Parents to get Dh1.3m after neglect at hospital led to boy being born with brain damage

Obstetrician's neglect during delivery of baby led to boy being brain damaged.

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The Abu Dhabi Court of Appeal has upheld the payment of Dh1.3?million to the parents of a child who suffered brain damage as a result of a medical error.

The court ordered that the private hospital and one of its obstetricians must jointly pay the amount in damages to the mother and father of the three-year-old boy who suffered brain damage while being born.

According to the case report, the child’s mother had paid regular visits to the hospital during her pregnancy and the doctor noted in all of his reports that the pregnancy was normal.

However, during delivery, there was a clear disregard for the required safety precautions, which led to a drop in the foetus’s blood pressure. At this point, the doctor decided to bring the child out with forceps, which blocked the oxygen supply to his brain, eventually leading to brain damage.

The child’s parents sued the hospital and doctor for Dh5?million. The child was examined by the Higher Committee for Medical Liability, which confirmed that the obstetrician’s neglect in his response to the delivery’s complications caused asphyxiation that resulted in severe damage to the infant’s brain.

The court also upheld a ruling binding the defendants to pay the child’s mother and father Dh50,000 each in damages for the physical trauma and sorrow they suffered.

newsdesk@thenational.ae