Maternal Mortality and the 2020 Joint Commission Maternal Safety Standards: Are You Prepared to Defend Your Next Medical Malpractice Case?

by Carrie Barber Uncategorized
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In this blog I’ll be reviewing the NYS maternal mortality statistics as well what type of lawsuit would support maternal mortality cases. Additionally, I will be briefly addressing the new 2020 Joint Commission Maternal Safety Standards.

The NYS maternal mortality rate is 18.9 deaths/100,000 live births. This is 1.7 times the Healthy People 2020 target of 11.4/100,000 live births. Of the pregnancy-related deaths the CDC reviewed, 27.2% were considered preventable.

The NYS Maternal Mortality Review Report identified 33 pregnancy-related deaths in 2014.
The leading causes of pregnancy-related deaths were:
Infection: (21.2%)
Hemorrhage: (15.2%)
Cardiomyopathy, embolism, pulmonary problems: (12.1%)

According to the CDC, nine cases (27.2%) among the pregnancy-related deaths were considered preventable based on the reviewer’s determination that there was at least some chance of death being averted by changes to patient, family, provider, facility, system and/or community factors.

To address maternal morbidity, as of July 1, 2020 there are new Joint Commission (JC) Maternal Safety Standards required of JC accredited hospitals.

Medical malpractice, and wrongful death are types of lawsuits that can be filed to support maternal death cases. Recovery involves compensation for economic and non-economic damages. Having an understanding of current statistics, current standards of care, Joint Commission standards, available sources of evidence, and an awareness of how to interpret the medical records will help to ensure that your clients achieve the greatest possible outcome with the support of their legal team.

I welcome you to collaborate with Barber Medical Legal Nurse Consulting, LLC to learn more about the new Joint Commission Maternal Safety Standards.

To learn more about the NYS Maternal Mortality Review Report, visit link below: https://health.ny.gov/community/adults/women/docs/maternal_mortality_review_2014.pdf