15 Jul Getting The Legal Help You Deserve – I
The expansion of specialized knowledge in burn treatment is very welcome good news for burn survivors. This expertise has increased victims’ chances of survival exponentially. In fact, now there is a 94.8% survival rate among patients admitted to burn units.
However, the down side of this is that these specialized techniques come with a high price tag. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that hospitalized fire and burn injuries cost $1 billion a year. Burn survivors may endure physical and emotional trauma, an injury that results in pain, disfigurement, organ damage, body chemistry damage, and sensitivity to temperature change. 
Survivors of serious burns may end up paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for treatment, depending on the scope and severity of the injuries sustained.
As horrifying as they are, statistics on the incidence and costs of burn injuries fail to tell the true story of pain and suffering associated with these types of wounds. The story begins with the injury itself and the immediate impact on the survivor’s life. The initial pain, difficulty, and expense of medical treatment leads to more long term effects which often include scarring , loss of mobility, inability to work, and loss of intimate relationships.
Achieving a full recovery takes a lot of challenging and complicated steps on the part of the burn survivor. These may include rehabilitation and reconstructive surgery. The physical effects are obvious but the deeper psychological damage is almost more insidious because it is not visible. Physical scarring and disfigurement take a mental toll as often a survivor can’t even look in a mirror without being reminded of the accident. Burn survivors often struggle to come to grips with their accidents and the changes wrought by such life-altering events.
It is important for burn survivors to recognize that part of the healing process may involve learning that they have legal rights that support them in their recovery, and attempt to compensate them for their devastating experiences. Pursuing legal rights is a vital part of the healing process. In addition to helping the burn survivor feel whole again, this process will help to restore economic dignity.
Here is a brief description of what your legal rights to compensation may include:
Payment of Medical Bills – You may be entitled to have your past and future medical expenses paid which include: hospitalization, surgical procedures, ongoing medical care, counseling, scar revision/plastic surgery, physical therapy, occupational therapy.
Compensation for Loss of Income – You may be entitled to have your lost wages, past and future paid.
Vocational Rehabilitation (Job Training) – You may be entitled to compensation to be re-trained into a new job or occupation.
Compensation for Pain and Suffering – You may be entitled to compensation for the pain and suffering you have endured, and may continue to endure, as a result of your injury.
Loss of Consortium – The spouse of a burn survivor may be entitled to compensation when the injury is so severe that it interferes with the injured parties spousal relations. The affected family member may suffer a very real detriment. Many courts recognize the right of the injured party’s spouse to recover in an appropriate case. This can include loss of support, services, love, companionship, society, affection, sexual relations, and solace in the form of a loss of consortium action. Loss of consortium is a claim separate from the injury victim’s claim. It is unique to the injured party’s spouse and is compensable by a separate damages recovery.
Given the unimaginable physical and emotional trauma burn survivors must endure, often with long term consequences, it is important for the injured person to know that civil law exists to compensate an individual for injuries and losses which were caused by some other form of misconduct or failure to act. Persons who are injured in accidents and their families are often reluctant to contact an attorney because they believe the accident or injury was caused by the burn victim in some way. This may not be the case. Even if the injured individual is partially at fault, it is still possible that more than one person or entity may have contributed to the cause of accident or injury. If so, a substantial monetary recovery is still possible.
Anyone who has sustained a serious burn injury should consult with an attorney experienced in this area of the law as soon as possible to determine whether a personal injury claim should be pursued. The onus is on the burn survivor to pursue his or her legal rights by choosing an attorney with all the qualifications, expertise, and proven success record.
For more information about burn injuries please visit our website, www.burnsurvivor.com.
To contact attorney Robert A Brenner directly call 800-669-7700 or email [email protected]
To learn more about attorney Robert A Brenner, please visit his website www.brennerlaw.com