After a car accident, one of the biggest worries many Ontario workers have is whether they’ll still have a job when they’re ready to return to work. The good news is that Ontario law provides strong protections for employees who need time off due to accident-related injuries.
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If you’ve suffered a brain injury in a motor vehicle collision, or other incident and are experiencing chronic headaches, you’re not alone. Post-traumatic headaches affect up to 85% of patients with brain injuries, with many experiencing more than 15 headache days per month. Migraine headache is the most common type of post-traumatic headache. While many people associate Botox with cosmetic treatments, it’s actually Health Canada-approved as an effective second-line treatment for chronic migraines—including those that develop after brain injuries from personal injury accidents.
We recently spoke with Dr. Chantal Vaidyanath, Physician Lead of the Head Injury Clinic at St. Michael’s Hospital, about this promising treatment option. Dr. Vaidyanath specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of post-traumatic migraines and given her extensive experience with Botox injections for spasticity management, she is now offering Botox injections for migraine management. The insights shared in this article are based on our conversation with her about how this treatment can help brain injury patients reclaim their quality of life.
We’re honored to see CBC News highlight an important story involving our client, Ofelia Fernandez. Her journey underscores the resilience required to navigate Ontario’s accident benefits system and the critical role of legal advocacy.
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In a recent case, Heartland Farm Mutual Inc. refused to pay over $1 million in optional insurance coverage to two people they insured after a serious car accident. Heartland denied the coverage because of a minor administrative error, which they should have known could occur given the circumstances, and later used to their advantage. Despite this, the License Appeal Tribunal (an Ontario tribunal that resolves disputes related to car insurance claims, license issues, and other regulated matters outside of the traditional court system), said it could not step in to provide an equitable remedy, allowing Heartland to benefit from its unfair handling of the claim.
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Whiplash Associated Disorder (WAD) is the full medical name for Whiplash – neck injuries from (even low-speed) car accidents. Usually, whiplash happens when another driver rear-ends the accident victim, although it can be caused by any impact, or even from sudden braking to avoid an accident. The victim’s head snaps violently back and forward, damaging their neck. Whiplash is classified as a soft-tissue injury (STI) to the muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Because there are no broken bones, whiplash injuries can be challenging to identify. This makes them harder to prove in a lawsuit or when the victim needs no-fault accident benefits from their own auto insurance company.
Few things in life are as scary and potentially life changing as brain injuries. When you or someone you love has suffered a brain injury, the impact on your relationships, family finances, and daily activities can be devastating. Unfortunately, the complex nature of these injuries causes a lot of confusion, from basic medical terminology to possible legal considerations. We are here to help.
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Whether your injury was sustained in a motor vehicle accident, a slip and fall, or other incident, when experiencing spinal cord injury, impairment can be significant, and a lifelong struggle. Spinal cord injuries are extremely complex thus often difficult to assess and understand.
Winter is here and with it, fresh snow in our backyards, school yards, and most importantly our local park hills. What were once grassy ridges will be transformed to thrilling sites for sledding and tobogganing. There are many designated hills in Ontario that are inspected regularly for safety, where people of all ages can gather and enjoy the crisp winter weather and share in the thrill of rushing down a slope, including nearly 30 parks in Toronto alone!
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Recently, the Licence Appeal Tribunal (LAT) released Panchoo v. Aviva, (2023 CanLII 87390), another decision in the recent line considering the applicability of Single Photon Emission Computerized Tomography (SPECT) imaging in the diagnosis of post-concussion syndrome or mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). In it, the claimant, Mr. Panchoo, sought payment of a series of treatment plans that were denied by Aviva, his accident benefits insurer, on the basis that they were not reasonably necessary. These plans included continuing chiropractic care, psychological counselling, cognitive rehabilitation, and funding for an incurred neuropsychology assessments. Aviva denied the plans based on earlier insurance medical examinations from its neurologist and neuropsychologist that found no objective evidence of a neurological, cognitive, or psychological condition. Based on these opinions, Aviva decided that further treatment was unnecessary, despite the claimant’s ongoing cognitive, psychological, and physical struggles.
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