Accidents on the job site can result in broken bones, strained muscles, and other painful injuries. After receiving immediate medical attention, it’s important to continue to follow your doctor’s orders to a “T.” If you skip appointments or stop taking your prescriptions, you might lose your workers’ compensation claim.
At Clay, Massey & Associates, P.C., we have decades of experience helping injured workers get the compensation they deserve. But we can only help you if you put your health first and follow your doctor’s orders.
Get Immediate Treatment
Job injuries require medical attention, no matter how small. Medical treatment helps you heal faster, but it also provides critical documentation about the severity of the injury. In Alabama, your employer and its insurer can determine which doctor you visit if your injury isn’t an emergency.
There’s another reason to receive prompt medical treatment. If you delay receiving treatment, the medical insurer might claim that your injury isn’t really serious, or that you have invented it. In that situation, it can be hard to get the workers’ compensation benefits you are entitled to.
Attend Your Doctor’s Appointments
Regular checkups are necessary to track your progress and adjust your treatment, if necessary. For this reason, your doctor might want to see you every week or month. Be sure to attend the doctor’s appointment and provide any information that is requested.
If for some reason you can’t make an appointment, then carefully document the reason why. For example, you might not be able to drive and your ride canceled on you. Write down the name and number of who was supposed to take you to the doctor’s office.
Follow Your Doctor’s Orders
Your doctor might give you a long list of things to do as part of your treatment. For example, the doctor might require that you do any of the following:
- Take medications
- Stay in bed
- Receive physical therapy
- Change your diet
You must do everything your doctor recommends, otherwise, the insurer can claim that you have aggravated your injury because of your own conduct, which can make getting adequate workers’ compensation benefits very difficult.
You might be surprised to hear it, but some employers have started hiring private investigators to snoop on employees who have filed a workers’ compensation claim! You can imagine how bad it would look for your case if someone videotaped you driving when the doctor had ordered bed rest or caught you outside when you claimed to be immobile.
Of course, you might not think the doctor’s treatment is working, in which case you should talk to your attorney about finding a different doctor to meet with.
Contact a Mobile, Alabama Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Today
Injured workers need time to heal and professional legal representation to make sure they get the benefits they deserve. The attorneys at Clay, Massey & Associates, P.C., have handled hundreds of workers’ compensation claims and are here to help. Call us today at 251-433-1000 or fill out our online contact form.
