How Long Do You Have to Go to the Doctor After a Slip and Fall?

How Long Do You Have To Go to the Doctor After a Slip and Fall?

Suppose you tripped and fell because of a loose floor mat in an office building, then got up and continued with your day. Your leg hurt, but you assumed you bruised it, and your leg wouldn’t take long to heal. The following day, your leg is swollen, and it’s harder to walk. You may have fractured one of your leg bones or torn ligaments when you fell. 

When considering how long after a slip and fall to go to doctors, acting as quickly as possible is essential. Even if your injuries appear minor, getting assessed by a professional within 24 to 72 hours after the accident can help protect your overall well-being. 

Slip-and-fall lawyers recommend acting this quickly because there may be hidden injuries that could pose significant harm. In the example above, severe leg swelling could mean you’ve developed a blood clot that requires fast treatment to avoid it shifting and potentially traveling to your lungs and causing a pulmonary embolism. 

Getting timely care also assists you in establishing a connection between the accident and the injury. 

Because you need to prove proximate cause in personal injury claims, not allowing more than a day or two to pass before seeking help can strengthen your case. This simple action can prevent insurance companies from questioning whether the fall caused your injuries. 

What Kind of Doctor Should You See After a Slip and Fall?

Now that you have an idea of when to see a doctor after a slip and fall, the next concern you may have is what doctor to visit. It’s essential to pay attention to your symptoms. If you’re in significant pain, have lost consciousness even for a brief moment, are bleeding, or have trouble walking, going to the emergency room is the right choice. 

If you don’t feel that the injuries require emergency care, make an appointment with your primary care physician (PCP). They will diagnose the injury and provide treatments that can help you recover from a fall down the stairs, or a slip on wet floors. 

In some cases, you may need to visit a specialist. If you suffered bone or joint injuries, you’ll need orthopedic care, while a head injury could require assistance from a neurologist. For most people, getting specialist care means first obtaining a referral from a PCP. 

Benefits of Prompt Care

You may not realize that you fractured a bone or suffered another severe injury when you slipped and fell. Immediately seeking medical treatment ensures you receive a diagnosis and can promptly begin treatment. 

Untreated medical problems can be painful. In some cases, pain may increase over time. Chronic pain from untreated nerve damage can prevent you from engaging in some activities, impacting your quality of life. 

You may also exacerbate your injuries if you don’t seek treatment. In these cases, patients usually require additional medical care, increasing their treatment costs and prolonging their recovery.

Legal Factors

You may have grounds to pursue legal action if you fall because of someone’s negligence. The State of Florida gives slip-and-fall victims four years to file a lawsuit before the statute of limitations expires. The sooner you seek medical treatment, the sooner you’ll know if you have a potential legal claim.

What To Do After a Fall

You may not be sure what to do after a slip-and-fall injury, or you may need help understanding the severity of the wound. Some symptoms to look for after a fall could indicate you need to see a doctor. Your symptoms can vary based on the nature of the injuries you sustained. 

Some common symptoms to look for include the following:

Swelling 

Bruises, broken bones, soft tissue injuries, and torn ligaments can cause swelling. Internal injuries may require medical tests to diagnose.

Dizziness or Headaches

Falls are responsible for more traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) than any other cause. Common symptoms include dizziness, headaches, nausea, vomiting, and seizures.

Numbness in Your Extremities 

Spinal cord injuries (SCIs) can cause your arms, hands, legs, and feet to tingle or feel numb. You may lose feeling in your extremities in severe cases. 

Pain

Common fall injuries can cause chronic pain. Persistent or increasing pain indicates you should see a doctor. 

Related: Personal Injury Claims in Tampa, Florida.

When To Go to the Doctor

Every person has what medical professionals call a baseline. Your baseline is what’s normal for you. Within the normal body temperature range, some people tend to be warmer while others are cooler. The same goes for pain. You may have some lingering pain from prior injuries, which would be part of your everyday condition. 

Changes from your baseline can indicate serious health issues. Symptoms of common fall injuries or changes from your baseline are reasons to see a doctor. For example, running a fever is a symptom of TBIs. Running a fever a few days after your accident could indicate you have a fracture that’s caused an infection. You must heed any symptoms or changes from your baseline and see a doctor.

What To Discuss With Your Doctor After a Slip and Fall

When you visit your doctor, they will need as much information as possible to help you. Remember the following things in your discussion so that the medical professional understands the full scope of the accident:

• Share exactly how the accident occurred and provide as many details as possible.
• Give your doctor an outline of all of the symptoms you experienced since the fall, no matter how minor they may seem, and whether you still have them or not.
• Let them know all of the body parts that may have been impacted by the slip and fall.
• Provide information on the pain levels you’ve experienced, how they’ve changed, and whether they’ve progressed.
• Ensure the doctor understands that all of your symptoms are the result of this specific slip-and-fall accident, since they will include this in their notes.

How Seeing a Doctor Immediately Strengthens Your Slip-And-Fall Case

The steps to take after a slip-and-fall accident always include seeing a medical professional as quickly as possible. The slip-and-fall doctor visit timeline is an essential piece of evidence because it helps you create a medical record. This record gives credence to your claim that the fall caused your injuries. 

Insurers and juries usually have concerns about the validity of a claim when the plaintiff waits too long between the accident and getting help. Proving that the slip-and-fall treatment start time was very soon after the incident can be a huge boost for your case.   

Getting immediate care also offers insight into the progression of the injuries. If there were delayed symptoms, or the full extent of the harm you suffered wasn’t yet noticeable, having thorough medical records from the start helps bring credibility to the claim. 

When To See a Lawyer

Slip-and-fall lawyers can guide you through every step of the treatment and recovery process. Your legal team will encourage you to take medical tests to ensure you get a comprehensive diagnosis. Your lawyer will use your medical information to build a case against those responsible for your accident. Your law firm will also file court paperwork, locate witnesses, and compile evidence to support your claims while you focus on your treatment and recovery.

You may have bills for medical tests, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and counseling. Your slip-and-fall attorney will fight for you to receive compensation for your medical bills, and you won’t pay any legal fees until your lawyer wins your case.

Sources:
Facts About Falls. (2021).

How Do I Know If I’ve Broken a Bone? (2020).

Keep on Your Feet — Preventing Older Adult Falls. (2020).

Proximate Cause. (2024)

Pulmonary Embolism. (2025).