After suffering an injury in a car accident, your immediate priority should be your health and well-being. It’s crucial to seek medical attention right away—not only to ensure you get the treatment you need but also to support your personal injury claim. While the physical healing process is the primary concern, properly documenting your injuries and following through with medical care can also significantly affect the outcome of your case.
In this article, we’ll discuss why seeing a doctor after a car crash is essential, the importance of following medical advice, and how your treatment can impact your personal injury claim. If you’ve been injured in a car accident and are unsure of the next steps, Herrman & Herrman Personal Injury Lawyers are here to help guide you through the process, ensuring that your rights are protected and your case is handled with care.
The Importance of Immediate Medical Attention
After an accident, you may be in shock and adrenaline, which can mask certain symptoms. You might not immediately feel the full extent of your injuries, especially if they are soft-tissue injuries like whiplash or muscle strains. However, even if you feel okay at first, it’s essential to seek medical attention as soon as possible after the crash.
Why is Going to the Doctor Crucial?
- To Receive Proper Diagnosis and Treatment: Going to a doctor, especially an emergency room (ER) after the accident, allows healthcare professionals to evaluate your injuries right away. ER doctors specialize in handling trauma and injuries that occur due to accidents. They can quickly assess whether you need immediate attention, provide you with pain relief, and direct you toward the appropriate care.
- To Establish a Medical Record: Medical records play a significant role in your personal injury claim. The insurance companies and legal teams will scrutinize these records to evaluate the severity of your injuries and the treatments you’ve undergone. If you fail to seek medical care or delay treatment, it may weaken your case, giving the insurance company grounds to argue that your injuries aren’t as serious as you claim.
- To Avoid Complications: Some injuries, like internal bleeding, concussions, or spinal injuries, may not show immediate symptoms but can worsen over time. Seeking medical attention right after the accident ensures that these injuries are caught early before they become more serious or long-term.
When Should You Go to the Emergency Room?
After a car accident, it’s important to evaluate the severity of your condition. If you experience any of the following symptoms, you should head straight to the emergency room:
- Severe head, neck, or back pain
- Loss of consciousness or dizziness
- Difficulty moving or walking
- Numbness, tingling, or weakness in your limbs
- Abdominal pain, nausea, or vomiting
- Chest pain or shortness of breath
Even if you don’t have obvious or immediate symptoms, it’s still a good idea to visit an ER for a thorough check-up. If the ER doctors do not find anything life-threatening, they may still recommend follow-up appointments or diagnostic tests to rule out any hidden injuries.
Note: If you are unsure about the extent of your injuries, you can contact Herrman & Herrman Personal Injury Lawyers for advice on how to navigate the medical side of your case. Our experienced team can help ensure you get the care you need while protecting your rights.
Specialized Care for Traumatic Injuries
While going to the ER is important, in many cases, especially when injuries are more complex, you will likely need to follow up with specialists. A general doctor may not have the expertise to fully treat the specific injuries that resulted from the accident.
Specialists in Traumatic Injuries
Doctors who specialize in treating trauma from accidents—such as orthopedic surgeons, neurologists, or pain management specialists—are crucial to your recovery. After the ER visit, your doctor may refer you to one of these specialists depending on your injuries. For example, if you have neck or back pain, you may be referred to an orthopedic specialist or a chiropractor. If you experience numbness or tingling in your extremities, you may need to see a neurologist to check for nerve damage or spinal injuries.
It is important to follow through with these referrals and continue your treatment with specialists. These doctors can help manage your recovery, ensure you receive the right type of care, and provide detailed medical records that will support your personal injury claim.
Following Your Doctor’s Advice is Key
Once you start receiving medical care, it’s vital to follow your doctor’s advice to the letter. This not only gives you the best chance for recovery but also strengthens your personal injury claim. Insurance companies and defense attorneys closely examine your treatment records and behavior. If they see that you’ve missed appointments, failed to follow through with prescribed treatments, or ignored your doctor’s advice, they may argue that your injuries aren’t as severe as you claim, or that you’re not making a good-faith effort to recover.
Document Everything
One of the most important steps in your treatment process is documenting every visit and medical procedure. From emergency room visits to follow-up appointments, physical therapy sessions, and diagnostic tests, it’s essential that all treatments are documented thoroughly.
Make sure you share any and all symptoms you’re experiencing with your doctor, even if they seem minor. Sometimes, seemingly insignificant pain can be a sign of a more serious issue—like numbness in your fingers or back pain that could point to a herniated disc or nerve damage. These conditions may require more treatment and can be an important part of your personal injury case.
Also, keep track of any prescriptions or over-the-counter medications you’re taking to manage your pain. Medication logs and records can further support your claim that you’re following through with your doctor’s treatment plan.
Attending All Appointments and Follow-Up Care
Missing appointments can also have a negative impact on your case. If you fail to attend follow-up appointments, it may give the impression that you’re not taking your recovery seriously or that your injuries aren’t as bad as you say they are. Attending all appointments is crucial, even if you’re feeling better or if the pain seems to have subsided. Some injuries take time to fully heal, and skipping appointments may only hinder your long-term recovery.
What if You Need More Diagnostic Testing?
Your doctor may suggest additional diagnostic testing, such as X-rays, MRIs, CT scans, or nerve conduction studies, to further investigate your injuries. Diagnostic testing is essential in identifying the full extent of your injuries and helping guide your treatment. If your doctor recommends these tests, it’s important to follow their advice and complete them. Ignoring medical tests could delay your recovery and could also harm your injury claim.
