Davila, Evodio v. iIversified Builders, Inc.

2016 TN WC 109
CourtTennessee Court of Workers' Compensation Claims
DecidedMay 10, 2016
Docket2015-08-0465
StatusPublished

This text of 2016 TN WC 109 (Davila, Evodio v. iIversified Builders, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Tennessee Court of Workers' Compensation Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Davila, Evodio v. iIversified Builders, Inc., 2016 TN WC 109 (Tenn. Super. Ct. 2016).

Opinion

May 10,2016

1N COURT OF "ORKIR.S' COl\JPE NSATION CLAil\IS

Time: 1.2:01} Pl\.1

TENNESSEE BUREAU OF WORKERS' COMPENSATION IN THE COURT OF WORKERS' COMPENSATION CLAIMS AT MEMPHIS

Evodio Davila, ) Docket No.: 2015-08-0465 Employee, ) v. ) State File No.: 29117-2015 Diversified Builders, Inc., ) Employer, ) Judge: Jim Umsted And ) Builders Mutual Insurance, ) Insurance Carrier. )

EXPEDITED HEARING ORDER FOR MEDICAL BENEFITS

This case came before the undersigned Workers' Compensation Judge on April 25, 2016, upon the Request for Expedited Hearing filed by the employee, Evodio Davila, pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 50-6-239 (2015). The central legal issue is whether the employer, Diversified Builders, Inc., must provide additional medical benefits for Mr. Davila's alleged work-related injuries. For the reasons set forth below, the Court finds Mr. Davila is entitled to ongoing medical treatment with his authorized treating physician, Dr. Nahum Beard, for any injuries related to the work injury of April 9, 2015.

History of Claim

Mr. Davila is a forty-five-year-old resident of Shelby County, Tennessee. Diversified Builders hired him as a carpenter in February 2015. Mr. Davila claimed he sustained multiple injuries on April 9, 2015, after falling from a walk board at work. At the time of the accident, Mr. Davila's supervisor, Jerry Oglesby, heard Mr. Davila scream and found him lying on the ground. Mr. Oglesby drove Mr. Davila to the emergency room at Methodist University Hospital where the medical provider diagnosed Mr. Davila with a left patellar fracture, cervical neck strain, and fall with loss of consciousness.

1 A complete listing of the technical record and exhibits is attached to this Order as an appendix.

1 Thereafter, Diversified Builders provided Mr. Davila with a panel of physicians from which he selected Dr. Nahum Beard from Campbell Clinic as his treating physician. Mr. Davila presented to Dr. Beard for the first time on April 16, 2015, complaining of pain in his neck, left shoulder, left chest wall, and left knee. Dr. Beard diagnosed Mr. Davila with an aggravation of underlying knee osteoarthritis with potential for a new traumatic meniscal tear, a concussion, and a possible nondisplaced fracture of the acromioclavicular joint or neck. He ordered an MRI of Mr. Davila's cervical spine.

Mr. Davila returned to see Dr. Beard on May 28, 2015. He advised Dr. Beard that his knee had improved, but he continued to experience vertigo and shoulder pain. Dr. Beard noted the cervical MRI ruled out any deep ligamentous injuries or major cervical issues, so he ordered physical therapy for Mr. Davila's shoulder and neck. He also referred Mr. Davila for a neurological evaluation. Later, on September 2, 2015, Dr. Beard referred Mr. Davila to Dr. Throckmorton to consider surgical intervention for Mr. Davila's left shoulder. Dr. Beard ultimately opined Mr. Davila's left hip pain, concussion, post-concussion syndrome, chest wall pain, cervicalgia vertigo, and acromioclavicular separation of the left shoulder were all a "direct result of the trauma he sustained on the job."

Mr. Davila selected Dr. Alan Nadel from a panel of neurologists on June 2, 2015. He began treating with Dr. Nadel on June 19, 2015, with complaints of headaches, memory issues, photophobia, blurred vision, and nausea. Dr. Nadel treated Mr. Davila's symptoms with medication and ultimately referred him for an ENT evaluation and for neuropsychological testing. Dr. Nadel completed a final medical report on April 6, 2016, indicating Mr. Davila retained no permanent impairment from a neurological standpoint and was returned to regular duty work as of March 24, 2016.

