Garfield Medical Center Birth Injury Lawyers

If your baby was born at Garfield Medical Center, at 525 North Garfield Avenue in Monterey Park, Los Angeles County, and the delivery was difficult, you may have questions that nobody has fully answered. Why did my baby need the NICU? Why is my child not reaching milestones? Was there something that could have been done differently? This page is written for parents and family members who want to understand birth injuries and their options, in plain language and without pressure.

Garfield Medical Center is part of AHMC Healthcare Inc. According to the hospital's own website, its Maternity Center offers labor, delivery and recovery care, and it has a Level II Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Most babies born here, like most babies everywhere, go home healthy, and many families who deliver at this hospital are grateful for the care they received. This page is not a criticism of the hospital or of anyone who works there. It is a guide for the smaller number of families who are dealing with a birth injury or a serious newborn condition and want to know what the medical terms mean, what to watch for, and how to find answers.

Below you will find general medical information from sources such as the CDC and the Cochrane Library, practical steps for getting records, and information about early help for babies under three. At the end, you will find the legal points families should know, including strict deadlines. Reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship, and it is not legal or medical advice for your child's situation.

Labor and delivery at Garfield Medical Center in Monterey Park

According to the hospital's own website, the Maternity Center at Garfield Medical Center offers labor, delivery and recovery care in one room or in separate units. The site also lists two dedicated cesarean-section operating rooms, a full-service nursery, all-digital fetal monitoring, and multilingual prenatal and childbirth classes. It says obstetric anesthesiologists and neonatologists are on site around the clock. These descriptions come from the hospital, and services can change, so it is wise to confirm current details by phone.

The hospital is located at 525 North Garfield Avenue in Monterey Park, in the San Gabriel Valley of Los Angeles County. Its licensee is classified in state data as an investor-owned partnership, and the parent organization in the report is AHMC Healthcare Inc. In other words, it is a private for-profit hospital rather than a county or University of California hospital, which matters for the legal deadlines described later on this page.

According to the hospital's 2024 report to the state (HCAI), Garfield Medical Center cared for 2,069 newborns in its newborn nursery that year. The same report lists 20 licensed intensive-care newborn beds and 90 NICU discharges in 2024. The hospital's NICU page describes a Level II community NICU that cares for premature babies, babies with breathing problems and babies who need a higher level of care, with physicians, nurses and respiratory care staff available around the clock. A Level II unit cares for many sick or early babies; some babies with the most complex needs are moved to a unit with a higher level of care, and the hospital mentions a neonatal transport team.

Birth injuries families ask about after a difficult delivery

Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is brain injury in a newborn caused by too little oxygen or too little blood flow to the brain around the time of birth. Babies with moderate or severe HIE may be limp, may have seizures, or may have trouble breathing and feeding. A Cochrane review of randomized trials found that therapeutic hypothermia, or cooling, started within hours of birth in term and near-term babies with HIE reduces the risk of death without increasing major disability in survivors. This is one reason NICU teams act quickly when a baby is born in poor condition.

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of disorders that affect movement, balance and posture. The CDC explains that CP results from abnormal development of, or damage to, the developing brain, that most cases begin before or during birth, that the cause is often unknown, and that a lack of oxygen during birth is now thought to cause only a small number of cases. CP does not get worse over time, but it is lifelong, and early therapy can improve daily life. A CP diagnosis alone does not tell you why it happened; that usually takes a careful review of the pregnancy, delivery and newborn records.

Other conditions families ask about include Erb's palsy and other brachial plexus injuries, in which the nerves running from the neck to the arm are stretched during delivery and the baby may hold one arm limp at the side. Many babies improve over the first months, and some need therapy or surgery. Newborns can also have bleeding in or around the brain, a fractured collarbone or skull bone, or an infection such as group B strep, which the CDC says usually shows up within the first week of life. Mothers can also be injured, for example by heavy bleeding after delivery (postpartum hemorrhage) or tears. All of these can occur even when everyone does their job well; a medical review is how a family learns whether a particular outcome was expected or avoidable.

Warning signs of a birth injury in the first days, weeks and months

In the first hours and days, signs that need prompt medical attention include trouble breathing, a blue or gray color, a weak or high-pitched cry, unusual sleepiness or floppiness, poor feeding, seizures (jerking, stiffening or staring spells), a fever or very low temperature, and a swollen or bruised area on the head. For a baby with group B strep, the CDC lists fever, feeding trouble, irritability or lethargy, trouble breathing and bluish skin. If you see any of these at home, call your baby's doctor or seek emergency care right away.

