Kansas City Metropolitan Area Workers' Compensation Law Blog

Why would you have elbow or arm pain after a crash?

On behalf of The Law Office of Michael J. Joshi posted in personal injury on Friday, September 25, 2020.

After a car crash, you may have significant arm or elbow pain. There are a few reasons for this. First, if you tensed or were holding onto the wheel, your arms were vectors for the force of the collision. Your joints may have absorbed some of the shock, but that also means that they may have been bruised or injured as a result.

Arm and elbow pain doesn't necessarily relate to an actual arm or elbow injury, though. Did you know that having pain in your arm or elbow could be a sign of issues such as:

Blood clots
Heart problems
Herniated discs
Broken bones higher or lower on the body, such as in the shoulder or wrist

Don't overlook these workplace injury risks

On behalf of The Law Office of Michael J. Joshi posted in workers' compensation on Friday, September 18, 2020.

People often think of certain professions, such as office work, as being safe. The fact is that every job comes with some risks. Understanding those can help employers provide the tools and protocol they need to keep their employees safe. When employers don't do this, the workers might suffer injuries.

Looking at worker injuries across all industries, it becomes clear that some are more common than others. The top three include overexertion injuries, slip/trip/fall incidents, and contact with objects or equipment. Other common injury causes include:

Accidents involving transportation: All sorts of transportation-related incidents are included here. These can include watercraft, railways, aircraft, automotive and bicycle injuries.
Violence: This involves attacks from people or animals that occur while the person is working. Bites or maulings from animals and being beaten by co-workers or customers are both examples of work-related violence. Around 44,000 incidents in this category occur each year.
Hazardous exposures: Employees can suffer from things like radiation exposure, extreme temperatures that lead to heat stroke or frostbite, inhalation hazards that can damage the lungs or lead to cancer and electrical currents.

Recovering from an on-the-job back injury

On behalf of The Law Office of Michael J. Joshi on Sunday, September 13, 2020.

If you've recently suffered a workplace back injury in Kansas, you know all too well how painful and disruptive to your daily life such an injury can be. Such injuries often create chronic pain conditions that are difficult to overcome. Perhaps, you were lifting something or reaching toward a high shelf when your injury occurred. Maybe you were hit by a motor vehicle or slipped and fell on a wet surface.

No matter what the events were that led to your back injury, it's important to know where to seek support as you navigate recovery. It's also important to learn as much as you can about the workers' compensation program, especially if you plan to file a claim to collect benefits.

Neck injuries are more than a pain. They could be disabling

On behalf of The Law Office of Michael J. Joshi posted in personal injury on Friday, September 11, 2020.

Millions of people are involved in car crashes each year, and many of them end up with neck injuries as a result. While the most common neck injury may be whiplash, there are other injuries that could occur. Neck injuries such as slipped/ruptured discs, broken bones and even internal decapitations could happen.

Each of these injuries has a different expected outcome for patients. Ruptured discs could lead to paralysis or dysfunction without treatment. A patient with internal decapitation injuries could be killed with a sudden movement. Broken bones may require casting and taking steps to prevent them from moving as they heal.

Do you have a right to disability benefits if you have cancer?

On behalf of The Law Office of Michael J. Joshi posted in social security disability on Thursday, September 3, 2020.

Cancer can make it very difficult to keep working. Even if the disease doesn't itself isn't limiting you, the treatments can be difficult and drain your ability to function normally.

A cancer diagnosis may qualify you for Social Security Disability benefits, but approval is far from automatic (with very few exceptions) unless your case is terminal.

Some common occupational illnesses

On behalf of The Law Office of Michael J. Joshi posted in workers' compensation on Thursday, August 27, 2020.

According to data published by the International Labour Organization (ILO) in 2015, at least two million workers suffer fatal injuries on the job worldwide each year. Further, 160 million employees end up with non-fatal occupational diseases on an annual basis. Some work-related conditions are more common than others.

Statistics published by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) show that contact dermatitis, or eczema, is one of the leading occupational diseases. NIOSH's data reveals that this condition is responsible for 95% of work-related skin conditions. A variety of factors can result in an onset of this condition, including plant, parasite, radiation, chemical, irritant, animal, temperature, mechanical labor and allergen exposure.

Lake of the Ozarks explosion shows the danger of refueling

On behalf of The Law Office of Michael J. Joshi posted in personal injury on Thursday, August 20, 2020.

It's shocking when a boating incident happens that causes injuries because they so rarely do. When someone is on a boat, they may have the water to themselves. They might not think about the potential for a fire or explosion.

There was an explosion recently, though. At the Lake of the Ozarks, a boat exploded, according to an Aug. 17 report, and three people were injured. Officers in Missouri stated that the explosion happened when the boat was finishing refueling at a gas station.

Good preventative steps can help prevent 3 common work injuries

On behalf of The Law Office of Michael J. Joshi posted in workers' compensation on Friday, August 14, 2020.

Getting hurt at work is the last thing anyone wants, but yet these accidents happen all the time. What is worse is that many of the accidents that do happen are a result of similar errors in the workplace, like not keeping the floors clear of debris or failing to use the correct personal protective equipment.

In any workplace, prevention is the first step to address workplace accidents and injuries. To prevent them, you need to know which accidents are most likely.

Workers' compensation: Is RSI the cause of your pain?

On behalf of The Law Office of Michael J. Joshi on Thursday, August 13, 2020.

If there are mornings when you have trouble moving because your back hurts or your joints are stiff, you're definitely not alone in your struggle. Any number of issues might be an underlying cause of your discomfort. If you're over age 50, it's not uncommon to experience stiffness or a certain amount of bodily discomfort as you age. However, if your Kansas job requires you to maintain an awkward posture or to repeat a motion over and over again, you might have a repetitive strain injury (RSI).

RSI can impair function in your muscles, tendons or nerves. It typically develops over time, which means symptoms are not always immediately apparent. If you are experiencing discomfort, swelling or inflammation, it's important, not only to seek medical examination but also to determine if your symptoms are associated with a workplace injury.

These 3 kinds of brain injuries can have lasting effects

On behalf of The Law Office of Michael J. Joshi posted in personal injury on Thursday, August 6, 2020.

Suffering from a brain injury can change your life quickly, leaving you with changes in your personality, memory problems, difficulty with sight or weakness or other issues. Traumatic brain injuries happen when your brain is bumped, jolted or otherwise suffers a blow that disrupts its normal activity.

There are three levels of injuries that you should know about. These include mild, moderate and severe. Here is a little more about each categorization and what it may mean for your health.

Kansas City Workers' Compensation Law Blog