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Cerebral palsy compensation of £6 million has been paid to the family of a boy who was born with the birth injury as a result of a mismanaged labour at hospital in Blackburn, Lancashire.
The cerebral palsy compensation award brings to an end a long fight for justice for the family. They sought damages for eight years but faced a stubborn defence from East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, which denied liability up until the point it finally admitted full liability in March of this year.
Initially, the birth had been going well, but, on detecting an abnormal heartbeat, doctors failed to respond appropriately.
The claimant's medical negligence lawyer commented, "The correct option was to observe, because the baby was going to be born naturally anyway, and deliver the baby using forceps, or if necessary, carry out a caesarean section.
"If that had happened it is acknowledged the baby would have been born without any damage."
As it was, hospital staff decided to administer syntocinon, a drug which had the adverse effect of increasing stress for the baby and reducing oxygen in the blood supply.
The lawyer said of the cerebral palsy compensation settlement, "Such high awards of damages are made only when the court determines that the seriousness of the injuries, impact on the victim and cost of ongoing medical care and equipment warrant them.
"The compensation will have to last for the whole of his life and pay for a care package which can cost hundreds of thousands of pounds every year."
The relevant NHS trust offered its apologies to go alongside the cerebral palsy compensation payment and emphasised its belief that the standard of maternity care has improved in the nine years since the incident.
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