Do’s and Don’ts for Personal Injury Medical Treatment
✅DO follow all of your doctors’ instructions during the course of your treatment. Remember, they are the medical professionals. You have entrusted them with your care. Failure to follow their instructions may delay and/or prevent your eventual healing. Insurance adjusters may also see that you were not compliant as a patient. They may argue that this point proves that you were not injured as badly as you claim or that your failure to follow doctors’ orders led to a more severe injury than would have been there otherwise.
❌DON’T fail to attend a scheduled appointment without a valid reason. This is also referred to as a “NO SHOW”. If you cannot make an appointment for any reason, simply call the doctor’s office to reschedule. As an example, your pain from the injuries may prevent your ability to travel to get to the appointment. This fact is extremely important and should be documented accordingly in your chart. Otherwise, it may simply be reflected as a “NO SHOW” with no explanation. This missed appointment may be a red flag for the insurance company or a potential jury. Further, it is a courtesy to the doctor’s office.
✅DO let the medical providers know about ALL of your injuries. If they do not know what all is hurting, they cannot treat you properly. Therefore, your pain and the injury may never improve. If you injure a part of your body during the wreck but do not tell your doctor until weeks later, the insurance company may argue that the injury claimed is not related to the wreck. They could try to refuse any compensation related to those bills in the settlement.
❌DON’T have gaps in your treatment. A gap in treatment is the time between the initial wreck and your first date of medical treatment and/or the time between the individual appointments with your doctor. A delay or long gaps may give the insurance company an argument that you must not be really injured. Their position may be that you would have gone immediately for treatment after the wreck or you would have had no more than a few days between appointments while the pain was still present.
There are many other “Do’s and Don’ts” that could be covered. In reality, this list might actually seem endless. For that reason, I would much prefer to discuss your individual situation with you over the phone or in person. Should you have a potential claim, you may contact my office at 404-777-HURT (4878), www.derekmhays.com, [email protected], or set up a face to face appointment at my office in Lawrenceville. The consultation is FREE and I work on a contingency fee basis.
