Argonaut Ins. Co. v. Williams

• Decision Date: 07 May 1979
• Citation: 580 S.W.2d 784
• Parties: ARGONAUT INSURANCE COMPANY, Appellant, v. Juanita V. WILLIAMS, Appellee. 580 S.W.2d 784
• Court: Tennessee Supreme Court

Page 784

580 S.W.2d 784

ARGONAUT INSURANCE COMPANY, Appellant, v. Juanita V. WILLIAMS, Appellee.

580 S.W.2d 784

Supreme Court of Tennessee.

May 7, 1979.

William A. Simms, Arnett, Draper & Hagood, Knoxville, for appellant.

Glen R. Claiborne, Daniel, Duncan & Claiborne, Thomas M. Cole, Daniel, Duncan & Claiborne, Knoxville, for appellee.

OPINION

FONES, Justice.

In this workmen's compensation case, defendant insurance carrier, Argonaut Insurance Company, has appealed from the trial court's award of fifty percent permanent partial disability to the body as a whole to plaintiff, Juanita V. Williams, for injuries received while in the course of her employment as a nurse's aid at Blount Memorial Hospital. Defendant insists no material evidence exists upon which to base the award and that the limitation of time provisions of T.C.A. § 50-1003 bar the cause of action. We hold that there is material evidence to support the conclusions of the trial court on both issues, and affirm its judgment.

Plaintiff, age fifty-six with five years experience at the hospital, averred that on or about December 10, 1974, she was injured while pulling a bed with a heavy traction unit out of an intensive care ward, at which time she felt a "little ache." Although finishing her work shift that day, she was unable to get out of bed the following morning. She consulted her personal physician, Dr. Mandrell, on December 16, and he diagnosed a lumbar back strain, ordered lumbar spine x-rays, prescribed medication and told her to stay out of work for two weeks. At a December 31 follow-up visit, Dr. Mandrell evaluated the x-rays, which showed "mild osteoarthritis in the anterior margins of the mid- and lower lumbar vertebrae," and he told plaintiff to resume light work.

Following the December injury, plaintiff experienced intermittent episodes of pain, and as a result of a May 1975 lifting incident, missed two weeks of work. After a May 16 examination, Dr. Mandrell changed his diagnosis to degenerative joint disease, and he referred plaintiff to Dr. Smalley, an orthopedic surgeon, who in a June 17 examination diagnosed lumbosacral sprain and mild osteoarthritis of the lumbar spine. On June 18, 1975, plaintiff saw Dr. Phelan, employed by the hospital in occupational medicine, who allowed plaintiff to return to work based primarily on Dr. Smalley's recommendation. She again saw Dr. Phelan in June, July and August 1976, at which time Dr. Phelan prescribed physical therapy, recommended that she continue to see Dr. Smalley and advised that she not return to work. Plaintiff went to see Dr. Smalley on July 16, 1976, and Dr. Belknap on July 22, 1976, who conducted a limited orthopedic examination and made a prognosis of continued disability. Plaintiff has not worked at the hospital since July 1976, and continued to see Drs. Smalley, Belknap and Phelan after filing her lawsuit.

Plaintiff filed suit on September 6, 1976, against Aetna Insurance Company, the current insurance carrier, and then amended her complaint to include defendant, Argonaut Insurance Company, the carrier at the time of the December 1974 injury.

Defendant asserts that no material evidence exists to support a permanent partial disability award. It is familiar law in workmen's compensation cases that it is not the province of this Court to determine if the evidence preponderates in favor of the award, but only to determine from the record whether there is any material evidence upon which the trial court could have made its findings. E. g., Trane Co. v. Morrison, 566 S.W.2d 849, 851 (Tenn.1978). As an exception to this general rule, however, we have recognized that the permanency or causation of a compensable injury must be established by competent expert medical testimony. E. g., Floyd v. Tennessee Dickel Distilling Co., 225 Tenn. 65, 68, 463 S.W.2d 684, 686 (1971).

The trial court made the following factual findings:

"I think the plaintiff, Juanita Williams, who was an employee admittedly of Blount Memorial Hospital, suffered an injury on or about December 11th, 1974, which arose out of and in the course of her employment, a lumbar strain or low back injury, which continued to haunt her from then until now; I think that is the only injury she suffered; I think she still suffers from that injury, arthritis not withstanding. . . ."

This Court is bound by those findings if the record contains any material evidence to support them. Doctor Belknap deposed, "I believe that the disability actually began with the original injury of 1974." Although a finding cannot be predicated on medical testimony based upon subjective complaints alone, such is not the case here. See Reynolds v. Liberty Mut. Ins. Co., 496 S.W.2d 890 (Tenn.1973). Doctor Belknap took into consideration not only the history related to him by plaintiff, but also past medical records, the course of symptoms and the tests he performe...