Steps to Take Right After Your Child Is Seriously Injured

1. Get Your Child to a Safe Location

After an injury, your first priority is to get your child to a safe location and assess their condition. If your child suffers an injury in a busy area at an amusement park, state fair, or performance venue, move them to a quiet spot where they are protected, and you can speak to them and help them get medical care.

In the event of a pedestrian incident, where your child is hit by a car while walking or on a bicycle, try to alert others and prevent further harm from traffic if it is safe to do so.

2. Get Medical Care for Your Child

Once they are safe, getting your child medical care is key. Even if your child’s injury seems minor, it’s still important to have a doctor examine them as soon as possible to determine if there are any internal injuries or a severe head or traumatic brain injury that is not visible. 

Injuries that children often suffer include:

• Broken bones, often caused by slipping on wet surfaces, tripping on unmaintained carpeting or rugs, or getting crushed by unsecured television sets or heavy furniture not being properly anchored to the wall 
• Bumps and bruises from falls in places with hard surfaces like gyms, school hallways, or high-traffic areas that don’t have slip-resistant flooring
• Finger crush injuries when little digits get stuck in unmaintained escalators or heavy doors without sensors
• Head trauma from falls off play structures, on slippery floors, or even from defective amusement park rides
• Cuts and scrapes from sharp objects or rough surfaces like splintered wood on a playground, exposed nails or screws, or unsealed concrete
• Chemical and other types of burns from boiling liquid (water or milk), cleaning chemicals, or industrial cleaners
• Dog bites can cause deep cuts, gashes, and nerve damage

After a medical evaluation, a doctor can also recommend that your child see a psychologist or counselor if your child needs treatment for psychological suffering caused by a traumatic incident. This is especially the case when a child suffers a severe injury at the hands of a trusted adult, like a teacher or camp counselor.

You can take your child to any available medical provider, such as a local emergency room, an urgent care center, or your pediatrician’s office.

3. Document the Incident

Whether your child was injured at a school, park, playground, camp, or business, it can be overwhelming and even cause your mind to go blank on all the details surrounding the incident. That is why it’s important to document as much as you can about what happened.  

Gathering and documenting evidence is helpful if you choose to take legal action. Being able to reference the documentation from the day your child was harmed can help strengthen your legal case, and our lawyers can also use the documentation to better understand how your child was injured and how we can support you and your family to move forward. We recommend taking the following steps:

• Take photos of where the injury happened, your child’s injuries, and any potentially unsafe conditions in the surrounding areas
• Gather contact information from witnesses, including staff, teachers, community members, and other parents
• Ask for a copy of your child’s medical records once they’ve seen a doctor for their injury
• Write your own notes of what happened to your child, including what they were doing before their injury, what you saw/heard, and anything your child tells you about the incident

4. Report Your Child’s Injury

You should also report the incident to the person or organization responsible for the location where your child was injured. Child injuries can happen anywhere, so it’s important to notify whoever oversees that place.

Depending on where the incident happened, you can report your child’s injury to:

• camp counselors
• facility supervisors at trampoline parks, family entertainment centers, and indoor playgrounds
• managers at a hotel, amusement park, or grocery store
• school administrators
• store employees
• teachers

Properly managed indoor playgrounds, schools, grocery stores, camps, and other businesses have a process for documenting incidents that result in injury. When you report what happened to the appropriate person, you can ask for an incident report.

An incident report is a written document that outlines important details about your child’s injury, including where the injury happened, what unsafe conditions were present, any first aid administered, and what employees observed.

Getting a copy of any written documentation is helpful if you decide to take legal action. If you have questions about your child’s injury or your legal options, our team is here to help. Contact our experienced child injury lawyers by calling us at 214-699-4409, emailing us at intake@buttonlawfirm.com, or filling out a contact form. We will be ready to listen and support your family after a serious child injury incident.

More Free Resources After a Child’s Injury

Our experienced legal team has compiled additional resources to address common questions we get from parents and help you after your child gets hurt:

• I Signed a Waiver. Can I Still Sue After My Child Is Hurt at an Indoor Playground?
• What Legal Options Do I Have If My Child Was Injured at an Amusement Park?
• Free Guide: What To Do After a Car Wreck

How Can The Button Law Firm Help My Family After My Child Was Injured?

If your child was injured at a school, playground, park, camp, business, or other public setting, you have the right to take legal action. With offices in Dallas, Houston, and Midland, our compassionate child injury lawyers at The Button Law Firm are ready to listen and fight for your family to get justice and help you move forward after your child suffers an injury. We work on contingency, meaning we don’t charge you or collect any upfront fees to get started on your case. Get a free case evaluation by calling us at 214-699-4409, emailing us at intake@buttonlawfirm.com, or filling out a contact form.