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Morgan v. Desha County Tax Assessor's Office
Citations: 45 Ark. App. 95; 871 S.W.2d 429; 1994 Ark. App. LEXIS 111Docket: CA 93-3405
Court: Court of Appeals of Arkansas; March 16, 1994; Arkansas; State Appellate Court
An appeal was made regarding the Workers' Compensation Commission's decision, which determined that the appellant did not demonstrate that specific medical treatment was reasonable and necessary for her compensable injury. The appellant argued that the Commission's ruling lacked substantial evidence. The court agreed, reversing and remanding the case. In its review of the Commission's decision, the court maintained that it must view evidence favorably towards the Commission's findings while acknowledging the necessity for judicial review. The appellant had sustained a compensable injury on October 18, 1990, leading to treatment from Dr. R.L. Turney and later Dr. P.B. Simpson, who performed multiple procedures, including a diskectomy and cervical fusion. Following complications, further examinations by Dr. Robert Abraham suggested conservative treatment, and Dr. Simpson eventually released the appellant, indicating no further treatment was necessary. Upon referral to Dr. Ray Jouett, additional surgery was performed. The administrative law judge initially awarded benefits for the treatment provided by Dr. Jouett and Dr. David Reding, deeming it compensable. However, the Commission overturned this decision, asserting the appellant failed to prove the necessity of the treatments by a preponderance of the evidence. They noted that the record showed minimal evidence of the treatments, and the conclusions of Dr. Jouett and Dr. Reding aligned with earlier assessments from Dr. Simpson and Dr. Abraham, both of whom found surgery unwarranted. Dr. Reding based the decision to operate on the appellant's failure to respond to other treatments. The Commission favored the views of Dr. Simpson and Dr. Abraham; however, Dr. Abraham only recommended conservative treatment without ruling out the need for further interventions. Dr. Simpson's notes revealed ongoing pain in the appellant's neck radiating to her right shoulder, arm, and hand, and he suggested another myelogram to investigate the pain's underlying cause. The appellant expressed fear of undergoing another myelogram due to a previous seizure. Despite conservative treatments, the appellant's condition did not improve. Dr. Reding identified a pseudoarthrosis at C5-6, likely contributing to the appellant's pain, and performed a decompression and fusion procedure, which appeared successful. The conclusion reached was that reasonable and necessary medical treatment was proven by the appellant, leading to a reversal of the Commission's finding and a remand for further consideration of outstanding issues. The Commission did not address the appellant's temporary total disability benefits claim.