Ottawa Lawyer -  The Honourable Mr. Justice Quigley released his judgment yesterday in our case involving a man in his twenties who suffered a serious spinal cord injury, among other injuries, in a single vehicle rollover accident.  He was a passenger in the car.  The accident was near Brockville in early 2007.

The award totalled $6.1 Million, including damages for pain and suffering, future medical and rehabilitation costs, loss of income, loss of housekeeping and family law act claims for certain family members.

We had a great team of experts on the case:  occupational therapist Matilda Amos of Functionability, neuropsychologist, Dr. Catherine Gow, forsensic accountant Darrell Sherman from ADS, forensic engineer Peter Williamson,  labour market researcher Natalie Beck-Livingstone and life care planner Michelle Wagenberg of Carol Bierbrier and Associates.   His Honour (the judge) carefully reviewed all of this evidence when reaching his decision on damages.  This case is proof that putting together the right team is very important in order to get a fair assessment of your damages.

If you would like to see what our team can do for you in your case, contact the Ottawa accident lawyers at Auger Hollingsworth 613 233-4529.  We would be honoured to meet with you.

Ottawa Injury Lawyer: Understanding the Glasgow Coma Scale

If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) in Ottawa, you may have heard of the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), which is a system used by doctors to evaluate and diagnose the symptoms associated with TBI.

GCS: An Overview

GCS is a 15-point scale that helps doctors determine the severity of a patient’s brain injury.

Patients are evaluated in the following categories:

1. Motor Response: Scores range from 1 (no motor response) to 6 (obeys commands fully)
2. Verbal Response: Scores range from 1 (no verbal response) to 5 (alert, coherent, and oriented)
3. Eye Opening Response: Scores range from 1 (no eye opening) to 4 (eyes opening spontaneously)

Interpreting GCS Results

The patient’s three scores are added up, and the final score helps to diagnose the injury.

Generally, the scores can be classified as follows:

13 to 15: Mild brain injury

9 to 12: Moderate brain injury

3 to 8: Severe brain injury

Many medical practitioners consider 8 to be the critical score, meaning that patients with a score less than or equal to 8 are often in a coma.

TBI Symptoms: Mild vs. Severe

A patient who receives a GCS score of 13 to 15 is typically diagnosed with a mild brain injury. Their symptoms, however, can still last one year or more and have a serious impact.

Common symptoms of mild TBI include:

-   Fatigue

-   Headaches

-   Memory loss

-   Dizziness or lack of balance

-   Inability to concentrate or pay attention

-   Seizures

-   Mood changes, including irritability or feelings of depression

Patients who score less than 13 on the Glasgow Coma Scale are typically diagnosed with a moderate to severe brain injury. The symptoms of moderate or severe TBI are wide-ranging and can affect all areas of a patient’s life.

These symptoms may include:

-   Difficulties speaking, concentrating, or remembering

-   Loss of vision or blurred vision

-   Loss of hearing or ringing in the ears

-   Seizures

-   Paralysis

-   Chronic pain

-   Sleep disorders

-   Changes in appetite

-   Emotional difficulties, including irritability, depression, aggression, or lack of awareness

Treatment and Recovery

GCS is an important tool in accurately diagnosing traumatic brain injury. Once the patient’s injury has been classified as mild, moderate, or severe, a proper course of treatment can prescribed. If you or someone you know has suffered from TBI as a result of an accident, be sure to consult an injury lawyer as part of your recovery process. A good injury lawyer can help you understand and settle the legal aspects of your injury.

To speak with an Ottawa personal injury lawyer at Auger Hollingsworth, please call us at 613-860-4529, email us at info@personalinjuryottawa.ca, or use our contact form.

OTTAWA PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER-  We are very pleased that Ottawa children aged 10 and under will be required to wear helmets during public skating sessions held in City of Ottawa facilities starting January 1, 2012.   In a press release accompanying the law’s announcement, the City estimated that 5,700 Ottawa children receive medical treatment in emergency rooms, and 400 children are hospitalized, every year because of sports-related head injuries.

We look forward to hearing that traumatic brain injuries are down on account of the new rule.  Now let’s see the rule broadened to require helmets while toboganning!

If you have suffered a traumatic brain injury and are looking for information about claims for compensation following an accident, call 613-233-4529.

