Texas Truck Wreck Attorney Blog

If you have a loved one that has suffered a particularly extensive burn injury there are many ways that you can help. I am not talking about how to apply first aid immediately following the accident - but how to behave with them when they are recovering or have returned home.

*First, allow the person to grieve. The experience was most likely traumatic and there may be any number of physical scars that could either be temporary or permanent. Understand that burn victims will exhibit all of the signs of someone who has actually lost a loved one and both the victim and his or her family should seek professional counseling to deal with the myriad emotional problems that are sure to arise.

*Allow the person to resume as many of the normal activities as they are able to undertake. If they are required to help around the house - don't change that policy. If they hold down a job and can return to work - they should do this. No matter how devastating the burns - do not allow them to hide in the house. Require them to get back to life.

*Help them to forge friendships with others who have had similar experiences. This is not as difficult as it may sound with the proliferation of the internet and technology that has all but shrunk the world.

Encourage the person to develop a support system as well - and attend survivor's group meetings or other group events.

Continue reading "Help for Burn Victims" »

Many times in handling burn injury cases I am overwhelmed with the trauma and burn victim faces each and every day. Simple things that we all take for granted like being outside on a sunny day can be a major event for burn victims.

One of the most compelling things I see is the emotional trauma and burn victim suffers. Nightmares, panic attacks and the like are extremely common with serious burn injuries. Sometimes the emotional trauma is the single largest obstacle for the burn victim to overcome.

The reality is that many burn victims never ever get back to normal. Disfigurement is the rule and not the exception. Skin grafts multiple surgeries and infection are all part of recovery from a serious burn injury.

The financial costs of helping burn victims is astronomical, with the average burn victim incurring well over $300,000 in medical costs alone. Many cases that number is ever increasing and can easily top million dollars over the course of the recovery.

While many insurance companies use the cost of medical treatment as a measure of the severity of the victims damages, that number is not realistic when it comes to burn victims.

Burn victims endure sometimes more than you may believe is humanly possible. Sometimes those victims are children or elderly, making the choice of the personal injury lawyer critical.