Accidents happen. While workplace injuries can’t always be avoided, there are steps you can take to reduce the damage and prevent more serious consequences. When one of your employees gets injured, it’s important to know about the steps that you should immediately follow to help them heal.
Read on to learn about how to help an employee after a workplace injury.
3 steps to follow after a workplace injury
Your employees’ health and well-being should always be your priority. When one of them sustains a workplace injury, there are several steps to take following the incident. These cover what you should do to care for the injury as well as what paperwork needs to be filed.
What to do following a workplace injury:
- Immediate treatment — The proper treatment to provide for an injury depends on the cause and symptoms of the accident. If the injury is serious, such as a fall that has caused significant trauma to the head or limbs, call 911 for emergency services. If the injury is minor, such as a small cut, then a first-aid kit should provide the required supplies to stop any bleeding and prevent infection.
- Emergency procedure — After assessing the injury and providing the proper immediate treatment, refer to your emergency plan. It may include additional steps to follow depending on the situation. For example, there may have been a hazard that caused the accident and must be properly dealt with to avoid additional injuries, such as faulty equipment or chemicals.
- Workers’ compensation — After an injury, you must work with the affected employee to file a workers’ compensation claim with your company’s insurance. By law in most states, the injury must be reported within seven days after you learn about the injury. If the accident isn’t reported within one month, the employee may not receive their benefits.
Work-Fit can help you determine the next steps after a workplace injury
Workplace injuries can’t always be avoided, but they can be properly dealt with to ensure that the employee gets the proper care that they need. Work-Fit can help your company with injury prevention as well as injury management to help the affected employee get back to their job with proper rehabilitation.
Contact our team today to find out more about all the benefits Work-Fit can bring to your workplace.