General Accident Articles | Joe Miller Law, Ltd.

Definition of Accident NC vs VA Workers Comp

Workers Compensation Lawyer Joe Miller here explains the concepts of “accident” as defined by North Carolina vs. Virginia Workers Compensation Law. NC typically requires a “slip, trip or fall,” unless it relates to a spine injury. VA does only requires a specific traumatic incident, which doesn’t necessarily have to include a slip, trip, or fall. …

Fingertip, Finger, and Hand Injuries in Workers’ Compensation Cases

Finger and hand injuries are all too common in the workplace. According to Occupational Health and Safety and data from the US Bureau of Labor – “Of the 286,810 non-fatal occupational injuries to upper extremities in 2018 involving days away from work in private industry, 123,990 involved hands, which is more than 43 percent.” Human hands have 27 bones and 30 muscles – so there’s a lot that can go wrong.

Pain Scale Tests – Part Two

This is the second part of our discussion on the use of pain scale tests in North Carolina and Virginia workers’ compensation cases. As a reminder, pain scales are a way that doctors and others interested in your workers’ compensation case try to measure your pain. The results of pain scales test can affect your right to continued treatment and other work injury rights, such as pain management treatment.

Pain Scale Tests – Part One

One of the difficulties in workers’ compensation cases is trying to measure the worker’s pain. Many parts of a medical diagnosis are objective. Disorders can be seen on X-Rays, CT scans, and MRIs. Diseases and other medical problems can be seen when doctors read blood test and other lab test results like stress tests. Medical problems can be confirmed when doctors perform surgeries.

Reasons Workers Treat with Orthopedists

Orthopedists are medical specialists who help to correct bone and muscle deformities such as fractures. They treat the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedists are surgeons who also provide a range of non-surgical medical care. Workers often need the help of orthopedists when they fall, when a body part is crushed (such as in a forklift accident), when something drops on them such as tools from a scaffold, or due to a host of other reasons. In some cases, there is some overlap as between orthopedists and neurosurgeons, most typically in the case of spinal injuries. This is because in addition to bones, the spinal processes that make up the spinal column contain, surround, and protect the spinal cord, which is the main “trunk” or nerve which provides the body with feeling and function. Then again, there are orthopedists who specialize in spinal surgery.

The Benefits of Physical Therapy After a Workplace Accident

Most employees who suffer a workplace accident begin their medical treatment with a visit to their local ER. Workers who suffer a spinal cord injury, a traumatic broken injury, compound fractures, and other serious injuries often need immediate surgery. Workers with chronic pain or acute pain often need to visit with a pain management doctor. …

What is Maximum Medical Improvement?

When you’ve been hurt at work, there comes a time when continuing to treat with your doctors doesn’t improve your medical condition. When additional medical treatments won’t improve your medical condition and the healing process is stopped – you’ve reached the point of Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI). This does not mean that you no longer …

More Information on Clincher Agreements

Why employees consider a clincher agreement? For many workers, once it becomes clear that they have reached maximum medical improvement (MMI) (that no further treatments will improve their health), it makes sense to start thinking about their long-term position. Some of the reasons workers consider lump-sum payments are: Plain and simple – the worker gets …

New Workplace Safety Applications for Wearable Technology

In a previous article, we discussed some of the overall pros and cons of wearing workplace technology. In this article, we address some of the specifics. According to Lanier Upshaw, a company that focuses on business risk, many businesses are exploring how wearable workplace technology can help employers and employees reduce the number of workplace …

Wearable Technology and Workplace Safety

New technology is helping workers avoid work-related injuries in many ways. Companies should always be on the lookout for ways to improve worker safety. They should understand and follow the latest guidelines and regulations from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). They should keep current with latest safety standards. Businesses should know that providing …