At Thompsons, we have a long and proud tradition of working for seriously
injured and disabled adults and children to secure the best possible outcomes
for them after their injury.
The team of expert serious injury solicitors – who specialise in spinal
cord and brain injuries, amputations and multiple injury claims – make sure Thompsons’
clients secure the best possible financial settlement for their life-changing
injuries.
Person-centred approach
New clients are usually going through a very traumatic time when they
contact Thompsons Solicitors for legal advice. Clients and their families are
often still in the early stages of coming to terms with a serious injury or
disability. This is why it is so important that they receive our expert help as
soon as possible.
In addition to gathering information about the way in which the client
was injured, the solicitor from Thompsons will work quickly and closely with
the injured person and their family to understand the level of financial
assistance they need to help with ongoing care, rehabilitation and future
support. Our person-centred approach makes sure that our clients are an active
part of the decision-making process. Rather than being a passive bystander with
others making decisions on their behalf, wherever possible we enable our
clients to be an active participant, supporting them with the knowledge and
skills they need.
More than just a legal service
With us, a legal case is not just about compensation. And that is where I
come in, as one of the dedicated client support coordinators. I am a
qualified nurse specialising in rehabilitation, and I teach medical students
the long term effects of living with an SCI. The work of a client support
coordinator brings a very different kind of value to the service Thompsons
provides.
As a client support coordinator, I’ll meet with the injured person as
soon as possible to holistically assess their situation using a model that
takes into consideration their physical, psychological and social needs. I’ll go through the current level of support they
are receiving from the NHS with them and, if the type of support they need
isn’t available from the NHS, provide the client’s solicitor with the information
they’ll need to secure an interim payment to access funds to pay for the right
treatment and support.
That treatment and support could come from a variety of sources including
allied healthcare professionals such as physiotherapists, occupational
therapists or psychologists who can together provide additional support and
training to help injured people manage their changed circumstances.
On the cutting edge
Every day I work with clients to provide pre-case management advice and support,
arranging extra healthcare services, contacting therapists and researching the
costs of clinical treatments, supporting with applications for welfare benefits.
We have a wealth of previous experience in health and social care fields - and
we seek out the latest training and assessment tools, and work with national organisations
such as Spinal Injuries Association, Aspire, BackUp and the Multidisciplinary Association
of Spinal Cord Injury professionals, to make sure we stay at the cutting edge
of our field.
Setting high goals
I support my clients in a number of different ways. Typically, assessing
their needs means focusing on the nature of the disability and the impact this
has – and is likely to have - on their day-to-day life now and in the future. Based
on a client’s age and previous experience, I consider questions such as “what should they be able to do?” and “what can
they actually do now?” I also examine
what a client wants to do in their life – being mindful that they may have been
seriously injured in their prime - and how they want to go about it, always offering
realistic solutions for how this gap can be bridged.
This person-centred approach encourages the team supporting the client to
all think beyond what is merely practical and seeks to understand what our
clients’ best case scenario would be. The target that emerges is often far more
aspirational than a one dimensional compensation focussed approach would yield
and can produce inspirational results.
I’m proud to say that my work greatly boosts our clients’ chances of
returning to a good quality of life, living with self-esteem and with confidence
in their future, maximum job opportunities and minimal dependence on the
benefits system.
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