Henderson, Deonya v. Staff Management/SMX , 2017 TN WC 1 ( 2017 )


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  •                 TENNESSEE BUREAU OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION
    IN THE COURT OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION CLAIMS
    AT MURFREESBORO
    DEONYA HENDERSON                                        )    Docket No.: 2016-05-0536
    Employee,                                      )
    v.                                                      )    State File Number: 18627-2016
    STAFF MANAGEMENT/SMX                                    )
    Employer,                                      )    Judge Dale Tipps
    And                                                     )
    NEW HAMPSHIRE INS. CO.                                  )
    Insurance Carrier.                             )
    )
    EXPEDITED HEARING ORDER DENYING REQUESTED BENEFITS
    This matter came before the undersigned Workers’ Compensation Judge on
    January 10, 2017, on the Request for Expedited Hearing filed by Deonya Henderson
    pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 50-6-239 (2016). The present focus of
    this case is whether Ms. Henderson is entitled to medical and temporary disability
    benefits for her alleged neck injury. The central legal issue is whether the evidence is
    sufficient for the Court to determine that Ms. Henderson is likely to establish at a hearing
    on the merits she suffered an injury arising primarily out of and in the course and scope
    of her employment. For the reasons set forth below, the Court holds Ms. Henderson is
    not entitled to the requested medical benefits at this time.
    History of Claim
    The following facts were established at the Expedited Hearing. Ms. Henderson
    began working at Amazon through her employer, SMX, an employee-leasing company,
    in November 2015. She reported injuring her neck while at work on February 27, 2016.
    SMX provided limited medical treatment onsite for several days before giving Ms.
    Henderson a medical panel from which she selected CareSpot.
    Ms. Henderson saw Dr. David Daniels at CareSpot on at least two occasions and,
    based on his restrictions, SMX provided her with light duty work in its office until it
    terminated her employment on March 31.1 She testified that Dr. Daniels eventually
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    SMX submitted an affidavit explaining that Ms. Henderson was in the process of “converting,” or becoming an
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    referred her to Dr. William Ledbetter, an orthopedic surgeon.
    SMX approved the orthopedic referral, and Dr. Ledbetter first saw Ms. Henderson
    on April 12 for complaints of neck and left arm pain with associated numbness. He noted
    she “has had problems with her neck for many years.” He also reviewed a January 2015
    MRI report that showed a C4-5 left paracentral disc protrusion as well as stenosis and
    narrowing on several levels. Ms. Henderson’s prior treatment included physical therapy,
    but she reported no significant neck symptoms immediately prior to the alleged work
    injury. Dr. Ledbetter recommended a new cervical MRI, prescribed Oxycodone, and
    assigned light duty restrictions. (Ex. 9 at 27-31.)
    The cervical MRI performed a few weeks later showed: “Multilevel degenerative
    change with endplate osteophyte formation and facet hypertrophy. Overall the exam
    appears similar to the [January 2015] study. This includes C4-5 LEFT greater than
    RIGHT foraminal narrowing as well as C5-6 LEFT greater than RIGHT foraminal
    narrowing. No interval adverse change.”
    Id. at
    42-43. 
    (Emphasis in original.)
    The parties submitted no additional treatment notes, but a Physician’s Report form
    shows that Ms. Henderson returned to Dr. Ledbetter on June 20. He continued her
    restrictions and recommended a consultation with a spine specialist.
    At around the same time, Dr. Ledbetter responded to a causation request letter
    from a claims representative for SMX’s workers’ compensation carrier. Asked whether
    Ms. Henderson’s work “contributed more than 50% in causing disablement or the need
    for medical treatment for the cervical spine injury/conditions, considering all causes,” Dr.
    Ledbetter selected the “No” response.
    Id. at
    44. 
    Citing Dr. Ledbetter’s opinion, SMX
    denied Ms. Henderson’s claim on June 27. (Ex. 3.)
    Following the denial of her claim, Ms. Henderson sought treatment on her own
    from Dr. Juris Shibayama. His November 15 note shows that he saw her for a surgical
    consultation requested by Dr. Ledbetter. After examining Ms. Henderson, he assessed
    cervical radiculopathy and offered both surgical and conservative treatment options. He
    also noted:
    In terms of causation, she states she never had problems with her neck or
    left arm prior to this work-related incident on February 27, 2016. She
    immediately reported the injury and sought treatment right away and was
    unable to work. I would state that the work condition is 51% or greater the
    cause of her symptoms. Certainly, she had some preexisting disc
    degeneration, but this was asymptomatic prior to her lifting injury.
    employee of Amazon, when Amazon determined she did not qualify for employment. As a result, SMX terminated
    her employment pursuant to its written policies.
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    Therefore, I would say that this is a work-related injury.
    (Ex. 6.)
    At the Expedited Hearing, Ms. Henderson asserted she is entitled to medical
    treatment and temporary disability benefits beginning on the date SMX terminated her
    employment. She relied on Dr. Shibayama’s opinion as proof that she suffered a
    compensable injury.
    SMX countered that Ms. Henderson is not entitled to any workers’ compensation
    benefits. It noted the authorized treating physician, Dr. Ledbetter, opined Ms.
    Henderson’s condition is not work-related, and it argued his opinion is presumed correct.
    Because Ms. Henderson has not provided sufficient evidence to overcome that
    presumption, SMX contended that she did not meet her burden of proving the injury
    arose primarily out of and in the course and scope of her employment.
    Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law
    The following legal principles govern this case. Because this case is in a posture
    of an Expedited Hearing, Ms. Henderson need not prove every element of her claim by a
    preponderance of the evidence in order to obtain relief. McCord v. Advantage Human
