This one is short, but it can change how your whole case ends.
Know what your doctors are diagnosing you with. Not every medical term — but at least which body parts. In a New York workers' comp case, you may be asked about your injuries while you are testifying, and if your answer does not match your doctors' reports, you can lose the injuries you left out.
Where It Hurts Is Not Always What Is Injured
People start claims based on where they feel the pain. That is natural. But it is not always what the doctor finds.
Say your shoulder hurts. You would naturally think you have a shoulder injury. But the pain may actually be coming from your neck and radiating down into the shoulder. You feel it in the shoulder, while your doctor is diagnosing a neck injury — and maybe not a shoulder injury at all.
That gap between what you feel and what your doctor writes down is where the trouble starts.
How Workers Lose Injuries They Actually Have
Now say you believe you hurt your right shoulder. Your doctor, though, is diagnosing a right shoulder injury and a neck injury, a right wrist injury, and a right elbow injury.
At a hearing, you are asked: What did you injure?
You answer: "My right shoulder." Nothing else — because nobody told you your doctor believes you injured more than that.
You can be held to that answer. The other injuries can be disallowed because you denied having them. Not because you disagree with your doctor. Not because the injuries are not real. Just because you did not know.
This gets harder the more injuries there are. In a repetitive-strain case, the records might list both shoulders, the right elbow, the left wrist, the left hip, both knees and the right foot. Keeping all of that straight is hard for anyone, especially if English is not your first language. Your attorney should go over the list with you before you testify, without you having to ask.
It is also, as a practical matter, a very bad look to sit in front of a judge and not know what your own doctor thinks is wrong with you because of work.
Everyone Reads Your Doctor's Records — Except, Usually, You
Every time you see your doctor, the doctor creates treatment records. Those records are read by almost everyone in your case except the person they are about. You have the right to see them — but most injured workers never do. Meanwhile, they are read by:
- Your attorney sees them, if you have one.
- The insurance carrier sees them.
- The judge sees them.
When you testify, your testimony should line up with what your doctors are writing in those reports.
For more on what the hearing itself looks like, see our guide on what to expect at your workers' comp hearing.
What You Actually Need to Know
You do not have to read every word of your treatment records. Here is the minimum:
- The body parts your doctor is diagnosing. Right shoulder, left knee, back, neck — whatever they are. This is the part that matters most.
- What you are technically being diagnosed with, if you can. It is not required, but it helps.
That way, if you are asked about your injuries when you testify, your answer will match what your doctors are writing. Related: our guide to choosing the right doctor for your workers' comp claim.
Key Takeaways
- Where you feel pain is not always what your doctor is diagnosing — shoulder pain can come from a neck injury
- If you testify to fewer injuries than your doctor diagnosed, the rest can be disallowed, even though you never meant to dispute them
- Your attorney, the carrier, and the judge all read your doctor's treatment records — make sure you know what is in them too
- At the very least, know which body parts your doctor is diagnosing
Not sure what your doctor has actually diagnosed?
Workers’ compensation is what we do. At Schotter Millican, LLP, we represent injured workers across New York City, and we have never represented an insurance company or carrier.
Call (718) 770-3708 for a free case review. No fee unless we win.
Hablamos español — llame al (718) 770-3708.
Mówimy po polsku — zadzwoń (718) 770-3708.