Hamilton Car Accidents and Spinal Injury Lawyers

Hamilton Car Accident Lawyers – Serving Car Accident Victims throughout Ontario since 2003.

Free Consultations Provincewide. Call 905-333-8888 or Send us a Message Today.

Within moments after a car accident, a victim who has been active and independent becomes immobilized and dependent on others to meet his or her basic needs. Suffering a spinal cord injury in a car accident is truly a devastating injury with profound consequences to both the victim and those that surround him. It is a catastrophic injury with potentially devastating impacts, including far-reaching physical, psychological, vocational and social consequences.

The instantaneous effects of a spinal cord injury result in a total disruption to a car accident victim’s life and the beginning of an expensive life-long adjustment process. Our lawyers can help you recover the financial protection you deserve.

If you or your loved one has suffered a car accident related to spinal cord injury, there will no doubt be stages of grief that you will go through, which will take an emotional toll on your overall well-being. For a car accident victim who has suffered a spinal cord injury, going from being an active, independent person one minute to being dependent on others for the remainder of your life will no doubt cause grief, distress, anger, frustration, anxiety, sadness and despair.

We understand that there is nothing predictable about the physical and psychological sequelae of a spinal cord injury. We understand that there may be many physical and psychosocial changes that will accompany a spinal cord injury, such as:

• chronic pain
• fatigue
• helplessness
• disbelief and guilt
• loneliness and isolation
• the lack of privacy and independence
• changes to your job and working environment
• possible separation from your friends
• frustration with the inability to control bodily functions
• changes in appearance, physical health and overall functional ability

We understand the innumerable and unforeseeable circumstances in the lives of our clients after suffering from car accident-related spinal cord injuries. Adapting to a spinal cord injury is a life-long and expensive process. One thing is for sure: if the negligence of another driver caused your injury, then you may be entitled to compensation to help fund your lifelong medical and rehabilitation needs.

As your car accident spinal cord lawyers, we aggressively fight for every dollar to comprehensively support your current and future needs resulting from the onset of this catastrophic injury through to the end of your life expectancy.

Our spinal cord injury experts work with multi-disciplinary professionals, including pain doctors, supported and assisted living, nursing, engineering, biomechanics, dietary nutrition, pharmacology, accounting, personal support workers, rehab specialists and occupational therapists. They can all work together and may be called upon to help support your coping with your life-altering injury.

Understanding Spinal Cord Anatomy Basics

Most people are not aware, but your spinal cord is very soft and spongy, protected by 33 bones that run from your neck to your hips, called vertebrae. Inside the vertebrae, there is a small circular opening. Your vertebrae are stacked one on top of the other, and separated by soft spongy-like, rubbery pads of cartilage called disks, often described as shock absorbers for your vertebral bones. Once stacked, your spinal cord extends through the holes in your vertebrae, similar to a tunnel.

Your vertebral bones, from your neck to your hips, are divided into different segments. In your neck area, you have 7 vertebrae called the cervical vertebrae that extend from the back of your head down to the top of your back.

Your upper back, which attaches to your rib cage, houses 12 thoracic vertebrae.

Your lower back, which we know as the lumbar area, houses five vertebrates that extend into the hip area. Underneath your lumbar region, you have the five coccygeal vertebrae fused into the tailbone.

Your spinal cord is also divided into segments, similar to your vertebral bones. In your neck area, in addition to the cervical vertebrae, your cervical anatomy contains eight cervical nerve roots that branch from your spinal cord (C1 to C8), Thoracic nerves (T1 to T12), five lumbar spinal nerves (L1 to L5) and 5 Sacral spinal nerves (S1 to S5).

Traumatic spinal cord injuries in car accidents:

Spinal cord injuries can happen in a variety of different ways, most commonly in traumatic instances such as car accidents, motorcycle accidents, pedestrian accidents, falls, gunshot wounds, diving accidents, etc.) and non-traumatic instances, such as tumour development, ischemia, developmental disorders, neurodegenerative diseases, demyelinating diseases, transverse myelitis, and vascular malformation.

When a spinal cord injury occurs by direct trauma, such as in a serious car accident, typically, it is a shocking blow to the spine that fractures or dislocates the vertebral bones. Bone fragments, disc materials, ligaments or other foreign objects Terran to the spinal cord, causing permanent injury. Axons are bruised or cut, and the neural membranes are broken. Bleeding may occur around or onto the cord’s central grey matter, spreading to other areas of the cord.