The Impact of Following Medical Advice on Your Injury Claim
The way you handle your medical care can have a significant impact on your personal injury case. If you don’t seek medical care or fail to follow your doctor’s orders, the insurance company and the defense attorney may argue that your injuries were not severe or that you were not proactive in your treatment.
In contrast, if you follow your doctor’s advice and attend all recommended appointments, you will not only improve your chances of recovery, but you’ll also strengthen your claim. Insurance companies and juries are more likely to believe that your injuries are serious and that you’ve been diligent in your treatment, which will support a higher settlement or judgment.
Contact Herrman & Herrman Personal Injury Lawyers for Help with Your Case
Navigating the medical side of a personal injury claim can be overwhelming, but with the right help, you can ensure that your rights are protected and that you’re on the path to recovery. Herrman & Herrman Personal Injury Lawyers have extensive experience helping clients who have been injured in car accidents, and we understand how crucial medical care is to your case.
If you’ve been in a car wreck and need legal assistance, don’t hesitate to contact us today. Our skilled team can help you navigate the process, ensure that your medical records are properly handled, and work to secure the compensation you deserve for your injuries. We’ll also fight to hold the responsible parties accountable and help you get back on your feet.
Remember: Seeking timely medical care and following your doctor’s advice not only helps you recover but also strengthens your personal injury claim. Don’t let missed appointments or incomplete treatment affect your case—take charge of your health and your legal rights with the help of Herrman & Herrman.
CONTACT HERRMAN & HERRMAN IF YOU HAVE BEEN INJURED IN ANY OF THE FOLLOWING TYPES OF ACCIDENTS:
Our Texas personal injury lawyers help clients who have suffered injuries in various accidents.
We can help you if you have been harmed by the following:
- Car accidents – Our lawyers have extensive experience handling car accident cases. We will work to identify the party or parties at fault for the crash and build a case to demonstrate persuasively how the parties caused the accident and your injuries. We will seek fair and full compensation through a negotiated settlement or at trial if necessary.
- Truck accidents – Thousands of large commercial trucks travel the roads of Texas every single day. Unfortunately, careless truck drivers and trucking companies disregarding safety put innocent people at risk of serious injuries. If you’ve been injured in a truck accident, let our experienced Texas personal injury lawyers stand up to the trucking companies and insurers on your behalf.
- Motorcycle accidents – Motorcycle riders often suffer grievous injuries in crashes caused by other motorists. Too many motorcycle accidents in Corpus Christi are caused by careless drivers who don’t look for motorcycle riders or violate their right of way. Our personal injury lawyers will work to cut through the bias and stigma against motorcycle riders. Our goal is to seek the financial compensation that you’ll need to recover from a serious motorcycle accident and injuries such as bone fractures, road rash, or traumatic brain injury.
- Product liability – Product manufacturers have a legal obligation to make products that are safe for their intended uses and to warn consumers of any risks that may come with the product. When products have design or manufacturing defects or undisclosed dangers, the product manufacturer may be legally responsible for injuries suffered by consumers. Our attorneys can help you evaluate whether you have a valid product liability claim.
- Brain injury – Brain injuries can leave accident victims with disabilities that leave them unable to work or perform many tasks of daily living. Seeking compensation for a brain injury in an accident often proves incredibly complex. The brain injury survivor may seek compensation for anticipated future medical care and the medical care already provided. Our personal injury lawyers can help you through the difficult recovery process following a brain injury and will fight to make sure you have the resources you need.
- Spinal injury – Spinal cord injuries could cost millions of dollars of care over the course of the victim’s lifetime, especially when those injuries result in partial or complete paralysis, such as paraplegia or quadriplegia. If you or your loved one has suffered a spinal cord injury, you deserve compassionate legal representation. Our attorney can help you determine whether you may be entitled to claim compensation for your injury and expenses related to living with the disability, such as making a home more accessible.
- Wrongful death – If you have lost a loved one due to the negligent or reckless actions of another party, your family deserves to seek accountability and compensation from those at fault for the wrongful death. Our caring and dedicated attorneys can help guide you and your family through this difficult and painful time and seek justice for your loved one.
ABOUT HERRMAN & HERRMAN PERSONAL INJURY LAWYERS
With over 100 years of combined experience among the legal team of Herrman & Herrman, P.L.L.C., our Texas personal injury attorneys have successfully resolved over 20,000 cases. When representing injured Texas residents, we fight for justice against wrongdoing and aggressively pursue the best resolution to complex personal injury claims.
If you or a loved one was injured, please get in touch with us for a free initial consultation and case evaluation. Herrman & Herrman, P.L.L.C., is a locally based law firm that holds negligent individuals and companies accountable for their wrongdoing. We are not a personal injury mill that advertises nationwide. We provide individualized advocacy in attending to all aspects of claims that involve. Our firm has offices in the following locations: Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi South Side, Dallas, Brownsville, McAllen, San Antonio, Austin, Houston, and Ft. Worth, TX.
We remain by our client’s side, handling all aspects of their claims and attending to all legal, medical, and financial needs. That dedication combines experience, legal knowledge, and insight from a former insurance adjuster and several former insurance defense attorneys. Whether our clients suffer from physical pain from an accident or the emotional grief of death, we treat clients with compassion. We put their mind at ease during difficult times by answering their questions concerning the length of their claim, medical bills, financial compensation, and their overall need for a lawyer.
