Having an arm, leg, or other limb amputated can be a traumatic experience. Unfortunately, these medical procedures are often necessary in order to avoid further damage and injury to an individual. While amputations are performed in order to protect a patient from further damage or injury, they can result in significant financial damages that can be difficult to recover from fully. Fortunately, if you or a loved one have had to have a limb amputated, you may be able to collect funding from one of the many charities that support recent amputees. In this article we will cover what amputation is, the damages amputations can cause, and the charities that support amputee victims.
Amputations: The Procedure and The Damages
Amputations are often performed by medical professionals in order to stave off the spread of infectious diseases or to keep a condition from spreading. While these are practiced contained procedures, they can also occur by accident as a result of physical trauma. Often times amputations resulting from physical trauma are caused by car accidents, falling objects, or other crush related accidents. For your reference we’ve included some of the common causes of amputations below:
- When a victim suffers from frostbite
- Severe crush or burn injuries
- To stave off the spread of a cancerous tumor in the bone or muscle of the amputated limb
- Infections that cannot be remedied with antibiotics or other medical treatments
- Neuroma (when nerve tissue thickens causing significant damage to the limb)
The process of removing a limb surgically can be far more complex than many are willing to understand. A patient is typically put on anesthetic, effectively knocking them out, to ensure that they do not feel the procedure take place. A skilled surgeon will then remove all of the damaged tissues in the affected area, and leave the healthy tissue behind. Often times amputation patients take a long time to fully recover from this surgical procedure and require extensive treatment in order to reach a similar state of prior mobility. Patients have also been reported to feel a form of phantom pain, which is the pain of a part of the body that is no longer present. After the initial treatment, amputee victims must rely on extensive physical therapy. Fortunately, amputees can receive prosthetic replacements that are complex enough to replace the arm that was lost partially. There are also the psychological damages that are bound to arise after the loss of a limb. Patients can seek out emotional therapy for this condition, but there is no telling how long this process of mental and emotional recovery will take. The overall cost of these treatments, and more importantly the cost of complex prosthetics can leave a significant monetary burden on an amputee victim.
Fortunately, amputee victims can seek monetary assistance through one of the many amputation charities scattered across Los Angeles, and the greater United States. While some of these programs require some pre-existing criteria, plenty offer to fund to amputees with little prior requirements.
Charities That Help Amputee Victims
Many amputee victims are left bearing the brunt of the financial burden left behind by the treatment and reparative procedures needed to return to a normal way of life. Fortunately, there are some charities in Los Angeles, and throughout the country that helps amputee victims pay for treatment and any prosthetic replacements, they may need. Listed below are some of these charitable organizations:
- The Amputee Coalition
- Amputee Empowerment Partners
- Orthotics and Prosthetics Online Resource
- War Amps National Amputee Centre
- Wounded Warrior Project (WWP)
- Ability Found
- Arms Within Reach Foundation
- Amputee Blade Runners
- Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF)
- Chariots of Hope
- Chive Charities
- Fighting Back Scholarship Program
- Heather Abbot Foundation
- Life Nets: The Wheelchair project
- Limbs for Life Foundation
- Limbs with Love
- Limb Preservation Foundation
- Mending Limbs Organization
- National Amputation Foundation
- National Military Family Association
- Steve Chamberlin’s 50 Legs
- Steps of Faith Foundation
- The Wheelchair Recycler
- Local Service Clubs
- Douglas Bader Foundation
- Limb Power
- Port-Er
- REACH
- STEPS
- Steel Bones
- Limbcare
- Finding Your Feet
- Disabled Living Foundation
These are just some of the charities that provide funding for amputee victims. While all of these programs require different application processes, there are certain steps you should take in order to ensure that you receive the full amount of funding that you require. For your reference we’ve included these essential steps below:
- Find out what kind of prosthetic or treatment you require
- Retrieve a prescription from your primary care physician
- Gather all personal information regarding your disability
- Apply to a foundation per particular foundation guidelines
The process of recovering from an amputation isn’t easy, and it is often recommended that you receive all the funding that you can get. The combined price of prosthetics, medical treatment, physical therapy, and any psychological therapy can be overbearing for many, and this burden can bring on further damages. For this reason, if you or a loved one were made an amputee as a result of the misconduct or negligence of another individual you have every right to sue the party responsible for the damages. However, suing another party can be difficult to do alone, and it is in your best interest that you seek legal representation from an attorney experienced in fighting for the rights of amputees.
How Normandie Law Firm Can Help
Losing a limb can be a damaging and traumatic experience. Beyond the initial physical trauma, there is also the monetary damages these injuries can cause. Treatment, and more importantly, prosthetic replacements can be expensive and can leave victims with a significant financial burden. Fortunately, if you or a loved one was made an amputee due to the negligence or misconduct of another, you may be able to sue the liable party and earn compensation for your damages. At Normandie Law Firm our attorneys can guide you through the often complicated process of building a case, filing a claim, and reaching a satisfactory settlement. If you file a claim with our law firm, you may find some if not all of the following damages compensable to you:
- All of you medical and hospitalization costs
- All of your future medical care and treatment
- A loss of income and loss of future earnings due to long-term recovery or permanent disability due to the accident
- Compensable economic damages include loss of property or damaged property.
- Compensable non-economic damages include emotional distress, trauma, PTSD resulting from the accident, pain and suffering and anxiety.
While our law firm is based near Los Angeles, our attorneys also practice in Oakland, San Francisco, Riverside, San Diego, Sacramento, Orange County, Riverside, Fresno, and throughout the state of California.
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Other attorneys will sign you up for their firm but will disappear once your name is on the paper as they are busy signing up more cases. In these instances, their business is based more on volume and will attempt to sign up as many cases as possible. In turn, they will spend less time on cases resulting in severely reduced settlements. Our firm will not treat you like a number. We will be in communication with you throughout our lawsuit and will treat you like family. So if you already have an attorney don’t worry, we’ll give you a second review of your case 100% free of charge.
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If you contact our law offices today, we can walk you through the complicated process of filing your claim completely free of charge. As a show this commitment to you and your case we offer our clients the benefits of a zero fee guarantee policy. Under our zero fee policy, all clients don’t pay for our services until their case is won. If you feel in need of a second opinion, second opinion case reviews are also free under this policy. Please, feel free to give us a call, and we can guide you down the path of receiving proper compensation for your damages.