The spinal cord begins to swell and fills the entire cavity of the spinal canal, which, in turn, causes a loss of blood flow and a reduction or loss of oxygen to the spinal cord tissue.  This initial direct trauma sets off a series of cellular measures spinal shock occurs in approximately half of spinal cord injury cases. During Spinal shock, undamaged areas of the spinal cord become temporarily disabled and are unable to communicate with the brain.

Spinal Cord Injuries and Car Accidents

Traumatic spinal cord injuries, either paraplegic or quadriplegic type injuries, are no doubt disabling and have a significant influence on the accident victim’s social, physical, psychological and financial situation. Road traffic accidents are by far the most common cause of traumatic spinal cord injuries. Car accidents compose approximately 40% of traumatic spinal cord injuries due to road traffic accidents.

Rollover accidents, side impacts and high-impact head-on collisions are major contributors to traumatic spinal cord injuries resulting in varying degrees of long-term paralysis. In rollover-type accidents, studies show that roof crush and vertical roof intrusion onto the head of the accident victim often result in bending and compression loads on the spine, causing significant injury and disruption to a driver or passenger’s cervical vertebrae.

Site impacts, commonly known as T-bone type crashes, are the type of car accident where the side of one vehicle is hit by the front or rear of another vehicle or a fixed object. The driver or passenger in a T-bone accident on the struck side of the vehicle, if the accident happens at high speed, often suffers far more severe injuries than otherwise similar front or rear collision type accidents.

In high-speed T-bone collisions, strains and serious fractures can happen to a person’s cervical vertebrae; muscles and ligaments can be stretched beyond their breaking strength, damaging nerve roots and the spinal cord, which causes permanent injury.

Spinal Cord Injury May Lead to Psychological Difficulties

There is no doubt that a spinal cord injury is a devastating condition that will lead to significant neurological impairment and reduce the quality of life, both from a physical and psychosocial perspective. More often than not, car accident victims suffering a traumatic spinal cord injury will suffer severe emotional adverse reactions, which often warrants long-term therapeutic psychosocial adjustment.

While some people are able to recover, to some degree emotionally – some spinal cord injury victims simply do not adjust well and go on to suffer lifelong disabling emotional, behavioural or cognitive symptoms following SCI. Some people experience permanent raise levels of depressed mood and negative psychological states, especially when there are:

• a significantly lowered quality of life
• a lack of support
• a lack of friendship
• a lack of therapeutic intervention
• little or no family to help
• diminished employability
• lack of social engagement
• impairment of sexuality
• chronic pain

The psychological adjustment to a spinal cord injury needs to be properly addressed, which requires proper funding. Psychological care can be easily facilitated if proper funding assists with all facets of a spinal cord injury victim’s life, and not just psychological care.

For example, if a person’s life is properly accommodated with appropriate aids for independent living, personal assistance, mobility, proper physical rehabilitation, daily care, and other activities that allow an injured person more of a sense of choice, control and self-reliance. In that case, psychological complications can be better dealt with.

Overall, each person is unique and will respond to car accident spinal cord injuries differently based on their own individual personality, coping style, and characteristics.

One thing is for sure – a person’s emotional recovery following a traumatic spinal cord injury caused by a car accident will more likely than not improve with structure and normality, as well as proper and continued intervention.

Understanding that your life will never be the same.

During hospitalization, it will be very difficult to understand your life’s massive uncertainties and changes. The questions will be endless. You may also find it difficult to think clearly. He will experience anxiety, confusion and concern.  You will experience worry. You will try to remember your car accident, which will probably be a foggy memory. All of this may have to do with your reaction to the pain you are suffering from the medication or poor sleep.

For spinal cord injury victims, all of this is very normal. Moving through a grieving process is also normal. There have been many books written on the grieving process after suffering a spinal cord injury – the one thing is for sure: the grieving process does help in coming to terms with your loss and accepting the reality of life today. For example, car accident victims who suffer a traumatic spinal cord injury often, for a very long time, suffer symptoms such as:

• depression
• anxiety
• sadness
• social withdrawal
• thoughts of suicide
• anger
• impatience
• disbelief
• loneliness
• confusion
• obsessive thoughts about life before the accident, etc.

