Disability Law

Case Study: Cervical Injury Made Worse Due to Return to Job

By Jodi B. Ginsberg

Welcome to the 6th installment of my summer long series on Georgia Workers' comp case studies. In the following case study, I discuss a case in which a client's cervical injury was made worse by a return to work.

Cervical injuries made worse by returning to the job

Our client, Mrs. B, is seeking medical care and compensation for the cervical injuries that resulted from performing her job. Additionally, she is in need of multi-level cervical fusion surgery as prescribed by her treating physician Dr. H. She is currently receiving PPD at a rate of ?X? amount per week from her current insurance carrier and is on ?no-work? status. It is well documented that her cervical spine injuries occurred on the job when she was moving cabinets, computers, and furniture.

Mrs. B is a 20-year employee of the company with a commendable record which included all facets of managing a medical office such as handling patient care, patient insurance, and patient paperwork. She is also an LPN and performed all types of office duties from answering telephones to making rounds with doctors at the hospital during her work shift. Her injuries were sustained while assisting two co-workers with moving the office furniture and other office equipment.

She started to experience severe pain in the arms and neck. Additionally, she noticed that she had numbness and pain in her right leg. Despite her pain and the conservative care she received for it which brought her no relief, she returned to work the next day and continued working until she underwent surgery for her injuries 9 months later. After her surgery, she returned to work 8 weeks later on a gradually increasing basis.

Despite the injuries to her arms, neck, and shoulder, she made every effort possible to perform her job, although she was very careful about not lifting more than 20 pounds. Mrs. B has testified that despite her surgery and the fact that there was some noticeable improvement in her condition, she continues to experience pain to this day. We are at a point now where we are confident that should her case go to court, the judge will determine that both of the other parties involved will be held liable and Mrs. B could be awarded compensation in the amount of ?X?.

Full post as published by Georgia Workers Compensation blog on July 10, 2010 (boomark / email).