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Recent Blog Posts
The Dangers Of Drinking And Driving And Ways To Help Minimize Drunk Driving Crashes
It's a sad fact, but 29 people a day die as a result of drunk driving crashes. According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), this equates to one person every 50 minutes. And according to statistics from Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD), every two minutes a person is injured by a drunk driver. These deaths and injuries affect hundreds of thousands of people every year in this nation and what's sad is that they are absolutely preventable.
Although there had been a decrease in drunk driving fatalities over the past few years, drunk driving deaths actually increased by 1.7 percent in 2016-indicating drunk driving is still a huge problem. In fact, drunk driving claimed 10,497 lives last year on our nation's roads, according to NHTSA.
Drunk Driving Statistics Where We Live
Drunk driving fatalities in our area of the country also increased in 2016. In Virginia, 29% of traffic fatalities were the result of drunk drivers-claiming 220 lives-compared to 206 deaths in 2015 (up 14%). In the District of Columbia, even though it had the lowest alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities of any state in the nation (10), there was also an increase-up from six deaths in 2015, which was a 66.7% increase in alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities, according to NHTSA.
What Happens If I Was Injured In An Uber Accident While Riding As A Passenger?
Car accidents occur every day, and more accidents are occurring involving car sharing and ridesharing services because more people are using these services. While you may be familiar with your own insurance coverage in the case of an accident, many people like you who use services like Uber and Lyft are left wondering if they are covered and who pays for their injuries if they are hurt as a passenger while in a ridesharing vehicle.
Because Uber and Lyft have million-dollar liability insurance policies for their drivers, passengers injured in crashes should receive coverage for their injuries when an Uber driver or Lyft driver was at fault for the accident. In addition, Uber and Lyft have uninsured or underinsured motorist insurance, which means passengers are protected when the car they are riding in is hit by another negligent driver who does not have insurance or who doesn't have enough insurance to compensate an injured passenger for his or her injuries and losses.
What Is A Wrongful Death Case?
When someone dies as a result of the negligence another person or entity, family members may be able to bring a lawsuit for the loss suffered by victim's beneficiaries and by the victim's estate. This type of lawsuit is known as a wrongful death claim.
The term "wrongful death claim" is a label placed on a lawsuit because the injury suffered by the victim is death. Any type of negligence can give rise to a wrongful death case. For example, a wrongful death claim can arise from motor vehicle or truck crash. It can also arise from poor medical treatment such as the failure to timely diagnose and treat cancer or heart disease, or from poor care received in a nursing room leading to a fall. A wrongful death claim can also arise from a defective product such as a defective automobile.
The laws governing a wrongful death claim often vary widely from State-to-State. The reason for this wide variation is that wrongful death claims were not permitted by the English common law upon which the laws in the United States were originally based. Over time, every State enacted laws that recognized the right to bring a wrongful death claim, and established the rules that would apply wrongful death claims filed in each State.
Poor Prenatal Care: Failing To Detect Conditions That Could Lead To Brain Damage
When a pregnant women receives proper prenatal care, she and her baby are less likely to experience medical problems that can cause them harm. Sadly, some women do not receive this care and they and/or their babies suffer from complications because their health care providers were negligent.
Although most obstetricians follow the proper protocol in testing pregnant women for certain medical conditions that can negatively affect a woman's health and the health of her baby, some doctors are negligent when caring for pregnant patients.
What Does Pregnancy Negligence Look Like?
When medical negligence occurs during pregnancy, it is usually because an obstetrician failed to follow the standard of care that others in the same profession would have under the same circumstances. For instance, pregnant women are supposed to be tested for maternal infections and other health conditions that may cause harm - these screenings should take place at specific times throughout the nine months of pregnancy.
Why Are Mistakes Made During A Brain Surgery, And What Are The Consequences?
While brain surgery sounds scary, there are skilled surgeons who regularly perform this type of operation. Some surgeries prevent strokes; some are performed to remove tumors; and others stop bleeding and swelling following a traumatic incident. Whether a brain surgery is planned or an emergency, medical personnel can make mistakes. When these mistakes happen, the consequences can be debilitating and life changing.
Brain surgery errors can include failing to monitor a patient's oxygen, giving too much anesthesia, and operating on the wrong side of the brain. People are sometimes surprised to learn that wrong-site surgeries occur as often as 40 times a week in U.S. hospitals and clinics, according to the Joint Commission that gives accreditation to U.S. hospitals.
A wrong-site operation can happen when:
- x-rays are flipped
- doctors are in a hurry and fail to double check the medical records
- pre-op checklists are skipped
- visible markers aren't used to note the correct side or area that requires surgery
My Wife Suffered Memory Loss As A Result Of A Brain Injury She Suffered In A Traffic Accident. What Should I Be Aware Of Regarding This Cognitive Injury?
Memory is a complex neurological process and, depending on the area of the brain that was injured, a victim of a TBI can suffer from different memory impairments, including the following:
- Short-term memory impairment, which makes it difficult or impossible to retain information from about twenty seconds ago.
