A Bahamian family has been awarded US$3.6 million in one of the country’s largest-ever medical negligence payouts, after a court ruled that a series of botched delivery attempts at a public hospital left their son with severe and permanent brain damage.
The child, now 12 years old, lives in a near-vegetative state with cerebral palsy, epilepsy, microcephaly, and a host of neurological disorders stemming from hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) — brain damage caused by a lack of oxygen at birth. He requires 24-hour care and will never live independently.
Justice Loren Klein, who handed down the ruling in the Supreme Court, found that Dr. Gregory Carey, an experienced obstetrician who has delivered more than 1,000 babies over his 30-year career, breached his duty of care by persisting with failed attempts at vaginal delivery instead of opting for a cesarean section.
“I, therefore, find on a balance of probabilities that the defendant caused the injuries to the plaintiff by his successive failed attempts to deliver the baby prior to the arrival of Dr. Bloomfield,” Justice Klein wrote, adding that the injuries were “foreseeable” and within the scope of Dr. Carey’s responsibilities.
According to court documents, the mother arrived at Princess Margaret Hospital at 4:15 a.m. on August 5, 2012, in labor. Dr. Carey attempted to deliver the baby using a vacuum extractor, then forceps. When both methods failed, the consultant obstetrician, Dr. Harold Bloomfield, was eventually called and managed to deliver the baby using forceps at 11:45 a.m. — more than seven hours after the mother’s arrival.
By then, it was too late. The baby was born unconscious, not breathing, and with the umbilical cord wrapped tightly around his neck. He had to be resuscitated and rushed to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, where he remained for weeks.
Over time, the extent of his injuries became clear. The court heard from multiple medical experts who linked his condition directly to the trauma and oxygen deprivation during delivery — trauma the court found could have been avoided had a cesarean been performed sooner.
The father testified that Dr. Carey never apologised for the tragic outcome and even joked at one point that the case had been his “most difficult delivery,” adding that “they were trying to mess up his record.”
Dr. Carey denied all allegations of negligence, blaming the child’s condition on genetics or other unknown causes. He maintained that he was properly trained in the use of both instruments and that the tools themselves were not to blame.
But the court was not convinced. Justice Klein ruled that the delivery attempts by Dr. Carey directly led to the child’s injuries and that earlier intervention could have prevented the life-altering damage.
The US$3.6 million award will go toward covering the child’s extensive medical needs and providing financial support for his long-term care.
