You’re hurt in an accident. You initially deny medical treatment, brush yourself off, and try to deal with the pain on your own, thinking that you’ll get better soon enough. But several weeks go by and you are still sore and in pain from the accident. Finally, you decide to go to a doctor. This situation is common, but what you may not realize is that you are only harming yourself by not going to see a doctor when you’re initially injured or at the first onset of pain.
By delaying, you potentially risk further harming or damaging your body by not seeing a doctor right away to determine your condition and possible treatment options. For example, say when you see a doctor you learn that a particular part of your body needs to be immobilized so that it can heal. During all that time before you went to see the doctor, you were still using that body part and because you didn’t realize you should have immobilized it, you caused further harm to yourself, which will make recovery take longer.
Additionally, by delaying your doctor visit, you weaken any potential legal claim you may have that you were injured in the accident. Think about it. From a defense attorney’s perspective, if you are claiming you were significantly injured in an accident, but you didn’t go to see a doctor about it for awhile, it looks like you weren’t really hurt that much, or you would have sought out medical care sooner. Ultimately, if you are injured in an accident, you should seek medical treatment right away.
The same advice goes for following through on a doctor’s treatment plan. For example, if a doctor prescribes physical therapy for you, it is important for you to attend all your physical therapy appointments, or if you are not able to, then call and explain why. Again, you are only harming yourself by not going what the doctor orders. Now if you have side effects or are worsening from whatever the doctor’s ordered, you should call and inform your doctor right away because your doctor might want to reassess and change your treatment plan. It is important for the sake of your health and any potential case you might have, to communicate honestly with your doctor and follow through on your treatment plan.
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