Aeden Balwah (by Shelly-Ann Balwah, his Mother and Next Friend) and Anor v Marwan Ahmad Alsayed Abdulla (Trinidad & Tobago)

Facts

Aeden Balwah, now 24, has cerebral palsy. His mother and next friend Shelly-Ann Balwah brought proceedings in the High Court of Trinidad and Tobago in May 2013 against a private hospital, Surgi-Med Clinic Co Ltd, the obstetrician who delivered him, Dr Marwan Abdulla, and a paediatrician, Dr Aguilar, who was later released from the action, alleging that his condition resulted from a hypoxic ischaemic brain injury sustained during labour. Mrs Balwah was admitted to Surgi-Med on 18 May 2002 for induction; Dr Abdulla inserted a 200-mcg tablet of misoprostol at about 8.00 pm and left her with the hospital's nurses. There was no foetal heart rate monitoring between 8.00 pm and about 12.30 am. Her membranes ruptured in the early hours of 19 May, Dr Abdulla returned, vaginal delivery was attempted for an hour, and Aeden was delivered by emergency caesarean section at 6.15 am with Apgar scores of 1 at one minute and 5 at three minutes. Ramcharan J found limited breaches of duty by each defendant but held that the attempted delivery began at 4.30 am, leaving too short an unmonitored period for the injury to have occurred intrapartum, and dismissed the claim. The Court of Appeal substituted a finding of 4.00 am, allowed the appeal against Dr Abdulla and entered judgment against him, remitting damages to a Master, but upheld the dismissal against Surgi-Med.