Workers Compensation Lawyer Blog

If you experience a fall while at work, you should follow normal procedures for filing a workers compensation claim. 

Falling on the job can lead to a serious injury. Falls can happen anywhere and are sometimes unavoidable. Depending on where your accident is, whoever owns the property that you were on at the time of your injury may be liable. But if you fall while at work, you should be able to file a workers compensation injury claim. The fall may have been the result of some negligence on the part of your employer. Or the accident may have been unavoidable entirely. But workers compensation is a no-fault system, meaning that any accident or injury that occurred while on the job, should be covered under workers compensation. Workers compensation insurance protects both employees and employers as it provides benefits to employees who are injured at work, and disallows the employee from suing the employer.

Some causes of workplace falls are:

• Slippery walkways or floors

• Sidewalks that are unsafe or unshoveled

• Uneven floors

• Carpeting that is damaged or coming up

• Poor lighting

• Obstructions

Injuries From Falls

Injuries from falls can range in severity from minor bruises and cuts to strains, sprains, breaks, or in even more serious instances, paralysis or death. Some of the most common slip and fall injuries at work result in injuries to the knees and back.

Workers Compensation For Falls

If you experience a fall while at work, you should follow normal procedures for filing a workers compensation claim. This includes notifying your employer as soon as the accident happens, seeking medical treatment, documenting your injuries and treatment, and filing a workers comp claim.

You should normally not have to prove negligence when filing a workers compensation claim. You only need to show that your injury occurred while you were at work. You will have to demonstrate proof of your injury, the treatment that you received for it, and any lost wages or other expenses connected to the injury. If you were permanently injured in a work accident you may be able to file for permanent partial disability. There is a significant difference in how states determine permanent partial disability and provide benefits. It will be in your best interests to contact a workers compensation attorney who can advise you regarding your particular case. There are different approaches you can take to pursue permanent partial disability benefits, and your attorney can help you to determine which will be most beneficial to your case.

Missouri Workers Compensation Attorneys

Our legal team at the Law Office of James M. Hoffmann has a strong history of helping injured workers get the medical attention and financial compensation that they need. Contact our St. Louis, Missouri workers compensation law firm to ensure that your rights are protected. Please call (314) 361-4300 or toll free at (888) 872-6795. You can also complete our Online Case Evaluation Form.

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Injuries like strains, sprains, breaks, or fractures, can require a significant amount of recovery time.

People oftentimes take being able to do their job and go about their daily activities for granted. Having the full use of our hands and feet is something that we take for granted in our jobs and daily life until something happens that reminds us how important they are. Workplace accidents that affect the foot and ankle will restrict mobility and the ability of an employee to perform their job.

More than 25% of the bones in our bodies are located in the foot, and the bones are all connected by muscles, tendons, and ligaments. All of these bones, muscles, ligaments, and tendons need to be working and functioning in coordination in order for people to be able to walk and stand. Injuries like strains, sprains, breaks, or fractures, can require a significant amount of recovery time, putting you out of work for a time, and will usually require you to stay off the foot, which will undoubtedly interrupt and inconvenience your daily life. And during recovery, compensating for your foot injury can sometimes lead to stressing out other parts of your body. It is important to get regular medical attention to make sure that everything is healing well, and that you are not injured further.

Foot and ankle injuries can also require ongoing medical treatment, surgery, rehabilitation, and expensive diagnostic tests like x-rays.

Causes of ankle and foot injuries are commonly falling, vehicle accidents, and twisting or straining an ankle by stepping down on it unevenly. Objects falling on one’s ankle, wheels rolling over on them, chemical burns, malfunctioning machinery, all pose significant risks that can cause serious foot and ankle injuries.

Injuries to the foot and/or ankle can mean you are unable to perform your duties at work for a length of time, resulting in lost wages, and significant medical costs. If you injured your foot or ankle in a work related accident or in any way on the job, you may be entitled to workers compensation benefits and should contact a workers compensation attorney. A workers compensation lawyer can help to evaluate your case, file your claim, and advocate on your behalf in order to get you the compensation that you deserve to support yourself and your family while you recover from your injury. You should not have to experience the stress of mounting medical bills and lost wages in addition to the stress you will undoubtedly feel as you adjust your routine to accommodate your injury.

