If you’ve ever been in a car accident, then you know that you can suffer from minor injuries to severe or catastrophic injuries. As such, you’ll need the assistance of a Charlotte car accident lawyer and a doctor. These two professionals are crucial to your recovery and making the most of a personal injury claim for compensation.
However, as evident as these two choices are, most injury victims fail to hire a lawyer or see a doctor. Furthermore, those who choose to see a medical professional do not know the type to see. Since this isn’t an excellent place to find oneself, Ted A. Greve and Associates put together the types of physicians to see after an accident.
After getting treatment, our attorneys can help you commence the personal injury claim. We do this by filing an insurance claim or a personal injury lawsuit. So contact us immediately after the accident.
Different Types of Doctors to See After a Charlotte Car Accident
After an accident, the foremost thing that should be on your mind is your health. Thus, you must get treatment from a medical professional. However, you cannot see just any type of doctor as the physician you need depends on your injury type and the severity.
Therefore, depending on those two factors, you may need to see:
- Emergency room doctor
- Urgent care doctor
- Primary care physician
- A medical specialist like a surgeon, chiropractor, acupuncturist, physical therapist, neurologist, etc
Emergency Room (ER) Doctor
An ER doctor is a medical professional who works in the emergency room to treat patients that require immediate attention. In the United States, an ER physician works majorly in hospitals and does not have a private practice. Thus, if your injuries are severe and life-threatening, the first physician you’ll see is an ER doctor.
The preceding is mainly because the choice of a physician at this point is not yours but that of the EMS personnel. So, they’ll likely take you to the nearest hospital emergency room to get you the help you need to stay alive. Note that if the car accident happened late at night, the ER is your best option as emergency room doctors are available round the clock all year round.
Urgent Care or Primary Care Doctor
An urgent care doctor provides immediate medical service and offers outpatient care for the treatment of acute and chronic illness and injury. Unlike emergency room medicine where you receive treatment and get admitted into the hospital, there is no admission in urgent care medicine. Also, the urgent care physician is not the same as a primary care physician (PCP).
A primary care physician is a medical doctor trained to prevent, diagnose, and treat a broad array of illnesses and injuries in the general population. Your PCP is who you describe as your “regular” doctor. That is the physician you visit when you feel sick or for regular health checkups.
If your car accident injury is not severe, you can visit your primary care physician or an urgent care doctor. They will conduct a complete body checkup to rule out internal injuries and treat any wounds. Note that an urgent care doctor has longer clinical hours than your PCP, and you can walk in without an appointment.
With your PCP, you need to make an appointment. Thus, your primary care doctor is a better option where your injuries do not require immediate medical attention. In addition, people involved in minor car accidents are more likely to use a primary care physician. Lastly, note that most PCPs do not treat accident victims, so an ER or urgent care doctor may be the best option.
Medical Specialists
Any medical specialists mentioned earlier can treat you on referral from an ER, urgent care, or primary care doctor. For instance, if your injury requires surgery to fix, your doctor would refer you to a surgeon. Again, a specialist will help increase your recovery timeline.
Aside from the treatment you receive, to recover more quickly, do the following:
- Follow the instructions from your doctor to the letter.
- Keep all your appointment and follow treatment directions
- Avoid carrying out activities that aggravate your injury
Injured in an Accident? Contact Car Accident Attorneys in Charlotte
Your treatment record is crucial to the injury claim process, and you need an experienced lawyer to use it effectively to get you maximum compensation. Our accident lawyers in Charlotte, NC, have both years of experience and the required legal knowledge. So contact us at Ted A. Greve and Associates for a free case review.