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Davis v. Sumner County Board of Education12/27/1999
Modified and Remanded
JUDGMENT ORDER
This case is before the Court upon the entire record, including the order of referral to the Special Workers' Compensation Appeals Panel, and the Panel's Memorandum Opinion setting forth its findings of fact and conclusions of law, which are incorporated herein by reference.
Whereupon, it appears to the Court that the Memorandum Opinion of the Panel should be accepted and approved; and It is, therefore, ordered that the Panel's findings of fact and conclusions of law are adopted and affirmed, and the decision of the Panel is made the judgment of the Court.
Costs will be paid by taxed equally to the parties, for which execution may issue if necessary.
IT IS SO ORDERED on January 24, 2000.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
OPINION FILED: MODIFIED AND REMANDED
CAROL L. MCCOY Special Judge
MEMORANDUM OPINION
This workers' compensation appeal has been referred to the Special Workers Compensation Appeals Panel of the Supreme Court pursuant to T.C.A. § 50-6-225(e)(3) for hearing and reporting of findings of fact and conclusions of law. The employer, Sumner County Board of Education (Sumner County), has appealed from the trial court's finding that the employee, Gary Wayne Davis (Davis), was entitled to a 92.5% disability as a result of a job related fall.
Appellate review is de novo upon the record of the trial court accompanied by a presumption of correctness of the findings of fact, unless the preponderance of the evidence is otherwise. T.C.A. § 50-6- 225(e). To satisfy this standard of review, this Court must conduct an independent examination to determine where the preponderance of the evidence lies. Williams v. Tecumseh Products Co., 978 S.W.2d 932, 935 (Tenn. 1998).
Appellee Davis taught physical education and driver's education for Sumner County when he fell off a desk on January 10, 1994 injuring his back. He was seen after the accident by Dr. Clayton MacConnell who prescribed some non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicine, some pain medication and ordered a CAT scan. The scan showed mild bulging of the disc but no actual rupture. Dr. MacConnell referred him to Dr. Vern Allen in May of 1994 for an evaluation of his back injury . At the time of the evaluation, David was taking outpatient physical therapy. He reported low back pain, some numbness in the left leg and radicular right leg pain. Dr. Allen recommended that he continue the physical therapy and prescribed Robaxin. Davis' condition did not improve, and Dr. Allen examined him again in October. No treatment other than home exercises was prescribed.
In September of 1995, Dr. Allen referred Davis to Dr. Leon Ensalada for further evaluation and management of Davis' back and right leg pain. Dr. Ensalada prescribed steroid injections at the L-5/S-1 level which, when Davis went back to Dr. Ensalada on October 11, 1995, had alleviated most of the pain. On November 14, 1995, Dr. Ensalada found Davis had reached maximum medical improvement, and stated that he had a 5% whole person impairment, that there were certain restrictions that he was subject to, but that he was able to return to his job as a teacher. Unfortunately, Davis' condition deteriorated. When he visited Dr. John Campa in August of 1996, he was experiencing left knee pain, low back pain, right lower extremity pain, neck and head pain, left elbow and bilateral thumb pain. The painful knee, back and neck conditions each had a previous history.
Davis' knee problem began after a sports related injury in 1962. He had cartilage repair knee surgery in 1963 and 1964. In 1990, the knee was further in
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