The Dangers of Not Following Your Doctor’s Advice
After a serious injury, your doctor might advise that you stay in bed or avoid strenuous activity. For many personal injury victims, following this advice will be a challenge. Nevertheless, there are important legal reasons for doing so. If you don’t follow your doctor’s advice, you could lose out on badly-needed compensation for your injuries.
The Duty to Mitigate
Every personal injury plaintiff must take reasonable steps to make sure that they don’t aggravate their damages, whether financial or physical. To that end, you should make sure to do the following:
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Seek prompt medical treatment. Go to the hospital or a doctor as soon as possible, and make sure your doctor practices traditional medicine instead of alternative medicine. You are not prohibited from receiving alternative medical treatment, like acupuncture, but you should receive alternative medicine only as a complement to traditional medicine.
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Follow your doctor’s orders. Take all medicines at the right times and stay in bed if requested. Follow all directions until the doctor discharges you from his or her care.
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Make arrangements to work from home, if possible. As an injured victim, you might receive damages for lost wages. However, you have a duty to mitigate your economic losses, so see if you can work from home as you recover. If you can only work part-time, then work part-time.
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Seek alternative employment. Your injuries might make it impossible to continue with your current job. You can receive damages for lost future wages; however, you need to make a reasonable effort to find a new job. Keep detailed records of where you have looked for work.
By following these steps, you can maximize the amount of financial compensation you are eligible to receive if you win your lawsuit.
Why People Stop Following their Doctor’s Orders
You might have very good reasons for not following your doctor’s advice. For example, you might not think the doctor’s course of treatment is working. If you experience no improvement—or, if you feel yourself getting worse—you might ignore your doctor’s orders.
Instead of ignoring your doctor, you should schedule another appointment and explain that your symptoms are not improving. If the doctor cannot help you, then you might need to see a different doctor. A new doctor with a fresh perspective might diagnose your injuries differently and offer a new treatment regimen that helps you improve.
Also, some injured victims might get up and start moving because they need to return to work. Injuries throw a wrench in the ability of people to earn a living, and you might feel you have no choice but to start working again as you watch medical bills pile up. In this situation, you should meet with your personal injury attorney to discuss your financial options.
Discuss Your Concerns with a Daytona Beach Personal Injury Lawyer
If you have a question about how to mitigate your damages, you should speak to a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible. At Bundza & Rodriguez, we help accident victims build the strongest case possible for financial compensation. To schedule your free consultation, contact us today.
Resource:
mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/consumer-health/in-depth/alternative-medicine/art-20045267