    Resourcing, No. 2014-06-0063, 2015 TN Wrk. Comp. App. Bd. LEXIS 6, at *7-8, 9
    (Tenn. Workers’ Comp. App. Bd. Mar. 27, 2015). Instead, she must come forward with
    sufficient evidence from which this Court might determine she is likely to prevail at a
    hearing on the merits. Id.; Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-6-239(d)(1) (2016).
    SMX contends Ms. Henderson failed to produce sufficient evidence to show she is
    likely to prevail at a hearing on the merits on the issue of causation. To prove a
    compensable injury, Ms. Henderson must show that her alleged injury arose primarily out
    of and in the course and scope of her employment.
    Id. at
    § 50-6-102(14). To do so, she
    must show her injury was caused by an incident, or specific set of incidents, identifiable
    by time and place of occurrence.
    Id. at
    § 50-6-102(14)(A). Further, she must show, “to a
    reasonable degree of medical certainty that it contributed more than fifty percent (50%)
    in causing the . . . disablement or need for medical treatment, considering all causes.”
    Id. at
    § 50-6-102(14)(C). “Shown to a reasonable degree of medical certainty” means that,
    in the opinion of the treating physician, it is more likely than not considering all causes as
    opposed to speculation or possibility.
    Id. at
    § 50-6-102(14)(D).
    Applying these principles to the facts of this case, the Court cannot find Ms.
    Henderson appears likely to meet her burden of proof. Although she presented unrefuted
    evidence of an incident identifiable by time and place of occurrence, Ms. Henderson
    failed to meet the requirements of the second part of the analysis – medical proof that her
    work was the primary cause of her injury and/or the primary cause for the need for
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    treatment.
    As noted above, the parties submitted conflicting medical opinions. However, Dr.
    Ledbetter’s opinion is entitled to particular consideration because the doctor she initially
    selected from a panel referred Ms. Henderson to him. Tennessee Code Annotated section
    50-6-102(14)(E) (2016) establishes a rebuttable presumption of correctness for any
    causation opinion given by an authorized physician. Dr. Ledbetter’s opinion that Ms.
    Henderson’s reported work incident did not contribute more than fifty percent in causing
    her injury is thus presumed correct.
    The question then faced by the Court is whether Ms. Henderson appears likely to
    rebut this presumption by a preponderance of the evidence. The Court cannot make such
    a finding at this time. The only other medical causation evidence was the opinion of Dr.
    Shibayama. Although he provided a detailed rationale for his conclusion, he appears to
    have based it, at least in part, on Ms. Henderson’s statement that “she never had problems
    with her neck or left arm prior to this work-related incident” and his belief that her pre-
    existing condition was asymptomatic before the work incident. The Court recognizes
    that Dr. Shibayma, if presented with a more accurate history of Ms. Henderson’s cervical
    problems and treatment, might still reach the same conclusion. Until then, however, the
    foundation of his causation opinion is too uncertain to rebut Dr. Ledbetter’s conclusion.
    Based on the foregoing, as a matter of law, Ms. Henderson has not come forward
    with sufficient evidence from which the Court can conclude she is likely to prevail at a
    hearing on the merits. Her requests for medical and temporary disability benefits are
    denied at this time.
    IT IS, THEREFORE, ORDERED as follows:
    1. Ms. Henderson’s claim against SMX and its workers’ compensation carrier for the
    requested medical and temporary disability benefits is denied.
    2. This matter is set for a Scheduling Hearing on March 28, 2017, at 9:00 a.m.
    ENTERED this the 13th day of January, 2017.
    _____________________________________
    Judge Dale Tipps
    Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims
    Scheduling Hearing:
    A Scheduling Hearing has been set with Judge Dale Tipps, Court of Workers’
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    Compensation Claims. You must call 615-741-2112 or toll free at 855-874-0473 to
    participate.
    Please Note: You must call in on the scheduled date/time to
    participate. Failure to call in may result in a determination of the issues without
    your further participation. All conferences are set using Central Time (CT).
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    APPENDIX
    Exhibits:
    1. Affidavit of Deonya Henderson
    2. C-20 First Report of Injury
    3. C-23 Notice of Denial
    4. C-42 Physician Panel
    5. Wage Statement
    6. Records from Tennessee Orthopaedic Alliance
    7. Transcript of Ms. Henderson’s recorded statement
    8. Affidavit of Stephanie Riley
    9. Indexed medical records
    10. Accident Report
    11. Emails from Dawn Schwartz (Identification Only)
    12. Physician’s Report
    13. Associate First Report of Injury
    Technical record:2
    1. Petition for Benefit Determination
    2. Dispute Certification Notice
    3. Request for Expedited Hearing
    2
    The Court did not consider attachments to Technical Record filings unless admitted into evidence during the
    Expedited Hearing. The Court considered factual statements in these filings or any attachments to them as
    allegations unless established by the evidence.
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    CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
    I certify that a true and correct copy of the Expedited Hearing Order Denying
    Requested Benefits was sent to the following recipients by the following methods of
    service on this the 13th day of January, 2017.
    Name               Certified   First   Via   Fax      Via     Email Address
    Mail        Class   Fax   Number   Email
    Mail
    Deonya Henderson    X                                 X       P.O. Box 10442, Murfreesboro, TN
    37129
    jejuanh@yahoo.com
    Jared Renfroe                                         X       jrenfroe@spicerfirm.com
    _____________________________________
    Penny Shrum, Clerk of Court
    Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims
    WC.CourtClerk@tn.gov
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Document Info

Docket Number: 2016-05-0536

Citation Numbers: 2017 TN WC 1

Judges: Dale Tipps

Filed Date: 1/13/2017

Precedential Status: Precedential

Modified Date: 1/10/2021