PATRICK MURPHY, Employee,
v.
FRANA & SONS, INC., and CNA/CONTINENTAL CASUALTY CO., Employer-Insurer/Appellants,
and
CONSOLIDATED BLDG. and GENERAL CASUALTY INS. CO., Employer-Insurer,
and
ALLINA MED. GROUP for COON RAPIDS MEDICAL CLINIC.
Minnesota Workers Compensation
Workers' Compensation Court of Appeals
April 13, 1999
HEADNOTES
CAUSATION
- MEDICAL TREATMENT. Substantial evidence supports the
compensation judge's finding that the employee sustained
a work-related shoulder injury in 1996 and then, while
working for a different employer in 1997, sustained a
shoulder injury that was temporary in nature, and that the
initial pre-existing permanent injury was responsible for the
employee's future medical expenses, except for certain
medical expenses ordered to be shared when the employee was
being treated for the temporary injury.
ATTORNEY
FEES - .191 FEES. The award to the employee's
attorney of a Minn. Stat. § 176.191 attorney fee is supported
by substantial evidence as the dispute in the case was
primarily between the two employers and insurers.
Affirmed.
Determined by Hefte, J., Johnson, J., and Wheeler, C.J.
Compensation Judge: James R. Otto
OPINION
RICHARD C. HEFTE, Judge
The
employer, Frana & Sons, Inc., and insurer,
CNA/Continental Casualty Company, appeal from the
compensation judge's finding that the employee's work
injury of March 7, 1997 was a temporary aggravation of a
pre-existing condition of the employee; and also appeal the
finding and order that the employee's attorney is
entitled to a reasonable attorney fee under Minn. Stat. §
176.191. We affirm.
BACKGROUND
Since
1984 Patrick J. Murphy, the employee, has been employed as a
carpenter for a number of different construction
companies. The employee worked for Frana & Sons,
Inc., the employer, (hereinafter referred to as Frana) on
three different occasions, most recently beginning with a
period of employment in November 1993.
The
employee testified he began to experience physical pain and
symptoms at work in January 1996. He described his
symptoms as "knots in the low back below my shoulder
blade area in the middle of my back, and I was having warm
sensations in my shoulders, and I was having tingling
shooting into my fingertips." (T. 21.) Frana
and its workers' compensation insurance carrier,
CNA/Continental Casualty Company (CNA) accepted liability,
reporting the work-related injury date as February 21, 1996.
The
employee initially saw Dr. Gehry Sower on February 21, 1996
who prescribed physical therapy. Later the employee was
referred to Dr. Randall Chadwick, Jr., an orthopedic surgeon,
who continued thereafter to be the employee's treating
physician. Dr. Chadwick reported that the employee said
"[h]e thinks that his symptoms were aggravated when he
was doing a lot of heavy overhead work back in
November." (Ex. A.) On September 4, 1996, the
employee had surgery performed by Dr. Chadwick on his right
shoulder in the nature of an acromioplasty and a distal
clavicle resection. Following the surgery, the doctor
prescribed physical therapy. The physical therapist
advised the employee that he could "return to work at 2
weeks with no use of the right arm until 6 weeks . . .
. Patient able to return to full duty work by 3 to 4
months, including overhead work." (Id.)
After
being off work for two weeks in September 1996 following his
right shoulder surgery, the employee returned to light-duty
work for Frana. The employee's right arm was in a
sling and he apparently used his left arm to perform
"clean up" type work. At this time the
employee's left shoulder started to bother the employee
with symptoms that included knots and warm sensations in the
left shoulder around the shoulder blade area, together with
tingling down to his fingertips. On September 13, 1996
the physical therapist noted the employee's complaints as
to his left shoulder and reported "he was starting
to have the same symptoms in this [left] shoulder as in the
right." At this time Dr. Chadwick requested
physical therapy treatment be commenced on the employee's
left shoulder. (Id.)
The
employee testified that in November 1996, following two
months of physical therapy, that he believed his problems in
both shoulders had resolved. The employee continued to
work for Frana until February 1997, at which time the
employee was laid off because of a lack of available
work. On February 24, 1997, the employee began work for
the employer, Consolidated Building (hereinafter
Consolidated) who was insured for workers' compensation
liability by General Casualty Company. The
employee's duties at Consolidated were in the nature of
framing work in buildings, which included continuous and
frequent overhead work and heavy lifting. A couple of
days after he started working for Consolidated the employee
began to experience...
