Health Care Workers
Job Injury Attorneys Assisting Employees Throughout New Jersey
People who work in the health care industry take on the critical task of helping others restore and maintain their health. Health care workers are not immune to suffering harm in the workplace, though, and the arduous nature of their jobs often leads to illnesses and injuries. If you are a health care worker who suffered a work-related injury or contracted an illness in the workplace, you should speak to an attorney regarding your right to seek benefits. The New Jersey workers’ compensation lawyers at Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall have the skills and resources needed to help you seek all the benefits recoverable, and we will zealously advocate on your behalf.
Injuries And Illnesses Commonly Suffered By Health Care Workers
Numerous injuries or illnesses could befall a health care worker, but some occur more frequently than others. For example, nurses often need to lift or adjust patients and thus are prone to back injuries. Similarly, in many instances, physical and occupational therapists need to adjust patients or make the same movement repeatedly, and they may suffer injuries as a result. Doctors, nurses, and other health care workers are more likely than most employees to contract illnesses or infections at work, due to the high rate of exposure to contagious people. Health care workers are also prone to illnesses caused by inadvertent needle pokes. Additionally, doctors and nurses who work in hospitals are often injured in slip and fall accidents, due to frequent spills.
Regardless of whether a health care worker’s harm was caused by an injury or an illness, he or she must meet certain requirements to recover benefits. Specifically, the claimant must have an employment relationship with an employer to be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits. Additionally, the claimant must prove that his or her injury or illness is work-related. In other words, he or she must show that an injury occurred in the course and scope of his or her employment, or that an illness was contracted due to exposure to harmful contaminants in the workplace. In some instances, an employer will attempt to deny an employee benefits by arguing that his or her injury or illness did not arise in the workplace. In these cases, the employee may need to undergo an examination by a physician to uncover the nature of his or her injuries.
Benefits Recoverable For Health Care Workers
New Jersey health care workers who establish that their health issues are work-related may be able to recover medical and income benefits. Medical benefits include any treatment that is needed to restore the employee to his or her pre-injury or pre-illness condition, as long as the treatment is reasonable. Typically, this includes prescription medications, hospitalizations, surgeries, and therapy.
Income benefits consist of disability benefits for employees who are unable to work due to an injury or illness. Temporary total disability benefits are available to employees who cannot work for more than seven days, and these benefits are paid at a rate of 70% of an employee’s average weekly wage prior to the injury or illness, within set parameters. Temporary benefits are usually paid until an employee returns to work or reaches maximum medical improvement. At that point, if the employee remains disabled, he or she may be eligible to receive permanent total or permanent partial disability benefits, depending on the nature and severity of his or her injury, and whether he or she can continue to work in any capacity.
Contact A Dedicated Workers’ Compensation Attorney
Health care workers who suffer injuries or illnesses in the workplace are often eligible to recover workers’ compensation benefits, and they should speak to an attorney regarding their rights. If you are a health care worker who suffered harm at work, the workers’ compensation attorneys at New Jersey Workers Compensation Lawyer of JFM Law will work diligently to help you seek benefits. We assist health care workers throughout New Jersey, including in Middlesex, Burlington, Atlantic, Bergen, Monmouth, Camden, Hudson, Essex, Mercer, Ocean, Somerset, Passaic, and Union Counties. We can be contacted through our form online or at 866-916-3549 to schedule a meeting.