The day that your child is born is one of the most important of your life. It’s the day that you welcome a new family member and meet the person who you have been carrying for the past nine months.
For families where an injury occurs during birth, this day is more complex. A birth injury is a traumatic thing to experience and it means that the day is tinged with fear and worry about the life of the child that you have just brought into the world.
What support will your child need?
Dependent on the type of injury that is sustained during birth, the impact on your child will differ. In a lot of cases children who are injured during birth go on to lead a normal life free of any additional complications.
However, if the birth injury has led to brain damage or physical disability then your child may need additional support.
Some areas where additional support may be required are:
- In the home. You may need to get adaptive equipment to allow your child to function fully and safely within your home. This could include things like installing handrails in the shower or widening walkways to accommodate a wheelchair. If your child has a learning disability the support in the home may come in the form of stair gates to keep them safe and being mindful of the positioning of potentially dangerous objects such as cleaning products and tools.
- It might be that your child requires some extra assistance with their education in order to get the most out of it. This may come in the form of specialist equipment, or of additional tutoring.
- Specialist equipment. Depending on the disability, there is specialist equipment available to allow your child as much independence as possible such as a wheelchair, orthopedic boots or crutches.
Birth injury vs birth defect
If your child’s disability is the result of a birth injury as opposed to a birth defect, then it may be that you can look into a Birth Injury Claim to get some compensation for the hardship you have suffered and to get you some help with making adjustments to your life and home.
Birth Injury claims can only be made if your child’s disability is the result of a birth injury. A birth injury is an specific injury that occured during birth that causes a disability to an otherwise healthy infant. A birth defect is a condition that a child was genetically predisposed to have.
Seek Support
If your child is disabled as a result of a birth injury, it’s important that you seek support for yourself. Taking care of a disabled child is hard work and having someone to talk to about it can make all the difference.
If you’d like to find a support group, then charities like Scope or Mind are a great place to start and will be able to point you in the right direction.