Missouri Workers Compensation Attorney

If you or someone you love have injured their foot or ankle while on the job, trust our law firm to help. We are located in St. Louis but we handle workers compensation cases throughout the entire state of Missouri. Ensure that your rights are protected, call (314) 361-4300 or complete our Online Case Evaluation Form.

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Pain, weakness, numbness, tingling in the thumb, index finger, and part of the ring finger can be indicative of carpal tunnel syndrome. 

Carpal tunnel affects many employees who spend long hours in front of a computer at their job. Doing repetitive typing work can lead to carpal tunnel syndrome. It can be more than mildly inconvenient, it can be extremely painful and can take months to resolve, usually requiring medical treatment, some splinting, and some physical rehabilitation, and even surgery, depending on the severity of the injury. Repetitive motion injuries should be avoided when possible and your employer should participate in taking preventative measures, like installing ergonomic office equipment.

Symptoms of Carpal Tunnel

Pain, weakness, numbness, tingling in the thumb, index finger, and part of the ring finger can be indicative of carpal tunnel syndrome. It can also lead to muscle damage in the hand and fingers. Other symptoms of carpal tunnel include:

• Numbness and/or tingling in the hand

• Pain that extends from the wrist to the elbow

• Problems with grip and fine motor movements

• Weakness is one or both hands

• Muscle deterioration

Causes: The carpal tunnel specifically refers to the area where the median nerve connects to the hand. Carpal tunnel is caused by a compression of the median nerve. Pressure on this nerve can cause a great deal of pain. The median nerve controls movement and feeling in the hand and most of the fingers.

Carpal tunnel syndrome can be more common in individuals who were born with a narrow or small carpal tunnel. Age is another contributing factor, as the incidence of carpal tunnel syndrome increases with age. The syndrome most commonly occurs in individuals between 30 and 60 years of age.

• Wrist injury or fractures

• Arthritis

• Alcohol abuse

• Obesity

• Rheumatoid arthritis

• Fluid retention during pregnancy or menopause

• Tumors or cysts in the wrist

• Infections

Many people believe that repetitive movements like using a mouse, typing, and using a computer contribute to the development of carpal tunnel, while others show that no studies actually verify this repetitive motion theory. This dispute can make a carpal tunnel workers’ compensation claim more difficult, but an experienced workers’ compensation attorney will know how to proceed.

However, if you experience a carpal tunnel injury at work, and begin noticing pain, immediately notify your employer of the injury. Any work injury should be reported right away, as there are limitations on the amount of time you can wait before reporting your injury and filing a workers’ compensation claim in Missouri. You should also seek medical treatment as soon as possible, rather than waiting. Injuries like this do not resolve without treatment.

Medical Treatment

Treatment for can includes splints, therapy, anti-inflammatory medications, and corticosteroid injections. Behavior modifications like avoiding sleeping on the wrist and using hot and cold on the injured wrist can also help to alleviate pain.

Surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome is very common and usually successful. The surgery releases the ligament that is compressing the median nerve.

Changing work conditions or duties that contribute to the pain is also usually necessary. This may mean using different equipment or modifying the way that you perform specific tasks.

St. Louis Workers Compensation Lawyer

If you wish to make a workers’ compensation claim, it may be in your best interests to contact a workers’ compensation attorney. Recovery from surgery may take months and can mean missed work days and lost wages. If your injury happened or was aggravated because of your work, you should receive compensation for medical treatment and recovery. Obtaining the compensation that you deserve can be difficult, and having a workers’ compensation attorney on your side, who understands the system, can make your case go smoothly.

Work Related Injuries

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Notifying your employer as soon as possible after experiencing a hernia is crucial.

Any injury that occurs while you are on the job should be covered under workers’ compensation, and hernias fall under this category. Yet insurance companies will still oftentimes deny claims on various grounds. Having an experienced workers’ compensation attorney on your side will help you to get the benefits that you deserve and prove that your injury happened at work. In order for a claim to be successful and to receive workers’ compensation benefits, you will need to prove that the injury is work related or happened while at work. Whether you need to prove that your condition is merely work-related or if it needs to have happened at work, depends on the state you live in and the existing workers’ compensation laws.

What Are Hernias?

