Michael Wayne Phillips v. Liberty Mutual Insurance

This workers' compensation appeal has been referred to the Special Workers' Compensation Appeals Panel of the Supreme Court in accordance with Tenn. Code Ann. 5-6-225 (e)(3) for hearing and reporting to the Supreme Court of Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law. The trial court found plaintiff suffered a compensable injury to his back, sustained a forty-eight percent permanent partial disability to the body as a whole, suffered a compensable carpal tunnel injury to his right arm, and sustained a twenty-five percent permanent partial disability to the right arm. The employer challenges the compensability of the arm injury and the amount of each award. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. Tenn. Code Ann. 5-6-225(e) (1999); Appeal as of Right: Judgment of the Circuit Court is affirmed JOHN A. TURNBULL, Sp. J. in which FRANK DROWOTA C.J., and HOWELL PEOPLES, SP. J., joined. David T. Hooper, Brentwood, Tennessee, for Liberty Mutual Insurance Company and United Parcel Service, Inc., Appellants. William Joseph Butler and E. Guy Holliman, McMinnville, Tennessee, for Michael Wayne Phillips, Appellee. OPINION I. Facts and Procedural Background Michael Wayne Phillips, age 43, had been working for United Parcel Service (U.P.S.) for thirteen years when he injured his back and right arm on December 3, 21. As a part of his job driving tractor trailers, Phillips was required to manipulate a heavy dolly into position between two trailers to connect them. While moving the dolly, Phillips felt a stabbing pain in his back and subsequently felt symptoms in his right arm, hand, leg and foot. Phillips had suffered a previous injury to his back while working for U.P.S. in 1994, but had recovered without disability. Mr. Phillips gave immediate notice of his injury and was referred to a local physician. He was then referred to Dr. Michael Moore, a specialist in physiatry and electro diagnostic medicine, in Lebanon, who first saw Phillips on December 11, 21. Since Mr. Phillips was complaining of numbness and tingling in his right hand and arm, Dr. Moore performed electro diagnostic studies which showed entrapment of the right median nerve at the wrist corresponding with carpal tunnel syndrome. Dr. Moore continued to treat plaintiff, who was unable to return to work, until Dr. Moore placed him at maximum medical improvement on April 23, 23. Dr. Moore assigned a five percent permanent partial impairment to the body for the low back injury, and placed restrictions of occasional lifting up to fifty pounds, frequent lifting up to twenty to twenty-five pounds from knee to waist level, and no repetitive lifting from the floor. U.P.S. could not return Phillips to work as his job description required significant heavy lifting. With reference to the carpal tunnel injury, Dr. Moore testified that it was "quite possible" that Mr. Phillips' arm condition was a result of his repetitive duties at U.P.S. Dr. Moore specifically declined to express an opinion as to the extent of any permanent impairment to the arm: "I would not be in a position to make that assessment at this point in time given that I haven't seen the patient in some ten months, and I'm not aware as to whether there's been any progression of his symptoms." Mr. Phillips was also seen by Dr. Walter Wheelhouse on two occasions in October, 22, for an independent medical exam. Dr. Wheelhouse agreed with Dr. Moore that Mr. Phillips had mechanical low back pain with bulging discs, but fixed his back impairment at eight percent, rather than the five percent given by Dr. Moore, because of chronic low back pain. In addition, Dr. Wheelhouse found the carpal tunnel injury to be caused by work, and related an impairment of five percent to the right arm. Dr. Wheelhouse assigned work restrictions to Mr. Phillips of no bending, stooping, or lifting over twenty pounds occasionally, and no repetitive motion of his back, or long distance truck for the low back injury. For the carpal tunnel, Dr. Wheelhouse assigned work restrictions of no repetitive motions of his right arm, and no trauma to the right hand. Dr. Wheelhouse further prescribed that plaintiff should wear a splint on the right hand/wrist. -1-