People who sustain an injury that requires ongoing medical attention and long periods of hospitalization cannot work. In some cases, victims cannot care for their own routine daily needs. The medical expenses, daily nursing care costs, and other related expenses can ruin a person and their family financially.
Some of these financial burdens include:
- Emergency medical expenses
- Physical and occupational therapy
- Continuing medical care
- Visiting nursing care
- Medications
- Medical equipment such as a hospital bed at home, wheelchairs, a Hoyer lift
- Costs to retrofit a home to accommodate a wheelchair
- Diminished earning capacity
- Lost wages
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Disfigurement
- Counseling
One of the significant challenges with a catastrophic injury is that the injury’s effects continue long after the accident. Someone who suffered a spinal cord injury could develop respiratory problems long after the actual injury occurred. Someone who sustained a TBI might seem perfectly normal on the outside but faces challenges such as blinding headaches, seizures, and cognitive difficulties, making it nearly impossible for them to hold down a job and maintain personal relationships.
