Jury: Medical Neglect Responsible for Boy's Cerebral Palsy

Contact a Cerebral Palsy Lawyer

or

April 30th, 2007

"Medical Neglect Verdict"

A Cumberland County jury recently awarded more than $2 million in damages to the parents of a boy who alleged their son's brain damage and cerebral palsy was caused by medical neglect.

Gerard and Linda Boullianne filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against nurse midwife Pamela Kozick and Women's Health Associates of Carlisle (now Women's Specialists of Carlisle) to seek justice after their son Christian died at age two.

According to their complaint, Christian suffered severe brain damage and developed spastic cerebral palsy after Kozick failed to respond to signs of fetal distress by calling a doctor.

“The defendant is a nurse midwife. There's a very clear hospital policy that says if the (fetal monitor) strips are non-reassuring, she needs to call a doctor. She failed to do that,” said Daniel Weinstock, the Boulliannes' attorney.

Healthy Pregnancy, Difficult Birth

Gerard said his wife's pregnancy had been normal and healthy prior to the delivery and they had no doubts about Kozick attending the birth.

“We thought she was fully competent. She seemed to know what she was doing,” he said.

However, when the midwife ignored Gerard's—a former EMT—concerns about fetal distress, he became concerned.

“Basically she didn't want to hear what I had to say,” the father went on.

When their son was born, he said they knew something was wrong with him.

“He looked dead, but they found a faint heartbeat and they capitalized on that. They resuscitated him,” Gerard said.

For four weeks after his birth, Christian was on life support. His father said that once home, Christian required around-the-clock care.

“If there's any question about the health of the child, (medical practioners) should contact the doctor immediately and let him make the decision. They should be more willing to call the doctor, instead of being afraid of getting in trouble,” he said. “My wife still cries about him all the time.”

Victim of medical malpractice? An experienced attorney can evaluate your case to determine if you're eligible to recover your losses. Contact us today to locate an attorney near you.