Freidin Brown issued the following announcement on July 13.
Medical malpractice and personal injury cases are never easy experiences, but they can be profoundly devastating when victims are children. Fortunately, parents and families have the right to pursue legal action against the at-fault party who caused harm to their child, secure accountability and a sense of justice, and recover their damages, including medical expenses and the pain and suffering endured by their child and to be endured in the future.
Cases involving injuries to children and negligent medical care may involve a number of different circumstances. Below, our Miami personal injury lawyers at Freidin Brown, P.A. discuss some of the cases and situations we handle for families across the entire state of Florida.
Birth Injuries – Birth injuries are among the most serious and devastating incidents involving negligence and injuries to children, as they often result in long-term, if not life-long, disabilities. When newborns are injured, exploring how those injuries occurred and whether or not they were the result of medical malpractice is crucial to helping families explore their rights and options. Although every case is different, families generally have the right to pursue a birth injury lawsuit when medical professionals are negligent and fail to uphold their duty of appropriate care when treating pregnant mothers during labor and delivery, or shortly after birth. Given the complexity of the medical issues and the medical specialties involved, it is important to have lawyers who have handled countless birth injury cases in the past. Each year, our legal team handles many challenging and complex birth injury cases throughout the region. More information about these cases, medical negligence, and the rights of families can be found on the birth injury section of our website.
Doctor Negligence – Aside from injuries that occur during birth, children can be injured by the negligence of doctors and other health care professionals at any time in their life. These cases may involve pediatricians, nurses, specialists, and even hospitals that fail to provide a care at acceptable level. Whether injuries result from a failure to diagnose or a misdiagnosis of a serious condition, medication errors, surgical errors, or administrative mistakes made by hospitals and other health care providers, families have the right to take legal action against the responsible party by pursuing medical malpractice lawsuits.
School / Day Care Injuries – Schools, day care facilities, summer camps, and other programs that cater to children have a legal responsibility to take reasonable measures to ensure the safety of your children. This includes an obligation to respond appropriately in the event of injuries and medical emergencies, as well as obligations to care for children with medical needs, such as the need to provide medications, treat known allergic reactions when they occur (and to prevent them), and more. Unfortunately, some schools or programs may fail to uphold this duty through negligence, especially when they employ staff who are inexperienced or simply not trained in first aid or CPR, lack policies for appropriately handling injuries and medical emergencies, or simply fail to take reasonable steps that would ensure children receive the care they need. When children suffer harm or a worsening of their conditions that could and should have been prevented, these programs may be held liable. In addition, schools and camps have a responsibility to maintain their premises in a reasonably safe manner for kids. If a child is injured due to a dangerous condition at school or camp, the business owner can be held responsible.
Youth Sports – Protecting young athletes who participate in sports is a priority for any organization, whether that organization is a recreational league, an amateur sporting enterprise, a sports-related business, or a school team. In fact, these organizations are commonly subject to laws or policies that require coaches, staff, athletic trainers, and others to appropriately prevent, handle, and respond to injuries, emergencies, and other issues involving health and safety. For example, coaches and staff in youth sports like football must handle cases of concussions among youth athletes carefully, as they can quickly become medical emergencies or result in further injury when left unaddressed or when children are allowed to return to practice or play prematurely.
Negligence of Businesses – There are many types of businesses, events, or individuals that offer services that cater to or may be enjoyed by children. This may include amusement parks, arcades, swimming pools, bowling alleys, and other similar enterprises. While it may vary depending on the type of business or circumstances involved, owners of these businesses or properties typically have legal obligations to ensure the safety of visitors and guests—including children. This includes not only ensuring safe conditions on a property, but also ensuring proper handling of child injuries and taking reasonable steps to address any medical needs or emergencies. Failures to do so may be grounds for personal injury or premises liability claims.
As these examples show, determining who can be held responsible for child injuries that result from inadequate supervision, medical care, or general negligence is a matter that depends largely on the facts and circumstances involved. While some cases may be grounds for medical malpractice lawsuits against a doctor, hospital, or health care provider that provided substandard care, others may result in personal injury lawsuits that aim to hold organizations, businesses, or property owners accountable for their negligence in addressing children’s injuries, medical needs, or medical emergencies.
Original source can be found here.