P A R T C D e c i s i o n u n d e r A p p e a l T h e d e c i s i o n u n d e r a p p e a l i s t h e M i n i s t r y o f S o c i a l D e v r e c o n s i d e r a t i o n d e c i s i o n d a t e d F e b r u a r y 3 , 2 0 1 4 w h i c h s t a t u t o r y r e q u i r e m e n t s o f S e c t i o n 2 o f t h e E m p l o y m e n t d e s i g n a t i o n a s a p e r s o n w i t h d i s a b i l i t i e s ( P W D ) . T h e m a n d t h a t h e h a s a s e v e r e m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t t h a t i n t h e a t l e a s t t w o y e a r s . H o w e v e r , t h e m i n i s t r y w a s n o t s a t i s • t h e a p p e l l a n t h a s a s e v e r e p h y s i c a l i m p a i r m e n t • t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s d a i l y l i v i n g a c t i v i t i e s ( D L A ) a r e , i n s i g n i f i c a n t l y r e s t r i c t e d e i t h e r c o n t i n u o u s l y o r p e r • a s a r e s u l t o f t h e s e r e s t r i c t i o n s , t h e a p p e l l a n t r e p e r s o n , t h e u s e o f a n a s s i s t i v e d e v i c e , o r t h e s e P A R T D R e l e v a n t L e g i s l a t i o n E m p l o y m e n t a n d A s s i s t a n c e f o r P e r s o n s w i t h D i s a b il i t i e E m p l o y m e n t a n d A s s i s t a n c e fo r P e r s o n s w i t h D i s a b i l i t i e ' . · -. · : . : -e l o p m e n t a n d S o c i a l I n n o v a t i o n ' s ( t h e m i n i s t r y ) f o u n d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t d i d n o t m e e t t w o o f t h e f i v e a n d A s s i s t a n c e fo r P e r s o n s w i t h D i s a b i l i t i e s A c t f o r i n i s t r y f o u n d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t m e t t h e a g e r e q u i r e m e n t o p i n i o n o f a m e d i c a l p r a c t i t i o n e r i s l i k e l y t o c o n t i n u e f o r f i e d t h a t t h e e v i d e n c e e s t a b l i s h e s t h a t : ; t h e o p i n i o n o f a p r e s c r i b e d p r o f e s s i o n a l , d i r e c t l y a n d i o d i c a l l y f o r e x t e n d e d p e r i o d s ; a n d , q u i r e s t h e s i g n i f i c a n t h e l p o r s u p e r v i s i o n o f a n o t h e r r v i c e s o f a n a s s i s t a n c e a n i m a l t o p e r f o r m D L A . s A c t ( E A P W D A ) , s e c t i o n 2 s R e g u l a t i o n ( E A P W D R ) , s e c t i o n 2
P A R T E S u m m a r v o f F a c t s T h e a p p e l l a n t d i d n o t a t t e n d t h e h e a r i n g . T h e p a n e l r e c h a d b e e n n o t i f i e d o f t h e d a l e , t i m e a n d l o c a t i o n o f t h e h a n d A s s i s t a n c e R e g u l a t i o n , t h e p a n e l h e a r d t h e a p p e a l T h e e v i d e n c e b e f o r e t h e m i n i s t r y a t t h e l i m e o f t h e r e c o D i s a b i l i t i e s ( P W D ) A p p l i c a t i o n c o m p r i s e d o f t h e a p p l i c a p h y s i c i a n r e p o r t ( P R ) a n d a s s e s s o r r e p o r t ( A R ) b o t h d a g e n e r a l p r a c t i t i o n e r ( G P ) . T h e e v i d e n c e b e f o r e t h e m i n R e c o n s i d e r a t i o n ( R F R ) d a t e d J a n u a r y 1 0 , 2 0 1 4 t o w h i c p r e p a r e d b y a n a d v o c a t e ( R F R S u b m i s s i o n s ) . . D i a g n o s e s T h e a p p e l l a n t h a s b e e n d i a g n o s e d b y h i s G P w i t h l u m b d a t e o f o n s e t a s 2 0 0 8 a n d a t t e n t i o n d e f i c i t d i s o r d e r w i t h P h y s i c a l I m p a i r m e n t • I n t h e P R , t h e G P i n d i c a t e d i n t h e h e a l t h h i s t o r y c o n c e n t r i c b u l g i n g d i s c s i n c e 2 0 0 8 p o s t w o r k a c • T h e G P r e p o r t e d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t d o e s n o t r e q • I n r e s p o n s e t o t h e q u e s t i o n a s t o w h e t h e r t h e a p o r m o r e t h e G P c h e