Whether you are young and indestructible and think nothing can hurt you, or you are an adult in relatively good health and feel like you will never get old, I have news for you; pain isn’t just for the old. (more…)
Archive for the ‘Auto Injuries’ Category
Surprising Back Pain Statistics – No American’s Safe
Thursday, March 15th, 2012
So You Weren’t Injured in the Accident, See a Doctor Anyway
Thursday, September 29th, 2011
In 2009 more than 1.5 million people were injured in auto accidents in the US. That breaks down to a person being injured in an auto accident every 20 seconds. With so many people getting hurt every day it’s easy to forget the number of accidents occurring each year has been on a steady decline due to better education, laws and safety features for cars. While 1.5 million injuries a year is a large number, how many more people were injured and didn’t know it until it was too late to get insurance to cover it. Listed below are 7 reasons you should always see a doctor after a car wreck even if you don’t feel hurt. (more…)
Teenage Cell Phone Usage and Car Accidents in Texas
Wednesday, September 7th, 2011
It’s a safe to bet that if you own a cell phone you have at one time or another used it while driving. While most of us are guilty of this heinous crime at one time or another, most of us would like to think we did so responsibly. While there are no laws in Texas banning all cell phone usage for adults, this is not the case for teenagers. With an alarming growth of teenage related accidents due to cellphone usage, Texas has banned the use of cell phones and text messaging devices while driving for teens below the age of 18. Listed below are some teenage driving statistics which should make you happy these laws exist. (more…)
Auto Injury Facts
Friday, May 20th, 2011I was searching the web to find some interesting facts on auto injuries that I could share with our readers, and I came up with some very good stuff. For example, did you know that between midnight and 3am, about 75% of fatal crashes involve alcohol. Stay off the road during those times if you can. This next one seems to be common knowledge: males are twice as likely to cause car wrecks that females. Is it from aggressiveness / testosterone? With that said, people between ages 16 and 20 are more likely to be injured or killed in a car wreck that any other age group. Kids. Somebody please tell them that they really are not invincible! About 15 teenagers are killed in car wrecks each day. When teens drive with one other passenger, the risk of fatality doubles. That risk is 5 times greater with 2 or more passengers. Parents – doesn’t it scare you to think that your child is 5 times more likely to die behind the wheel when he or she is out with their friends?
Here’s some not-so-new news: Most car wrecks happen within just a few miles from home. I guess we are most wreckless when we are most familiar with our driving surroundings. And how about this one? Talking on your cell phone makes you 400% more likely to get into a car wreck. Get off the phone! It’s illegal in California to talk on the cell phone or text while driving (unless you’re talking hands-free). That should be the law in all 50 states. 1 in 4 car wrecks is caused by driving and cell phone usage.
I found an article that says in 2005, the US had 733 car accidents per hour. That’s an average of nearly 15 car wrecks per hour in each state. Texas is much larger than the average state, so it’s safe to assume that we had a much higher percentage of those wrecks. And now more people are texting and driving than ever. Those numbers are probably much higher. In 2008, it was reported that at any given moment, over 800,000 Americans were driving and texting or making cell phone calls resulting in nearly 6,000 deaths. That’s 16 deaths per day due to cell phone use while driving. In 2009, fatalities decreased to just under 5,500, but injuries resulting from driving distracted were nearly 450,000 people. That’s about 50 people per hour injured in car wrecks due to distracted driving. Texting while driving also makes you 6 times more likely to get into an auto accident than driving while intoxicated.
So. . . drive safe. Get off the phone, stop texting, don’t drink and drive. Get off the roads when you should otherwise be sleeping after midnight. Keep your teens out of the car with their friends. Just because you’re close to home, pay attention. Familiarity does not equal safety. Teenagers – YOU ARE NOT INVINCIBLE. Slow down and pay attention when you are driving – and if you have to have your friends in the car with you, tell them to sit there and shut up. Drive time is not play time.
And this last one is from Wikipedia: “Traffic collisions may result in injury, death, and property damage.” Please be careful.
