16-12WC. Mary Ellen Cross v. State of Vermont, Dept. of Corrections.

• Court: Vermont

Vermont Workers Compensation 2012. 16-12WC. Mary Ellen Cross v. State of Vermont, Dept. of Corrections Mary Ellen Cross v. State of Vermont, Dept. of Corrections(June 6, 2012)STATE OF VERMONT DEPARTMENT OF LABORMary Ellen Cross v. State of Vermont, Dept. of CorrectionsOpinion No. 16-12WCBy: Phyllis Phillips, Esq. Hearing Officer For: Anne M. Noonan CommissionerState File No. CC-60304OPINION AND ORDERHearing held in Montpelier on February 21, 2012 Record closed on March 27, 2012APPEARANCES:William Skiff, Esq., for Claimant Keith Kasper, Esq., for DefendantISSUE PRESENTED: Is Claimant's current right knee condition causally related either to her April 5, 2011 incident at work and/or to her September 11, 2000 work injury? EXHIBITS: Joint Exhibit I: Medical records Claimant's Exhibit 1: Deposition of Robert Beattie, M.D., November 11, 2011 Claimant's Exhibit 2: Various workers' compensation forms Claimant's Exhibit 3: Curriculum vitae, Robert Beattie, M.D. Defendant's Exhibit A: Letter from Kathie Kretzer with attached Denial of Workers' Compensation Benefits, September 8, 2003 Defendant's Exhibit B: Curriculum vitae, Verne Backus, M.D., M.P.H. CLAIM: Temporary total disability benefits pursuant to 21 V.S.A. §642 Medical benefits pursuant to 21 V.S.A. §640(a) Interest, costs and attorney fees pursuant to 21 V.S.A. §§664 and 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 contained in the Department's files relating to this claim, including both State File No. R-5641 and CC-60304. 3. Claimant has worked for Defendant as a corrections officer since June 2000. Her current position includes both supervisory and training responsibilities. She typically works a 40-hour work week plus overtime. She enjoys her job. 4. Claimant's average weekly wage as of April 5, 2011 was $1,050.51, which yields an initial compensation rate of $700.34 weekly. Claimant's September 2000 Injury 5. On September 11, 2000 Claimant was instructing another officer at a computer. She knelt down to demonstrate something, and when she arose her right knee locked and would not straighten. Claimant immediately felt excruciating pain. She reported the injury to her supervisor and went directly to the hospital emergency room. 6. Claimant treated with Dr. Beattie, an orthopedic surgeon. On October 3, 2000 she underwent arthroscopic surgery. Dr. Beattie's post-operative diagnosis was grade IV chondromalacia patella with large chondral flap tears. In laymen's terms, this means that some time prior to her injury, a portion of the articular surface cartilage under Claimant's kneecap had softened, leaving a significant area of exposed bone. With the cartilage in her knee thus predisposed to injury, the act of rising from a squatting position likely caused a loose flap to flip and become caught in the joint. 7. Consistent with this analysis, Dr. Beattie determined that Claimant's cartilage tear was directly related to her work for Defendant, and was not due to her pre-existing chondromalacia. Presumably with that in mind, Defendant accepted the injury, referred to in the parties' Agreement for Temporary Total Disability Compensation (Form 21) as a "locked knee," as compensable. 8. The purpose of Dr. Beattie's arthroscopic surgery was to remove the loose flap of cartilage and any other unstable fronds that might catch in the joint. Doing so eliminates the acute symptoms, but does not normalize the joint. Removing a portion of the articular surface cartilage in a weight-bearing joint decreases the surface area over which the force created by moving the joint can be distributed. As a result, the remaining cartilage is subjected to increased stress. This leads to ongoing, progressive deterioration. Claimant's July 2001 Re-Injury 9. Claimant did well for approximately 10 months after her October 2000 surgery. In August 2001 she returned to Dr. Beattie, reporting that her knee had locked up momentarily in July when she arose from her desk at work. Although the knee had released on its own, since that time she had had multiple locking episodes, accompanied by pain, swelling and stiffness. 10. This time Dr. Beattie treated Claimant's symptoms with viscosupplementation, a series of injections designed to lubricate the joint. Claimant responded well, to the point where after a time Dr. Beattie relaxed the modified duty work restrictions he previously had imposed, and allowed Claimant to resume negotiating at least short flights of stairs. 11. Defendant accepted responsibility for the medical treatment and time out of work necessitated by Claimant's July 2001 re-injury. In August 2001 it submitted a Form 21 in which it referenced the injury (described this time as "soreness - knee") as having occurring on September...