FROM THE LAW OFFICES OF ROBERT RODRIGUEZ:
Disclaimer: I am not a medical doctor. This paper should NOT be taken as medical advice. If you suspect you may have suffered a head injury, you should consult with a physician.
TRAUMA TO THE BRAIN CAN RESULT IN SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH
In the many years of handling personal injury cases I have handled just about every type of injury imaginable. Today, I want to talk about traumatic brain injuries, or TBI’s. The TBI cases I have handled usually happened as a result of car wrecks, as a result of someone hitting their head in a fall, or some other type of accident that produced a blow to the head. It should be stressed that not every hard blow to the head produces a TBI. However, a blow hard enough to cause a loss of consciousness can sometimes lead to a traumatic head injury diagnosis.
SYMPTOMS ASSOCIATED WITH TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURIES
Symptoms of a traumatic brain injury can include irritability, mood swings, personality changes, memory loss, anxiety, balance problems, depression, slurred speech, inability to recall certain words, difficulty reading, difficulty multi-tasking, inability to concentrate on a task, and anxiety. Any of these symptoms or group of symptoms can also be caused by other medical conditions, so a patient’s history and proper diagnostics are key to a diagnosis of traumatic brain injury.
TREATMENT OF TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURIES
A patient with a TBI is often prescribed a specialized form of therapy called Vestibular Rehabilitation Therapy, which consists of exercises to aid in balance. TBI patients are also typically prescribed Cognitive Rehabilitation Therapy, which focuses on training the patient to understand why they behave the way they do. It also educates the patient to recognize when they are engaging in that behavior and trains them to substitute healthier behaviors. In addition, a nutritionist can be called in to educate the patient on eating a proper diet that will maintain good mental health. Finally, the patient can be shown appropriate physical exercises and techniques for getting restful sleep.
THE ATTORNEY’S ROLE
The attorney representing a traumatic injury case should concentrate on putting the best team of medical and rehabilitation experts together to treat his client and to document the injury. The attorney should be prepared to document the economic losses resulting from the injury, as well as the emotional losses and the pain and suffering this traumatic event has had on his client’s life and the lives of his loved ones. The attorney should document via videographic evidence the treatments his client is receiving as well as, in serious cases, the special care needed by the client in a typical day, called “a day in the life” video. A treatment plan should be drafted and the costs of said treatment should be itemized to let the adjuster know the evidence a jury would hear and the size of the monetary damages a jury might award if the case is not settled.