FOCUS
A woman during vaginal childbirth experiences a tear and complications from a failed repair. A medical negligence case requiring Obstetrics and Gynecology medical expert witness review.
BACKGROUND
Vaginal tearing during childbirth is an extremely common injury. The repair can be simple or complex, depending on the severity and location.
CASE
A 40-year old woman underwent a routine vaginal delivery and experienced a tear. The obstetrician repaired the wound, but the patient alleges that the repair was performed improperly and that it failed to adequately correct an underlying muscular injury. She has since experienced a range of complications.
ELITE’S ROLE
ELITE’s physician-led team was asked to secure a top-tier professor of OBSTETRICS AND GYNECOLOGY to act as a medical expert witness and to determine if the treating obstetrician deviated from any applicable standard of care that were causative to the patient’s outcome. A pending statute of limitation placed time constraints on the case, and a review and oral opinion had to be completed less than 72 hours after the assignment was given to ELITE.
THE MEDICAL EXPERTS
ELITE rapidly secured a top-tier professor of OBSTETRICS at a major west coast US Medical School to review the records and opine on any deviations from the standard of care. The OB/GYN physician was considered a leading expert in the field of childbirth, lecturing nationally on operative management of childbirth. ELITE coordinated with the expert to complete the review within the given deadlines, and the expert provided an oral opinion to the legal team within 48 hours.
OUTCOME
After receiving a favorable review and an affidavit of merit from a top OBSTETRICS expert, the case was confidently filed by the legal team before the statute of limitations expired. Subsequently, the OB/GYN expert provided a full written report on the case, and the legal team successfully negotiated a strong settlement for their client.
E-CASE STUDIES are brief clinical vignettes based upon actual cases handled by ELITE. Identifying information has been redacted or altered to protect case confidentiality.