- Long-term memory impairment, which makes it difficult or impossible to retrieve information from a few days ago to a few decades ago.
- Retrograde impairment, which makes it difficult or impossible to remember events that took place before the brain injury.
- Anterograde impairment, which makes it difficult or impossible to recall events that happened after the brain injury.
These damages can occur by themselves or in combination with other memory impairments. Whichever cognitive impairment your wife is suffering from, it is important that you are aware of the fact that she might not even be aware of her memory loss. If she is unaware of her cognitive impairments, she might become angry and belligerent about a certain task or life in general because she knows something isn't right but doesn't realize her head injury created certain deficits.
Why Does Someone’s Personality Change After A Brain Injury, And Is There Anything I Can Do To Help My Husband Recover His Pre-Injury Personality Traits?
When damage occurs to certain areas of the brain, personality changes can occur. For example, an injury to the frontal lobe may affect emotions, behavior and impulse control. As a result, people who have suffered damage to their left or right frontal lobes often suffer personality changes. While some changes in personality can be subtle, many brain injury victims suffer from noticeable changes in their emotions, behaviors, memories and more.
If your husband's brain injury was significant, he may be more likely to suffer from agitation, volatile emotions, and impulse control issues. It is not uncommon for brain injury survivors to be physically or sexually aggressive and verbally abusive. Angry outbursts can be triggered when a brain injury victim knows he doesn't feel like himself and feels like he has lost control over his life.
Accepting Limitations Will Ease Healing
If your husband's memory was affected, he may not even be able to understand certain reasoning; however, he may be aware of his losses, which could be the reason an angry outburst was triggered. He could be frustrated due to his impairments, which may affect his ability to get along with others. By recognizing these things, you may find that his behavioral outbursts are his way of communicating his distress.
Healing From The Emotional And Mental Trauma Of A Birth Injury
Many people have heard of postpartum depression and understand the risk that new mothers face of suffering from it. Likewise, parents who have endured a traumatic birth that led to a birth injury will also enter parenthood with emotional issues to overcome. However, unlike postpartum depression that often fades away once hormone levels return to normal, parents of injured children may often suffer long-term emotional and mental health effects.
Because birth injuries can affect children physically, mentally, and emotionally, parents of those children are also emotionally affected by their disabilities, sometimes for life. However, parents of these children often feel embarrassed or ashamed that they are having a hard time dealing with the new reality of their child's birth injury. Unfortunately, many people bury their thoughts and feelings and don't deal with them in a healthy way, which can lead to emotional problems. This is why parents should talk with a counselor or seek some type of mental health therapy following a birth injury.
What Auto Accident Victims Need To Know Before Signing Release Forms
After being injured in a car accident, the insurance company for the other side will attempt to contact you and get you to sign different release forms. Just remember that everything insurance companies do is designed to give you less money so they can keep more money. One of the ways they do this is through the use of release forms.
Types of Release Forms
There are a few different types of release forms you may receive from the insurance company that you should be wary of. These include the following:
- Medical release form. Insurance companies often try to limit their liability and, in turn, the money they pay out on claims. One way they do this is by asking claimants to sign a medical authorization form. This allows them to look at your past medical records so they can see if you had a preexisting injury that could poke holes in your current injury claim. Do not sign this release form; it just allows them to try and pass the blame onto a past injury or see if there is anything they can use against you. If the adjuster wants to review your current medical records, you can ask the doctor's office for the current records and send them on to the adjuster yourself after reviewing them.
How Should Brain Injury Victims Be Compensated For Their Lifestyle Changes?
With certain serious brain injuries, victims may be left unable to take care of themselves. In fact, they may require ongoing medical care and in-home assistance. Additionally, they may not be able to work or perform their job duties as they did prior to their brain injury. This is why brain injury victims are often impacted for life.
Because severe brain injury victims suffer changes to every aspect of their lives, they should be compensated for the following losses they have suffered:
- Lost income. Traumatic brain injuries may make it impossible for victims to return to their jobs or even do the same type of work they did before their injury. It isn't uncommon for severe brain injury victims to never be able to work or make a living again. As a result, these victims should be compensated for lost income and future lost wages.
- Medical costs. Brain injuries often require ongoing doctor's appointments, rehab, and therapy. Additionally, new treatments are developed from time to time that could help a brain injury victim recover. This is why it is critical that brain injury victims receive enough compensation so that they can get the medical care and help they need.
703-591-0067
10513 Judicial Drive, Suite 200, Fairfax, VA 22030
703-591-0067
From our office in Fairfax, Shevlin Smith, P.C. serves clients throughout Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C., including Alexandria, Annandale, Arlington, Ashburn, Burke, Centreville, Dale City, Fair Oaks, Leesburg, Manassas, McLean, Oakton, Reston, Springfield, and Woodbridge, as well as Fairfax County, Arlington County, Fauquier County, Loudoun County, and Prince William County.
Results listed are not a guarantee or indication of future case results.
