More Hospitals Are Banning Video Cameras During Birth To Prevent Birth Injury Lawsuits

It’s a disturbing trend: more and more hospitals in New York and across the country are banning camcorders, cameras, and even cell phones from delivery rooms. Not only do these new hospital rules prevent parents from capturing the first moments of their new babies, they also prevent new moms and dads from capturing medical malpractice in action. It’s sad, but true: hospitals have learned that having their medical errors, inappropriate behavior, and negligence caught on video is hard to argue against in the courtroom.

In one recent case, a family won a $2.3 million birth injury lawsuit against a hospital after their daughter was born with shoulder complications. A video of the birth proved that a nurse assisting with the birth used excessive force that caused the injury. In another case, a videotaping dad caught some frightening audio from nearby nurses – they were discussing that the doctor was not present during an emergency because he was making a personal phone call.

Those who agree with the new video camera bans say that juries can be moved by the trauma and emotion of a birth video, whether or not medical malpractice is taking place. Others add that not many people understand the complexity of some deliveries or how normal it is to make last-minute decisions to keep both mother and baby safe. Other medical professionals simply say that having multiple family members with cameras can be distracting to everyone.

Did you or your baby suffer injury during labor due to the carelessness or negligence of a doctor or nurse? Do you have evidence of birth injury medical malpractice on your camera, video camera, or cell phone? Birth injuries can change a family forever – and cost you deadly when it comes to medical expenses. Talk to a New York City birth injury attorney about your case today.