Not all amputations are the same. When they are caused by an accident or injury (as opposed to disease or medical malpractice), they are called “traumatic amputations.” Amputations that are the result of trauma are most often caused by (1) motor vehicle accidents; (2) farming accidents; (3) power tools or firearms; or (4) electrocutions or severe burns. See, Milagros Jorge, Orthotics and Prosthetics in Rehabilitation (Fourth Edition) (2020).
According to the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (“OSHA”), an amputation is defined as the “traumatic loss of limb or other external body part.” This trauma may be immediate or it may be prolonged. From 29 U.S.C. 1904.39(b)(11):
An amputation is the traumatic loss of a limb or other external body part. Amputations include a part, such as a limb or appendage, that has been severed, cut off, amputated (either completely or partially); fingertip amputations with or without bone loss; medical amputations resulting from irreparable damage; amputations of body parts that have since been reattached. Amputations do not include avulsions, enucleations, deglovings, scalpings, severed ears, or broken or chipped teeth.
An important warning for workers in Indiana and Illinois: traumatic amputations can happen in seconds on the job during an industrial accident. They can also result days, weeks, or months after a workplace injury when the loss of limb damaged in the event is medically required.
Industries with Greatest Danger for Amputations
Of course, some workplaces are more dangerous than others, where workers face a higher risk of amputation as they perform their daily tasks.
Working With Industrial Machinery
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (“BLS”), anyone working with industrial machinery faces a great risk of work accident amputations. According to the BLS, machinery accidents were the cause of fifty-eight percent (58%) of workplace amputations in 2018.
For more on the risks of machine guard accidents, read: Machine Guarding: Serious Industrial Work Accidents Caused by Moving Machine Parts.
Overall, the BLS reports the following industries have the greatest danger of traumatic amputations: (1) manufacturing (2.1 amputations per every 10,000 workers); (2) construction (1.4 amputations for every 10,000 workers); and (3) agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting (1.4 amputations for every 10,000 workers). However, some industrial workers in our part of the country should take particular care during their workday against the hazard of workplace loss of limb accidents. Consider the following:
Meat-Packing and Food Service Industries
Within some industries here in Indiana and Illinois, among them those working construction and factory workers, some facing the highest risk of traumatic amputation are workers involving in the local food-related industries. According to an investigation by the Guardian, every week in this country amputations are suffered by those employed in the American meatpacking industry. Read, “Two amputations a week: the cost of working in a US meat plant,” written by Andrew Wasley, Christopher D. Cook and Natalie Jones and published by the Guardian on July 5, 2018.
Workers need not be employed in the slaughterhouses made famous in Chicago’s history to face the danger of the tragic loss of a limb in a workplace accident. According to OSHA, those working with food slicers and meat grinders in the widespread food service industry (from delis, sandwich shops, grocery stores, supermarkets, restaurants, etc.) face a serious risk of amputation as they work on these bladed machines. They also face a risk of traumatic amputation when they clean these machines or perform routine maintenance on them.
For more, see: OSHA Warns of Accident Dangers in Illinois’ Food Processing Industry.
Industrial Accident Amputations: Complex Harm
For any worker who suffers the permanent harm of amputation due to a workplace accident, the harm is complex. In traumatic amputations that occur during the event, there is the immediate danger of death due to shock, blood loss, or improper emergency care; the instantaneous pain and suffering; and the resulting medical treatment to resolve the bodily injury.
However, both the victim of a traumatic amputation on the job as well as their loved ones will suffer for a very long time after the accident itself and its primary treatment. It is recognized, for instance, that victims of traumatic amputation will suffer from psychological trauma that comes with the loss of a body part. There will be grieving process for both the victim as well as his or her family members.
Some traumatic amputation victims may be able to be fitted with artificial limbs. This may be a lengthy and expensive process involving a number of medical and medically-related professionals.
Over the following months or years, the traumatic amputation victim will also need significant rehabilitation therapy. Traumatic amputation means the accident victim will have to adapt to life without that body part (e.g., finger, hand, arm, foot, leg) or with that artificial limb. Not only will their daily personal tasks have to be conformed to their new reality, but their loved ones will have to respond to change, too.
Moreover, the worker who has suffered a traumatic amputation on the industrial worksite may not be able to return to their line of work. The loss of a limb in a traumatic amputation can mean a big change in the worker’s ability to work in any capacity. It may require significant rehabilitation time to allow the worker to learn an alternative skill or trade that can be performed with the trauma-related amputation.
For more: Amputation Injuries from On-the-Job Work Accidents in Indiana or Illinois; and Amputations and Motor Vehicle Accidents in Indiana or Illinois.
Traumatic Amputation Work Accidents: Claims for Damages
All of these damages can be monetarily assessed. Past, present, and future medical care and costs; rehabilitation needs; physical therapy; and mental health support for both the industrial worker and their family members may be available under the state laws of Indiana and Illinois.
These damages may be provided under the state workers’ compensation systems. Monetary claims for relief in some cases may also be available pursuant to state personal injury, negligence, premises liability, or defective product laws.
Each traumatic amputation case involving an industrial worksite must be carefully and independently investigated by the worker victim to confirm the scope of legal damages available under state workers’ compensation laws. In some situations, this analysis may also reveal third parties share legal liability for the traumatic amputation incident. This might be the owner of the premises; those who manufactured or designed the machine or product involved in the event; contractors and supervisors on the site; and more.
See:
- Pain Awareness: Claims to Cover an Accident Victim’s Pain Damages
- The Two Main Differences Between Workers Compensation and Personal Injury Claims for Accident Victims in Indiana and Illinois
- Premises Liability and Workplace Accidents: Third Party Injury Claims
- Multiple Employers on the Construction Site: Who Is Liable For Construction Worker Accidents?
- Workplace Safety and OSHA Regulations in Indiana and Illinois.
Workers in Indiana and Illinois that suffer the loss of a limb during an on-the-job incident deserve to have their injuries and the harm experienced by their loved ones covered by those with legal liability for the accident. Traumatic amputations are life-altering, horrific events that deserve empathy and respect, which all too often is denied by employers and their carriers. Please be careful out there!
