A fourteen year old boy, who was starved of oxygen during his birth and now suffers from cerebral palsy, has had a cerbral palsy litigation case settled for a sum £2.9m.
Cian Mangan was born late into the evening of the 1st of June 1996. He was already several days overdue when his mother, Michelle, was admitted to hospital, County Cork, in the early stages of labour.
The court heard that Cian’s foetal heartbeat had fallen between the time Michelle was admitted to the hospital and when he was born, and it was alleged that staff at the hospital had failed to recognise this symptom of foetal distress.
Their claimed oversight led to a delay in summoning a doctor and consequently, when Cian was delivered at 11.39pm, he had become asphyxiated, and now suffers from cerebral palsy as a result.
Alleging medical negligence through his mother, the court heard that liability for Cian’s injuries was denied and argued that the proper procedures were followed. However, an offer of £2.9m was made which Cian and his family were prepared to accept.
In approving the settlement, Mr Justice Brian McGovern agreed that a payment of £117,000 should be made to Cian’s mother for the care she had provided for him over the past fourteen years, and heard that an application was going to be made to make Cian a ward of court.