A woman has filed suit against a Texas hospital for injuries she suffered when she claims an employee knocked her down with an electric door. This slip-and-fall case alleges that the woman received the injuries through employee carelessness when she visited the hospital to receive treatment for an elbow injury.
According to the plaintiff, an employee instructed her to walk to the X-ray department with him but failed to warn her of an electric door that opened automatically. The employee activated the door which swung into the victim, knocking her down and fracturing her hip.
The injury ultimately resulted in surgery and several months of recovery for the victim. Her lawsuit states that the employee was negligent in failing to warn her about the door. She is claiming medical expenses as well as compensation for mental anguish, while her husband is suing for loss of her companionship during this time period.
Slip-and-Fall Accidents Common
Slip-and-fall cases are some of the most common personal injury cases. Many people think of these types of cases as "minor" and envision someone slipping on a wet floor, twisting an ankle, and suing for thousands of dollars. No doubt there are cases such as these; however, some slip-and-fall cases result in very serious injury or even death. If a person hits his or her head as a result of a fall or falls down a flight of stairs, fatalities are not uncommon.
In the present case, the victim was obviously hit hard enough by the door to cause her to fall and break her hip. This type of slip-and-fall injury, while not as common as more minor injuries, results in thousands of dollars in medical bills and months of suffering while the victim recovers.
What Should I Do If I Have Suffered a Slip-and-Fall Injury?
The first thing you must understand about slip-and-fall injuries is that there is usually a person or company whose negligence led to your fall. It might not be apparent immediately who that person or company is, but a personal injury attorney can ascertain this information.
Property owners have a duty to provide a safe environment for those who visit their premises. In fact, this duty is so important that a whole area of the law, premises liability, deals with the rights and responsibilities of property owners and their visitors.
Generally speaking, if a property owner fails to take reasonable measures to ensure that his or her property is safe, the victim of an accident has the right to collect damages. In the present case, the woman may file for damages because she claims that an employee of the company was negligent in failing to inform her of the danger presented by the automatic door.
A personal injury attorney can examine the case and give the victim advice on how to recover damages in these types of accidents.