In the first weeks, watch for one arm that does not move like the other, a collarbone that feels lumpy, or a baby who is unusually stiff or unusually limp. In the months that follow, the CDC describes signs of cerebral palsy such as head lag when the baby is lifted, stiffness or floppiness, arching of the back and neck, legs that stiffen and cross when held, not rolling over, hands that stay fisted, and reaching with only one hand. Missing milestones does not always mean a serious problem, and every baby develops at their own pace.

If something worries you, write down what you notice and when, and tell your pediatrician. The CDC notes that families can contact their state's early intervention program without waiting for a doctor's referral or diagnosis. Keep any discharge papers, NICU summaries and photographs. These notes can later help both the medical team and, if you choose to seek one, an independent review.

Who may be responsible in a birth-injury claim

In a birth-injury claim, responsibility is never assumed; it depends on what the records show. People who may be involved in a delivery include the hospital's nurses and other staff, the obstetrician, a midwife, an anesthesiologist, neonatologists and pediatricians, and the medical group that employs or contracts with them. Each plays a different role, such as watching the baby's heart rate, calling the doctor, deciding when and how to deliver, or resuscitating the newborn.

An important question is who employed each person. Some doctors are employees of a hospital, while many are independent physicians or belong to a separate medical group that has privileges at the hospital. Your own obstetrician may have had an office outside the hospital and may not have worked for it. This affects who may be named in a claim, so the answer to the common question of what to do if my doctor did not work for the hospital is that the claim can still be reviewed, but it may involve a different party or insurer.

Because a labor and delivery involves a team, a review looks at the whole chain of care, including what was documented, what was communicated and when. Sometimes the review concludes that the care met the standard and the injury was not preventable. Families deserve that answer too, and it can bring peace of mind.

How an independent expert review of the delivery works

An independent review starts with the records. The reviewer, often a physician with experience in obstetrics, neonatology or pediatric neurology, looks at the prenatal chart, the labor notes, the fetal heart monitoring strips, the Apgar scores at one and five minutes, the umbilical cord blood gas results, the delivery record, and the NICU notes. Fetal heart monitoring strips show how the baby tolerated labor over time, and cord blood gases give a measure of the baby's oxygen and acid levels at birth.

Imaging also matters. An MRI of the brain, usually done in the first days or weeks of life or later in childhood, can help show the pattern, timing and extent of an injury. Lab tests, EEG recordings and the doctors' notes help complete the picture. Experts then compare the care given with what a reasonably careful provider would do in the same situation, and whether any difference could have changed the outcome.

This kind of review takes time and can cost money, which is one reason families often work with a law firm that arranges it. A review does not mean a lawsuit will be filed. Many families simply want to know what happened.

What to do now: step by step

First, take care of your child. Keep up with pediatric visits, specialists and therapies. Second, write down what you remember about the pregnancy, labor and delivery, including dates, names of staff if you know them, and what you were told. Do this while memory is fresh and keep it private.

Third, request your records. You can ask for your own records and your baby's records, which are separate charts. Ask specifically for the fetal monitoring strips, labor and delivery notes, and NICU records. Fourth, learn the deadlines. California has strict time limits for medical claims, and claims involving public hospitals can have much shorter notice requirements than private ones. The legal paragraphs at the end of this page explain them. Fifth, consider speaking with a lawyer who handles birth injuries. A first conversation is a way to ask questions and learn your options; you are not obligated to do anything afterwards.

Sixth, protect your family's support network. Ask your pediatrician about referrals to therapists and developmental specialists, and contact early intervention if your child is under three. Do not feel pressured by anyone, and do not sign documents you do not understand.

Support for your child and family while a case is reviewed

Getting help for your child does not depend on any legal case. Physical, occupational and speech therapy, specialists such as pediatric neurologists, and equipment can often start while questions are still being answered. Early help matters because a baby's brain is especially adaptable in the first years of life.

For children under three, California's Early Start program offers evaluations and services for infants and toddlers with developmental delays or certain risk conditions. Services are arranged through the regional center that serves your area. For Monterey Park, that is the Eastern Los Angeles Regional Center. Children who qualify may also be eligible for services through Medi-Cal or California Children's Services (CCS), which covers certain medical conditions; eligibility depends on your situation, so ask your child's care team or social worker.

No program is guaranteed, and eligibility varies. Still, asking early costs nothing, and the people you speak with can help you understand what your child may qualify for.

