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The risk of suffering a TBI in a workplace accident

On Behalf of | Nov 7, 2014 | Workplace Accidents |

Minnesota employees may want to reexamine whether their workplaces have adequate safety measures and protocols in place to protect against accidents resulting in catastrophic injuries. According to the Brain Injury Institute, an online database related to acquired brain injuries, many work environments present hazards to the health of workers on account of systematic carelessness and employer contempt for safety regulations. Consequent to this, employees at many worksites may run the risk of suffering a traumatic brain injury, or TBI.

Authorities say that falls at work are gradually becoming a major risk factor for TBI-related deaths. Even in an office setting, an employee could possibly slip on a colleague’s spilled beverage and suffer a damaging fall. Authorities report that falling on uneven or wet surfaces and over misaligned objects causes about 20 percent of workplace accidents that result in traumatic brain injuries.

Several specific industries account for the bulk of TBI-related accidents, according to the Brain Injury Institute. These include construction, emergency medical services and transportation. Other industries reporting traumatic brain injuries at a high rate are fishing, agriculture and forestry.

To mitigate the potential for accidents resulting in major worker injuries, employees are encouraged to wear proper clothing and protective equipment at work, such as closed shoes, gloves and hard hats. Authorities say that it would also be prudent for them to remove distractions in dangerous work settings, such as while driving and operating machinery.

Minnesota has a no-fault workers’ compensation system, which means that an injured employee may receive benefits whether a workplace incident was the fault of the employee, the employer or neither. Workers who are unsure about their entitlement to benefits or have questions about their case may benefit from calling a workers’ compensation lawyer as well as the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry Workers’ Compensation Hotline.

Source: BrainInjuryInstitute.org, “Workplace Accident”, November 03, 2014

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