c k s t h e " y e s " b o x a n d c o m m a n d A D H . " • I n t h e P R , t h e G P i n d i c a t e d u n d e r F u n c t i o n a l s k u n a i d e d , c l i m b 5 o r m o r e s t a i r s a n d h e c a n l i f t 2 " b a c k p a i n " a n d t h e a p p e l l a n t i s n o t e d a s b e i n g a • I n t h e A R , t h e G P s u m m a r i z e d t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s i m " d e p r e s s i o n / a n x i e t y / l u m b a r p a i n / a t t e n t i o n d e f i c i t • T h e G P i n d i c a t e s t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s a b i l i t y t o c o a r e a l l g o o d . • T h e G P i n d i c a t e d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t i s i n d e p e n d e s t a n d i n g . T h e G P f u r t h e r i n d i c a t e d t h a t t h e a p p e p e r s o n o r i s u n a b l e t o l i f t d u e t o l u m b a r p a i n a n d c a r r y a n d h o l d . M e n t a l I m p a i r m e n t • I n t h e P R , u n d e r h e a l t h h i s t o r y , t h e G P n o t e s t h a a t t e n t i o n d e f i c i t d i s o r d e r . • T h e G P r e p o r t e d s i g n i f i c a n t d e f i c i t s w i t h c o g n i t i v e e m o t i o n a l d i s t u r b a n c e a n d a t t e n t i o n o r s u s t a i n e d m a j o r d e p r e s s i o n p l u s a t t e n t i o n d e f i c i t d i s o r d e r . " c o m m u n i c a t i o n . • I n t h e A R , t h e G P s u m m a r i z e d t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s i m a c t i v i t i e s a s " d e p r e s s i o n / a n x i e t y / l u m b a r p a i n / a t t e • I n t h e A R , t h e G P a s s e s s e d t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s s p e a • I n t h e A R , t h e G P a s s e s s e d m a j o r i m p a c t s t o d a i e m o t i o n a l f u n c t i o n i n g : b o d i l y f u n c t i o n s , e m o t i o n , F u r t h e r , t h e G P n o t e d n o i m p a c t i n t h e a r e a s o f c e x e c u t i v e , m o t o r a c t i v i t y , l a n g u a g e , p s y c h o t i c s y m · c o m m e n t e d t h a t t h e a n n e l l a n ! · " h a s r n a i o r d e p r e s e i v e d c o n f i r m a t i o n f r o m t h e T r i b u n a l t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t e a r i n g . A c c o r d i n g l y , u n d e r s . 8 6 ( b ) o f t h e E m p l o y m e n t i n t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s a b s e n c e . n s i d e r a t i o n d e c i s i o n i n c l u d e d t h e P e r s o n W i t h n t i n f o r m a t i o n a n d s e l f r e p o r t d a t e d J u n e 2 8 , 2 0 1 3 , a t e d J u n e 2 8 , 2 0 1 3 a n d p r e p a r e d b y t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s i s t r y a l s o i n c l u d e d t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s R e q u e s t f o r h w a s a t t a c h e d t h r e e p a g e s o f w r i t t e n s u b m i s s i o n s a r p a i n w i t h d a t e o f o n s e t a s 2 0 0 8 , d e p r e s s i o n w i t h d a t e o f o n s e t a s 2 0 0 2 . t h a t " t h e p a t i e n t h a s c h r o n i c l u m b a r p a i n d u e t o c i d e n t . " u i r e a n y p r o s t h e s e s o r a i d s f o r h i s i m p a i r m e n t . p e l l a n t ' s i m p a i r m e n t i s l i k e l y l o c o n t i n u e f o r t w o y e a r s e n t s " D u e t o n a t u r e o f h i s t o r y o f b a c k p a i n , d e p r e s s i o n i l l s t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t c a n w a l k 4 o r m o r e b l o c k s l o 7 k g ( 5 -1 5 l b s . ) a l t h o u g h t h e G P a d d s t h e n o t e b l e t o r e m a i n s e a t e d f o r l e s s t h a n 1 h o u r . p a i r m e n t s t h a t i m p a c t h i s a b i l i t y t o m a n a g e D L A a s d i s o r d e r . " m m u n i c a t e b y s p e a k i n g , r e a d i n g , w r i t i n g a n d h e a r i n g n t