A young girl was seriously hurt and experienced disfigurement when the daycare center she attended did not operate in compliance with Texas childcare laws, also known as the minimum standards.
The incident unfolded when the girl got up to use the bathroom during naptime. Having already been labeled a “problem child” by a caregiver, she was separated from her classmates, left unsupervised, and had to make her way to and from the bathroom on her own. The caregivers had not arranged the children’s cots in an orderly fashion around the classroom, so there was no clear path for the girl when she was walking back to her spot. While climbing over another child’s cot, she tripped and hit her face on a cot, leaving a deep cut on her face up to her eyelid. With the laceration bleeding profusely, the daycare center called emergency medical services, which rushed the girl to a nearby children’s hospital by ambulance.
The young girl’s cut would require plastic surgery, but doctors warned that even after the surgery, she would still have a permanent scar approximately 4 centimeters long.
The little girl’s mother contacted our Texas daycare injury lawyers at The Button Law Firm for help. Our experienced legal team held the daycare center accountable for its multiple safety failures that seriously injured the girl and left her with permanent scarring. We secured compensation to help the family move forward.
What Texas Daycare Laws Did the Girl’s Daycare Center Break?
The minimum standards require that all licensed daycare centers provide a safe environment for the little ones under their supervision. To do this, a daycare center must follow mandated supervision, disciplinary, and common-sense practices that protect children from suffering injuries.
In this case, the Texas daycare center ignored several minimum standards. First, the center used an unapproved discipline tactic when the caregiver isolated the young girl from her classmates during naptime. This left her alone and unsupervised during naptime. (Per the minimum standards, caregivers must maintain close visual and auditory proximity to children at all times to anticipate any potential dangers and quickly intervene before a child gets hurt.) Since a caregiver was not closely watching the girl, no one helped guide her safely back to her cot.
Also, daycare centers are required to provide a safe environment for children. When caregivers haphazardly arranged the nap cots in the classroom, they did not create a path for the children to walk among them. Instead, the young girl had to step over other cots to get back to hers after using the bathroom, which caused her to trip and gash her face.
The entire incident was easily preventable, and the young girl could have been spared her serious injuries had the daycare center followed the practices outlined in the minimum standards.
How Did The Button Law Firm Get Justice for This Girl and Her Family?
As soon as the girl’s mother contacted our experienced Texas daycare injury lawyers, our team sprang into action to fight for this family.
The ambulance ride, hospital visit, and surgery that the little girl needed to treat the deep laceration on her face were costly medical expenses for her parents. After the plastic surgeon determined that the little girl would still experience a distinct permanent scar, her parents took her overseas for additional specialized scar treatment, hoping it would minimize the long-term impact on her appearance. That trip and their daughter's subsequent time to heal from her treatments required her parents to take time away from work.
In addition to her physical injuries, the little girl suffered emotional trauma because of the daycare center’s failures. Being rushed in an ambulance to the hospital and undergoing multiple treatments was a very scary experience.
Thankfully, our experienced Texas daycare injury lawyers held the daycare center accountable for violating the minimum standards that led to the girl’s injuries. We secured a settlement that compensated the family for the little girl’s medical bills, her emotional trauma, and the resources needed to help the girl move forward.
If Your Child Was Harmed Because of Unsafe Operations at a Daycare Center, Contact The Button Law Firm.
If your child was seriously harmed or traumatized because of unsafe practices at a daycare center anywhere in Texas, contact our experienced daycare injury lawyers at The Button Law Firm. With lawyers in Dallas, Houston, and Midland, we are ready to listen, fight for your family, and help your family move forward. Our lawyers at The Button Law Firm are recognized on the prestigious Texas Super Lawyers list, and we can help guide you after a traumatizing incident involving your child. We work on contingency, meaning we don’t charge you or collect any upfront fees to get started on your case. Call us at 214-699-4409, email us at [email protected], or fill out a contact form for a free case evaluation.