Deadlines for a birth-injury case in California

California gives a child’s birth-injury case its own deadline. Under Code of Civil Procedure § 340.5, a minor must sue within three years of the wrongful act, but a child who was under six when it happened has until his or her eighth birthday if that is longer. For a baby hurt during labor or delivery, that usually means the eighth birthday. The clock runs from the act itself, not from the day the family learned what went wrong, and it is paused only in narrow cases of fraud or collusion. Parents’ own claims, and claims against a public hospital, can have much shorter deadlines, so it is safer to get advice early.

Before a medical malpractice lawsuit can be filed in California, the doctor or hospital must get written warning. Under Code of Civil Procedure § 364, the health care provider must receive at least 90 days’ notice of the intention to sue. No special form is required, but the notice must state the legal basis of the claim, the type of loss and the specific injuries suffered. Under § 364(d), if the notice is served within the last 90 days of the filing deadline, the deadline is extended 90 days from the date of service. The notice is a required step, and it is often the moment a case moves from questions to formal action.

What MICRA caps — and what it does not

California’s MICRA law limits one part of a medical malpractice recovery. Under Civil Code § 3333.2, as amended by AB 35, non-economic damages (pain, suffering, loss of enjoyment of life) are capped. In 2026 the cap is $470,000 for injury and $650,000 for wrongful death, and it rises every January 1 ($40,000 and $50,000 a year until 2033, then 2% a year). Separate caps can apply to doctors, hospitals and unaffiliated providers. Economic damages are not capped: lifetime medical care, therapy, equipment, home modifications and lost earning capacity can be recovered in full, and in a birth-injury case they are usually the largest part of the claim.

How to get the delivery records from Garfield Medical Center

California law gives families a right to these records. Under Health and Safety Code § 123110, a patient or the patient’s personal representative — for a baby, a parent or guardian (§ 123105) — may inspect the records within five working days of a written request and is entitled to a paper or electronic copy, which the provider must send within 15 days after receiving a request that says which records are wanted. For a birth-injury review, ask for both charts: the mother’s labor and delivery record, including the fetal heart rate monitoring strips, and the baby’s newborn and NICU record.

To request records from Garfield Medical Center, contact the hospital's medical records (health information) department at 525 North Garfield Avenue, Monterey Park, CA 91754, through the main line at (626) 307-2000. The hospital publishes an Authorization for Use or Disclosure of Health Information form on its website; it lets you choose which records you want, such as labor and delivery notes or discharge summaries, and whether to receive them by mail, pickup or email. Fees may apply. Your records and your baby's records are separate charts, so request both, and ask specifically for the fetal monitoring strips and the NICU records. Confirm the current process with the hospital before sending the form.

The hospital’s medical records page →

Where a case from Monterey Park would be filed

A civil lawsuit for personal injury from a Monterey Park hospital would usually be filed in the Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles. According to the court, personal injury cases filed in its Central District are assigned to independent-calendar courtrooms at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse, 111 North Hill Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012. Where a case is filed can depend on the defendants and the facts, and a lawyer can confirm the right courthouse.

Stanley Mosk Courthouse, Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles → — 111 North Hill Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012

Help for your child now: Early Start in Los Angeles County

Early Start is California's early intervention program for babies and toddlers under 3 with developmental delays or certain risk conditions. Monterey Park is in the service area of the Eastern Los Angeles Regional Center (ELARC), 1000 South Fremont Avenue, Alhambra, CA 91803, main phone (626) 299-4700. You can ask for an evaluation yourself, without a doctor's referral, by calling ELARC or going through its website at elarc.org; tell them your child's age and what worries you. Ask the regional center about any costs and eligibility.

Eastern Los Angeles Regional Center (ELARC) →

Key facts

Questions parents ask

Other Los Angeles County hospitals we cover

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center · Miller Children’s & Women’s Long Beach · Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center · Kaiser Permanente Downey · Antelope Valley Medical Center · Adventist Health White Memorial · Kaiser Permanente Baldwin Park · Queen of the Valley Hospital, West Covina · CHA Hollywood Presbyterian · Huntington Hospital, Pasadena · Los Angeles birth injury lawyers →

Related pages

Cerebral Palsy · Erb’s Palsy / Brachial Plexus Injury · HIE / Oxygen Deprivation at Birth · Statute of Limitations · MICRA Damages Cap · All California hospitals · California birth injury lawyers · Birth injury guides

Beverly Law is an independent law firm. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by or speaking for Garfield Medical Center or AHMC Healthcare Inc (investor-owned partnership). Hospital facts on this page come from the public sources listed above.

Important: This page is general information about birth injuries and California law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship with Beverly Law. Every case is different — talk to a lawyer about your own situation. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. No fees or costs unless we win. Last reviewed: 2026-09-18.