Sources of information in this article:
http://www.infobarrel.com/10_Common_Facts_about_Car_Accidents
http://www.car-accidents.com/pages/stats.html
http://www.edgarsnyder.com/car-accident/cell-phone/statistics.html
WOLMED For Auto Injuries
Wednesday, August 18th, 2010Usually, when a person is hurt in a car wreck, their first thought (after contacting their auto insurance company) is to contact a personal injury lawyer. Even though they have an auto INJURY, they think lawyer first and doctor sometime later. Don’t get me wrong – personal injury attorneys are great and valuable after you’re in a car wreck. We work with lots of PI attorneys at WOLMED. However, the backbone of personal injury is the need for recovery. What would happen if all those people who were hurt in a car wreck just took the legal route and got reimbursed for their pain, suffering and inconvenience, but never saw a doctor and got therapy to get better? We would have millions of potentially disabled people.
We also believe that dollar amounts in settlements are higher when injured patients come to us for personal injury treatment. WOLMED doctors are experts in documenting personal injury cases so that you can get better and get a fair settlement. Attorneys prefer our medical records over other doctors because they are so detailed that insurance adjusters are able to give better settlements. Our doctors document the mechanism of injury in the initial history and physical and throughout treatment, they document the duration and seriousness of all of your symptoms. We’re able to accurately document both the physical and symptom diagnoses on claim forms and in documentation to help adjusters give fair settlements.
Examples of physical diagnoses are: lumbar strain, contusion, herniated disk, knee strain, rotator cuff tear, etc. Symptom diagnoses are things like: sleep disturbance, headaches, dizziness, muscle spasm, and more. Being able to fully document all of these areas is critically important to the outcome to a personal injury case.
WOLMED patients achieve excellent outcomes in all aspects of their auto injury. If you or anyone you know was hurt in an auto accident, give WOLMED a call. You may also need a personal injury attorney. If you don’t know who to call for legal advice, we can recommend an attorney to you. At WOLMED, we can help you with every aspect of your auto injury. We want to be your doctor.
Driving While Distracted (DWD)
Thursday, February 11th, 2010With cell phones and driving, we have a new term called Driving While Distracted (DWD). Using cell phones while driving is already illegal in many states across the country. This is due to the high number of auto injuris that result from drivers who were distracted by talking or texting on the cell phone. Nationwide Insurance has published some not-so-surprising statistics related to DWD.
In a 2008 survey by Nationwide Insurance, 67 percent of people admitted to using a cell phone while driving. That means that roughly 2 out of every 3 drivers on the road are using their cell phones while driving. The number one source of driver inattention is use of a wireless device, according to Virginia Tech researchers. As a result, driving while distracted is a factor in 1 out of every 4 police reported crashes.
A 2005 controlled study of Australian drivers found that cell phone users were four times as likely to get into an accident serious enough to injure them. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reported that phone conversation tasks typically decrease reaction times, travel speeds, and increase lane deviations and steering wheel movements.
Drivers on cell phones cause serious auto injuries. If you or someone you know was injured in a car wreck due to the other driver being distracted with a cell phone, call WOL+MED today. We can help you. Our medical doctors are auto injury experts. If you think you need a personal injury attorney, we can also help you find the right lawyer for you. You need a doctor who can help you with all of your auto injury concerns. We can help you. We want to be your doctor.
It's Snowing, Slow Down!
Thursday, February 11th, 2010The Dallas / Ft. Worth area is expected to get up to 6 inches of snow today. People still have to go to work though regardless of the dangerous road conditions. With some patience and careful driving, most people will make it to their destinations, even if they’re late. I was watching the news and they showed video of the highways with crowded roads filled with slow-moving drivers and a few others that put everyone else at risk. Even the news lady commented on it. What is it with people who think they can drive in any weather condition? Snow and ice on the road? No problem – go faster. Pouring rain? No problem – go faster. Why are all these other people driving so slow? Don’t they know I’m in a hurry? CRASH!
The safer drivers wake up early to make time for driving slower. They drive cautiously and defensively so they don’t get into a car wreck that can cause serious injury, property damage, or worse. The one thing that most people worry about though is not being able to control the “other driver”.
Has this happened to you? Have you ever been in a car wreck during bad road conditions that could have easily been avoided if the other driver just would have slowed down and been more of a defensive driver, just like you were? Then, you have to stand out in the rain or snow to exchange insurance information. You’re cold. You’re wet. You’re angry. You’re injured.
Now what? You need to see a doctor. You might even need a lawyer. You’re going to have unexpected insurance hassles. You might have to take time off of work and get a rental car. All because of a wreckless driver!
