A woman who gave birth alone in her jail cell in Denver is suing the city after deputies and nurses allegedly ignored her pleas for help during about five hours of labour.

Key points: Diana Sanchez alerted guards when she went into labour, and received only one absorbent pad in return

Diana Sanchez alerted guards when she went into labour, and received only one absorbent pad in return Her lawyer said "to characterise it as medical care is a joke"

Her lawyer said "to characterise it as medical care is a joke" The company that provides nurses to the jail has defended its work

Clips of silent surveillance video from July 31, 2018, released by her lawyer, show Diana Sanchez eventually lying down on a narrow bed, crying out in pain, before she pulls off her pants and delivers a baby boy.

An absorbent pad is slid under her door for her to put on her bed about 45 minutes before she gave birth.

After she gives birth, a nurse walks in and picks up the baby.

"To characterise it as medical care is a joke," Sanchez's lawyer, Mari Newman, said.

Ms Newman noted that the open toilet several feet away from where she gave birth was blacked out by the city in the video.

The federal lawsuit says that jail officials "cruelly chose convenience over compassion" by not calling for an ambulance after Sanchez's water broke and she was bleeding.

It says a van was requested to take Sanchez, who was in a medical cell at the jail, to the hospital. But jail workers knew the ride likely would not be available for hours until the morning booking process was finished, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit says no nurse dried or warmed the baby or cleared mucus from his mouth for several minutes and that jail nurses did not have equipment to cut the baby's umbilical cord. It was not severed until firefighters arrived about 15 minutes after the baby was born.

The Denver County Sheriff's Department said it has since changed its policy to ensure that pregnant inmates who are in any stage of labour are immediately taken to the hospital.

Previously, decisions about whether to move a pregnant inmate were left to jail nurses, but deputies are now authorised to call for an ambulance for someone in labour, department spokeswoman Daria Serna said.

The jail's nurses are hired from Denver Health, the city's public hospital, and the sheriff's department said Sanchez was in a medical unit under the care of nurses at the time she delivered.

Denver Health declined to comment on a pending lawsuit but defended its work in the jail.

"Denver Health provides high-quality medical care to thousands of inmates every year," spokesperson Simon Crittle said.

Sanchez was not available for comment. Last year, she told Denver KDVR-TV, which first reported on the delivery, that the jail sees inmates as "garbage".

"I know I was there [prison] because I was at fault for what I did wrong — and I didn't deserve that, and especially not my baby," she said.

AP