In Arizona, there are many risks at work, and all too frequently, these risks result in serious workplace accidents. You might be entitled to benefits if you were hurt at work. To safeguard employees who sustain injuries on the job, Arizona has enacted workers’ compensation legislation. According to the statute, lost wages, disability payments, and medical costs are all covered.
Arizona workers’ compensation lawyers assist injured workers in pursuing the payments they are entitled to for their severe injuries. Let’s look at the common workplace-related accidents in Arizona.
Exposure to toxic substances
Toxic substance exposure can cause significant illnesses or injuries, permanently affecting the worker. Burns, rashes, and lung or throat problems are a few common harms that hazardous substance exposure can cause. The most severe effects of exposure to toxic compounds include deformity, cancer, blindness, and neurological and organ damage.
Traumatic brain injury
Accidents involving machinery, slips, stumbles, and falls from great heights are just a few of the mishaps that result in traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). The brain manages the body’s operations, and damage to this vital organ may have a long-term effect on the life and well-being of the worker.
TBI symptoms, which can range from moderate to severe, frequently include:
- Mild TBI: Signs and symptoms may include nausea, fatigue, headache, disorientation, dizziness, transient loss of consciousness, memory loss, and speech difficulties. In addition to taste or smell loss, victims may have light sensitivity, blurred or double vision, ringing in the ears, and other symptoms.
- A moderate to severe TBI can cause symptoms like loss of consciousness, ongoing headache discomfort, seizures, convulsions, numbness in the extremities, and motor function loss.
Spinal injury or paralysis
One of the most significant injuries suffered by workers is spinal cord damage. Spinal cord injuries can result in high medical costs, the need for ongoing care, and the inability to work.
There are two basic types of spinal cord injuries:
- Complete injury: these injuries cause total loss of motion and sensation below the affected spinal area.
- Partial injuries: due to these, the function below the wounded area is partially lost.
Tetraplegia (quadriplegia) or paraplegia (depending on where the damage occurs) could develop.
Fractures
Broken bones or fractures can be extremely painful and sometimes necessitate surgery. The fracture may remain incapacitating even after surgery, and the victim may not be able to go back to work. An internal reduction and fixation procedure could be used to treat a severe fracture. In other cases, the damaged bone is realigned during that surgery and fixed with screws. Sometimes fractures are so severe that surgery cannot heal the wound completely.
Repetitive stress injury
Over time, injuries from repetitive motion develop. Carpal tunnel syndrome, which happens when the hands or wrists are overused, is one repetitive motion ailment. Workers’ compensation benefits are available to employees who suffer from repetitive motion injuries to help pay for their medical care.
The end note
Navigating a workers’ compensation claim is not easy, so engaging a workers’ compensation lawyer is advisable to get the most out of the claim.
