Nursing home workers face a lot of injury risks on a daily basis. From lifting and moving patients to potential assault to potentially dangerous conditions like slippery floors, nurses and other staff could get injured on the job. If you do, a Workers’ Compensation claim is often available.
To file a Workers’ Comp claim, you have to have a “work-related” injury, stemming either from work conditions or work tasks. To actually file the claim, you start by notifying your employer, and they file a Workers’ Comp claim with their insurance. If they deny you, you can go file with the state instead.
For a free case evaluation with the Certified Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Lawyers at Cardamone Law, call us at (267) 651-7945 today.
Steps of Filing a Workers’ Comp Claim for Nursing Home Workers
To file your case, take the following steps:
Get Medical Care
You need to start treatment right away to patch up any wounds and put you on a path to recovery. Having a doctor look at you will also give you records you can use to notify your employer of your specific health conditions, prognosis, etc.
Notify Your Employer
You must provide notice of your injury to your employer within 21 days of the accident to file a claim. Then your employer gets 21 days to speak with their insurance carrier and decide whether or not they will pay (often based on what the insurance carrier says).
File a Claim Petition
If your employer or their insurance carrier denies your initial claim, you can file a Claim Petition with the state. This goes to the Workers’ Comp Office of Adjudication (WCOA), who assigns the case to a Workers’ Comp Judge (WCJ).
Gather Evidence
From there, evidence gathering takes place. Both sides get time to take depositions, have you go to medical exams to gather medical evidence, and to prepare doctors’ reports. Then we submit it all to the WCJ, and they decide the claim.
Workers’ Comp Hearing
The hearing is where all evidence is submitted. The WCJ might ask for testimony from you about what happened, how the injury affects you, etc. Hearings may take one day or multiple.
WCJs render decisions after the hearing unless we settle the case sooner.
Who Can File?
Nursing home workers are often “employees,” meaning they work directly for the nursing home; have the time, place, and manner of their work controlled by their employer; and work under their instructions. Some workers, however, work for
- Third-party staffing agencies
- Hospitals or
- Insurance companies
Or they are self-employed contractors who cannot file a Workers’ Comp claim, but may be entitled to a lawsuit.
If you are an employee, then you file a claim with whichever employer you were working for when you got injured. They should cover any work-related injuries, even if they happened because of another company or person’s fault.
What Injuries Can I File For?
Workers’ Comp claims can be made for any work-related injury. These come under two major categories.
Injuries from Work Conditions
Nursing homes are often large complexes with many potential dangers on the property.
- If the other workers do not properly clear snow or ice from sidewalks and parking lots, you could be injured on the way into work.
- If there are spills that are not mopped up, you could slip inside.
- Broken appliances or facilities could cause electrocution, cuts, or other injuries.
- Dangerous structural conditions could cause collapses.
- Fire hazards or non-functioning fire doors, fire alarms, etc., could lead to serious injuries in a building fire.
These are not especially common, but all kinds of accidents can and do happen.
Injuries from Work Tasks
For nursing home workers, injuries from work tasks are much more common. Nurses and orderlies could face
- Assault from confused or unruly patients
- Back injuries from lifting or moving patients
- Injuries while using lifts or transferring patients.
Other workers who make the nursing home function can also be injured in the course of their jobs:
- Maintenance or repair workers falling off ladders
- Kitchen staff suffering serious burns or cuts
- Groundskeepers being injured by tools or machinery.
All of these injuries could potentially qualify for a claim.
FAQs for Injured Nursing Home Staff in Pennsylvania
Can I Sue for Injuries at a Nursing Home?
You cannot sue an employer for work-related injuries, but you can sue third parties.
If you work at a nursing home, but you are not employed by the nursing home, then our Bucks County, PA Workers’ Comp lawyers may be able to help you sue the nursing home for dangerous conditions. This could apply to doctors or nurses from a nearby hospital making visits to an outside nursing home, or it could cover nurses, custodial staff, or transportation staff from third-party agencies.
You can also sue outside parties, like transportation companies or dangerous equipment manufacturers.
What Does Workers’ Comp Cover for Nursing Home Workers?
Nursing home workers can claim three areas of benefits through Workers’ Comp:
- Medical benefits to cover the full cost of treating their injuries
- Wage-loss benefits covering 2/3 of your pre-injury wage while you cannot work or 2/3 of the difference between pre- and post-injury wages if you can work to some extent.
- Specific loss benefits for permanent amputation, lost function, facial scarring, hearing loss, and vision loss at a rate of 2/3 of your pre-injury wage.
All amounts based on wages are subject to caps and floors, but medical costs are not.
How Long Do I Have to File?
Initial notice must be given to your employer within 21 days to start your claim. If you are denied and go on to a Claim Petition, you have to wait for your employer’s denial first, then you must file within 3 years of your initial injury.
If you do not give notice within 120 days at the latest, you cannot file a Claim Petition.
How Long Do Benefits Last?
Benefits for permanent injuries can last indefinitely.
After 104 weeks on benefits, you undergo exams to determine your whole-body impairment rating. If it is under 35%, then you are switched to temporary benefits, which can last for 500 more weeks.
Call Our Workers’ Comp Lawyers for Nursing Home Staff Today
For help with your claim, call the Philadelphia Workers’ Comp attorneys at Cardamone Law at (267) 651-7945.