If you were injured in a car wreck, call WOL+MED. If you know someone who was hurt in a car wreck, tell them to call WOL+MED. If you’re one of those wreckless drivers and it’s snowing or raining – SLOW DOWN!
2008 Texas Serious Auto Injury Statistics
Monday, December 21st, 2009According to the Texas Department of Transportation, there were 61,954 serious injury crashes in the state of Texas. Denton county had 1,208 serious injury crashes, Collin county had 1,616, Dallas County had 5,532, and Tarrant County had 4,491.
The #1 contributing factor to these serious injury crashes was failing to control speed, followed by driver inattention (going too fast and not paying attention).
The following data is the most surprising. If you were asked what the weather conditions were of most injuries, you would probably say rainy or icy conditions or driving at night. You would be wrong. 63% of serious injury crashes occurred during daylight hours and 88% happened during dry road conditions. Less than 7% of serious injury crashes happened during rainy conditions. Serious injury crashes happened only about 10% of the time when combining wet and icy road conditions.
Finally, the ages of drivers who were in serious injury accidents was not as surprising. Of those accidents where the driver’s age was reported, 27% were between the ages of 18 and 25, 23% were between the ages of 26 and 35, 19% were 36 to 45, 16% were 46 to 55, and 15% were 56+.
So, what does this data tell us? For one, watch out for young adults driving too fast in near-perfect conditions. I always assumed (and was wrong) that most serious injuries happened during poor weather / driving conditions, but everyone knows that the younger drivers are the most at risk for car accidents.
What do you do when you are hurt in a car wreck? Always call the police and get an accident report. This is very helpful for your insurance company. Call 911 if you or someone else is seriously injured. See a doctor who specializes in auto injuries as soon as possible following the accident. WOL+MED, for example, can see you the same day as your injury, and we specialize in auto injuries and urgent care. Also, you might need a personal injury lawyer and believe me, there are some really good ones out there.
Personal Injury Attorneys specialize in dealing directly with your insurance company and with the other driver’s insurance company. They make sure that all of your injuries and auto damages are fully covered. Many people think they can do all of this alone, but personal injury lawyers know how to get over the hurdles that some insurance carriers put in the way. As far as doctor’s bills are concerned, a personal injury attorney will give the doctor a letter of protection (LOP) and this will allow you to get all of the treatment you need with no out-of-pocket cost. Car accidents are unexpected to say the least. You’re not planning on having to pay doctor’s bills and auto body expenses. LOP’s will help you get all of that done with far less financial stress.
WOL+MED knows who the good personal injury lawyers are and we can recommend someone to you who will do the right job for you. If you or a loved one has been in a serious auto injury, give WOL+MED a call. We are auto injury experts and we want to be your doctor.
For more information, visit on the web at www.wolmed.com.
WOL+MED Minor Emergency
Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009Many people don’t realize that WOL+MED also provides minor emergency services in its Denton and Dallas clinics. We take walk-in appointments and we are open until 8pm during the week and for most of the day on Saturdays. Dr. Robert Helsten, MD is an expert in helping patients with emergency needs. Before coming to WOL+MED Dr. Helsten served in an emergency room for several years. Along with Dr. Helsten, Dr. Rodney Shultz, DC, PA-C is an experienced Chiropractor and Physicians Assistant. He is very well trained in suturing large wounds, which is a common injury found in Minor Emergency Clinics. WOL+MED is able to help patients with high fever, large cuts, sprains & strains, flu symptoms, vomiting, dehydration, fractures, back injuries, shoulder injuries, knee and ankle injuries, and much more.
If you or a loved one requires urgent care or help for a minor emergency, please give WOL+MED a try. We are an excellent alternative to the sometimes brutal wait times of the emergency room. Our medical team is always ready to help you.
WOL+MED & North Texas Food Bank Feed Thousands
Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009WOL+MED has teamed up with the North Texas Food Bank to help feed families in need. The North Texas Food Bank uses a virtual food drive so that anyone can get involved. When you don’t have time to go to the grocery store and buy canned food, you can instead donate money online. When you don’t have time to take food to the food bank, you can donate money online. WOL+MED employees made enough donations during the Thanksgiving holiday to provide over 4,000 meals! We will continue to support the North Texas Food Bank thru the Christmas holiday and throughout 2010. If you would like to make a donation, you can click on the food bank icon located on WOL+MED’s home page. Thank you for your support!