02-11WC. Gloria Crowe v. The Fonda Group, Inc.

• Court: Vermont

Vermont Workers Compensation 2011. 02-11WC. Gloria Crowe v. The Fonda Group, Inc Gloria Crowe v. The Fonda Group, Inc.(January 25, 2011)STATE OF VERMONT DEPARTMENT OF LABOROpinion No. 02-11WCBy: Phyllis Phillips, Esq. Hearing OfficerFor: Anne M. Noonan CommissionerState File No. S-13358OPINION AND ORDERNo hearing held; claim submitted on briefs Record closed on December 2, 2010APPEARANCES:Christopher McVeigh, Esq., for Claimant Marion Ferguson, Esq., for DefendantISSUES PRESENTED:

1. What is the appropriate permanent impairment rating referable to Claimant's cervical spine condition?

2. Is Defendant obligated to sign the treatment authorization form required by The Boston Spine Group?

EXHIBITS: Claimant's Exhibit 1: Various correspondence Claimant's Exhibit 2: Crowe v. The Fonda Group, Inc., Opinion No. 37-07WC (January 8, 2008) Claimant's Exhibit 3: Various medical records Claimant's Exhibit 4: Various correspondence Defendant's Exhibit A: Crowe v. The Fonda Group, Inc., Opinion No. 37-07WC (January 8, 2008) Defendant's Exhibit B: March 31, 2008 letter, with attached medical report Defendant's Exhibit C: May 27, 2008 letter Defendant's Exhibit D: Dr. Johansson Independent Medical Examination/Impairment Rating, February 23, 2004 Defendant's Exhibit E: February 10, 2010 correspondence Defendant's Exhibit F: The Boston Spine Group treatment authorization form, unsigned Defendant's Exhibit G: AMA Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment, p. 392 Defendant's Exhibit H: Dr. Backus medical record, December 29, 2009 Defendant's Exhibit I: Dr. Zweber medical record, July 19, 2002 Defendant's Exhibit J: Deposition transcript, John Johansson, D.O., February 21, 2007 Defendant's Exhibit K: Deposition transcript, Verne Backus, M.D., April 9, 2007 Defendant's Exhibit L: Johnson State College transcript, issued July 17, 2006 CLAIM: Permanent partial disability benefits pursuant to 21 V.S.A. §648 Medical benefits pursuant to 21 V.S.A. §640 Costs and attorney fees pursuant to 21 V.S.A. §678 FINDINGS OF FACT: 1. At all times relevant to these proceedings, Claimant was an employee and Defendant was her employer as those terms are defined in Vermont's Workers' Compensation Act. 2. Judicial notice is taken of all relevant forms and correspondence contained in the Department's file relating to this claim. Judicial notice also is taken of relevant portions of the AMA Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment (5th ed.) (hereinafter the "AMA Guides"). Claimant's Work Injury and Subsequent Medical Course 3. Claimant worked as a machine operator in Defendant's paper products manufacturing plant. On November 19, 2001 she was operating a large machine when she struck her head on an overhead ladder. As a result of this accident, Claimant suffered various injuries, including a right-sided cervical strain with radicular pain into her right shoulder, and also cervical spine-generated migraine headaches. Treatment for the latter condition was determined to be compensable following a formal hearing and decision by the Commissioner in 2008. Crowe v. The Fonda Group, Inc., Opinion No. 37-07WC (January 8, 2008). 4. That there was a radicular component to Claimant's pain was corroborated by electrodiagnostic studies completed in July 2002, the results of which were suggestive of mild cervical radiculopathy at the C5 disc level. As Dr. Cody, a consulting physician who evaluated Claimant at the request of her treating orthopedic surgeon explained, this likely caused the muscles in Claimant's right shoulder to become weak, leading to secondary rotator cuff pathology. Claimant underwent shoulder surgery to repair this damage in January 2003. 5. As for her cervical symptoms, Claimant treated conservatively. Dr. Backus, an occupational medicine specialist, was her primary "gatekeeper" physician, both in the months immediately following her injury and again in 2005, when treatment focused more on alleviating her cervical-spine generated migraine headaches. After a course of prolotherapy injections, the compensability of which Defendant disputed in the context of the prior proceedings in this claim, the Commissioner determined that Claimant reached an end medical result for her work-related injuries on August 11, 2006. Crowe v. The Fonda Group, Inc., supra. 6. At Defendant's request, in February 2004 Claimant underwent an independent medical examination with Dr. Johansson, an...