$2,400,000.00
A young woman was admitted to a teaching hospital to give birth to her first child. Her entire labor was monitored by residents in training since the senior doctor, according to his own testimony, only attended to his “private, paying” patients. The labor was allowed to continue too long and the child needed to be extracted by forceps. The forceps injured the baby’s head, leaving a bruise on his face. Within hours he began to have seizures and a CAT scan revealed a brain bleed in the same location as the bruise. He was ultimately diagnosed with developmental delays and autism (Pervasive Developmental Disorder). A medical expert from Sweden who had conducted research in the relationship between anoxia (the lack of oxygen to the brain) and autism was located. This expert was prepared to fly in to testify. A settlement of $1.8 million was reached shortly before trial, which will pay for custodial care and medical treatment for the rest of the child’s life.