Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Compensation for birth trauma PTSD

275 replies

User334567 · 13/03/2021 14:28

Has anyone been through a claim for birth trauma ? I had awful care in hospital after a traumatic birth it was mostly the care and neglect that caused my PTSD which I had therapy for. I went for a meeting and the hospital apologised and acknowledged the care wasn’t good and a plan for change. It was nearly two years ago (meeting 6 months ago) and I want to get the courage to ask a solicitor if I should pursue a claim for compensation. Any advice on if it’s worth it?

OP posts:
pumpkintree · 13/03/2021 15:57

Ask for change to be made not money. Money won't solve how you feel.

CuteBear · 13/03/2021 16:10

@User334567

Has anyone been through a claim for birth trauma ? I had awful care in hospital after a traumatic birth it was mostly the care and neglect that caused my PTSD which I had therapy for. I went for a meeting and the hospital apologised and acknowledged the care wasn’t good and a plan for change. It was nearly two years ago (meeting 6 months ago) and I want to get the courage to ask a solicitor if I should pursue a claim for compensation. Any advice on if it’s worth it?
What happened? I know some women who had to have (or almost had) emergency c-sections and almost died due to blood loss. Then severe PND afterwards. I don’t understand how money will fix things.
CuteBear · 13/03/2021 16:12

@Hadjab

Unless you or your child suffered actual physical harm which has resulted in the need for 24hr care, I would say no, don’t sue the NHS, it can’t afford it.
I agree. If your child was left disabled due to neglect on the part of doctors or nurses, then that might be a reason to sue.
IndecentFeminist · 13/03/2021 16:14

Might make her feel a whole lot better though.

If she won a case, they're not going to fire a nurse to pay out. Separate budget plus insurance.

The NHS isn't free, and it sometimes often fucks up. Holding it up as some sort of sacred deity does no-one any good, including the NHS itself.

CuriousaboutSamphire · 13/03/2021 16:17

It was nearly two years ago (meeting 6 months ago) and I want to get the courage to ask a solicitor if I should pursue a claim for compensation. Any advice on if it’s worth it? What is it you need that you don't have? What has not happened?

If you are now physically well, had your therapy paid for, ongoing too, and they have apologised and promised a change then maybe you need to say it our loud. What do you want?

If you have bills yet to be covered then yes, you could expect that to be met.

But we can't tell you if you are BU or not as we don't know what t is you want or need.

But I do hope you are getting much benefit from the therapy Flowers

Screwcorona · 13/03/2021 16:17

It is not a free service, it may be at point of care but it is paid for.
Also PTSD is harm the op has suffered astounding that people dont think this is harm.

Whether you decide to pursue or not is up to you, but definitly ask a solicitor what the chances are of it being successful

TotorosFurryBehind · 13/03/2021 16:26

Which is hospital OP?

EdithDickie · 13/03/2021 16:33

Hi OP, I know someone who works in this area who could talk to you about what would be involved free of charge and no obligation. Send me a message if you'd like some information.

Take care, I hope that things are feeling better for you soon.

MrsTulipTattsyrup · 13/03/2021 16:45

If you’ve lost out financially because of the events, say for care or equipment costs you wouldn’t otherwise have had to cover, for therapy or for loss of earnings, then I can see that a claim would be appropriate.

But otherwise, how will money help to put right your trauma? What sum would it take to make things better?

You’ll need to have an idea of what you want to sue for, and how much you’re looking for in compensation, so do have a think about this before you instruct someone to act for you.

Iremembertheelderlykoreanlady · 13/03/2021 16:53

OP I would speak to a solicitor via a free consultation to see what kind of case you have. I felt sad when I saw your post title as I knew the majority of the responses you would get, predominantly from people who have never been unfortunate enough to end up in the position you are in now.