Spinal Cord Peer Support is an excellent program put on by Spinal Cord Injury Ontario. Spinal cord injury victims graciously offer their time to car accident victims to discuss life after spinal cord injury. Peer Support is a fantastic way to relate to people who have chosen to believe in themselves, focus on hope and determination and get to maximum medical recovery to enjoy life the best they can.

Going from being an independent, energetic person and having control of your body for movement, mobility, transfer, toileting, sexual activity, etc. etc., to being dependent on others is not an easy thing to bear. However, in time, you will become happier with proper adjustment. You will bounce back, create goals, understand there will be ups and downs, come to accept uncertainty regarding the future, perhaps get back to school and work and lead a fulfilling life.

Who pays for my lifetime care?

If you have been involved in a car accident and suffered a traumatic spinal cord injury, and the accident was partially or not your fault, then the at-fault driver’s insurance company will be funding your lifetime care. In addition, your insurance company (or that of your parents or to whom you might’ve been a dependent) will also be funding your lifetime care, which can range into the millions.

If you have been involved in a car accident and suffered a traumatic spinal cord injury, you need to hire a lawyer who has experience working with proper life care planners in order to ensure that appropriate aids for your independent functioning.  The cost of insuring your lifelong proper care after a car accident is complex. Projected evaluations and costs must be completed over your life expectancy, and all your needs must be properly identified.

For example, depending on your injuries, you may need funding for:

• physical therapy
• mobility aids
• personal support workers
• rehabilitation workers
• occupational therapy
• psychological therapy
• audiology, assistive technology
• dieting and nutrition
• funding for help with recreational therapy, etc.

If you were working, proper vocational rehabilitation may be needed. There may always be a good chance that you can return to work in some capacity. Vocational counselling may be necessary, particularly when you can’t perform the overall essential functions of your pre-injury job, and retraining may be necessary.

If your child has suffered a spinal cord injury, then perhaps special educational recommendations, supplemental tutoring, individualized support, and post-secondary assistance will be needed. There may be special education services and classroom accommodations required.

There may be mobility limitations imposed by your disability and it’s important that the project lifetime costs of wheelchairs (for use in different environments) are costed for you in order to facilitate your community integration. For example, you may require a power wheelchair, manual wheelchair, or specialized models if you are athletic; if you are a child, you may require a power scooter, shower wheelchair etc., etc., maintenance and accessories such as wheelchair gloves, pouches, safety belts, transfer boards, lap boards, cupholders etc. should also be cost at properly.

Physical therapists will play a critical role in your recovery and life. There’s no doubt that you will require ongoing rehabilitation for the duration of your natural life. Also, you may require orthopedics, prosthetics, arm splints, form splints, hand splints, tables, body support systems, exercise equipment, etc.

You may also need medication that may be related to your injury or chronic illness.

The last thing we want is for you and your family to have difficulty working with your insurance companies to get any necessary equipment for medical purposes approved. We do not want you or your family ever to have to spend money out of your own pocket to wait through the claims process. Your car accident lawyer will help encapsulate the concerns that you may have in the future, along with a life care plan to comprehensively identify your future needs, facilitate the delivery of your requirements, and help with your rehabilitation, work recovery, and medical recovery potential.

Overall, the importance is to ensure that you have recovered a settlement extensive enough to facilitate your reintegration into the community and enhance your quality of life.

If you’ve suffered a Spinal Cord Injury in a Car Accident, it’s Important that you Get Help Now

We understand that the instantaneous effects of a spinal cord injury (SCI) lead to overwhelming life-long disability and adjustment. SCI’s treatment and rehabilitation process is long, expensive, and requires a multidisciplinary approach. Early rehabilitation is important to prevent disability and complications. Optimal care is imperative for both emotional and physical adjustment during the immediate and throughout the rehabilitation process.

At Lalande Personal Injury Lawyers, we take pride in being trusted Hamilton personal injury lawyers since 2003. Over the years, we’ve helped our clients recover more than $45 Million in settlements and verdicts in personal injury, disability, and employment law cases. Whether you’re dealing with a life-changing injury, a denied disability claim, wrongful death, a hurt child or employment termination, we are here to provide compassionate and experienced legal representation. If you believe you have a case, call us today—we’re ready to help you secure the compensation you deserve.

Call Lalande Personal Injury Lawyers today, no matter where you are in Ontario at 905-333-8888 for your free consultation. Alternatively, you can contact us online, confidentially, by filling out a contact form.