Port Townsend Family Receives $23.9 Million Verdict in Case against Jefferson Healthcare after Medical Errors Lead to Baby’s Permanent Brain Injury, According to Luvera Law Firm

A jury decided a $23.9 million verdict in favor of a Port Townsend
family whose baby suffered permanent brain injury when she slowly
suffocated during labor and delivery at Jefferson Healthcare Medical
Center in 2014. The verdict against Jefferson County Public Hospital
District, which operates the medical center and several other area
clinics, was handed down Friday, Dec. 20, 2019 in Kitsap County Superior
Court.

The jury agreed with plaintiffs Anna Scott and Zachary Burke that
doctors and nurses missed several critical signs their baby Lana was in
distress during delivery with her umbilical cord wrapped around her
neck, depriving her of oxygen. The baby, who was born blue and needed
extensive resuscitation to begin breathing on her own, suffers permanent
brain damage that will severely limit her mental and physical
capabilities for the rest of her life.

At trial, attorneys for Scott and Burke argued that medical providers
used a fetal heart monitor during delivery, but failed to realize that
it was picking up the mother’s heartbeat – not the baby’s – for most of
the last three hours before birth, misleading them into thinking the
baby was fine.

“Lana was essentially strangled by her own umbilical cord and Jefferson
Healthcare medical providers did nothing to intervene,” said Robert
Gellatly of Luvera
Law Firm, the attorney representing Scott and Burke. “The medical
team’s actions – or inactions – deprived her of oxygen, leaving Lana
profoundly brain injured."

Medical experts contend there are several safety measures that labor and
delivery teams can use to prevent what’s known as maternal and fetal
heart rate confusion, including easy fixes such as routinely taking the
mother’s heart rate separately and comparing it to the fetal strip to
see if they are identical, according to court documents.

In this case, Jefferson Healthcare did not have those protocols in
place. The healthcare providers only took Scott’s heart rate one time in
nearly four hours – and then, even though it perfectly matched the heart
tracing, they failed to confirm possible confusion or take action to
help the baby, the claim states. The care team also missed the fact that
the heart rate being recorded was accelerating with each contraction,
which often occurs with the mother’s heart but is unusual for the baby.

“There were many opportunities to see that Lana was in trouble, but the
medical team missed every one of them,” Scott said. “Now Lana will have
to live with the consequences of the Jefferson Healthcare
providers’ poor decisions for the rest of her life.”

Diagnosed with severe brain injury shortly after birth, doctors expect
that Lana Burke will have permanent cognitive impairment, speech and
language deficits, and impaired motor skills. Now almost six years old,
she can walk unsteadily but can’t dress or properly feed herself.

“Lana is such a blessing in our lives, and has the most beautiful smile
and heart – but she will need care for the rest of her life, and this
verdict ensures she has a financial safety net to sustain her for
decades to come,” Scott said. “It’s equally important to Zach and me
that other parents know about this critical safety issue, and for
Jefferson Healthcare to be held accountable so that we can help prevent
this from happening to another family.”

About Luvera Law Firm:

Luvera Law Firm is a nationally recognized firm, with high standards of
ethical conduct. The firm specializes in medical malpractice, brain
injury, death and other major damage cases, and seeks justice for
clients as well as positive changes in corporate and governmental
behavior. Find more at www.luveralawfirm.com.

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