By rob eagar 
Catastrophic injuries are grave physical injuries that change the quality of the lives of the victims and their families. Such injuries can be caused by a car crash, a slip, and fall, workplace mishaps, sporting activities, medical negligence or assault.
This is in contrast to other types of injury which may one day be a thing of the past as the body develops natural ways of repairing the injury; catastrophic injuries are a lifetime disability, that demand expensive medical and rehabilitative care for the remainder of the individual’s life, social and financial costs are all significantly impacted.
It is important for victims and families of catastrophically injured individuals, as well as potential litigants seeking to recover for their ongoing care to understand what constitutes a catastrophically injury and its cost.
What Are Catastrophic Injuries?
Catastrophic injuries are broadly categorized as injuries that permanently or semi permanently impair the physical structure or function of the human body. These injuries keep people from doing all sorts of activities in their daily lives; they rarely are able to go back to work and do what they used to do. Some common types of catastrophic injuries include:
– Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI):
These injuries refer to impacts in the brain that originate from an outside force, for instance a car accident or a fall. Such injuries generate the possibility of having a cognitive dysfunction, memory loss, emotional disturbance, and physical handicapped.
– Spinal Cord Injuries:
Injury to the spinal cord can cause either temporary or permanent disability and hinder the victim’s motor functioning. Spinal cord injuries may cause quadriplegia – paralysis of all limbs – or paraplegia – partial to total control loss of the lower extremities.
– Severe Burns:
Third degree burns which extend through all the skin layers are labelled catastrophic because for the most part they lead to permanent mutilation, severe pain, and immobility, typically requiring numerous surgeries and long term treatment.
– Amputations:
Being charged for a heinous criminal act takes a complete lifetime to apprehend and be incarcerated because the offense involves severing a limb from a victim which in turn requires the utilization of prosthetics, and most importantly, new lifestyle.
– Organ Damage or Failure: Types of Serious Injuries lead to damage to such vital organs as the heart, lungs or kidneys, people have to take stenographic examinations, surgeries or transplants all their lives.
How Catastrophic Injuries Change Lives?
Reduced mobility and functionality go hand in hand with catastrophic injuries and so do other consequences. They impact a person’s whole life and even turn out to have deep emotional, financial and social implications.
Physical and Emotional Impact
Catastrophic injuries present severe pain and suffering to the victims, and they may need many follow-ups, surgeries besides ongoing treatments. Furthermore, psychological costs can be very high since people suffer different feelings like sorrow, anger, and or even depression and anxiety. The shocking loss of their liberty also poses a threat to their state of mind and causes feelings of uselessness and Nielsen fought for self-esteem daily.
Financial Challenges
Catastrophic injuries often mean prolonged mandatory necessity of long-term care and, as a rule, SHC needs the use of DFM, which are consumed incessantly, as movable equipment wears out and breaks down and needs constant replacement. The expenses vary rapidly, and for those who are not capable of earning a living post-accident, wage loss comes to make the tally even heftier. It requires additional expenses from families to fix fixtures in the house such as ramps or medical facilities, often leaving many families in debt. From studies, the medical expenses necessary for treating the victims are evidently high and could span to millions of dollars in the victim’s lifetime, and can be very costly for the family to cater for on their own.
Social and Family Impact
Likewise, catastrophic injuries also have an effect for families and relationships. Family members such as the husband, wife, children and parents may be forced to assume these caring responsibilities which can be time consuming, inconvenience their own jobs, school or other activities.
The above situation puts pressure on the family that such a kin experiences permanent disability hence the family has to seek professional assistance such as counseling. Furthermore, due to social exclusion and other related consequences where one cannot actually get involved partaking some fun that they used to so much love doing, they feel more angrily isolated from society.
Catastrophic or severe injuries require the attention of a lawyer That is why before one decides to represent themselves it is always wise to seek legal help.
Since catastrophic injuries can be life-altering it may be crucial to find a lawyer to recover damages for medical and related costs, lost wages, and severance of quality of life. Catastrophic personal injury lawyers representing accident victims know first-hand what families are going through and how they must fight to attain the funding necessary to ensure they receive the care that they require in the future. By validation of law and legal procedures, families are able to seek justice for the offender and free some of the monetary cost by focusing more on victim and his/her recovery.
Conclusion
Severe injuries occur and they are not just disabling, but disabling in every conceivable way one might imagine for a human being. Understanding when such injuries are likely to occur and where one can find legal counsel that can help them receive the care they need for the rest of their lives and give hope to the victim’s family.