Dyer, Jimmy v. Tankersley Concrete

2015 TN WC 83
CourtTennessee Court of Workers' Compensation Claims
DecidedJuly 14, 2015
Docket2015-05-0078
StatusPublished

This text of 2015 TN WC 83 (Dyer, Jimmy v. Tankersley Concrete) 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
Dyer, Jimmy v. Tankersley Concrete, 2015 TN WC 83 (Tenn. Super. Ct. 2015).

Opinion

COURT OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION CLAIMS AT MURFREESBORO

Jimmy E. Dyer ) Docket No.: 2015-05-0078 Employee, ) v. ) State File No.: 27265-2015 ) Tankersley Concrete ) Date of Injury: March 13, 2015 Employer, ) And ) Judge: Dale Tipps ) Builders Mutual ) Insurance Carrier. ) )

EXPEDITED HEARING ORDER

THIS CAUSE came to be heard before the undersigned Workers' Compensation Judge on June 29, 2015, upon the Request for Expedited Hearing filed by Jimmy Dyer (Mr. Dyer), the Employee, on June 2, 2015, pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 50-6-239 (2014) to determine if the Employer, Tankersley Concrete (Tankersley) is obligated to provide medical and/or temporary disability benefits. Considering the positions of the parties, the applicable law, and all of the evidence submitted, the Court concludes that Mr. Dyer is entitled to a medical evaluation for the purpose of obtaining an opinion on the medical causation of his left shoulder injury.

ANALYSIS

Issues

Whether Mr. Dyer sustained an injury on March 13, 2015, arising primarily out of and in the course and scope of his employment with Tankersley Concrete; and

If so, whether Mr. Dyer is entitled to medical and/ or temporary disability benefits. 1 Evidence Submitted

The Court admitted into evidence the exhibits below:

1. Affidavit of Jimmy E. Dyer 2. Medical Records from Fast Pace Medical Clinic, PLLC (Fast Pace) (25 pages) 3. March 30, 2015, Record from Benchmark Physical Therapy 4. Delivery Ticket from Medi-Quip, Inc. 5. Medical Equipment Prescription from FLA Orthopedics 6. Cecil Wayne Hickman’s Declaration Made Under Penalty of Perjury 7. Rodolpho Carmona’s Declaration Made Under Penalty of Perjury 8. C-41 Wage Statement.

The Court designated the following as the technical record:

 Petition for Benefit Determination (PBD), April 10, 2015,  Dispute Certification Notice (DCN), May 5, 2015,  Request for Expedited Hearing, June 2, 2015,  Order of Transfer, June 24, 2015, and  Tankersley’s Pre-Hearing Brief.

The Court did not consider attachments to the above filings unless admitted into evidence during the Expedited Hearing. The Court considered factual statements in the above filings or any attachments thereto as allegations unless established by the evidence.

The following witnesses provided in-person testimony:

 Mr. Jimmy Dyer and  Ms. Kathy Lee Anderson Dyer.

History of Claim

Mr. Dyer is a forty three (43)-year-old resident of Bedford County, Tennessee. See PBD. He testified his left arm began hurting as he stacked concrete molds in the course of his work for Tankersley on Friday, March 13, 2015. Id. The pain worsened, but he kept working for the rest of the day. He did not report the problem to his employer

2 because he thought he had just overworked his shoulder and felt it would get better on its own over the weekend. The next morning, however, his shoulder was so stiff and painful that he could not move his left arm.

Mr. Dyer testified he spoke to Mr. Tankersley, the owner of the business, on Monday and told him about his shoulder problem. Mr. Tankersley told him to take the day off. When his arm was not any better after two days off work, Mr. Dyer told Mr. Tankersley on Wednesday, March 18, 2015, that he needed to see a doctor. Tankersley Concrete began providing medical treatment at Fast Pace.