Insurance companies will sometimes deny claims on the grounds that the medical condition is preexisting or unrelated to your work. It is then up to the employee to prove that this is not the case. It is important to have an experienced workers’ comp attorney and a trusted doctor’s opinion to support this claim. Hernias are fairly common work injuries for individuals whose jobs require heavy lifting. Hernias are a tear in the abdominal wall, resulting in the surrounding fat or external organs to pass through the tear. Lifting heavy objects can put stress on any areas of the abdominal wall that are weakened, and is the leading cause of workplace hernia injuries. Hernias will most likely require surgery to repair. Just how complicated the surgery will be will depend largely on the extent of the injury and the tear.

The burden of proof falls on the employee to prove that the condition is related to or the direct result of work duties. Legal advice may be necessary as insurance companies may look at your diet and exercise habits, as well as smoking, drinking, or other activities that they could possibly attribute as the cause of your condition. Some states have laws that specifically apply to hernia workers’ compensation cases, so consulting an attorney who understands what rules govern your case is very important.

What To Do If You Experience a Hernia At Work

Hernias that occur as the result of your employment should be covered under workers’ compensation. Hernias will often require surgery to fix, and your workers’ comp should cover the surgery and the subsequent days off of work due to recovery that you will go through.

Notifying your employer as soon as possible after experiencing a hernia is crucial. You may be required to notify your employer of your condition within 30 days or you will be denied benefits. Seeking medical treatment right away is always important, and hernias that are not treated can have serious medical consequences. Hernias should be treated medically as soon as possible as well, so do not waste any time.

Hernia cases can be complicated because you are usually required to notify your employer within a certain amount of time after the injury. However, some cases are not diagnosed immediately or are initially misdiagnosed. If by the time an employee receives an accurate diagnosis and treatment plan, this window has closed, the insurance company can deny the claim.

Missouri Workers Compensation Attorney

Our legal team has a strong history of helping injured workers get the medical attention and financial compensation that they need. Contact our St. Louis, Missouri workers compensation law firm to ensure that your rights are protected. Please call (314) 361-4300 or toll free at (888) 872-6795.

Work Related Injuries

Workers compensation insurance is meant to protect both the employer and the employee. 

What is Workers Compensation?

Workers compensation is a state mandated insurance system that is meant to protect workers who are injured on the job. When you are injured at work, workers compensation insurance kicks in, oftentimes providing compensation for your medical expenses, lost income, and other costs associated with your injury.

Some things you should know about workers compensation insurance:

Each state has a different workers compensation system and sets its own workers compensation regulations regarding filing deadlines and the rules regarding benefits that employers must provide to injured workers. This means that in the event of an injury, you should reference the laws in your state and find a workers compensation attorney who can advise you regarding your case. The U.S. Department of Labor website can provide links to your state’s workers compensation site. Most states also make it illegal for employers to retaliate against workers who file injury compensation claims, but if you feel like this has happened to you, you should immediately contact a workers compensation attorney in order to protect your rights.

Liability

You should be entitled to workers compensation benefits regardless of who is at fault for your workplace injury. Workers compensation insurance is meant to protect both the employer and the employee. Payments for injured workers help to alleviate the financial stresses that accompany workplace injuries, and employers are protected because receiving workers compensation benefits preclude employees from suing their employers.

However, there may be regulations that stipulate benefits will not be paid if the injury is self-inflicted or fraudulent. If the employee was inebriated or under the influence at the time of the injury, was in violation of either company policy or the law, or if the employee was not actually at work when the injury took place, benefits can be denied.

Workers Comp Benefits:

When you are injured at work you can receive benefits for medical treatment, any wages that are lost when you cannot immediately return to work, compensatory benefits for permanent injuries, future losses in income, survivor benefits to family members of employees who are killed on the job, or costs associated with retraining if you are unable to return to your previous job.

Missouri Workers Compensation Attorneys

Contact James M. Hoffmann if you have suffered a work related injury. Our legal team has a strong history of helping injured workers get the medical attention and financial compensation that they need. Contact our St. Louis, Missouri workers compensation law firm to ensure that your rights are protected. Please call (314) 361-4300 or toll free at (888) 872-6795. You can also complete our Online Case Evaluation Form.

Missouri Workers Compensation

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