There are many reasons an injury at work may rise to the level of needing to file a Connecticut workers’ compensation claim. One of the most serious injuries you might experience if your job requires you to utilize a ladder for your work is a fall from a high rung of that ladder. This dangerous activity can put you at serious risk of injury and not only hurt your body but require you to miss quite a lot of time at work.
Many professions require the use of ladders in their jobs. Painters are on ladders all day. Workers in a warehouse require ladders and sometimes scaffolding to reach items on shelves that are extremely high off the ground. Roofers and construction workers are up and down ladders multiple times per day while performing the duties that their jobs require. While these jobs are not the only jobs that require the use of ladders, they are certainly among the most common and therefore are more likely to experience a fall from a ladder.
In the event that you do fall from high on top of a ladder, you should follow these three steps to make sure that you do not cause more damage than has already been done by the fall. .
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Stop and assess your injuries. While your first thought might be, let me get up and try to “walk this off” that is absolutely the wrong thing to do. Stay still to give yourself the best chance of keeping your injury from getting worse. Your body may be in shock by what has just happened and in that state you may not always feel the injuries that have occurred as the result of the fall. There are so many possibilities of a variety of very serious and severe injuries that may have occurred when you fell from the ladder that you should not move immediately until your injury situation has been addressed.
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Stabilize your spine. This is a critical step because like was mentioned above, if you move, you may injure some part of your body more severely than it already was injured and that could lead to serious long-term effects. You can stabilize your spine by lying down on your back and keeping your head and neck in a neutral position.
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Reach out to someone for help. If you are lucky enough that someone is standing nearby you can ask them to help you, but if you are alone you may need to try to call for help or utilize your cell phone, if you have it available, to reach out to someone for help. The less movement you can make to get this help, the better your chances are at staying stable and free from injury.
Unfortunately there are quite a few Connecticut workers’ compensation claims that involve workers who have fallen from a ladder. These accidents can be as varied as the circumstances surrounding the injuries that occur from them so it is important that while following the steps above you do some assessment of what your individual situation is and how you can go about keeping yourself safe while help arrives. More often than not you should be waiting for help to arrive so you do not injure yourself further.
Once you’ve received the help you need and you’ve reported your injury to your supervisor you may need to speak with someone who can help guide you through the claims process. Our board certified workers’ compensation attorneys can work with you to understand your situation and protect your long-term interests.
