Van Nuys Legal Blog

How common is violence against nurses?

On behalf of John Gutierrez of Law Offices of Hussain & Gutierrez posted in workplace injuries on Wednesday, December 12, 2018.

When you decided you wanted to earn your living working as a California nurse, you may have done so out of an inherent desire to help others. Regrettably, however, well-intentioned nurses are increasingly experiencing on-the-job violence, which is a more prevalent issue in most health-care settings than you may like to think.

According to Managed Care, violence against nurses has become so common nowadays that more than 20 percent of all registered nurses and nursing students nationwide report that they have experienced a physical assault at some point while at work. Verbal abuse, too, is a common issue in hospitals and other health care settings, with more than half of registered nurses and nursing students reporting they had suffered verbal abuse at some point within the last year.

What is post-treatment Lyme disease?

On behalf of John Gutierrez of Law Offices of Hussain & Gutierrez posted in workers' compensation on Sunday, December 9, 2018.

If you work anywhere that takes you near wildlife or even outside regularly, you might be at risk of being bitten by a deer tick, which most Californians know by now can carry Lyme disease. This bacterial illness is known for being difficult to diagnose, causing symptoms that can reduce the quality of life for many who can go for months or years before they finally figure out what is making them feel so terrible.

According to Harvard Health Publishing, a specific antibiotic regimen cures Lyme disease in most people. However, it also isn’t uncommon for patients to continue exhibiting symptoms of Lyme disease even after taking antibiotics for months. This is known in the medical community as post-treatment Lyme disease (PTLD). Further complicating diagnosis and treatment is the fact that the bacteria that causes Lyme may not be present in your blood tests after treatment, despite your symptoms still wreaking havoc on your health, job and well-being. The emergence of PTLD and many doctors’ differing opinions on Lyme disease detection and treatment has led to what some in the medical community call the Lyme wars.

Treating burns at work

On behalf of John Gutierrez of Law Offices of Hussain & Gutierrez posted in workplace injuries on Friday, November 30, 2018.

One of the injuries a California resident might sustain on the job is a burn. This kind of wound can be serious depending on its severity and it is important for people to know what to do if they incur this injury.

People might receive a burn in many circumstances. The Mayo Clinic says that steam and hot liquids can cause burns, and someone might also incur this wound from an electrical current. Some chemicals, such as acids, might burn workers if they are not handled properly and hot objects can also cause this injury. There are three types of burns a person might incur. Third-degree burns are the most serious because these typically damage both layers of a person's skin, as well as the underlying fatty layer. People might have nerve damage and their burn might have a brown or black appearance. A second-degree burn generally harms both layers of skin. This kind of burn might blister and swell. If a person receives a first-degree burn, he or she sustains harm to the top layer of skin. While the burn might hurt and have a red appearance, there is typically no significant damage.

Is your job dangerous?

On behalf of John Gutierrez of Law Offices of Hussain & Gutierrez on Tuesday, November 27, 2018.

The good news is that you do not live in an era where there continue to be approximately 14,000 workplace fatalities in a single year. Your safety at work improved and increased greatly through the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, which Congress voted into law under the Richard Nixon administration. That doesn't necessarily mean you are never at risk for injury in your workplace, however.

In fact, you may happen to work at one of the most dangerous jobs in the nation. Then again, you might be one of many California residents who report to a desk in an office every day, but that does not guarantee that you will never suffer a workplace injury either. Some jobs are definitely more dangerous than others are. What's most important, no matter where you work, is to know what to do if you suffer an injury on the job and how to obtain benefits to which you may be entitled.

The basics of toxic exposure

On behalf of John Gutierrez of Law Offices of Hussain & Gutierrez posted in workers' compensation on Friday, November 23, 2018.

When California residents are on the job, they may sometimes come into contact with hazardous substances. While some people may feel fine after their initial exposure to certain materials, others may experience toxic exposure if they are around these substances for long periods of time.

Toxic exposure can affect people in a wide variety of ways. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration says that chemicals and other toxins can have long-term and short-term effects on people. If someone is exposed to a harmful substance for a long period of time, he or she may not notice a health problem for several years. However, someone might notice acute health problems immediately. Some people may feel that their throat or nose is irritated when they are around some substances, while others may feel dizzy. People can experience both acute and chronic health problems after exposure to toxins.

