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Steps To Consider If Your Child Was Injured On The School Playground

29 May 2015 by Jo Rodriquez

If your child comes home from elementary school with visible injuries, it's important to find out exactly what happened. For various reasons and circumstances, not all injuries that occur on the school playground are witnessed or reported properly. In many cases, the playground aide or teacher may not feel that the incident warrants an investigation or further reporting. This can be troublesome if your child's injury becomes worse or severe hours later. If your child has experienced an injury on school property, here are some steps that you should take to ensure a positive outcome.

Speak With Your Child Thoroughly About The Incident

At first glance, if your child has a large bruise or contusion, you'll want to ask him where it came from. This is an important opportunity to write down or record everything that he says—especially while it's fresh on his mind. Ask him detailed questions regarding:

• When the accident happened?
• Where it happened?
• Who was there with your child or who was responsible for him?
• Did someone else deliberately hurt him or cause the accident?
• Was the accident recorded with his teacher or principal?

Getting your child's version of the story before you speak with anyone else can help you piece together any missing information later on.

Seek Medical Attention

If your child is visibly injured or complaining of pain or other pertinent injuries, seek immediate medical attention. Not only will this determine if there is any underlying medical problems or injuries, it will serve as a paper trail for documentation of your child's accident. Request a complete medical record of the visit as well as any findings that occurred as a result.

Contact The School

It's important to contact the school as soon as you have a chance to do so after making sure your child is all right first. If the injury is severe, it's recommended to start with the school principal to ensure that the entire incident is recorded properly. From there, an investigative process will likely take place. This requires the principal to question anyone involved with the accident—including other students in order to conduct a thorough investigation.

Consider Seeking Legal Counsel

Even if you feel the school has taken responsibility for acknowledging an accident happened under their watch, you may still wish to speak with a personal injury lawyer. The attorney will be able to give you fair and unbiased advice about how to proceed or not proceed with a lawsuit. The entire process takes time and involves completing several steps—including obtaining written statements from everyone involved in the situation. Your attorney may feel you could win punitive damages resulting from physical injuries or personal distress imposed on your child from the accident.

Seeking a reputable personal injury attorney that you can trust is important. In the end, making sure your child is safe and healthy is a priority.

For more information, contact Arrington Schelin & Munsey PC or a similar firm.

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