Bump Your Elbow at Work? Why You Should Report ALL Work Related Injuries!
Don't Lose Potential Benefits
Has this ever happened to you? You’re sitting at work doing your job and you accidentally bump your elbow on the desk or a file cabinet, or some other item that had the audacity to be in your way! Whether the mishap was due to working conditions that are too close and cramped, or it was merely a goof on your part, it is still a job related incident, if not injury.
Some may laugh and feel like this is really reaching and bordering on workers’ compensation fraud, even to entertain the ideal of calling this a work related injury. Well laugh all you want, but the fact of the matter is, there are actual incidents where an incident of this nature did escalate into something more! I personally was involved in a Repetitive Injury Workers’ Compensation case that ended last year (2006). “Don’t Get Screwed!” If you fail to take this matter seriously, it could cost you later down the line.
While my primary diagnosis was carpal tunnel in my right wrist, it was later determined that a bump to my elbow, during that same period, was responsible for a secondary condition (Medial Epicondylitis) to my right elbow.
Although I remember distinctly when the injury occurred (because it hurt so damn much!), I didn’t officially report it when it happened. By that time, the carpal tunnel pain was more prevalent, and I went for months attributing the elbow pain to the carpal tunnel, until the other diagnosis was made. While I eventually settled the claim for the carpal tunnel injury, the median epicondylitis was never compensated for, and to date, I still have problems in this area. [READ ABOUT MY CLAIM and Informative Guide “Don’t Get Screwed” On A Worker’s Comp Claim
While it may or may not be necessary to see a physician when you have a job-related injury or pain, one thing is for sure, If You Fail To Report the Incident, You Could Be Risking All Rights to Any & All Benefits!
