Steps Michigan TBI Victims Must Take Following a Car Accident

Immediately following an automobile accident, there are several important steps TBI victims must take, according to Michigan traumatic brain injury lawyers. If you have questions or wish to speak to a brain injury lawyer directly about your circumstances, please call Michigan Auto Law at (800) 777-0028. The most time-sensitive tips on dealing with insurance, medical issues and treatment are summarized below:

1. Seek emergency care for your personal injuries and traumatic brain injury immediately.

2. Document any symptoms and complaints you have as soon as possible, no matter how minor they appear to be.

3. Understand that brain injury is a process — not an event — because the brain continues to undergo the course of injury for days and weeks after the auto accident. Many emergency rooms miss the initial signs of TBI and symptoms can worsen over time.

4. Recognize traumatic brain injury is a “numbers game.” God willing, you will make a good recovery. However, according to the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 20 percent of TBI victims do not recover. Doctors do not know why.

5. Ask your doctor for the proper tests to diagnose a brain injury. Most doctors order MRI or CT scans, which show structural changes in the brain. However, most brain injuries, even severe and debilitating, will not show up on an MRI. That’s why it’s important to get functional testing as well. Tests to consider are Positron Emission Tomography (PET) and a Single Photon Emission Computerized Tomography (SPECT).

6. If problems from your head injury persist, ask your doctor for a referral to a neuropsychologist. A neuropsychologist has expertise in brain functioning. Through a series of tests, a neuropsychologist can help determine the location and extent of any brain injury.

7. Continue treating your TBI. Treat aggressively and find the best possible doctors as soon as possible. Although traumatic brain injury may result in some physical impairment, the more common consequences involve the individual’s cognition, emotional functioning and behavior. The National Institutes of Health recommends cognitive-behavioral remediation, pharmacologic management, assistive technology, environmental manipulation, education and counseling as treatment options.

8. Retain an experienced Michigan traumatic brain injury attorney to obtain fair compensation for damages suffered in a car accident. It’s never too late to involve an attorney — regardless of the history or circumstances surrounding the accident. Our attorneys currently help TBI victims recover attendant care insurance benefits for injures from car accidents that occurred 10 and even 20 years ago. Read more on circumstances that call for contacting a Michigan TBI attorney.

9. Keep in mind, serious and disabling symptoms of traumatic brain injury will become permanent for approximately 20 percent of TBI victims. But defense lawyers often hire notorious doctors who accuse people of exaggerating their injuries or of having pre-existing conditions. It’s important to hire a TBI lawyer who knows how to protect you, and who can expose these “experts” and their malicious, misleading accusations. For more information, please read Selecting the Right Michigan Auto Accident Attorney.  

Michigan Traumatic Brain Injury Attorneys of Michigan Auto Law
If you or someone you know has suffered brain injury as a result of an auto accident in Michigan, we can guide you through the legal process and help obtain the best resolution for your case. Because our lawyers have been handling TBI cases for more than 50 years, we understand the physical, emotional and psychological hardships you are experiencing from your car accident.

Steven Gursten is a member of the American Association for Justice Traumatic Brain Injury Group and lectures across the country on TBI accident cases. He has received the highest recorded jury verdicts and settlements for Michigan traumatic brain injury cases, including a $5.65 million verdict, a $4.2 million verdict and a $2.5 million settlement. All of those cases had defense offers of $100,000-$250,000.

David Christensen, who will be 2010 president of the State Bar of Michigan Negligence Law Section, received the largest psychiatric injury verdict in Michigan as well as a $2 million jury verdict for a victim of traumatic brain injury — on a defense offer of zero dollars. Robert Raitt, immediate past president of the Michigan Association for Justice (formerly the Michigan Trial Lawyers Association), has received a $1.1 million jury verdict for a traumatic brain injury case.

Please call Michigan Auto Law at (800) 777-0028 for a case evaluation with no fee or obligation, or fill out our free consultation form.

Did our Michigan traumatic brain injury attorneys answer all of your questions about what TBI victims should do following a car accident? If not, contact us and we can help.