No win, no fee birth injury compensation
You can be represented by a highly experienced birth injury lawyer at no upfront cost to you. Under our No Win, No Fee agreement you only pay a pre-agreed percentage of the compensation awarded if your case is successful.
Perineal & vaginal tears negligence
It is not unusual for a mother to sustain a birth injury during labour – around 80 percent of women who give birth vaginally will experience a perineal tear during the delivery of their baby.
Whilst tears can be a consequence of childbirth. Negligence can arise in the way the tear is managed, identified, assessed and repaired. In some cases tears can be prevented or the severity of the tear minimised.
If a doctor or midwife misdiagnosed a perineal tear, didn’t treat it properly or missed it completely the consequences can be significant for a woman and may result in an injury, for which medical negligence compensation can be claimed.
Specialists in perineal & vaginal tear claims
Our expert gynaecology injury lawyers see many different types of potential medical negligence claims for women who have sustained some form of perineal tear during delivery.
The most common examples of poor care are:
- Tears not being carefully assessed, diagnosed and repaired.
- Failing to take reasonable steps to minimise the risk of perineal tears.
- Mismanaged delivery.
- Failing to identify and treat infections as a result of a tear.
- Not considering risk factors before birth or refusing a request for a caesarean.
- Not taking into account a previous perineal tear in future pregnancies.
In some cases where a tear isn’t properly recognised or treated it can lead to urinary and/or faecal incontinence – in some cases women may have to have a colostomy to allow the area to heal.
Degrees of perineal & vaginal tears
Childbirth tears do vary and there four degrees – depending on the size, severity, cause and treatment required.
1st-degree perineal tear
These are surface injury tears that generally do not require stitches and will heal naturally. They shouldn’t need any further treatment or cause long-term health issues.
2nd-degree perineal tear
These tears are more than skin deep and affect the muscle of your perineum and usually require stitches, which can be done by a trained midwife. About three in 10 women will have a first or second-degree tear.
3rd-degree perineal tear
These tears involve the skin, back of the vagina and muscles of the perineum being torn, and extend through to the anal sphincter. This type of tear will require repair by way of stitches, generally in an operating theatre, performed by an experienced obstetrician.
There are three classifications of 3rd degree tears: 3a, 3b & 3 c.
- 3a tear: involves less than 50% of the external anal sphincter muscle.
- 3b tear: involves more than 50% of the external anal sphincter muscle.
- 3c tear: involves the internal anal sphincter muscle.
4th-degree perineal tear
Around five in 100 women having a vaginal delivery will have a third or fourth-degree tear. Fourth-degree vaginal tears are the most severe as they extend into the rectum. These tears will also require stitches by an obstetrician in an operating theatre.
If not identified and repaired, a 4th-degree tear can cause significant problems such as a rectovaginal fistula.
Perineal & vaginal tears negligence
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) has guidelines for the management of 3rd and 4th-degree tears.
Each tear should be properly assessed and for 3rd or 4th degree tears it is recommended they be repaired in theatre by an appropriately trained obstetrician to avoid incontinence and maternal deaths.
If a tear is correctly assessed and repaired then most women will recover within a year. It is recommended that women are also given a course of antibiotics to prevent an infection. A laxative may also be prescribed.
An obstetrician and gynaecologist should carry out a review and physiotherapy should also be offered. If a repair breaks down, for example, due to an infection, the risk of anal incontinence and fistula formation increases.
A woman’s obstetric history should also be taken into account when she becomes pregnant again, as a previous birth injury may increase the risk of 3rd and 4th-degree tears in the next labour and it may even be appropriate to consider a caesarean section to avoid such an outcome.
Perineal & Vaginal Labour Tear Compensation
If you have experienced a vaginal tear and didn’t receive the appropriate treatment and subsequently suffered an illness and/or further injury then you may have a claim for medical negligence compensation.
However, errors made during the repair procedure left her in pain for months – needing extra repair surgery and she was told she faced the threat of serious further injury should she have another child naturally in the future.
The errors, which were admitted by the Hospital Trust involved – caused not only physical pain and suffering for the woman – but also psychological trauma.
In another successful case, a hospital trust was found negligent in its care of a mother who suffered serious injuries when giving birth to her first child.
Midwives at the hospital were found to have been negligent in failing to take appropriate measures to slow down the birth, leading to the ‘uncontrolled delivery’.