Irwin Mitchell are very good in medical negligence cases and can handle them on a free basis in which you would also receive 100% of compensation (their costs are covered by the negligent party)

Good luck if you decide to go forward

Justanotherworkingmom · 13/03/2021 17:03

I can assure those who’ve said otherwise that compensation does come out of nhs funds for care.

While there is a centralised fund (NHS Resolution), payments into that fund come from individual trusts. If more people sue, the annual payments go up, leaving less funds for care.

I have sympathy with those who sue because they have a genuine need for ongoing care not available on the nhs. Everyone else is just money grabbing.

If you don’t think nhs care if good enough, either go private or perhaps ask the government to increase your tax bill.

OverTheRainbow88 · 13/03/2021 17:08

@Lou98

It isn’t free for the majority, we may national insurance etc

And just because something is ‘free’ doesn’t mean we should accept shit treatment.

CovoidOfAllHumanity · 13/03/2021 17:09

I work in the NHS but I would never say it should somehow be exempt from being sued if care is negligent

However it is notoriously hard to prove. The care has to be negligent not just less than ideal. Different ways of handling things can be acceptable and just because there was a bad outcome and even if there was an apology it does not necessarily mean the care was negligent. It is accepted that a mistake can be made without it amounting to negligence.

It also has to be proved that the PTSD was directly caused by the negligent care. If you had a pre existing MH problems that makes it harder. Also a person could have a traumatic birth and PTSD even with good medical care because birth is not an entirely safe thing and there is always a small risk of a poor outcome. It may be hard to prove that with better care it could have been avoided.

But equally if it's not a big claim sometimes they just settle whatever the merits of the case because the cost would be less than fighting it so probably worth asking a solicitor especially if you have insurance.

Crankley · 13/03/2021 17:13

Do get an idea of the legal fees before you claim - they could wipe out most of the compensation.

I wouldn't personally do it. I was very tempted to sue High Wycombe Hospital over their treatment of my Mother - the nursing staff were shockingly bad. But decided against.

I will need an operation at some point and as my local hospital no longer performs operations, it will mean going to High Wycombe which I am dreading.

bellinisurge · 13/03/2021 17:17

How has post natal PTSD affected me financially? It set my career so far back because I could barely function at work let alone attempt career progression. I still - 13 years on - cannot deal with a particular area of my work because it would involve interaction with hospitals.

littlebillie · 13/03/2021 17:22

I don't think suing them will improve your mental health

Whammyyammy · 13/03/2021 17:26

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

TheSnootiestFox · 13/03/2021 17:27

@Justanotherworkingmom

I can assure those who’ve said otherwise that compensation does come out of nhs funds for care.

While there is a centralised fund (NHS Resolution), payments into that fund come from individual trusts. If more people sue, the annual payments go up, leaving less funds for care.

I have sympathy with those who sue because they have a genuine need for ongoing care not available on the nhs. Everyone else is just money grabbing.

If you don’t think nhs care if good enough, either go private or perhaps ask the government to increase your tax bill.

Perhaps they government could refund the tax I've already paid to enable me to pay for my private care?

What a fucking stupid thing to say.......

CuriousaboutSamphire · 13/03/2021 17:28

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

Thisisworsethananticpated · 13/03/2021 17:30

What will the cash do ? Also you do realise you are not the only woman to have had this ?
I’d focus on healing and moving forward the best you can

