Compensation trial starts for severely disabled boy
29/11/2006
Thank you very much for the brilliant service, professionalism and caring attitude whilst handling my recent claim.
Vicki, Sheffield
High Court Trial commences to establish compensation for severely disabled boy injured in home birth
A
five-day High Court civil hearing opens in Birmingham on Tuesday 28th
November after an Evesham boy was left severely disabled following
failures during his mother's pregnancy and his birth.
Suffers from Cerebral Palsy
Daniel
Groves, now aged 12, suffers from Cerebral Palsy due to deprivation of
oxygen after doctors and community midwives failed to spot that his
mother, Ingrid, had developed gestational diabetes during pregnancy and
encouraged her to have a home birth. Mrs Groves' condition that should
have been picked up during pregnancy and should have led to a high-risk
delivery in a hospital unit went undetected.
Daniel weighed 11 lb
8 oz at birth due to his mother's diabetes and his shoulders became
stuck during vaginal delivery causing deprivation of oxygen. As he was
born at home, specialist medical teams and state of the art equipment
were not available to assist his delivery and resuscitate him.
Liability
has already been established against the GP and community midwives
responsible for Mrs Groves' care. The High Court trial, before Mr
Justice Gibbs, will assess the value of the claim and establish the
level of compensation Daniel Groves should receive.
Left with quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy and Erb's Palsy.
As a result of being starved of oxygen at birth, Daniel has been left with quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy and Erb's Palsy.
Daniel
is totally dependent upon a wheelchair for mobility and requires
24-hour care. He is not able to speak but uses limited forms of
communication such as putting his tongue out for "no" and smiling for
"yes."
Daniel's mother, Ingrid Groves, said: "This has been a
long ordeal for the family and we are relieved that we are nearing the
end of our legal fight.
Stuart Henderson, a partner from Irwin
Mitchell Solicitors, who represents the family said: "Daniel is a
delightful boy, but he has been limited in his independence and all the
chances he should have had in life have been restricted. We hope that
this civil trial will result in a damages award that will allow Daniel
to provide for his extensive future needs and make the most of his life
ahead.
"Daniel is blessed with an extraordinarily close and warm
family. His parents, Ingrid and Richard, brothers Chris, (26) and
Michael (19) and sister Lisa (24) have all been so positive and
determined to ensure that Daniel is given every opportunity to enjoy
life to the full."
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