stitched back hand

[dc_ni]

I think a part of the problem is that sharp stuff is to easily available to idiots, some of the people I've had the misfortune to work with over the years shouldn't of been let near the machines they we're on. The most annoying part was the big insurance payouts they got for putting themselves in harms way, they should of been made to pay for the cost to the NHS not given money.

 

[YouSpinMeRightRound]

I think a part of the problem is that sharp stuff is to easily available to idiots, some of the people I've had the misfortune to work with over the years shouldn't of been let near the machines they we're on. The most annoying part was the big insurance payouts they got for putting themselves in harms way, they should of been made to pay for the cost to the NHS not given money.

I'm not so sure. I think it is an employer's responsibility to make sure someone is trained with the tools they use for work, and make sure can use them safely. Continuing to employ someone who isn't trained with power tools or uses them unsafely despite training is an implicit endorsement of that situation.

Edit: In non-employment situations, I wouldn't say it's so much "Idiots can get sharp stuff" as "Untrained people who don't realise they need training can get sharp stuff".

 

[dc_ni]

I'm not saying employer's shouldn't be held responsible for unsafe working practices, as it stands I don't think companies are penalized enough when accidents happen that is down to unsafe working practices that are due to procedures within the company.

The problem I have is that it seems that employee's aren't held responsible for there own unsafe working practices. I've worked with someone that had bypassed a safety guard on a machine, was injured and then got compensation for something that was entirely there own fault. This is something that was done without a supervisors knowledge but the company was still held responsible.

 

[Paddy Roxburgh]

I've cut myself a million times with hand tools, never badly enough to require the hospital, but have so far escaped a machine accident (touch wood, no that's mdf, there's some oak).I did once cut the end off my finger in a canal lock and the hospital stitched it back on. It was the morning after my birthday, about 10 years ago. I had a minging hangover and was going through a lock in my boat with the people who had failed to make it home the night before at my birthday celebration. I let the paddle down on the lock by holding open the catch and pulling the windlass (a tool a bit like a podger for lock gates) off the mechanism and letting the paddle fall. You're not really supposed to do it this way but I had done it like that thousands of times before. Anyway I thought I had stubbed the end of my finger. When I looked the finger was cut off just below the nail and the shattered bone was sticking out. I told my passengers I was off to the hospital and walked to the gate of Victoria Park in east London. I rang my friend who lives locally and asked her to get me. Now, she has 5 kids and had gone out the night before and had paid the babysitter to stay the night to deal with the kids in the morning. Her first response was "whatever it is I'm not doing it". I explained and she got out of bed and picked me up and took me to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel. Meanwhile my friends had found my fingertip in the lock mechanism and went to the cafe in the park to get some ice. The cafe didn't have any ice but gave them a bag of frozen hash browns. In it went my finger and they rushed to the hospital.
The normal two hour wait in casualty was side stepped and probably 3/4 of an hour after the accident the finger tip was back on. The surgeon came to see me after the opp and said she had not been hopeful before the opp but felt the opp had gone well and noticed from my paperwork that I was under 60 so felt hopeful. Now I an 45 next week and this was ten years ago so I was surprised that she "noticed" from my paper work I was under 60. Later that day the friend who had drove me there and another female friend came to visit me in the ward. Both of them are about 5 years older than me, both have fair hair and blue eyes the same as me. When they left the guy in the bed opposite asked me if they were my daughters, I think the whole experience had aged me 20 years.
I'm a violin player and it is the first finger on my fingering (left) hand and also work with my hands. The fingertip has slightly less feeling than my others but it does not really cause me any problems.
If you ever do lose a digit or even whole hand time is of the essence, every minute and there is less chance of them being able to stitch it back

Paddy

 

[Paddy Roxburgh]

dd

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

Amazing story Paddy. Fancy that. I'm a guitar player do know the value of the fret board fingers. Lucky you eh and interesting information about how long one myth have before tissue death. Cooling the severed digit obviously slows down the process of tissue non viability then? Meat after all I spose.