What to Do When Your Child is in a School Bus Accident

The following is a guest post by Personal Injury Lawyers at Dolan Law Offices:   One particular phone call can take your breath away.  News that your child has been hurt in a school bus accident is terrifying and overwhelming.  It can be difficult to think clearly and to think beyond the immediate need to get to your child as quickly as possible.  However, your child and other children who ride school buses are counting on you for help both in the short term and the long term.    Get to Your Child No matter how minor the injuries appear to be directly after the accident, it is important that you, or someone whom you trust, gets to the accident scene as quickly as possible.  Your child is likely scared and needs your support.  Additionally, you need to look at your child yourself and determine what type of medical attention the child needs.   Get Information If your child needs emergency medical care then he/she will likely be taken by ambulance, or airlifted, to the hospital.  Stay with your child as much as medical personnel will allow.  If you have time before medical treatment, however, then it is a good idea to take pictures of the accident scene and to ask your child, and his or her friends, what happened.    Children often forget accident details quickly and they may be reluctant to tell authorities everything that they know – you have the best chance of getting accurate information from your own child.  Bergen NJ bus accidents, and bus accidents throughout the state, are investigated by local police who often welcome the comfort that a parent can provide to an injured child.   Get Medical Help Whether or not your child exhibits acute symptoms of an injury, it is important to seek medical assistance as soon as possible.  Children do not always articulate where it hurt or the severity of the pain.  Furthermore, given the fear and confusion that occurs in an accident, children may not remember if they hit their heads during the accident and should be checked for concussions and traumatic brain injuries.   Get Legal Help Once your child has received medical care and you have attended to the child’s immediate emotional needs then it is important to call a bus accident lawyer to make sure that all of your child’s rights are protected and  that your child receives the recovery to which he or she is entitled.    The Chicago accidents lawyers of Dolan Law Offices fight for each and every personal injury client and are committed to helping injured parties recover just damages.