What Should You Do if You Get Injured at Work?
Many people get injured every day at work. Whether you have an office job or you are around heavy equipment all day, injuries happen no matter how careful that you may be.
When this happens, you may not be exactly sure what you should do. Here are the steps that you should take if you get injured at work.
Report it. Though you may want to hide your injury, the truth is that you should tell someone right away. That being said, there is some leeway in case you didn’t realize that your injury was due to something that you did at work. You may have up to 100 or so days to report your injury to work.
Make sure that you use an approved doctor. Your employer probably has a list of doctors who are approved for workers’ compensation. You are going to need to see one of them if you want your treatment to be covered. Your employer doesn’t have to cover any medical costs if you go to your own doctor.
It is important that you let the doctor know that your injury was work-related. Your doctor will need to write in your file that the injury was work-related. If there is no note, you may not get workers’ compensation.
Follow all of the doctor’s orders. If you are required to get physical therapy, make sure that you follow your doctor’s instructions. If you have to take a few days or weeks off work, your body needs that time to rest. Don’t overdo it when you are trying to recover, because you could just find yourself back to square one.
Keep notes of everything that is happening with your injury. Keep a diary about all the days you miss at work, including when you go in and have to leave early. Don’t forget travel expenses and other medical expenses that you may have. All of this should be compensated when you are off due to a work injury.
You will need to go to your employer to file a “First Report of Occupational Injury” form. This will be sent to your state’s Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. At this point, it will either accept your injury as a work injury or deny it. If it is accepted, your medical care and lost wages will be covered.
Your employer also has the chance to accept or deny responsibility for your injury. They will have to decide if your injury was caused by something at work or not. If they accept responsibility, you will be compensated for your medical care and lost wages.
You should consider hiring a lawyer. Because workers’ compensation can be tricky, you will want to have someone on your side, fighting for your rights. You will need someone who is experienced in workers’ compensation to ensure that you have the best chance of getting compensated for your lost wages and medical care.
Though it can be scary when you get hurt at work, it is important that you act quickly. Tell your employer right away and get medical attention with their approved doctor. You also need to let them know you got hurt at work. If there is no note about it in your file, you may not get the compensation that you deserve. You may also want to talk to a lawyer. You deserve compensation, so you need someone on your side.