Despite the efforts of OSHA and other safety organizations, workplace injuries happen every day. In fact, in Florida, over 100,000 people were injured while at work in 2015. Workplace injuries can be severe, which is why understanding what to do after suffering a workplace injury is crucial. In this blog, our Tampa personal injury lawyer will cover the five steps you should take after a workplace injury.
1. Seek Medical Attention Right Away
Whether you feel from a ladder or you bumped your head hard on a shelf while stocking, you should always seek medical attention as soon as possible after your injury. Often people don’t realize the extent of their injury until days later and the longer you wait to receive treatment, the more opportunity the insurance company has to deny your claim. For more information on correctly seeking medical attention, check out our blog on How to Choose the Right Doctor For Your Injury.
2. Report Your Injury
You should report a workplace injury to your employer as soon as possible. Injury reports should be made through your supervisor, HR manager, or another manager right away. In Florida, you employer has seven days from the time you reported your injury to report it to their insurance company. Their insurance company is legally obligated to provide you with an insurance brochure within 3 days receiving notification of your injury.
3. Document Everything
If you wish to receive adequate compensation for your injuries, we suggest meticulously documenting your injuries to the best of your abilities. Take photos of your injury as it heals; make notes of all the activities you were unable to do while healing from your injury. Keep track of the gas and upfront costs you paid for medical treatment.
4. Contact a Tampa personal injury attorney
While the workers’ compensation laws in Florida are designed to protect employees and not employers, often, insurance companies act in what’s in their best interest and not in the best interest of the employee. Many injured employees who don’t retain an attorney after their injuries receive substantially less in their workers’ compensation settlements. A skilled workers’ compensation attorney can fight on your behalf to ensure you are awarded the maximum compensation for your injuries. Learn more about hiring personal injury attorney in our blog about why you should not wait to hire an attorney.
5. Stay Off Social Media
In our experience, one of the quickest ways to jeopardize your personal injury case is to post about it online. While we certainly don’t suggest you delete your social presence online, we do suggest you seriously think about everything you post before you post it. Were you injured at work and as a result are you unable to stand for long periods of time? Perhaps think twice before updating with a photo of you and your family at Disney World. Do you often check in at the gym? During your injury case, you might want to refrain from checking in to different locations as there have been previous cases where compensation has been denied due to check-ins at the gym.
Tuesday, January 24, 2017
Sunday, January 15, 2017
ONLY 1% OF DOCTORS ACCRUED ONE-THIRD OF MALPRACTICE CLAIMS
According to a study published by the New England Journal of Medicine, only one-percent of doctors and physicians accrued one-third of all medical malpractice paid claims over the past ten years. Many of these physicians had the following qualities in common:
Most were male
Most were of older age
Most were practicing in a wide range of subspecialties such as obstetrics-gynecology and surgical subspecialties
Most had previous claims filed against them
The lead author of the study, from Stanford School of Law and Stanford Medical School, states that certain factors may be contributing to these malpractice claims, such as poor communication skills and provision of substandard care. The author states that it is important these factors are identified and remedied during an early stage to prevent issues from occurring within the healthcare system.
The Study
To find accurate results, the team examined 66,426 claims within the National Practitioner Data Bank that were compensated against Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine and Doctors of Medicine in America from 2005 through 2014. To obtain fair results, the study excluded claims against doctors over the age of 65. In order to pinpoint characteristics of the doctors with multiple claims, researchers examined the following qualities:
Qualifications
Paid claims
Age
Sex
Trainee status
Specialty
Practice location
Location of medical school
The results showed that although 6% of all active doctors throughout the United States during that ten-year period had a paid claim, only 1% of these doctors with no less than two paid claims accounted for 32% of all filed claims.
Most were male
Most were of older age
Most were practicing in a wide range of subspecialties such as obstetrics-gynecology and surgical subspecialties
Most had previous claims filed against them
The lead author of the study, from Stanford School of Law and Stanford Medical School, states that certain factors may be contributing to these malpractice claims, such as poor communication skills and provision of substandard care. The author states that it is important these factors are identified and remedied during an early stage to prevent issues from occurring within the healthcare system.
The Study
To find accurate results, the team examined 66,426 claims within the National Practitioner Data Bank that were compensated against Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine and Doctors of Medicine in America from 2005 through 2014. To obtain fair results, the study excluded claims against doctors over the age of 65. In order to pinpoint characteristics of the doctors with multiple claims, researchers examined the following qualities:
Qualifications
Paid claims
Age
Sex
Trainee status
Specialty
Practice location
Location of medical school
The results showed that although 6% of all active doctors throughout the United States during that ten-year period had a paid claim, only 1% of these doctors with no less than two paid claims accounted for 32% of all filed claims.
Tuesday, January 10, 2017
MOST MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENTS CAUSED BY AUTOMOBILES
Every year in the U.S., thousands of people are injured or killed in motorcycle accidents. Typically, accidents involving motorcycles result in more severe injuries than passenger car accidents because riders are more exposed to the elements and lack the protective surrounding structure that a car has. Most motorcycle accidents – roughly 75 percent – are caused by automobile negligence and are not the fault of the motorcyclist. Because motorcycle accidents often involve severe injuries, personal injury awards can be significant.
Drivers’ Duty of Care
Drivers have a legal obligation to exercise care on the road for everyone’s safety. This means obeying traffic lights and signals, stopping at stop signs, driving within the speed limit, yielding when necessary, and abstaining from driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Failing in any of these regards can constitute negligence and can make a driver liable in a personal injury lawsuit. Motorcyclists who are injured as a result of a driver’s carelessness can sue the at-fault driver.
For example, if a driver failed to signal or check their blind spot before merging into another lane and, as a result, hit the motorcycle driver, the injured motorcyclist would have the right to sue. Damages for which they would be held liable may include medical bills, pain and suffering, rehabilitation, and property damage.
Conversely, a motorcyclist also has a duty of care. If a motorcyclist drives in a careless way, including weaving in and out of traffic, cutting off other drivers, or taking turns too quickly, they could be the ones responsible in the event of an accident.
Drivers’ Duty of Care
Drivers have a legal obligation to exercise care on the road for everyone’s safety. This means obeying traffic lights and signals, stopping at stop signs, driving within the speed limit, yielding when necessary, and abstaining from driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Failing in any of these regards can constitute negligence and can make a driver liable in a personal injury lawsuit. Motorcyclists who are injured as a result of a driver’s carelessness can sue the at-fault driver.
For example, if a driver failed to signal or check their blind spot before merging into another lane and, as a result, hit the motorcycle driver, the injured motorcyclist would have the right to sue. Damages for which they would be held liable may include medical bills, pain and suffering, rehabilitation, and property damage.
Conversely, a motorcyclist also has a duty of care. If a motorcyclist drives in a careless way, including weaving in and out of traffic, cutting off other drivers, or taking turns too quickly, they could be the ones responsible in the event of an accident.
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