While many Ottawa bicycle accidents result in minor injuries such as sprained wrists, road rash and scrapes and bruises, some cyclists can be seriously injured.  If a cyclist is in an accident with a motor vehicle they can sustain severe and potentially life-threatening injuries.  It is important to be aware of the potential serious injuries that can result from a cycling accident.  If anything, such knowledge can serve as an important reminder and motivation to wear a helmet and practice safe cycling techniques.

One of the most serious cycling injuries is traumatic brain injury.  Head injuries are often most severe if a cyclist was not wearing a helmet at the time of the accident; however, cyclists who do wear helmets are not necessarily 100% protected against head injuries.  Traumatic brain injury, or TBI, can have short-term and long-term effects.  Some of the more severe symptoms of TBI include amnesia, brain haemorrhaging, seizures and subdural hematomas. 

The Symptoms of Traumatic Brain Injury Are Varied

These injuries can seriously alter a person’s life and in some instances, individuals are not able to resume the same kind of work they did before the accident.  More minor forms of TBI often result in the person experiencing dizziness, blurred vision, short-term memory loss, attention loss, depression, and personality changes.

The physical damage caused by TBI can be severe and certainly life-altering, but there are other effects as well, such as the mental and emotional effect the injuries can have on a person’s friends and family.  Hospital stays, medical treatment and the overall stress of dealing with a serious injury can place strain on everyone who cares about the injured person.

Many Traumatic Brain Injuries Are not Detected Immediately

One of the dangerous things about TBI is that is often goes unnoticed.  For this reason, if you are in a cycling accident it is best to immediately go to the hospital to receive medical care.  The doctors at the hospital will be able to do a full assessment and detect any signs and injuries that may indicate TBI.

If you are ever in the unfortunate situation where you are seriously injured in a bicycle accident, seek immediate medical attention.  In the event that you sustain a serious blow to the head, such medical attention can be life-saving.  If you find yourself needing legal expertise after your accident, the personal injury lawyers at Auger Hollingsworth would be happy to discuss your case with you.  Call us at 613 233-4529.

Ottawa Lawyer – If you have suffered an Ottawa accident, you may have been assessed using a GAF score. The GAF score, or Global Assessment of Functioning score, is used to determine an individual’s mental health in terms of their social, psychological and occupational functioning. In personal injury cases, this scale is used by medical professionals to assess an injured person’s mental state. This is important because it can play a role in determining the extent of impact an injury has on a person as well as the degree of compensation an individual receives.

GAF scores operate on a one hundred point scale. Within this scale, there are ranges that designate a person’s level of functioning. For example, someone with a “perfect” score, one between 91 and 100, means that the person has no symptoms, meaning they have no difficulties pursuing day-to-day tasks and can perform a wide range of activities. Someone with mild symptoms would have a score between 61 and 70. A person with this GAF score would likely have some mild symptoms such as minor depression or insomnia or some difficulty with functioning in social or occupational environments. More severe symptoms are categorized by a score below 50 and can involve thoughts of suicide, illogical speech, social or legal deviancy, delusions, hallucinations, and danger to himself/herself or others. There is a wide range of GAF scores and only a professional assessment by a medical doctor will accurately determine an individual’s level of functioning.

The GAF score can be instrumental in determining the cost of medical care and the nature of treatment involved for someone who has suffered a personal injury that has affected their functioning in this way. Legally, it is necessary to determine the extent of an individual’s injuries and sometimes this includes the ways in which their mental health has been affected, before a personal injury case can be resolved. Once we know an individual’s GAF score and understand their level of functioning and how this is related to the accident, we are equipped to assess the legal matters and determine the best course of action. A personal injury lawyer with experience in cases that involve Global Assessments of Functioning can help you with the details of your particular case.

If you or someone you love has suffered a serious Ottawa personal injury, especially one that involves neurological damage, you may have heard of the Glasgow Coma Scale. The following will offer a general overview of this medical scale, but your Ottawa personal injury lawyer will be able to give you more detailed information.

The GCS is used to assess the neurological state of an individual, or in other words, their level of consciousness. This is usually done for an initial assessment, soon after the injury, and is also used periodically throughout an individual’s recovery to assess any progress. The Glasgow Coma Scale involves measuring a person against the criteria of the scale. This assessment results in a number ranging from three (deeply unconscious) to fifteen.

