A slip-and-fall incident could be the result of a puddle at the base of a staircase or spilled lentils in the grocery store. Issues with property maintenance and cleanliness can lead to unsafe conditions and someone getting hurt.
Although people frequently dismiss slip-and-fall incidents as minor, they often lead to serious health concerns, especially if the person who falls is an older adult. People of any age may require medical attention after a slip-and-fall and could end up hospitalized and possibly unable to work.
These are just two of the relatively serious injuries that people commonly report after a same-level slip and fall?
Traumatic brain injuries
Falls are responsible for almost half of all reported traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) in the United States, and many of those are same-level falls rather than falls from a significant elevation.
The momentum of someone falling when they cannot brace themselves on the way down could be enough to cause bleeding and bruising inside the skull and symptoms that force someone to take an extended leave of absence from work.
Often, people don’t realize that they may have hurt their brains in a slip and fall because it takes some time for the symptoms to develop after the initial trauma.
Broken bones
While medical professionals can set broken bones quite quickly in many cases, they can still have significant medical consequences. A fracture often requires the multi-week immobilization of the affected body part. In some cases, surgery will be necessary.
It will take quite some time for the bone to heal, and even then, someone may require physical therapy or rehabilitation services to regain their strength and range of motion in the affected body part. Not only could they incur thousands of dollars in treatment costs, but they could lose out on weeks of wages while waiting for their bone to knit.
Those who fall at public locations can help to protect themselves from major losses related to their harm by notifying the business of the incident and seeking appropriate medical care. Filing a premises liability claim with the assistance of a legal professional may also be necessary after a slip-and-fall if someone has direct financial costs stemming from their injury.
