Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Claim*
Carpal tunnel syndrome is a fairly common workplace injury.
This post will give you information about carpal tunnel syndrome and a carpal tunnel syndrome claim*.
It mostly affects workers who perform repetitive tasks that require them to use their hands or wrists, and if negligence is the injury cause, a worker may wish to commence a carpal tunnel syndrome claim*.
What is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) belongs to the group of injuries called repetitive stress injuries, which involve nerve damage to one or both hands.
The major nerves in the hands and wrists are the median, ulnar and superficial radial nerves.
The median nerve and several tendons are housed in the carpal tunnel, which is situated at the bottom of the wrist.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome results from the squeezing or compression of the median nerve as it passes through the carpal tunnel.
Symptoms of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
CTS symptoms develop gradually. They impact feeling and motor abilities in one or both hands.
The injured person usually starts to experience a loss in grip and stiffness in their index, middle and ring fingers and the thumb. If the grip deterioration advances, tasks like picking up small items or tying the laces of shoes may become difficult.
It inflicts weakness, numbness or a tingling feeling in the hands or fingers. Sometimes, the discomfort can make sleeping more difficult. For such cases, surgery might be necessary to alleviate the pain.
Diagnosis & Treatment
Examples of the assessments/tests doctors can do to make a diagnosis:
- History of Symptoms: The doctor reviews the pattern of the patient’s symptoms.
- Physical Examination: The physician conducts a physical examination by testing the feeling in the patient’s fingers and the hand’s muscle strength.
- X-Ray: A doctor might recommend taking an x-ray of the injured wrist to eliminate other wrist pain causes, like arthritis or fractures. However, x-rays might not be useful in diagnosis CTS.
- Electromyogram: This test can help pinpoint damage to muscles managed by the median nerve.
- Nerve Conduction Study: This is a variation of electromyography and helps to diagnose carpal tunnel syndrome and exclude other conditions.
Early treatment for CTS can involve taking more breaks to rest one’s hands, avoiding activities that worsen the symptoms and applying cold packs to reduce swelling.
Wrist splinting, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, corticosteroids and surgery are other treatment options for carpal tunnel syndrome.
Duties of Employers – Manual Handling
Under the Safety Health & Welfare at Work Regulations 2007, employers have a duty to enforce relevant measures regarding workplace safety, equipment safety and manual handling of loads.
An employer is obligated to provide for the safety and health of employees when loads are being transported and there are risks of injury. Proper equipment and workstations etc. should be in place.
Safety, Health & Welfare at Work Obligations
The general duties of employers under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Regulations 2005 Act are:
- Ensure the safety, health and welfare for employees at work as far as is practicable.
- Manage and conduct work activities in a way that ensures the health, safety and welfare of workers.
- Prevent any improper conduct or behaviour that is likely to endanger the safety, health and welfare of employees.
- Design, provide and upkeep a safe workplace and equipment.
- Provide protection against exposure to harmful articles, substances, noise, vibrations, ionising, radiations and other physical agents.
- Provide planned, organised, tested, maintained and revised work systems.
- Offer and maintain facilities and arrangements at work for employee welfare.
- Provide information, instruct, train and supervise employees.
- Determine and implement safety, health and welfare strategies.
- Have regard to the overall principles of prevention in cases where risk can’t be removed or sufficiently controlled and offer suitable protective gear and equipment.
- Prepare and revise appropriate measures to be enforced in case of an emergency situation.
- Report accidents.
- Obtain the services of a qualified person for the purpose of ensuring employee safety, health and welfare.
Training
Employers are obligated to provide training that should deal with tasks that have a risk to safety, and training should be repeated as any new risks arise.
Risk Assessment & Safety Statement
The Safety, Health and Welfare Act of 2005 mandates employers to identify workplace hazards that are under their control. Employers should then make any risk identified safer after the hazard has been identified.
Safety statements prepared by employers should be given to employees.
Safety statements should explain the hazards and risks assessed, explain the plans/procedures, preventative measures taken by the employer for safety protection.
Frequently Asked Questions
If an accident happens to an employee at work and negligence arose, then normally after the matter is notified to the insurer, the insurer will likely make a decision in terms of insurance policy cover in the particular case.
The insurer may do this at the outset or it may do this after a case commences. The answer is dependant on the employer’s insurance cover in place, the facts of the case ie if negligence and liability arise, and then the decision making of the insurance company.
If you have an injury at work, evidently it should be reported as soon as possible after you obtain medical care. The employer may have to report the accident to the Health and Safety Authority.
A question the employee will have considered is what was the cause of the accident. Did the employee cause the accident or was there an issue with a system within the workplace or a work practice that was unsafe, defective, and this accident was likely going to occur.
Many times in accidents of this nature, an employee has had a previous problem with a particular machine, for example. After the employer reviews the problem, it transpires that there is a cost to resolving the problem, which could be a change and upgrade of the workstation and then the upgrade is not made, and in time an injury occurs to the employee who remained working with the defective system or unit at work. This employee then, if an accident arises, will be dissatisfied with this scenario.
Under S.8 of the Civil Liability Act 2004, a called a ‘Letter of Claim’ must be sent by the person pursuing the action to the other person within 1 month of the date of the accident of their intention to pursue this course of action.
If the matter is not resolved at this stage and the alleged wrongdoer is on notice of it, then an application to the Injuries Board can be made by completing and submitting Form A with the application fee of €45 or €90 and a medical report. The Injuries Board accept applications either online or via post.
A medical report must be completed by your doctor and will include information regarding accident details, injuries sustained, medical history, complaints, clinical findings and prognosis.
When you receive the medical report you should go through its content and make sure everything is accurate and you’re happy with it.
Claims of this nature must be registered with the Personal Injuries Board within two years less than one day from the date of the accident.
Here is more information about the personal injury claims* process.
Do I get paid If I am injured at work?
Is there a provision ie a clause that provides for this in the specific Employment Contract ? or is there a custom and practice in the particular workplace to do so ? needs to be reviewed to answer this.
Case Assessment Advice regarding a Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Claim*
If you are suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome caused by your work duties, you can contact us by telephone or email and we will have an initial meeting with you to explore the facts and furnish a case opinion to you.
Disclaimer – Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Claim* Article
Please be advised that the above-mentioned material is intended as an overview and as a broad outline of the topic discussed. It should not be considered as complete and comprehensive legal advice, nor act as an appropriate substitute.
Due care has been taken in the publication of this article and we do not accept legal liability as a result of reliance on any material covered in the above article.
Personal Injuries * In contentious business, a Solicitor may not calculate fees or other charges as a percentage or proportion of any award or settlement.
