National Burn Awareness Week happens every year during the first week of February, so now is the perfect time to learn about the consequences that severe burns can have on a life. These effects can be compounded even more so when burns are due to the negligence or oversight of someone else.
Burn Awareness Week
The American Burn Association hosts Burn Awareness Week every year during the first week of February. This event encourages multiple organizations and companies to teach the public about burns and burn prevention tactics. These educational campaigns cover a vast amount of information that educates children and adults about potential burn sources and how to prevent them.
Consequences of Burns
Burns are injuries caused by a variety of heat sources, such as fire, steam, electricity, sunlight and certain chemicals. These injuries also have a wide range of severity. First-degree burns amount to minor, superficial injuries and lesions that are treatable with bandaging, ointments, and medication.
However, some burns are devastating injuries that can greatly affect the quality of life. Most second and third-degree burns qualify as severe burns. These injuries can destroy skin, fat, and the nerves, create swelling and other skin deformities, affect bones and joints, and lead to secondary conditions such as bacterial infection, hypothermia, and fluid loss. Severe burn injuries can also cause emotional and psychological issues such as nightmares, depression, or flashbacks.
Medical treatment of severe burns involves extensive surgeries, physical and occupational therapies, and emotional support, all of which can be expensive. Even if you receive enough medical intervention, the consequences of severe burns are potentially permanent.
Burns and Personal Injury Law
A burn qualifies as a personal injury entitled to legal action based on multiple factors, such as the severity of the injury, the location and spread throughout the body, how it will affect your life, and whether you could prevent it or not. The source of the burn is another factor and includes:
- Negligent wiring
- Workplace conditions and accidents
- Gas explosions
- Hazardous materials
- Defective products and equipment
- Car accidents
To file a personal injury lawsuit, your attorney has to prove the at-fault party was negligent or breached a duty of care to you by exposing you to these conditions or neglecting to take action that prevented these issues. They must also prove that the conditions led directly to your injuries. Since burns occur through a wide variety of situations and circumstances, proving liability can sometimes be difficult. However, professional personal injury lawyers can examine the situation and determine the responsible party.
Compensation for Burns
As with other personal injury cases, you will receive compensation if you and your lawyer prove that an individual or organization negligently caused your burn. Compensation covers:
- Potential current or future lost wages
- Current or future medical bills for burn treatments
- Pain and suffering
- Additional expenses from burn injuries
Have you or a loved one recently suffered from a burn or a burn-related injury? Did you receive this burn due to another party’s negligence? Seek a free consultation from Harrell & Harrell, P.A., one of Jacksonville’s most renowned personal injury law firms. We can help you determine your next steps. Call us at 904-251-1111 or contact us online.