Judge rules midwives were negligent for failing to ensure a ‘controlled delivery’ of baby, causing serious injuries to mother
A Judge has ruled that a hospital trust was negligent in its care of a mother who suffered serious injuries when giving birth to her first child. The mother, who was 24 at the time, suffered a significant and life-threatening haemorrhage and multiple vaginal tears, including a third-degree internal perineal tear. Midwives at the hospital […]
Five-figure damages for mum left afraid to have more children due to injuries caused by hospital after giving birth
A young mother has spoken of her heartache of feeling too afraid to have more children and extend her family due to medical staff leaving her with long-term injuries following the birth of her only child. The woman, who has asked not to be named and was represented in a successful medical negligence legal case […]
How to make a Perineal & Vaginal Labour Tears claim
Make a claim in six easy steps
Free Initial Advice
Call us, request a callback or complete our online claim form and we will assess whether we think you have a claim.
Funding
We will help you to decide how best to fund your claim. Usually, we will be able to offer you a No win, No fee agreement.
Obtain Medical Records & Medical Reports
We will request copies of your medical records and instruct appropriate medical experts to prepare reports confirming whether your care was negligent and how this caused you injury.
Letter Of Claim
We will send a letter to your healthcare provider with details of your claim, setting out why we think your case was negligent and how this caused you injury.
Prepare Claim Valuation
We will put together a schedule of loss setting out the losses you have incurred and the extent of the injuries you have sustained.
Negotiate Settlement
We will send all the evidence to your opponent inviting their settlement proposals. If we cannot agree a reasonable settlement, we will prepare court proceedings.
Start your claim today
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FAQs
What will my compensation claim cover and provide for me?
At Hudgell Solicitors we pride ourselves on providing immediate support to our clients, which continues throughout all medical negligence compensation claims to conclusion and beyond. This includes;
- Immediate practical help – Dealing with practical issues immediately at hand, from speaking to employers to signposting to charities and organisations able to offer support.
- Independent medical opinions – If required we will secure independent medical opinions on the treatment provided to you. This can be crucial in securing admissions of negligence.
- Financial assistance – We always seek to agree early interim payments with defendants to provide vital support required, such as for home adaptations or aids and equipment.
- Rehabilitation – We work with some of the country’s best case managers and rehabilitation experts who oversee complete packages of physical, psychological and physiotherapy support.
Support with a long-term focus –We partner with financial experts to provide advice after settlement to make sure your compensation has the maximum positive, long-term impact
How much compensation will I get from my medical negligence claim?
The amount you can expect to receive in medical negligence compensation depends on your specific case details. Factors affecting your NHS compensation can include the nature of your injury or illness, the impact the negligence has on your day-to-day physical and mental health, your ability to work and your future health, including any long-term care.
Compensation damages may be awarded for:
- Pain and suffering caused.
- Loss of earnings and future loss of earnings (such as being at a disadvantage in the labour market/loss of employability and reduction in potential earnings.).
- Cost of surgery or medical procedures required after the negligence.
- Adaptions required to your home to help with daily living.
- Costs of occupational therapy requirements, such as aids and appliances to assist with daily needs.
- Costs of current or future care.
Travel expenses for medical appointments or equipment.
How will Hudgell Solicitors help me throughout my claim?
As one of the UK’s leading medical negligence compensation claims teams, our solicitors have decades of experience in succeeding in even the most complex of cases. We understand you’ll want to know why things went wrong and how things will change, and will work to secure you the compensation you need to make the best recovery possible.
How quickly can I get compensation?
There is no set answer, however, our team are dedicated to securing interim compensation payments wherever possible, helping people overcome financial worries and cover the cost of much-needed treatment, rehabilitation and often home adaptations.
We have secured many six and seven-figure interim payments in the most serious of cases relating to life-long injuries, ensuring vital support is provided whilst legal proceedings continue.
What is the time limit for making a medical negligence claim?
If aged 18 and over, you will typically have three years from the date that the negligence occurred or from the date that you became aware of negligent treatment.
For under-18s, there is no time limit. However, once a child reaches 18, the standard 3-year claim period comes into effect.
Will I need to go to court to claim medical negligence compensation?
Medical negligence claims rarely need to go to court, and usually only do so in very complex cases.
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Advice
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What can cause a birth injury?
Although healthcare professionals aim to ensure you and your baby are safe throughout delivery, there are incidents in which a lack of monitoring or failure to carry out routine procedures can lead to life-changing injuries. What is a birth injury? A birth injury is any form of harm to a baby or mother during birth […]
NHS Investigation Reports
What is an NHS Investigation Report and what can you expect from one? These reports are produced by NHS Trusts following an investigation into a serious incident which occurred during a patient’s medical care. They can highlight lapses in treatment and organisational systems, such as appointments not being sent out. Reports should also identify steps […]
How to Make a Medical Complaint
If you’re not happy with the medical treatment you or a member of your family has received, you are legally entitled to have your concerns investigated. You should also receive a full response from the healthcare provider. Listen to Samantha Darwin, a senior medical negligence solicitor at Hudgells, explain how to make a formal complaint […]
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