In a series of recent cases the Courts have decided that health authorities have a legal duty to warn expectant mothers about the risk of their children being born with genetic complications. This obligation will give expectant mothers the opportunity to terminate their pregnancies in light of the abnormalities. Whether or not the duty extends to the father or other parent of the unborn child is not yet clear.
The recent English case of ABC v St George’s Health Trust and Others (2017) established that the health authority were obliged to warn an expectant mother about the possibility of her child being born with Huntington’s disease. The doctors were responsible for treating the mother’s father after he was diagnosed with the disease and the daughter had a 50:50 chance of inheriting the condition.
In this case, the father (who suffered from mental health problems) asked the doctors not to inform his daughter about his diagnosis. They chose to respect his wishes and didn’t tell her, but after giving birth she found that she had inherited the disease.
The Court found the health authority’s decision unreasonable as they had a responsibility to warn his daughter which superseded her father’s request for confidentiality. Had she been told, she would not have gone through with her pregnancy.
Next, in the case of Meadows v Khan (2017), the mother was unknowingly a carrier of haemophilia. Her nephew suffered from the disorder and she wanted to confirm whether she would pass the condition on to her child if she got pregnant. After testing her blood the doctors reassured that there was no risk of her having haemophilia. She gave birth to a son suffering from haemophilia and autism. Genetic testing later confirmed she was a carrier of the faulty gene.
The High Court found the doctors’ failure to warn her unreasonable, and had they carried out genetic testing alongside the blood tests the mother she would not gone through with the pregnancy. She was awarded the sum of £9 million in compensation.
Compensation
A mother who gives birth to a child with genetic disorder(s) and who has not been warned about them can claim for the following:
- the physical consequences of continuing with the pregnancy;
- any shock and distress suffered on discovery of the child’s congenital condition;
- additional mental and emotional distress and wear and tear involved in raising the child with the congenital condition; and
- the additional costs of raising a child with the congenital condition.
What to do if you think you have a claim
Our specialist medical negligence team has extensive experience of helping claimants with all types of medical negligence claims, so get in touch if you would like to discuss your specific situation with one of our lawyers.
