6 Tips to Help Rochester Drivers Recover After an Accident
Motor vehicle accidents occur more frequently than you may think and are a leading cause of injuries. In fact, automobile accidents were the most common cause of injury in all personal injury cases, making up 52% of the total number. This includes anything from being hit by a motorcycle to a car crash.
Regardless of how major or minor an accident is, knowing what to do is the first step toward recovery. Here are six tips to help Rochester drivers recover following an accident.
1. Find Out if Anyone Is Hurt
Never leave the site of an accident. If you do, you'll regret it later. Safety should always come first; let everything else wait. Check on everyone's well-being and seek medical assistance if necessary.
2. Get You, Your Passenger, and Your Vehicle Out of Harm's Way
If you're one of the lucky few and get away from the accident without sustaining any injury, drive your car and park it by the roadside to avoid obstructing traffic. However, if anyone's hurt or the accident is more severe, it's best not to move the cars. To avoid causing a chain reaction of rear-end collisions, keep the hazard lights on and place flares or reflective emergency triangles around the accident scene.
Be careful when exiting your car even if you don't have any injuries, especially if the accident occurred on a busy street or highway. You'll likely be disoriented, which will put you in more danger.
3. Gather Important Information
Accidents can also be quite heavy on your pockets. According to Bankrate, about $474 billion was spent on car accidents in 2020. To help protect your finances from the hit of an accident, collect important information such as the name, phone number, address, and driver's license number of those involved in the accident and take pictures of the documents and the accident. Doing this will help when it comes time to file your insurance claim.
4. See a Doctor
Seeing a doctor is one of the best things you can do for your recovery. In some cases, you may experience muscle aches and soreness as standalone symptoms. In other cases, they could point to something more serious. A doctor is the only one who can tell you for sure.
To give you a precise diagnosis, your doctor will administer some tests, such as a computer tomography (CT) scan, an X-ray, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Treatment will be prescribed according to the test results. Always stick to your doctor's prescribed course of treatment to maximize the benefits.
5. Rest
Rest doesn't just help when you're stressed or tired. It's also an effective tool for healing and can help with your soreness or pain. Get as much rest as possible.
There's no set time for how long you should relax; go with how you feel. You can consult a doctor to better understand how much rest is sufficient. While you may hate the idea of being idle, your body will thank you.
6. Medication Following a Car Crash
If you're in pain, your doctor will likely recommend over-the-counter painkillers such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) before doing anything else. They effectively treat ailments like muscle cramps, headaches, and other kinds of post-accident pain. However, these don't always target the affected area or might be too weak.
If you have injuries that leave you vulnerable to infections, your doctor will prescribe antibiotics. Keep an eye out for signs of infection, such as redness, tenderness, or fever at or around the site of your injury, so you can take timely action. You may also be prescribed medication for issues with your mental well-being, such as anxiety, along with help from a mental health professional. If this happens to be your case, you don't have to worry about access. In the United States alone, there are over 30,000 operating prescription dispensaries, according to Envicare.
When you get into a car accident, the following moments can be overwhelming and confusing. However, you'll be better prepared by knowing what to do ahead of time.
