Wiegand v. Daimlerchrysler Corp., 120506 MIWC, 2007-524
| Case Date | December 05, 2006 |
| Court | Michigan |
“TFF Tear and fracture of ulnar bone of right wrist. Occurred after three hours of heavy lifting of Dodge truck doors on assembly line. Surgery scheduled for 9-22-04 to repair cartilage tear.”
She alleges a date of injury of March 5, 2004, with disability from April 26, 2004, through the present.STIPULATIONS The parties stipulated that the employer and employee were subject to the act; that the carrier carried the risk on the injury dates alleged; that the employee was in the employ of the respondent at the time of the alleged injury; that the employer had notice of the alleged personal injury within the statutory period; and that the claim was made within the statutorily prescribed period. All other matters were left to proof. WITNESSES TESTIFYING PERSONALLY Plaintiff 1. Patricia Wiegand. Defendant None. WITNESSES TESTIFYING BY DEPOSITION Plaintiff 1. Michael J. Fugle, D.O. Defendant 1. Steven A. Kushner, D.O. Plaintiff 1. Dr. Wagner record, dated March 10, 2005 (Restrictions). 2. Dr. Wagner record, dated March 10, 2005 (Additional Restrictions). 3. PQX Evaluation. 4. Plaintiff’s summary of medical expenses. 5. Blue Cross summary of medical expenses paid. 6. Deposition of Dr. Fugle. Defendant A. Dr. Wagner records. B. Videotape of “tack-off” job. C. Videotape of “door hinge insert” job. D. Deposition of Dr. Kushner. E. Deposition of Carol Marks. TRIAL TESTIMONY Testimony of Patricia Wiegand:
Plaintiff has three dependent children, Philip (3/24/87), Kathryn (4/1/89), and Scott (8/30/90). She started working for Defendant in January of 1998, as a part time employee (a “floater”). She always worked as a floater, performing many different jobs in the plant.
On March 5, 2004, she was working in the metal shop placing hinges onto truck doors, and hanging the finished door on an assembly line hook. Defendant’s videotape shows two people performing these duties, but she performed it alone. After about four hours of performing these duties, she lost grip on a door and hyper-extended her right wrist. She mentioned this injury to a co-worker, but had to wait 30 minutes to be relieved. At lunch, she notified her supervisor and was sent to the medical department.
At medical, Dr. Zimmer packed her wrist in ice and gave her Motrin. He then sent her to Bi-County Hospital for x-rays. This injury occurred on a Friday, and she did not return until the following Monday.
On Monday, she reported to the medical department and was given a lighter job. She was given a job using a small hand sander to remove burrs from metal parts. She was able to perform this work one-handed, and performed the duties for a week.
Her condition did not resolve, so she went to her own doctor for treatment. Her doctor referred her to Dr. Fugle, a hand specialist, who conducted an MRI and EMG to rule out carpal tunnel syndrome. He referred Plaintiff to Dr. Wagner, a hand surgeon, for cartilage repair. Dr. Wagner performed an arthrogram and bone scan, and then performed debridement surgery on October 11, 2004.
Dr. Wagner released Plaintiff to return to work on December 19, 2004, without restrictions. Plaintiff received some workers compensation benefits prior to this time.
Plaintiff performed the lighter duties such as small sanding, and alcohol tack-off, for four days. Her wrist problems continued, so she went to the medical department, which told her to go back to her primary care physician. She was unable to get back in to see Dr. Wagner until March of 2005, and he imposed restrictions...
To continue reading
Request your trial