If you ever plan on going abroad with your family, you’re in for a treat. After all, exploring foreign land with your loved ones can be a great way not just to learn about other cultures, but to bond as well. If you’re still in the preparation stage, however, consider making sure you know some handy ways to ensure your family’s safety from catastrophic injuries.
According to Leigh Day, more than 4.4 million people have acquired injuries from 2012 to 2015 due to various circumstances abroad, including painful sunstroke and sunburn, fractured bones, grazes, cuts, and even food poisoning.
While these injuries may seem “common,” it’s important to understand that some of these injuries may in fact be catastrophic. Legally speaking, a catastrophic injury is a kind of injury that prevents someone from doing any work permanently. These include certain fractures, ruptures in tendors andor ligaments, and may arise from situations such as trips and falls. As such, keeping you and your family safe from these injuries abroad are important. Here are some tips to keep in mind:
- Avoid horseplay and recklessness at all costs. While it’s fun to play around in another country, try as much as possible to avoid reckless behavior while staying there. Try to follow traffic rules and regulations, and stay out of trouble as much as possible. Actively making sure you’re not getting yourself in situations that could lead to harm can be a good way to avoid catastrophic injuries.
- Try to avoid travelling if you’re prone to injuries or if you have an existing injury. Aside from how this can be an inconvenience for you, the risk of further injuries can be alleviated if you stay and recover at home instead of pushing yourself to travel with a known injury. If you really have to travel with an injury, try to take notes as to how to better take care of yourself with your injury while in another country. Try to see if you can get your medicine to the airplane or to the cruise. If not, try finding out where you can get yourself a prescription for medicine.
- Try to make sure you and your family get first aid training, and/or youalways have a first aid kit with you. While catastrophic injuries will likely need intensive medical attention, if there’s a way for your family to get first aid training, try to get them as this will likely help you be able to provide first aid care that can spell the difference between life and death. Always keep a first aid kit handy, and make sure you know how to use all the tools inside of it.
- Remember to keep track of where all relevant emergency services are. If you’re staying in a hotel or a place of residence, make sure you do your research. Where are the nearest hospitals, clinics, and police stations in the case of accidents from your immediate vicinity? If you have a tour planned, make sure you do adequate research on these as well. How fast would it take for you to get there, and what modes of transportation are best used to get there if emergency services won’t work?
Conclusion
Traveling with your family abroad can be quite an enjoyable time, regardless of the occasion. Unfortunately, these fun moments can turn disastrous if any one of you experience catastrophic injuries, and not knowing what to do about them can be just as equally distressing. The tips above, with the assistance of a catastrophic injury lawyer, may be able to give you adequate assistance with your concerns.