Mr. Dyer saw a nurse practitioner, Robert Reeves, on March 18, 2015. He reported the onset of shoulder pain on Friday after lifting heavy concrete molds. Mr. Reeves diagnosed a sprain/strain of the rotator cuff and restricted Mr. Dyer from lifting with his left arm. See Exhibit 2, (March 18, 2015 office note). Mr. Dyer returned on March 26, 2015, reporting that his condition had not changed. Mr. Reeves prescribed physical therapy for shoulder impingement. He also returned Mr. Dyer to work without restrictions beginning March 30, 2015. Id. On March 30, 2015, Mr. Dyer saw physician assistant Sarah Bennett and told her that his condition had not improved and that he had not been to physical therapy. Ms. Bennett noted tenderness and reduced range of motion. She restricted Mr. Dyer to right hand duty only until April 13, 2015. She also renewed the physical therapy referral, recommended daily anti-inflammatories, and prescribed a sling for Mr. Dyer’s left arm. Id. (March 30, 2015 office note).

Mr. Dyer testified that Tankersley had no light duty available while he was under medical restrictions. Fast Pace ultimately referred him to an orthopedic specialist, but Tankersley denied his claim before he saw an orthopedic doctor. He is unable to see an orthopedist under his health insurance and has not worked anywhere since his injury.

On cross-examination, Mr. Dyer acknowledged prior right shoulder problems, but denied a left shoulder injury until March 13, 2015. He further denied telling Mr. Tankersley that his shoulder began hurting on Saturday afternoon, but insisted he told Mr. Tankersley that it was hurting and stiff when he woke up. He reiterated that he did not tell his supervisor, Rodolpho Carmona, about the injury on the day it occurred because he did not think it was serious and felt that it would improve on its own.

Mr. Dyer also denied that he moved into a new house over the weekend following March 13, 2015. He testified that the move occurred before his date of injury, and he did none of the heavy work then because of his right shoulder injury. He acknowledged that he asked Wayne Hickman to help him move, but again, this was before the week of his 3 injury.

Mr. Dyer admitted that he told Mr. Carmona on March 13, 2015, that it would be his last day at work. However, he explained that everyone was joking around and pretended that that they would not return after the weekend. He also told Mr. Carmona that he would see him on Monday.

Kathy Lee Anderson Dyer is Mr. Dyer’s wife. She testified that she and Mr. Dyer moved into a new trailer sometime during the first week of February. They asked Wayne Hickman to help them, but he was unavailable. Everything was moved into their new place before March 13, 2015.

In his Declaration Made Under Penalty of Perjury, Mr. Hickman stated that, on March 13, 2015, Mr. Dyer asked him to help him move over the weekend. Mr. Hickman did not help with the move, but called Mr. Dyer during the following week. Mr. Dyer said the move took place, but he did not move anything because his arm was hurting. Mr. Dyer stated that he hurt his shoulder because he was working too fast. See Exhibit 6.

Mr. Carmona, in his Declaration Made Under Penalty of Perjury, stated that Mr. Dyer told him on March 13, 2015, that “this was his last day” because he was quitting. Mr. Dyer never mentioned anything about hurting his arm. See Exhibit 7.

Tankersley denied the claim on April 10, 2015. Mr. Dyer filed a PBD on April 10, 2015, seeking medical and temporary disability benefits. The parties did not resolve the disputed issues through mediation and the Mediation Specialist filed the DCN on May 5, 2015.

Mr. Dyer’s Contentions

Mr. Dyer contends he sustained a left shoulder injury in the course and scope of his employment with Tankersley. He requests that the Court order Tankersley to provide medical care with an orthopedist, as recommended by the Fast Pace personnel. He also seeks an order for temporary disability benefits for the period of time when he was unable to work and for the period when Tankersley failed to provide light duty within his medical restrictions.

Tankersley’s Contentions

Tankersley contends that it properly denied the claim on compensability grounds. 4 It argues that Mr. Dyer failed to carry his burden of proving that his injury arose primarily out of and in the course and scope of employment with Tankersley. It avers that Mr.

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Related

§ 4-3
Tennessee § 4-3
§ 50-6-102
Tennessee § 50-6-102(13)(A)
§ 50-6-116
Tennessee § 50-6-116
§ 50-6-204
Tennessee § 50-6-204(a)(1)(A)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2015 TN WC 83, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/dyer-jimmy-v-tankersley-concrete-tennworkcompcl-2015.