On September 16, 2015, Dr. Davila presented to Dr. Christopher Hall at Memphis ENT Group for his hearing loss and vertigo issues. The testing performed by Dr. Hall was consistent with ossicular chain disruption. In addition, Dr. Hall opined that Mr. Davila's disequilibrium on vestibular testing could be the result of a central nervous system abnormality relating to the brainstem. He recommended either surgery or hearing aids, and Mr. Davila chose the hearing aids. Dr. Hall never addressed the issue of causation in his office notes.

Mr. Davila underwent a neuropsychological evaluation with Dr. James Walker on October 13, 2015. The testing indicated that Mr. Davila, at worst, suffered from a mild head injury on April 9, 2015, and had no cognitive impairment related to the April 9, 2015 injury. Following the evaluation, Dr. Walker placed Mr. Davila at maximum medical improvement from a mental standpoint.

Instead of authorizing Mr. Davila to treat with Dr. Throckmorton, per Dr. Beard's September 2, 2015 referral, Diversified Builders provided Mr. Davila with a panel of

2 orthopedic surgeons from which he selected Dr. Robert Lonergan. However, Dr. Lonergan's office note of November 5, 2015, indicated Mr. Davila presented for an independent medical evaluation for his left shoulder and upper extremity rather than for treatment. Dr. Lonergan recommended a left-shoulder MRI to rule out internal derangement but specifically stated Mr. Davila's shoulder injuries and complaints of pain were "directly related to his work-related injury sustained in April 2015." Dr. Lonergan ultimately recommended surgery for Mr. Davila's left shoulder.

On March 21, 2016, Diversified Builders sent Mr. Davila for an independent medical evaluation with Dr. Claiborne Christian. Dr. Christian examined Mr. Davila's left shoulder and left knee. While Dr. Christian agreed with Dr. Lonergan's assessment that Mr. Davila needed surgery for his left shoulder, he did not agree that the shoulder or knee injury were related to Mr. Davila's work injury.

Immediately prior to the Expedited Hearing held on April 25, 2016, the Court heard Diversified Builders' Motion to Compel further responses to discovery. The Court determined that Mr. Davila was not required to furnish his social security number. He was, however, required, to provide a list and address of all medical providers for the previous ten years, the approximate dates of treatment, his name as provided to each medical provider, and his date of birth.

During the Expedited Hearing, Mr. Davila testified he fell approximately twenty- five feet from a walk board while working for Diversified Builders on April 9, 2015. He stated the left side of his body hit concrete when he fell, and he indicated he blacked out for a short period. According to Mr. Davila, his supervisor, Jerry Oglesby, was working on the other side of the house when he fell and took him to the emergency room. Mr. Davila gave a detailed description of his medical treatment but noted he continues to need medical care. He testified that he asked to return to his treating physician, Dr. Beard, but Diversified Builders denied his request.

Mr. Davila's wife, Flora Colunga, testified Mr. Davila's face was so swollen when she arrived at the emergency room that he looked like "the Elephant Man." She stated her husband is a healthy man and never goes to the doctor. She admitted he did seek treatment for past workers' compensation injuries, a dog bite, as well as an eye issue, and she noted he did have a scar on his stomach from an operation he had before she knew him.

Diversified Builders called its owner, Todd Tigner, and foreman, Jerry Oglesby, to testify on its behalf. Mr. Tigner testified that Mr. Oglesby advised him of Mr. Davila's accident on his way to take Mr. Davila to the hospital. After speaking to Mr. Oglesby, Mr. Tigner went to the hospital to see Mr. Davila and noted he had no visible sign of injury. He also testified he went to the accident scene after visiting Mr.

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2016 TN WC 109, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/davila-evodio-v-iiversified-builders-inc-tennworkcompcl-2016.