Masters v. Iowa Beef Processors, Inc.

374 N.W.2d 21, 220 Neb. 835, 1985 Neb. LEXIS 1184
CourtNebraska Supreme Court
DecidedSeptember 20, 1985
Docket84-796
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 374 N.W.2d 21 (Masters v. Iowa Beef Processors, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Nebraska Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Masters v. Iowa Beef Processors, Inc., 374 N.W.2d 21, 220 Neb. 835, 1985 Neb. LEXIS 1184 (Neb. 1985).

Opinions

Hastings, J.

The defendant employer has appealed an award on rehearing of the Nebraska Workmen’s Compensation Court. Defendant disputes the findings of the compensation court that plaintiff [836]*836sustained an accident arising out of and in the course of her employment by the defendant, that a causal connection existed between the alleged accident and plaintiff’s injuries, that the plaintiff was still suffering from temporary total disability, and that a waiting time penalty should be paid. We affirm.

Marian L. Masters began working for Iowa Beef Processors, Inc. (IBP), on September 12,1983. Two days later she began her job as a “brisket boner,” wherein she pulled pieces of meat off a line with a meathook, made several cuts, and pulled the meat apart. On September 21, while still in her training period and working at only half speed, the plaintiff injured her left hand. “I did the trim and went to pull it apart and something snapped in my hand and it just — It’s like somebody took a rubberband and snapped it on top of the skin and just left it go. It was very painful, numb, burning.”

After a brief wait plaintiff continued working until her supper break, although the pain worsened. She then went to the dispensary, where the nurse told her the pain would go away in a couple of weeks and that she should have the hand wrapped every day. She went back to work and completed her shift. She continued working through September 26, and during that time the pain worsened. Her fingers turned white and swelled, and numbness spread up her arm.

On September 26 she began working at full speed, but after a while she was unable to keep up. She again felt snapping in her hand, and eventually she went to the dispensary to obtain a slip in order to see a doctor. The next morning she saw a physician, who put her on light work with no stress to the wrists. She went back to work, and after she refused one job requiring substantial pulling, she was placed on a trim line. This required her to reach out and pull pieces of meat off a line. She continued this work on September 28 but was warned that she was not doing a good enough job. On September 29 she was fired.

On September 30 she saw another physician, Dr. Hoelting, who prescribed complete rest and medication for her injury. She returned to her doctor on October 11 and was examined by another physician, Dr. Garred. After obtaining a medical history and testing the patient, Dr. Garred determined that the plaintiff suffered from carpal tunnel syndrome. He then [837]*837performed a carpal tunnel release, which confirmed his diagnosis. Plaintiff rested for approximately 2 weeks and then began physical therapy.

Dr. Garred saw the plaintiff again in December of 1983 and placed her on more strenuous physical therapy, as he was concerned that she was not doing well. Plaintiff’s condition improved rapidly after that. She saw a neurologist, Dr. Isgreen, in March of 1984, who did a series of tests on her left arm. He found some weakness, “more diffuse weakness than one would imagine on the basis of simple carpal tunnel problems”; however, his only diagnosis was carpal tunnel syndrome.

The plaintiff, who was still undergoing physical therapy, returned to see Dr. Garred in mid-May. She complained of tightness in her arm, starting at her elbow, as well as swelling in her fingers, which resulted from increased physical activity. At that time Dr. Garred suspected a “pronator syndrome,” and referred her to Dr. Linscheid at the Mayo Clinic. On June 7 she was examined at the Mayo Clinic and was diagnosed as suffering from pronator teres syndrome. Dr. Linscheid operated on her to relieve the problem, and at the time of the rehearing, June 21, 1984, she was still recovering from the surgery.

Following a one-judge hearing, the compensation court awarded plaintiff temporary total disability, medical expenses, waiting time penalties, interest, and attorney fees for injuries which it found to have arisen out of an accident while the plaintiff was employed by the defendant.

The defendant, IBP, requested a rehearing. On rehearing, the three-judge panel found that on September 21, 1983, the plaintiff sustained injuries “while engaged in the duties of her employment.” The court found that both the carpal tunnel and the pronator teres syndromes were causally' related to the accident which occurred on September 21 and that no reasonable controversy existed concerning plaintiff’s right to recovery. The panel granted temporary total disability of $157.33 per week, existing and future medical expenses, waiting time, and attorney fees. One judge dissented, finding that no causal relationship was proven as to the pronator teres syndrome.

[838]*838The findings of fact made by the Nebraska Workmen’s Compensation Court after rehearing will not be set aside on appeal unless clearly wrong.

In testing the sufficiency of evidence to support findings of fact made by the Workmen’s Compensation Court after rehearing, the evidence must be considered in the light most favorable to the successful party. Every controverted fact must be resolved in his favor, and he should have the benefit of every inference that can reasonably be drawn therefrom. Allen v. IBP, Inc., 219 Neb. 424, 363 N.W.2d 520 (1985). See, also, McLaughlin v. Self-Insurance Servs., 219 Neb. 260, 361 N.W.2d 585 (1985).

As provided for by Neb. Rev. Stat. § 48-151(2) (Reissue 1984), “accident,” as used in workmen’s compensation law, shall

be construed to mean an unexpected or unforeseen injury happening suddenly and violently, with or without human fault, and producing at the time objective symptoms of an injury. The claimant shall have a burden of proof to establish by a preponderance of the evidence that such unexpected or unforeseen injury was in fact caused by the employment. There shall be no presumption from the mere occurrence of such unexpected or unforeseen injury that the injury was in fact caused by the employment.

In order to sustain the burden of proving an accident as well as causation, the evidence presented by the claimant must be definite and certain to warrant a compensation award. Scott v. State, 218 Neb. 195, 352 N.W.2d 890 (1984).

In Sandel v. Packaging Co. of America, 211 Neb. 149, 317 N.W.2d 910 (1982), the claimant suffered from an ailment diagnosed as “lateral epicondylitis.” The onset of the condition followed the employee’s assignment to a job which required her to lift and turn over stacks of cardboard sheets. Her physician testified that her condition was the result of repetitive flexion and extension of her hand and wrist due to her employment. We held that such condition amounted to an accident because the injury was unexpected or unforeseen, the injury produced immediate objective symptoms, and it happened suddenly and violently.

[839]*839It is quite apparent from the record, through the testimony of the plaintiff as corroborated by a coworker, that plaintiff’s injury satisfied the three-prong injury test of

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Masters v. Iowa Beef Processors, Inc.
374 N.W.2d 21 (Nebraska Supreme Court, 1985)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
374 N.W.2d 21, 220 Neb. 835, 1985 Neb. LEXIS 1184, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/masters-v-iowa-beef-processors-inc-neb-1985.