It is reported that England has one of the highest rates in Europe of babies being stillborn or dying within 7 days of birth. The government has called for improvements to NHS maternity services and states that a staggering £480 million was set aside for payouts for clinical negligence claims arising from maternity services. This is the equivalent to £700 per birth in England!
Errors during labour can lead to the most catastrophic of injuries with many babies requiring full time care throughout their life. Such life-shattering injuries are expensive and claims for this type of negligence can run into millions of pounds.
This is particularly relevant at a time when maternity units across Kent & Sussex are closing, women are being turned away from some hospitals due to staff shortages and a lack of beds and those who develop complications or who are expected to have a difficult birth now have to travel further, putting lives at risk.
The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) are supporting the governments call for improvements to maternity services in England. APIL’s president says the way to cut the cost of compensation claims must be to cut off the problem at its source and therefore uphold reasonable standards of care for women and their babies!
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