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Maximizing Your Herniated Disc Settlement

by | Jan 8, 2019

Suffering from a herniated disc after an accident is overwhelming, but getting fair compensation for your injuries should not be adding to your stress. There are ways to maximize your herniated disc settlement. Gathering medical bills and records, ensuring proper diagnosis, calculating lost wages, and documenting your pain and suffering will help to ensure you receive the damages you deserve. Contact the skilled personal injury attorneys with the Kelly Law Team for a free consultation.

Maximizing Your Herniated Disc Settlement

Gather Medical Records and Bills

Order a copy of your full medical records and bills from all treating providers. Do not forget to order copies after you have concluded your treatments and order records from all treating providers (e.g., physical therapy, chiropractors, labs, imaging centers), as well as hospitals and physicians. You can use these records and bills as proof of your injury and damages for medical expenses.

Proper Diagnosis

Documentation of your diagnosis is critical to demonstrate your injuries to an insurance adjuster in support of your request for damages. Copies of x-rays or imaging results can be used to support your diagnosis, and older pre-accident images can be used to demonstrate that your herniated disc was the result of the accident rather than degenerative causes or other preexisting conditions. Insurance companies will attempt to tie your injury to anything other than the accident, so obtain these records as soon as possible.

Calculate Lost Wages

If you have missed work due to your injury, you can calculate your lost wages through pay stubs or tax documentation. Lost wages are objective and generally easier to demonstrate than pain and suffering.

Document Your Pain and Suffering

Since pain and suffering are subjective, it is difficult to calculate pain and suffering damages aside from relying on settlements in similar cases. To bolster your case, you should regularly take notes about any pain you are experiencing and record pain levels and pain medications you take. You should also document all the ways the herniated disc is affecting your life—sleep disturbances, changes to regular activities, ability to participate in activities you used to enjoy.

Do not fall into the trap of relying on settlement calculators found online because they are often inaccurate. It is best to consult with a personal injury attorney about your case and most offer free consultations.

The personal injury attorneys with the Kelly Law Team are experienced in handling herniated disc cases and are here to help. Call us now for a free consultation at 602-283-4122.

Willow Midwife Center for Birth & Wellness – Our firm is currently counsel for plaintiffs in a lawsuit (midwife malpractice) against the birthing center – involving failure to transfer mothers and newborns to hospitals when emergency care was needed, causing devastating consequences for those involved. 

At the Kelly Law Team, our personal injury practice includes a wide range of injuries caused by negligence and other wrongful conduct. including injuries that are inflicted upon newborn babies (and their mothers).

When a woman is about to give birth, she understandably wants to be as comfortable as possible, not only in her surroundings, but also in terms of the quality of care she will receive. People choose birthing centers in part, at least, due to the promise of a more personalized attention, a home-like environment, “continuous care,” less medical intervention, and a more “natural” birthing experience. 

Unfortunately, birthing centers are not equipped to handle many emergencies. There are numerous areas of concern when you entrust your maternity care to a birthing center. For example, as in our case, delayed transfer of mothers and newborn babies to a hospital could lead to devastating consequences, including oxygen deprivation, untreated fetal distress, and more. This could result in the baby suffering with cerebral palsy, developmental delays, and other serious problems and conditions.

These centers generally operate without an onsite physician, and the possibility of a delay in the transfer to a hospital in the case of an emergency or difficult delivery is only one example of injuries to newborns and to their mothers, who suffer needlessly as the result of negligence on the part of the birthing center. Moreover, birthing centers are not able to perform Cesarean sections, while almost one-third of births in the United States are delivered by C-section.

Indeed, according to the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, birthing centers carry an increased risk of adverse outcomes, including the following:

  • Neonatal deaths (birth through day 28);
  • Depressed Agpar scores in the first few minutes of birth (Apgar evaluates the newborn’s heart rate, muscle tone, reflexes, respiration, and appearance); and

In addition to the risks to the infant, medical problems suffered by the mother may also be well beyond the capacity of a birthing center to diagnose and/or treat.

If you or a loved one has given birth at a birthing center, and either mother or child has had health problems, during or after childbirth, we may be able to assist in finding out whether the birthing center was at fault, causing or exacerbating the injury/condition, and whether you are entitled to compensation. If you believe a birthing center caused or failed to diagnose or properly treat a medical condition, contact the Kelly Law Team to find out what our firm can do for you.

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