A catastrophic injury is a life-changing injury that impacts the survivor and their entire family. Injuries may take away cognitive function, the ability to walk, the ability to talk, or a limb. When an auto accident is caused by negligence or recklessness of an individual or company, the injured victim may pursue a personal injury claim. It is always advisable to hire a Charleston personal injury lawyer, to ensure that injuries are properly treated and documented, and important evidence is preserved.
Attorney Mark Bringardner understands how serious a catastrophic injury may be. He has helped victims and their families who are impacted by permanent disability, years of rehabilitation, changing family dynamics and financial strain of high medical cost and lost income. He is compassionate towards catastrophic injury victims and dedicated to pursue maximum compensation in personal injury claims. In every case, he fights to hold negligent parties accountable to the maximum extent, and recover full compensation for individuals and their families.
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While financial compensation may not heal the catastrophic injury, it is the best thing our civil justice system can provide to try to make the victim whole and right the wrong that was done. A significant injury cannot be compensated with an insignificant amount of money. The amount of compensation must be equal to the amount of harm that was caused to the victim. Anything less is an injustice.
Types of Catastrophic Injury
Catastrophic injuries are devastating injuries, causing physical, mental, emotional trauma that affects all aspects of life and future opportunities. They may be long-lasting or permanent. These injuries may include:
Traumatic Brain Injuries:
Every concussion is a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Some traumatic brain injuries heal in weeks or months, while some are permanent. A TBI is one of the most severe injuries someone can experience, affecting cognitive, physical and psychological function. They can leave people unable to communicate, process information, or access memories. Families may struggle with personality changes, as victims may experience personality changes like irritability and anger after an injury. Memory loss, especially being unable to make short-term memories, is a life-changing event.
Spine and Spinal Cord Injuries:
Your spine effects almost every movement you make. An injury to a disc in your spine, or an exacerbation of a pre-existing condition, can cause debilitating pain and discomfort that extends to every area of your life. Often times disc injuries require surgery to fix. A spinal cord injury causes permanent changes in sensation, strength and bodily functions below the site of the injury. These injuries can affect every aspect of a victim’s life. Along with physical effects, spinal cord injury victims suffer mentally, emotionally, and socially as they are forced to deal with permanent disability and grieve lost quality of life.
Amputation Injuries:
A traumatic amputation injury is the loss of a limb or body part. This could be a finger, toe, arm, or leg, that occurs as the result of an accident.
Burn Injuries:
Burn injuries include burns caused by fire, thermal burns like burns caused by scalding liquids, electrical burns, chemical burns, radiation burns. Burn injuries can cause uncontrollable pain and permanent scarring and disfigurement, along with very painful wound care and recovery.
No two catastrophic injuries are alike, but many have similar consequences: financially debilitating medical bills, inability to continue working, and the need for long-term medical care. Some injuries may result in a shortened life-expectancy, or a devastating wrongful death in the days and weeks following the accident. If the accident was caused by negligence, Mark Bringardner will fight for compensation for all aspects of a catastrophic injury claim, no matter if it was a car accident, construction accident, injury from a defective product, or any other cause.
Compensation for Medical Expenses for a Catastrophic Injury
Medical care following a permanently disabling injury can be enormous. A personal injury claim or lawsuit can compensate victims for all expenses related to the accident, including:
Trauma Care:
The immediate care for an accident victim includes ambulance or air-lift transport, emergency room treatment, diagnostics tests and imaging, the use of a ventilator and emergency surgeries, and follow-up specialists visits.
Surgeries for a Catastrophic Injury:
Brain injury and spinal cord injuries may require life-saving surgeries, as well as procedures to decrease pain and improve mobility. Burn injury victims may require extensive skin-grafts and follow-up cosmetic surgeries.
Rehabilitation and Therapy:
Rehabilitative care and occupational therapy is essential to recovery from catastrophic injuries, and can improve the level of recovery to the highest possible level to build independence and enjoyment of everyday activities.
Long Term Care:
A severe injury can prevent someone from returning to work, meaning a family will lose out on decades of lost- income. Additionally, taking care of someone who is permanently disabled may be a 24/7 job. Hiring full-time caretakers or quitting a job to take care of a loved-one full-time can be financially devastating. Families may need to install home modifications or purchase a new home to accommodate mobility needs. A van and mobility equipment may need to be purchased. The cost of caring for someone with a permanent disability can be millions of dollars.
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A personal injury lawsuit can provide compensation for full-time care as well as lost quality of life from being able to participate in daily activities. Calculating future damages in these disability cases is complex. A life care planner may be consulted to calculate expected medical needs for the remainder of the victim’s life expectancy.
Discuss Your Legal and Financial Options in a Free Consultation
Charleston catastrophic injury lawyer Mark Bringardner of Bringardner Injury Law Firm is an advocate for catastrophic injury victims, and is serious about holding negligent parties accountable to the maximum extent. He will focus on making sure that all of your past and future medical bills are paid for so that you can focus on healing and recovering to the maximum possible extent. Call today to discuss your case in a free consultation.