Do Laborists Reduce the Incidence of Birth Injury?

Do Laborists Reduce the Incidence of Birth Injury?The use of laborists or OB/GYN hospitalists has been an emerging trend that began in the late 1990s and continues to grow in hospital labor and delivery suites across the United States. Laborists are OB/GYNs who are on staff usually on evenings and weekends or even 24/7 in some hospitals.

The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) defines a laborist as a physician whose sole focus of practice is managing the patient in labor. Traditionally, a woman chooses an OB at the start of her pregnancy, and that doctor does her prenatal care and delivers the baby. However, it is not uncommon for a woman to show up at the hospital in active labor only to find that her doctor is not available to deliver her baby. In some circumstances, women must wait for the on-call OB to show up at the hospital to deliver their child. These delays can be distressing for the laboring mother and for the nurses on staff who may end up delivering the baby. These kinds of situations can not only cause low patient satisfaction rates, but they can also expose the hospital to higher rates of medical malpractice lawsuits caused by rushed hand-offs and emergency caesarian sections that may not always be necessary.

A study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Evaluating the impact of the laborist model of obstetric care on maternal and neonatal outcomes, concluded that the implementation of the laborist model was associated with a significant reduction in labor induction rates and preterm births without adversely affecting other outcomes. The study looked at 550,000 women from 24 hospitals (8 with Laborists and 16 without Laborists).

Laborists focus all their efforts on caring for laboring patients in the hospital. They are not juggling a private practice or rushing to the hospital after being paged. A definitive answer to the question of whether using the laborist model of obstetrical care will help lower the incidence of birth injuries remains to be seen, as the model is still so new.

Human error causes most birth injuries during labor, delivery, and throughout the mother’s pregnancy. There is always the possibility that this laborist model, which allows the obstetrician to focus on the work of supporting laboring women and delivering babies, will over time prove to be a safer approach. Having a singular focus can build the doctors’ skills which could lead to fewer medical errors caused by insufficient skill and experience.

Were you or your baby injured during labor and delivery due to the negligence of an OB/GYN or any other medical professional? Bailey & Greer, PLLC, invites you to call 901-680-9777 or fill out our contact form and schedule a consultation with a compassionate and experienced West Tennessee birth injury attorney. We will listen to your story and offer personalized legal guidance for your next possible steps. We have offices in Memphis and Jackson, and we are ready to discuss your case today.