If you’re involved in a car accident, it is essential that you seek prompt medical attention. Even if you do not feel injured at first, it is still a good idea to get checked out by a doctor, either by your primary physician or at an urgent care or emergency room facility. It’s not unusual for the initial shock of the accident to mask pain or bodily injury until several days later. Other times, injury victims actually feel embarrassed or guilty for having been involved in an accident and don’t want to seek treatment. However, it is generally not their fault and should be proactive to address their injuries from an accident.
Some automobile accidents result in injuries that are clearly evident, resulting in neck and back injuries, broken bones, bleeding or internal injuries. Immediate medical attention is required and paramedics and/or ambulance services should be utilized to prevent further injury from delayed treatment. You should insist on getting a full evaluation, including, X-rays, MRIs or other internal medical examinations. Expect to receive and take muscle relaxers, anti-inflammatory medications, and pain medication to provide you some degree of immediate relief from the injuries, including muscle strains, pulls, or whiplash injuries.
Delaying Treatment Can Create A Variety of Other Issues
Delayed therapy and medical treatment following an injury causing accident will most likely result in a poorer recovery or a delayed recovery. Many insurance companies that are defending against your injury claim will use your delayed treatment against you. The insurance company claims that if you did not need to get medical treatment immediately after the accident then you could not have been injured too badly. Since back and neck injuries, which have resulted in herniated disks or other similar injuries, are not always immediately determinable, delayed examination and treatment may result in ammunition for the insurance company to say that something else caused your injury instead of the accident. These injuries often are first diagnosed as "soft tissue" injuries. But after treatment has not resolved the injuries, an MRI or CT scan may be taken to reveal a more serious disc injury.
After a car accident, this is what you should do: Seek some medical care right away, even if you feel okay at first. Do not delay further treatment when you realize there is something wrong. Follow the treatment protocol advised by the physician or chiropractor. Seek legal advice to determine whether you are entitled to recover compensation to cover the medical expenses, loss of earnings, property damage and pain and suffering compensation.
Finally, keep detailed records of your injury, treatment and problems from the accident. We naturally forget information over time. This is why you must write down your information then provide it to your attorney so he or she can clearly communicate to the insurance adjuster what you experienced from this accident. It is hopeful that between your journal and the doctor’s records this information will help the attorney establish the causal link between the accident and your injury.
Medical treatment, even if it is just an examination, is better than not taking affirmative action to treat your injuries. Proactive medical treatment and efforts in recovering from an injury will always be better for you than to ignore your injuries from an automobile accident or some other injury.
Top Rated Rancho Cucamonga Personal Injury Attorneys
If you’ve been injured in a car accident that was caused by someone else, you may be able to recover compensation for your injuries, the damage to your car, lost wages from missing work, and more. The car accident attorneys of the Inland Empire Law Group are here to help you with your claim. From our offices in Rancho Cucamonga and Victorville, we proudly serve the entire Inland Empire and High Desert region. Get a free, no-obligation consultation today, call 909-481-0100 to get started.