Birth injury, explained for parents
If it is 2 a.m. and you are frightened, start with the first box.
The short answer
If you think something went wrong, four things matter first. Ask what happened, in plain words. Write down what you remember. Request the medical records. Refer your child for a free developmental evaluation. 1 2
Everything else can wait. The first 30 days puts the rest in order.
The numbers, up front
- You can refer your own child today
- A child under 3 with a suspected delay or a diagnosed condition is entitled to a free evaluation. No doctor referral and no diagnosis needed 2
- You have a right to the records
- Federal rules give you the right to your records and your child's, generally within 30 days, with no search or retrieval fee 1
- What this site cites
- 110 sources, each with a publisher, a title, a year and a link 3
- What it collects
- Nothing. Every tool runs in your browser and there is no analytics anywhere on this site 4
Where do you want to start?
Something went wrong and I do not know what to do
A week by week plan for the first month. What to ask, what to request, what to write down, and what can wait.
My child has a diagnosis
50 condition pages. What it is, signs by age, diagnosis, treatment, outlook, daily life and cost. Every one follows the same template.
I want to understand what happened during the birth
22 pages on events during pregnancy, labor and after. What standard care looks like, what can go wrong, and what to look for in the records.
I want the medical records
A builder that writes both request letters, naming every document that gets left out of a general request.
I want therapy started
How to refer your own child today, for free, without a diagnosis or a doctor's referral.
I need to work out the money
Medicaid waivers, TEFRA, SSI, ABLE accounts, trusts and state programs. Apply for the waiver first, because of waiting lists.
I want to know what my state does
51 state hubs: early intervention contacts, waivers, filing deadlines, birth data and local support.
I am not okay
Grief, guilt, post-traumatic stress after a traumatic birth, and where to get help. This one is about you.
What this site is
Free, with no advertising and nothing to buy.
It does not promote, list, rank, name or refer to any attorney or law firm. There is no directory here and there never will be. The legal pages teach families to evaluate and choose for themselves. 5
It collects nothing. Every tool runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you type is sent anywhere, and there is no analytics on this site at all. You can turn off your internet connection and every tool still works. 4
Every number carries its source and its year, in the same block of text. Where a figure could not be tied to a primary source, it is left out and the gap is published at how we use sources. 3
Every page shows the date it was last reviewed. Clinical pages carry a medical review line that reads pending, because no clinician has reviewed them yet. That is stated rather than hidden.
It is not medical advice and it is not legal advice. Talk to your child's doctor, and to an attorney licensed in your state.
The parts of the site
Conditions
50 pages, from HIE and cerebral palsy to brachial plexus injury, jaundice, sepsis and the injuries a mother carries.
What happened
22 pages on monitoring, delayed cesarean, oxytocin, shoulder dystocia, prematurity, infection and what gets missed after birth.
Guides
18 guides, from the first 30 days through records, the NICU, therapy, school, money, deadlines, attorneys and your own health.
Tools
18 tools, all running in your browser: records letters, timelines, milestones, deadlines, costs, questions and explainers.
Your state
51 hubs with early intervention contacts, waivers, filing deadlines and where the data comes from.
Print packs
Checklists, a NICU binder, question packs, an IEP workbook, a one page sheet per condition and per state.
Glossary and decoder
181 terms and abbreviations from the chart, in plain English, searchable.
All sources
Every source cited anywhere on this site, with publisher, year and link.
About
Why this exists, what it will never do, and how it is paid for.
If you need help right now
If you think your child is unwell, call your doctor or go to an emergency department. In a newborn, a parent saying their baby is "just not right" is one of the most common ways serious infection presents. 6
If you are in crisis, in the United States call or text 988 for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
If you are pregnant or postpartum and struggling, the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline is 1-833-TLC-MAMA, free and open at all hours. 7
Thoughts of harming yourself or your baby are more common than people say out loud, and they are treatable. See the parent's own health. 8
Where these facts come from
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights. Individuals Right under HIPAA to Access their Health Information, 45 CFR 164.524. 2024. www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/privacy/guidance/access/. Link checked September 3, 2026.
- U.S. Government Publishing Office, Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. 34 CFR Part 303, Early Intervention Program for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities. 2025. www.ecfr.gov/current/title-34/subtitle-B/chapter-III/part-30. Link checked September 3, 2026.
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and American Academy of Pediatrics. Neonatal Encephalopathy and Neurologic Outcome, Second Edition. 2014. www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/task-force-report/ar. Link checked September 3, 2026.
- U.S. Government Publishing Office, Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. 45 CFR 164.524, Access of individuals to protected health information. 2025. www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/subtitle-A/subchapter-C/part-1. Link checked September 3, 2026.
- American Bar Association. State Bar Association Directory. 2025. www.americanbar.org/groups/bar_services/resources/state-loca. Link checked September 3, 2026.
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Committee Opinion 797, Prevention of Group B Streptococcal Early-Onset Disease in Newborns. 2020. www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion. Link checked September 3, 2026.
- Health Resources and Services Administration. National Maternal Mental Health Hotline. 2025. mchb.hrsa.gov/national-maternal-mental-health-hotline. Link checked September 3, 2026.
- National Institute of Mental Health. Perinatal Depression. 2024. www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/perinatal-depression. Link checked September 3, 2026.