The hard truth about serious injuries in Georgia and elsewhere is that many times the victim doesn’t recover in a few weeks or even a few months. Many serious injuries can take anywhere from a half year to a few years to fully recover from, stabilize and get back to the status quo. Unfortunately, the misconception in the paper and claim world is that once the person has been released from a hospital, they are okay and will be up and running around in a few days afterward.
Nothing is further from the truth for those with serious bone trauma, torn muscles, re-attached ligaments, spine and neck injuries, and similar. Instead, these injuries frequently require significant long-term recovery, including rehabilitation and treatment for chronic pain and limitations. In some cases, the person never fully recovers and needs ongoing support as well. It’s in these instances that an accident compensation lawyer is needed.
Not Including Everything Reduces a Recovery
The risk for a Georgia accident victim comes from what is claimed and sought for recovery legally. Settling too quickly with a first offer or for insufficient support could end up putting a victim in a situation of being unable to afford long-term care down the road. For example, a whiplash injury affecting the neck and upper spine will require immediate stabilization, x-rays, temporary pain relief, and analysis for any other related hidden injuries. That kind of injury affects three major areas: skeletal structure, nerve networks, and soft tissue. However, in many cases, patients need long-term rehabilitation via a chiropractor for pain management and relief, alignment, and proper healing as well. None of that work is handled by the initial care. If there is nerve damage, chronic pain could be present for years as well as loss of full flexibility. Both issues are long-term and won’t be addressed in care, treatment, and pharmaceuticals if a claim settlement only covers known immediate medical costs right after the accident.
Life Enjoyment Matters
Residual injuries also show up and hamper the enjoyment of life down the road as well. This is extremely evident in professional sports injuries, for example. Athletes who have suffered serious injuries recover and perform again, but in older age, they are frequently hobbled by joint deterioration, spine issues, and aggressive arthritis conditions. Brain and concussion injuries have long been contributory to permanent brain damage and early depression and dementia concerns as well in later years. These are all examples where serious injuries aggregate damage over time and as years pass by after the fact.
While it’s not possible or equitable to hold a part responsible for an open-ended possibility of injury progression over time, it is quite possible to address well-known probable conditions a victim will suffer from injuries, especially those proven to develop as the body ages and has already been damaged a certain way. Joint function, cartilage presence, and bone form are frequently associated with these long-term issues.
Common Concerns and Long-Term Issues in Recovery
Anyone who has suffered a laceration injury that involves more than a simple bandage knows what scarring is. The body will heal itself, but the results won’t look exactly the same as before. The body’s method of healing is messy, fast-acting, and unattractive. Further, scarring can build up in an overdone fashion, which in turn can be prone to additional injury as the area around the scar tears with future injuries.
Excessive scarring can also be visible and disfiguring. While it may not physically limit a person, it creates a social and appearance impact the person has to live with going forward. That can affect a person mentally, triggering long-term suffering and impacts on mental health.
Obviously, serious disfigurement and maiming eliminate a person’s physical ability to function. The loss of an extremity or limb causes life-changing impacts, both on behavior as well as on how to physically operate in daily life. And there is a mental health impact as well. All of these factors contribute to the overall element of disfigurement and its long-term impact on recovery. These aspects should be included in recovery, but if they are not asked for, the claim won’t include them in any negotiation.
Chronic pain from an injury is another common element. Some injuries never fully heal. This is common where nerve endings and networks are damaged and continue to fire off pain sensations well after the outward physical aspects of the injury have healed. Long-term recovery may very well need to support ongoing pain management treatment or pharmaceuticals, but the cost won’t be covered without being included in the original related claim for recovery.
Again, spine and joint injuries typically result in long-term concerns with serious injuries. The body is an amazing system when it is healthy, but once an injury damages the cohesiveness of all the parts, it can trigger ongoing pain, loss of mobility, and loss of flexibility. These concerns typically need ongoing treatment, physical therapy, and life-long adjustments for the related losses.
Maintaining Records of Lasting Injuries Matter
With serious injuries, there is never a time when a person can just arbitrarily stop tracking their documentation. In fact, it’s a good idea to keep a running folder of all related paperwork and records on an ongoing basis. The reason has to do with downstream needs for claims, legal representation, and, if necessary, litigation evidence. Every communication and disposition of an injury, medically as well as legally, matters. Many times, such records can be used to prove acknowledgment of an injury or damage later on being resisted by another party in the claim approval process. The documentation also provides substantive evidence of the extent of injuries, especially those known to cause long-term effects medically. So, keep everything and don’t throw away any notes, emails, letters, or notices about an accident. They all matter.
Remember, Rely on a Georgia Accident Attorney for Representation
An accident compensation lawyer in Georgia can do a lot towards helping include relevant costs and elements for long-term recovery, as well as provide legal arguments defending the need for extended coverage and cost support years after an accident. While technically, any attorney in Georgia can file a lawsuit, an accident attorney makes the biggest difference. When your long-term recovery matters the most, apply the right skill to the job.
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