The Glasgow Coma Scale assesses an individual’s eye response, verbal response and motor response. Each of these criteria has a variety of specific responses that doctors look for and document. For example, an individual’s eye responses can range from not opening their eyes, to opening them spontaneously. Similarly, verbal responses can include no sounds, incomprehensible sounds, confused speech and normal conversation. Motor responses assess an individual’s movement and this can range from no movement at all, to various forms of reaction to stimuli, including withdrawal from painful stimuli and obeying commands to move.

If you know of someone who has experienced severe Ottawa personal injury, such as head trauma, they will likely be assessed with the Glasgow Coma Scale. While this may be overwhelming and certainly an uncertain time, rest assured that the doctors involved in your case will do the best they can to help you or your loved one recover. In such situations, it is also important to have a good personal injury lawyer who can manage all of your legal affairs. Regardless of the outcome of the initial medical assessment or any assessments during recovery, you can trust that your Ottawa personal injury lawyer will diligently work on your legal case.

Ottawa Brain Injury Lawyer | Accident Claim

Just like in the movies and John Grisham novels, if you have been seriously injured some personal injury lawyers, or people working on their behalf, will approach you in the hospital.  Sometimes, they “pop their heads in” while purportedly visiting another client nearby.  While it is okay to speak to a lawyer who approaches you, you should be very wary about signing a contract with any lawyer who shows up without an invitation from you or your family.  Prospective clients with spinal cord injuries or brain injuries are frequent targets.

The lawyers at Auger Hollingsworth do not solicit clients in the hospital.  We will of course attend at the hospital if we are contacted and requested to attend.  However, we will not let you sign a contract with us on the spot- even if you want to.  We believe than anyone in a crisis should have at least 24 hours to consider a retainer agreement, and a big decision, to hire a lawyer.

Interested in meeting with us?  Call 613 233-4529 or email info@ottawalawfirm.ca.

Ottawa Brain Injury Lawyer: Suffered a Brain Injury in Ottawa?

OTTAWA PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER – Have you suffered a traumatic brain injury in an accident caused by someone’s negligence?  Ottawa personal injury lawyer and brain injury lawyer Brenda Hollingsworth has posted some valuable information for brain injury victims.

If you or a loved one have an acquired brain injury as a result of a motor vehicle accident, a serious slip and fall accident, a mishap in a store or other act of negligence, you should speak to a brain injury lawyer without delay.  The accident lawyers at Auger Hollingsworth can assist you to advance a claim for damages and can help you to ensure that you receive all the statutory accident benefits to which you are entitled.

A brain injury may fundamentally alter the course of your life.  Make sure you receive professional advice on your legal rights.  Call us at 613 860-4529 or email us at info@ottawalawfirm.ca.

Ottawa Lawyer :  Traumatic Brain Injury in Canada

Traumatic brain injury is generally caused due to a severe blow to the skull or due to whirling forces on the brain. Most often than not, traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the outcome of motor vehicle accidents, falls and physical abuse. If you or any of your loved ones has suffered from a traumatic brain injury as a result of someone’s negligence, then you should contact a reputed Ottawa Personal Injury Lawyer as soon as possible.

The statistics available on TBI are truly astonishing in Canada.  Many injured victims  suffer silently with no representation.  A competent Ottawa personal injury lawyer can help you achieve a settlement or take your case to trial, if required, and advise you on the best course of action.

Canadian Traumatic Brain Injury Statistics

Statistics reveal that traumatic brain injury is the principal cause of death among the youth.  In fact, every year, more than 11,000 people die due to traumatic brain injury in Canada, out of which 4000 TBI associated deaths occur in Ontario. Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death among the infants and teenagers.  In individuals, above 75 years of age, falls and slips are the major cause of traumatic brain injuries and associated deaths.

A traumatic brain injury makes an individual three times more susceptible to a second brain injury and eight times more susceptible to consecutive injuries. According to a survey, men are twice more likely to sustain a traumatic brain injury than their female counterparts.

Ottawa Traumatic Brain Injury Lawyer

A traumatic brain injury can take a heavy toll on the overall well-being of your entire family. A fair settlement or receiving monetary damages after a trial can help your family cope up with the financial challenges posed by a traumatic brain injury. An able and diligent  Ottawa personal injury lawyer can take the pressure of your shoulders to a great extent and can help you attain a fitting compensation.  Contact us at 613 233-4529 for a free. no obligation consultation.