FILED

Apr 17, 2018

04:05 PM(CT)

TENNESSEE COURT OF

WORKERS' COMPENSATION

CLAIMS
Ms. Miles went to Jackson-Madison County General Hospital. A nurse's triage 

document recorded that Ms. Miles reported back pain for "3 months" but that it worsened 

that morning. She said her pain worsened when moving around and lifting at work but 

denied any "known injury." During an examination, Ms. Miles told another provider that 

her back pain began "2 days ago." That provider listed the "location where the incident 

occurred" as "VARIOUS" and added Ms. Miles said she "cooks, has 7 kids" and engages 

in "frequent lifting/tuming/[and] bending." The provider called the injury "repetitive," 

diagnosed a back strain, and restricted Ms. Miles from working for three days. 

Ms. Miles testified she presented the emergency room note to Mr. Robinson, who 

then gave her "FMLA papers." Ms. Miles said she had never claimed workers' 

compensation benefits before and knew nothing of the system. She returned to Food 

Giant on December 16 but could not work because of pain. Mr. Robinson and the deli 

manager sent her home. 

Ms. Miles saw her primary health care provider, Susan Yeomans, a Family Nurse 

Practitioner (FNP), that day. Ms. Miles said she told FNP Yeomans about the December 

12 incident, but the record indicates only that she suffered a "strain while working [but] 

not workers comp." The record stated that Ms. Miles constantly lifted and cooked at 

Food Giant. Further, Ms. Miles complained her back had hurt for two weeks. FNP 

Yeomans recommended an MRI and that Ms. Miles remain off work until completed. 

Ms. Miles' s counsel later asked Ms. Yeomans in a letter if she believed Ms. Miles' s back 

pain arose primarily out of the employment; Ms. Yeomans indicated it did. 

Food Giant contended its first notice that Ms. Miles claimed a work injury 

occurred when Ms. Miles's attorney contacted it in January 2017. It then denied the claim 

based on Mr. Robinson's statement that Ms. Miles specifically denied a work injury. It 

further asserted the medical records contained no history of the alleged injury. 

Ms. Miles testified she was "fine" before the incident. She said she told both the 

emergency room providers and Ms. Yeomans about the incident at Food Giant. She 

contended the hospital records, "as often seen with hospital records," are not specific as 

to medical causation; however, the nurse practitioner's opinion is sufficient under the 

relaxed burden of an expedited hearing. Ms. Miles requested a panel of physicians to 

evaluate her back, payment of temporary disability benefits from the date of injury 

forward, and attorney's fees under Tennessee Code Annotated section 50-6-226(d)(l)(B) 

for Food Giant's failure to timely initiate benefits. 

Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law 

Ms. Miles must present sufficient evidence that she would likely prevail at a 

hearing on the merits. Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-6-239(d)(l) (2017). The Court must 

construe the law fairly and impartially, favoring neither Ms. Miles nor Food Giant. Id. § 

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50-6-116. 

Ms. Miles and Mr. Robinson both appeared sincere in their respective descriptions 

of the events of December 12. The Court cannot say that either witness was more or less 

credible than the other. Thus, the Court will look to the documentary evidence to 

determine if Ms. Miles satisfied the applicable burden of proof. 

An employee's lay testimony along with corroborative expert testimony may 

support a finding that an employee would prevail at a hearing on the merits. Lamb v. 

KARM Thrift Stores, LLC, 2017 TN Wrk. Comp. App. Bd. LEXIS 42, at *9 (July 26, 

2017). Here, however, the Court cannot find the medical evidence corroborates Ms. 

Miles's testimony. To the contrary, two separate authors at the emergency room recorded 

Ms. Miles's pain began either two days or three months prior. Admittedly, Ms. Miles said 

her pain worsened that morning, but the records also state "no known injury" and notably 

contain no reference to the specific incident. Ms. Yeomans also recorded no history of 

the specific incident. A "specific incident" identifiable by time and place of occurrence is 

the first element of the definition for a compensable injury. Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-6-

102(14)(A). The absence of any reference to an incident allegedly occurring just two 

hours previous is compelling. Moreover, although Ms. Miles testified she did not have 

prior problems with her back, the records indicate a history of back pain. 

Ms. Miles argues Lewis v. Merry Maid, 2016 TN Wrk. Comp. App. Bd. LEXIS 19 

(Apr. 20, 2016) requires that Food Giant provide her a panel. The Court respectfully 

disagrees. In Lewis, the employee reported a specific incident that caused back pain to 

two different supervisors. The employer did not refute that reporting. Further, the medical 

evidence supported the employee's allegations that she suffered back pain while 

performing a specific task with no medical evidence to the contrary. Id. at *7-8. 

Here, Food Giant refuted Ms. Miles's account regarding the alleged Injury. 

Moreover, the medical records contain evidence at variance with Ms. Miles's version of 

how her pain began. 

For these reasons, the Court holds Ms. Miles did not establish she would likely 

prevail at a hearing on the merits as to whether she suffered an injury primarily arising 

from her employment. Thus, the Court need not address her specific requests for 

benefits. 

IT IS, THEREFORE, ORDERED as follows: 

1. The Court denies Ms. Miles's claim against Food Giant and its workers' 

compensation carrier for the requested benefits at this time. 

2. This matter is set for a Status Hearing on Monday, July 9, 2018, at 9:30 a.m. 

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Central Time. You must call toll-free 855-543-5038 to participate in the 

hearing. Failure to call may result in a determination of the issues without your 

further participation. ,.-., 

ENTERED this the 17th day of Apr 

~ nsation Claims 

APPENDIX 

Exhibits: 

1. Medical Records of Jackson-Madison Co. General Hospital and Tri-County 

Family Medicine and Urgent Care 

Technical record: 

1. Petition for Benefit Determination 

2. Dispute Certification Notice 

3. Request for Expedited Hearing 

4. Employee's Pre-Hearing Brief and Witness List 

5. Employer's Pre-Hearing Brief 

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE 

I certify that a true and correct copy of this Expedited Hearing Order was sent to 

the following recipients by the following methods of service on this the 1 ih day of April, 

2018. 

Name 

Monica Rejaei, Esq., 

Attorney for Em loyee 

James H. Tucker, Jr., Esq., 

Attome for Em lo er 

Via Email 

x 

x 

Service sent to: 

mrej aei@nstlaw.com 

cmc rath nstlaw.com 

jtucker@manierherod.com 

dstevens manierherod.com 

J2 )llfk--' Shrum, Clerk of Court 

Court of Workers' Compensation Claims 

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