This will be a stressful energy drain

Krazynights34 · 13/03/2021 17:32

@Justanotherworkingmom - yes NHS Resolution doesn’t have a magic pot of money.
It is INSURANCE,
If you killed someone in a car crash because you were speeding, you’d be “out of pocket” because your premiums increased. But then, the fictional you shouldn’t have been speeding and sorry is not enough.
The NHS is fantastic at saying, in effect, we couldn’t have done otherwise.
Upthread id said that I am in the process of taking legal action against the NHS.
You are entitled to your view but I’m not “money grabbing”.
I, firstly have no need to be, but compensation exists for when a wrong has been done.
It’s a paltry pay back for a wrong caused by deliberate actions, not where a tired, overstretched nurse was a bit abrupt and so on.
I’m someone who lost her first baby, at full term to placental abruption.
I couldn’t get through to either my midwife or the maternity unit for well over an hour when it started. When I did I was told to have a bath and a paracetamol. Later the Trust denied having a record of that call.
When I called back twenty minutes later with a sigh and muttering I was told to come in but expect not much to happen because they were very busy.
It was a Sunday, 3 days before Christmas Day.
The only reason they “let” me come in was because I said I was struggling to breathe and hadn’t felt my baby move for ages.
When I got to the hospital the midwife sneered at me, was rude to my DH and left me alone for an hour, unexamined. I was on the floor in agony. I could barely breath. I had stopped being able to urinate.
When a midwife eventually came, my DD was dead.
Later the NHS argued that even if they’d called an ambulance 4 hours earlier when I’d first called that she’d have died (or been disabled- obviously the worse thing ever in the NHS mentality).
I then sat in that hospital while they tried to induce me, unable to speak in pain that morphine didn’t touch, when they’d refused a c-section. At 4am, 12 hours after I’d called they burst into the room and told me I was dying.
They said they’d made a mistake, that I was bleeding internally.
4 litres of blood, 4 litres of frozen plasma, 4 litres of platlets, an induced coma, kidney failure..

They said sorry.
They said things had changed about their practices because of my DD.
That was a lie.

Solicitor said I couldn’t prove causation.
That’s how tough it was.
I got no support, no nhs counselling.
When I asked for antidepressants my GP asked why I wanted them and I said my DD had died. Her response was “and..?”

I had to leave my decently paid job (£50,000 9 years ago) because I couldn’t get over my PTSD for ages.
I did go back to work 10 months later, in law, for a £24,000 salary.

The same hospital Trust failed to detect that my only living DD was severely disabled at the 12 week scan (it is obvious looking back even to me).
She’s here now and wonderful.

Her consultant paediatrician in the same Trust took it upon himself to touch me sexually which was so unexpected and frightening that I was in shock. I complained, the Trust backed him. I had a mental breakdown. My (new GP) had laugh(literally) when I told her before I’d complained about him.

I’ve had to pay thousands of pounds (not joking) for counselling and ptsd since he did that. I’ve had to move hospital to avoid him.
I’ve lost friends because of him.

Don’t sue the wonderful “free” NHS that pays that cunt’s 6 figure salary??

Fuck that.
If you can’t competently do a job, get a new one!

Soontobe60 · 13/03/2021 17:34

A friend of mine had a traumatic birth resulting in her now having a permanent colostomy, the hospital acknowledged an element of neglect. She has not yet received any compensation although her claim was lodged when her baby was less than a year old. He is now 7. Her life has been significantly affected by this.

My point is, unless the hospital admit fault, and you can prove how it has impacted you, you may find it almost impossible to claim any compensation.

SwanDaisySwan · 13/03/2021 17:39

The birth reflections and complaints systems exist primarily to deter litigation. In my experience they say changes will be made as a result of complaints raised and it’s all talk and no action. Realistically I wouldn’t sue unless you had strong evidence your care was negligent, just because it’s going to be an uphill battle that’s not worth your effort otherwise. And I’m sorry to see other posters minimising PTSD. I know what it’s like.

Autumnsun1985 · 13/03/2021 17:47

@Krazynights34
That is truly shocking to read. Im very sorry for what you have been put through.
I work for the nhs, but despite this, I do think there are patients who have a right to pursue a legal case if they have been wronged.

Worldwide2 · 13/03/2021 17:53

@krazynights34 That was bloody horrific to read 💔 I'm so sorry for your dd and how you were treated, bloody disgusting and disgusting there was no compensation for you. Not that money would have took away what you went through. Just awful really awful. I'm so sorry 💐

Swipe left for the next trending thread