legal advice from a specialist medical negligence solicitor straight away.

For instance, if you feel as though a medical professional has shirked their duty of care to your child, such as by misdiagnosing them or dismissing symptoms that later turned out to be something serious, you may well have a case. Most medical negligence claims relating to personal injury need to be made within 3 years of you first gaining knowledge of the negligence. There are some exceptions made to this for people under the age of 18, but it is still important that you speak to a solicitor straight away as the claims process can be long and complicated, so it makes sense to get the ball rolling as soon as possible.

Children’s Medical Negligence Claims – common causes

Newborns – most children’s medical negligence claims relate to new born babies and they can arise due to:

• The baby being starved of oxygen during delivery or being injured due to the use of instruments when birthing the baby.

• Excessive force being used when forceps or other instruments are in use, which leads to injury of the baby.

These issues can lead to medical conditions such as cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy, skull fractures and brain injury, so it’s important that you take any action necessary as a result.

Older children and teenagers may also experience medical negligence, commonly due to the misdiagnosis of a condition or illness. For instance:

• Incorrect drugs or drug doses being administered to treat illnesses, leading to disability or even death

• Failure to diagnose and treat conditions such as septicaemia, meningitis and tuberculosis.

• Failure to treat fractures properly, which in children can lead to long term bone problems due to the fact they are still growing.

• Failure to diagnose tumours after a child presents with visual impairment or headaches.

There are other reasons you might need to make a children’s medical claim, so even if your issue does not appear on the above lists, please contact our medical negligence solicitors to find out more.

Often, children are unable to communicate exactly how they are feeling when they are unwell, which can lead to some difficulties in diagnosis. This, however, is not an excuse for missing or misdiagnosing a problem with a child and so it is important action is taken if you feel negligence has occurred.

Don’t delay in seeking expert legal advice

Most medical negligence claims relating to personal injury need to be made within 3 years of you first gaining knowledge of the negligence. There are some exceptions made to this for people under the age of 18, but it is still important that you speak to a solicitor straight away as the claims process can be long and complicated, so it makes sense to get the ball rolling as soon as possible.

Need a Medical Claim Solicitor – call us now

For FREE advice and a FREE first interview from an expert Children’s Medical Claim Solicitor just contact us using the details below:

• Call us on FREEPHONE 0800 1404544
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