Submitted by pec on Mon, 12/18/2023 - 12:48 pec's Blog Back pain is a common type of injury in some workplaces. It can be painful and prevent you from working until a full recovery is made. If the back pain occurred because of your work environment, you should be able to claim workers’ compensation. Workers’ compensation payments help to pay for medical treatment and any wages lost because you are off work recovering. A workers’ compensation attorney can help you with a claim. The following tips may help you with your workers’ compensation application. Tip#1 Seek Medical Attention for the Back Injury You must obtain a doctor’s assessment of your back injury. Your employer may have a list of physicians and medical providers you need to use when seeking medical attention for your back injury. Tip#2 Get Diagnostic Tests to Confirm Your Back Injury You may need to obtain diagnostic tests showing the degree of severity of your back injury. Results of these tests should be attached to your application for workers’ compensation. Tip#3 Notify Your Employer You will need to formally notify your employer of your back injury and that you will be filing a claim for workers’ compensation. Your employer must complete an accident report detailing how and when your back injury took place. This will be used when your workers’ comp. application is assessed. Tip#4 Jot Down Some Notes About the Accident Your workers’ comp. claim should be supported by concise description of how the back injury occurred. It may have developed slowly as a result of strenuous physical work or due to a single work related accident. Ensure you jot down some notes about how the back injury occurred at work. If other co-workers witnessed the accident, make sure that you get eye witness statements from them which will help to confirm the details you have described in your claim. If you have a long history of back pain which has reached a point which has stopped you working to ensure a recovery, make sure you have kept any correspondence you have had with your employer about your back injury or with your doctor if you have been to get treatment. Tip#5 Maintain Documentation That Supports Your Claim If it is unlikely that your back injury will recover quickly you may need ongoing medical treatment and monitoring. Keep any documentation that shows how your back injury is being treated and ongoing progress. This includes any relevant medical documents and doctor’s assessments that can be used as evidence. Tip#6 Continue With Follow-Up Care Continue to follow the doctor’s orders to make a full recovery. Some back injuries can mean lengthy recovery times and there are also some back injuries that are so serious that a return to work is unlikely. This is why it is important to ensure you maintain follow-up care for your back injury. Tip#7 Consult With a Workers’ Compensation Attorney Fill out a Free Case Evaluation to get connected with an independent workers’ comp. attorney who subscribes to the website and may be able to help you with your workers’ comp. claim.