What is tinnitus?

On behalf of John Gutierrez of Law Offices of Hussain & Gutierrez posted in workplace injuries on Tuesday, November 13, 2018.

Not all workplace injuries cause visible damage to your body. There are plenty of conditions that you cannot see that result from exposure in the work environment to hazards or other situations. Even though these conditions may be more difficult to diagnose, they still qualify as workplace injuries under workers' compensation. One such condition is tinnitus, which Medline Plus defines as a continuous noise in the ear.

The condition varies from person to person, so describing it clearly is tough. Some people may have a soft sound that just exists in the background. Others may have a loud sound that interferes with their ability to hear clearly and to function. The noise may sound like buzzing, ringing or hissing. It is any type of noise that is not present in the environment and only heard by you on a continuous basis. It is steady and never-ending. You may have the condition in just one ear or both ears.

Deadly falls in the construction industry

On behalf of John Gutierrez of Law Offices of Hussain & Gutierrez posted in workplace injuries on Monday, November 12, 2018.

Construction workers face many dangers when laboring on work sites, such as electrocution, being caught in-between pieces of equipment and being struck by an object. There is a danger, however, that tops the list when discussing fatal construction injuries. More construction workers die in accidents involving falls than any other type of accident. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, one in five workplace deaths in 2016 were in the construction industry. This equates to 991 lives that were lost on worksites throughout the United States. Of these deaths, falls were responsible for more than 38 percent of the total amount.

Workers can fall from a number of places while working on site. According to OSHA data, most deadly falls, approximately one-third, were from roofs, while others were from scaffolding, ladders, structural steel, floor openings and aerial lifts. Whether workers were not taking the proper precautions to be safe at the jobsite, or the employer did not implement the required safety features, falls can cause long-term injuries and death to workers.

Does stress classify as a workplace injury?

On behalf of John Gutierrez of Law Offices of Hussain & Gutierrez posted in workers' compensation on Tuesday, November 6, 2018.

Workers’ compensation is designed to pay for medical expenses, hospital bills and other healthcare treatment that you may need as a result of a workplace injury. Yet, workplace injuries may include more than a laceration, broken bone or traumatic brain injury. In some cases, psychological trauma may lead to workers’ compensation benefits, depending on the source and the degree of the problem. If you have been subjected to an overly stressful work environment for a prolonged period of time, you may develop symptoms, such as headaches, anxiety, nausea and heartburn, that are similar to a physical ailment. Over time, these symptoms can turn into long-lasting problems, including GERD, depression, sleeping problems, weight gain, migraines and heart disease.

In one instance, a Pennsylvania teacher filed for workers’ compensation benefits because she experienced severe stress from teaching a disorderly second-grade class. The teacher claimed that the headaches, dizziness, anxiety and nausea she was feeling was a direct result of her stressful work environment. After visiting her physician, she was instructed to stay away from her workplace so that she could fully recover. After leaving her job at the school, she developed a heart murmur and suffered a voice box injury. The workers’ compensation judge granted her benefits after carefully reviewing her case.

A work-related TBI can change your life forever

On behalf of John Gutierrez of Law Offices of Hussain & Gutierrez on Thursday, November 1, 2018.

You probably woke up the morning of your accident thinking that day would be the same as every other. You got to work and began your day. Then, depending on what industry you work in and your duties, you ended up suffering some sort of work-related injury to your head.

Depending on the severity of your injury, you may have gone to see a doctor on your own or in an ambulance. In any case, you underwent an examination to determine how bad your traumatic brain injury was. Whether it turned out to be mild, moderate or severe, it will take a toll on your life, even if only temporarily. You could recover 100 percent, suffer lifelong mild effects or suffer lifelong serious effects.

What are repetitive strain injuries?

On behalf of John Gutierrez of Law Offices of Hussain & Gutierrez posted in workplace injuries on Sunday, October 28, 2018.

If you work in an office or factory in California, you might be experiencing symptoms of repetitive strain injuries (RSI). These conditions impact muscles, nerves, and tendons that may be become damaged due to repeated use. Healthline.com offers the following information on RSI, including how it can be treated.

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