The human cost of cerebral palsy cannot be overstated. Many sufferers endure an extremely poor quality of life and often have to endure considerable amounts of pain. In most cases the incidence of cerebral palsy and its control are outside the knowledge and capabilities of man. Most incidences arise in the womb and are attributable [...]
The human cost of cerebral palsy cannot be overstated. Many sufferers endure an extremely poor quality of life and often have to endure considerable amounts of pain. In most cases the incidence of cerebral palsy and its control are outside the knowledge and capabilities of man. Most incidences arise in the womb and are attributable to natural causes. As knowledge and skills increase then greater control might be exercised over this condition, but for now we must accept that for one in five hundred live births we will see a case of cerebral palsy.
The financial cost of providing for these unfortunate people is naturally considerable, but it is an inevitable cost that a caring society must bear. Any who do not accept this are themselves unfortunate.
What are not acceptable are cases of cerebral palsy caused by human error, lack of an appropriate duty of care by medical professionals and other forms of medical negligence. In March 2009 a young boy was awarded a compensation payment of £5.2 million for medical negligence that led to his cerebral palsy. The boy was deprived of oxygen and suffered brain damage during his birth. It appears that the baby had been in a poor condition in the womb for ten hours before it was decided that a caesarean section was necessary. Despite this the hospital denied responsibility until the last moment. The case took place in Scotland and it was settled out-of-court just a few days before the scheduled court hearing. This means that all the details are not available. The total compensation paid out for medical negligence in Scotland has been £36 million over the last two years.
In April 2009 in another court in England a two year old boy was awarded £1 million for medical negligence that led to cerebral palsy. Again the boy suffered oxygen deprivation during his birth. He has quadriplegia, the variant of palsy that caused paralysis in all four limbs. The £1 million is only an interim payment and it is anticipated that the final settlement will be many times greater.
These are just two cases in the last two months. In the UK there are around 30 births a year that result in cerebral palsy due to medical negligence. The costs are unacceptable both in human and financial terms.
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