Work Injuries

Work Injuries

Workers' Compensation is a term used by the State, your employer and your doctor to describe the process of care to be taken when you are injured at work. On-the-job injuries in our highly industrialized society occur with far more frequency than most of us realize. Unfortunately, the system was not designed primarily to benefit the injured workers. It was created to protect employers and their insurance companies. This means that you need to take charge of getting what you deserve when you are injured at work.

WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU ARE INJURED

Many of us want to be stoic about our injuries and/or pain. We pretend to be like John Wayne and we try to convince ourselves that we will be fine. In fact I have heard it from patients for so many years now that I have a wall plaque on the wall in my office that reads, "the five most dangerous words...maybe it will go away!"

First of all, go and see the doctor you choose to see. You are not required to see the company doctor, or one your boss wants you to go see. Most of them have agreements to give minimal care and get you, the worker, back to work most times before you are ready or have even healed correctly. Your company's relationship with that doctor may encourage him to protect the company's interest, as well as that doctors' interest for future referrals. YOU DO NOT NEED A REFERRAL FROM ANYONE!!! So we hope you choose to come and see us.

If you have already opened a claim and are not satisfied with the care you have received, you can transfer your claim to another doctor. We have the form here to transfer your claim and will help you receive the care you want and need to get you back to health.

Report the injury. Report your injury immediately to your boss, supervisor, lead, or whoever is designated at your workplace. They will need the date, the time, and the cause of the injury. They may want a brief description of how it occurred and if someone else witnessed the injury and/or was involved. This is for the company?s protection as well as yours, so be descriptive and factual.

File a claim. This is done with a form at work and may need to be requested by you. It also requires a form to be filled out at our office as well to file with either the State's Labor & Industries insurance, or your company?s self-insured company. Request this form from your Boss, Human Resources department or from your state worker?s compensation official. We also have all the forms and can help you fill them out if your work tells you to fill them out at the doctors' office. REMEMBER, there are statutes of limitation on how long you have to complete these forms and begin treatment, so being proactive now can save many headaches and frustration later.

Protect your rights and your claim. The success of your claim will depend largely on your own actions which include timely filing and following the recommended treatments until fully released by your doctor.

RESEARCH
"The overwhelming body of evidence" shows that chiropractic management of low-back pain is more cost-effective than medical management, and that "many medical therapies are of questionable validity or are clearly inadequate." - The Manga Report (1993). Work-related back pain is among the most common occupational disorders in the United States, according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Delay in return to work remains an expensive component in the overall cost of back pain for workers' compensation claims. Back pain is responsible for more loss of work time and increased medical expenses related to treatment other than ailment.

Please Call (904) 317-6628 today for an appointment!