Health Care Authority of City of Huntsville v. Henry
| Decision Date | 12 June 1992 |
| Citation | 600 So.2d 324 |
| Parties | HEALTH CARE AUTHORITY OF the CITY OF HUNTSVILLE v. Edna HENRY. 2910027. |
| Court | Alabama Court of Civil Appeals |
Joe S. Campbell and George E. Knox, Jr., Lanier Ford Shaver & Payne P.C., Huntsville, for appellant.
David H. Meginniss of Hornsby, Watson & Meginniss, Huntsville, for appellee.
Edna Henry (employee) brought this workmen's compensation action against the Health Care Authority of the City of Huntsville, d/b/a Huntsville Hospital (employer), to recover benefits for injuries sustained in an accident which allegedly occurred during her employment. The trial court found that the employee is permanently and totally disabled within the meaning of the workmen's compensation laws. The employer appeals. We affirm.
At the outset we note that the standard of review in workmen's compensation cases is a two-step process. This court first must determine if any legal evidence supports the trial court's findings and then must determine whether any reasonable view of that evidence supports the trial court's judgment. Ex parte Eastwood Foods, Inc., 575 So.2d 91 (Ala.1991).
The record reveals that the employee is a registered nurse who was working in the emergency department at the employer hospital. On January 15, 1988, while helping remove a patient and stretcher out of an ambulance, she injured her right knee. She was treated and released from the emergency room.
The employee continued to work until September 28, 1988, without seeking additional medical treatment. Her testimony reveals that she suffered pain during that time, but that, although the pain worsened, she was able to work. On September 28 she was examined by Dr. Sammons, an orthopedic surgeon, and complained of pain from the knee to the hip. She checked a box on a form while she was at Dr. Sammons's office indicating that she had been injured in an automobile accident. However the employee testified that she apparently made a mistake and that she had never been in an automobile accident.
The employer then referred the employee to a physician in its emergency room, who referred her to Dr. Miller, another orthopedic surgeon. She complained to Dr. Miller of pain that began at the back of the knee and extended down the back of the leg. Problems with the knee required arthroscopic surgery in the right knee, which was performed by Dr. Miller. Subsequent to the surgery, an infection developed in the knee. This required further arthroscopic knee surgery performed by Dr. Maddox followed by physical therapy and medication. Doctors' testimony indicates that the employee then developed arthritis in the knee, which could have been caused by either the injury or the infection.
The employer provided sedentary type work for the employee, but in August 1989 it informed the employee that, based on a report by a Dr. Nichols, whom she had seen in June 1989 in Birmingham, and due to her injury, it could no longer allow her to work.
The employer informed the employee that it had scheduled an appointment on December 4, 1989, with Dr. Donald Slappey in Birmingham for an orthopedic evaluation. The employee responded in a letter that, since she had already been examined by six doctors in Huntsville and one in Birmingham, she was unwilling to travel to Birmingham at that time to see Dr. Slappey. However, she was willing to see any orthopedic surgeon in Huntsville as was necessary. Due to this refusal, the employer suspended benefits pursuant to § 25-5-77(b), Ala.Code 1975, as of the date of the scheduled appointment. The payment of benefits resumed on October 22, 1990.
Dr. Black, another orthopedic surgeon who examined the employee, testified at deposition that she complained of pain with walking, sitting, and standing; of chronic swelling of the knee; and of grinding noise with movement. Treatment involved medication, braces, and injections. Dr. Black performed further arthroscopic surgery in March 1990. Physical therapy was then prescribed, and improvement was noticed at first. During this time the employee was examined and treated by rehabilitation specialists at Optimal Health. However, the symptoms increased with physical therapy, and Dr. Black advised the employee to discontinue therapy.
Dr. Black indicated that her condition had become "intractable," that is, that she is having pain all the time that is not relieved by any of the treatments. Her condition is permanent and will probably worsen. The employee reported to Dr. Black that pain affects her whole body, as well as her ability to sleep.
The employee was then referred to Dr. Shergy, a rheumatologist, in October 1990. He concluded, based on complaints of pain in the knee, poor sleep pattern, interruption of lifestyle, fatigue, and tender points, that she suffered from chronic pain syndrome. She was also diagnosed as having osteoarthritis, a condition that can be produced and accelerated by a traumatic injury or an infection.
On May 29, 1991, the employer filed a...
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