Your brain is the reason you can do your job. It allows you to recall your training so that you behave appropriately, controls your physical function and analyzes your surroundings for safety.
When you fall and hit your head, get into a car crash while working or suffered blunt-force trauma on the job, the brain injury that results can have serious job implications.
Understanding how a brain injury can impact your career can make it easier for you to ask for the benefits you need when you get hurt at work.
Brain injuries can affect your strength, balance and memory
Physical consequences for brain injuries are common. The location and severity of the injury will determine the impact it has on your daily function.
Everything from your equilibrium to your strength can suffer negative consequences after a brain injury. The effect on your memory can also be cause for concern, as it may make it hard for you to fulfill all of the duties involved in your job responsibilities or learn new systems after your injury.
Brain injuries can also affect your mood and personality
People often experience dramatic shifts in their behavior and perception of the world after a significant brain injury. They may become more excitable or uninterested in things at once mattered to them. They might start to struggle to manage their relationships, which could impact their ability to do a job as significantly as an injury that limits their physical strength or balance.
Workers with brain injury can get benefits to cover their medical care. They may also require vocational rehabilitation, which could help them move on to a different career not so seriously impacted by the effects of their brain injury.
Identifying how your injury may affect your job can help you get the workers’ compensation benefits you deserve.
