Squires v. Regents of the University of California dba UC Davis Medical Group

Dr. Fagel achieved a settlement of $4,950,000 on behalf of a child who now has cerebral palsy and developmental delays after hospital staff improperly managed the pregnancy and did not perform delivery in a timely fashion. The mother was monitored during her pregnancy by both an obstetrician and nurse practitioner and had all her examinations on a computer. However, the computer program made it difficult to compare results from previous examinations without printing out documents. As a result, neither the OB nor the nurse practitioner noticed the minimal weight gain in the mother’s last trimester or the discrepancy between the fetus’ size and gestational age. When the mother arrived at the hospital with irregular uterine contractions, the fetal monitor showed a non-reassuring tracing and there was a thick meconium with little fluid when there was a rupture of the membranes (ROM). Later on, a L&D nurse noted further decelerations on the fetal heart monitor and called the obstetrician, who returned to the bedside 45 minutes later. 15 minutes after arriving, the OB ordered a stat c-section and the baby was delivered 35 minutes later, with no respiration and a low heart rate. The respiratory therapist then encountered difficulties and could not place the ET tube for 13 minutes. The plaintiff was later diagnosed with hypoxic brain injuries, which were the cause of his cerebral palsy and developmental delays.

The defense contended that further testing during the pregnancy would not have revealed any problems that require earlier delivery. Furthermore, the defense argued that the plaintiff’s injuries occurred before the mother entered the hospital and that there was no delay in the delivery. However, Dr. Fagel displayed that the defendant negligently failed to recognize abnormal progress of the pregnancy prior to the delivery. Which would have required an earlier delivery before the mother went into labor. Furthermore, undue delays during the delivery and post-delivery intubation process contributed to the unfortunate outcome.