w a l k i n g i n d o o r s a n d o u t d o o r s , c l i m b i n g s t a i r s a n d l l a n t r e q u i r e s c o n t i n u o u s a s s i s t a n c e f r o m a n o t h e r h e r e q u i r e s c o n t i n u o u s a s s i s t a n c e o r i s u n a b l e t o t t h e a p p e l l a n t s u f f e r s f r o m m a j o r d e p r e s s i o n a n d a n d e m o t i o n a l f u n c t i o n i n t h e a r e a s o f m e m o r y , c o n c e n t r a t i o n a n d a d d e d t h e c o m m e n t " p a t i e n t h a s T h e a p p e l l a n t i s n o t e d a s h a v i n g n o d i f f i c u l t i e s w i t h p a i r m e n t s t h a t i m p a c t h i s a b i l i t y t o m a n a g e d a i l y l i v i n g n t i o n d e f i c i t d i s o r d e r . " k i n g , r e a d i n g , w r i t i n g a n d h e a r i n g a s g o o d . l y f u n c t i o n i n g i n t h e f o l l o w i n g a r e a s o f c o g n i t i v e a n d a t t e n t i o n / c o n c e n t r a t i o n , m e m o r y a n d m o t i v a t i o n . o n s c i o u s n e s s , i m p u l s e c o n t r o l , i n s i g h t a n d j u d g m e n t , p t o m s a n d o t h e r n e u r o l o g i c a l p r o b l e m s . T h e G P s i v e d i s o r d e r a n d a t t e n t i o n d e f i c i t 1 N h i c h i m o a i r s h i s
a b i l i t y t o d o d a i l y c h o r e s ( A O L ' s ) . ' ' • W i t h r e s p e c t t o t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s s o c i a l f u n c t i o n i n m a k i n g a p p r o p r i a t e s o c i a l d e c i s i o n s , d e v e l o p i n g a p p r o p r i a t e l y w i t h o t h e r s a n d t h a t h e r e q u i r e s c w i t h u n e x p e c t e d d e m a n d s a n d s e c u r i n g a s s i s t a p a i n . • T h e G P d e s c r i b e s t h e a p p e l l a n t a s h a v i n g m a r g n e t w o r k s . D a il y L i v i n g A c t i v i t i e s ( D L A ) • T h e G P r e p o r t e d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t h a s n o t b e e w i t h h i s a b i l i t y t o p e r f o r m h i s D L A . • I n t h e P R , t h e G P n o t e s u n d e r H e a l t h H i s t o r y t h d a i l y l i v i n g . I t t a k e s h i m 3 -5 t i m e s a s l o n g t o p e • I n t h e A R , t h e G P i n d i c a t e d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t i s o t h e r t h a n t r a n s f e r s o n / o f f o f c h a i r i n w h i c h h e i s p e r s o n a n d t a k i n g s i g n i f i c a n t l y l o n g e r t h a n t y p i c • C o n t i n u i n g i n t h e A R , t h e G P f u r t h e r i n d i c a t e d t h a n o t h e r p e r s o n o r i s u n a b l e t o d o l a u n d r y o r b a s t h e s e t a s k s i t t a k e s s i g n i f i c a n t l y l o n g e r t h a n t y p i • F o r s h o p p i n g , t h e a p p e l l a n t i s a s s e s s e d a s i n d e h o m e a n d t h e G P n o t e s t h a t f o r t h a t t a s k , t h e a p p e r s o n o r i s u n a b l e t o p e r f o r m i t d u e t o b a c k p a • F o r m e a l s , t h e a p p e l l a n t i s a s s e s s e d a s r e q u i r i n u r i a b l e i n a l l a s p e c t s a n d t a k e s s i g n i f i c a n t l y l o n g a p p e l l a n t ' s m o t h e r h e l p s h i m w i t h m e a l p l a n n i n g • F o r p a y i n g r e n t a n d b i l l s a n d m e d i c a t i o n s , t h e a p w i t h o u t f u r t h e r c o m m e n t . • F o r t r a n s p o r t a t i o n , t h e a p p e l l a n t i s a s s e s s e d a s g e t t i n g i n a n d o u t o f a v e h i c l e , u s i n g p u b l i c t r a n s t r a n s p o r t a t i o n a n d t h e G P a d d s t h e c o m m e n t " d N e e d f o r H e l p • I n t h e P R , t h e G P d i d n o t i n d i c a t e t h a t t h e a p p e l • T h e G P r e p o r t e d i n t h e A R t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t l i v e p e o p l e f o r D L A i n c l u d e s f a m i l y a n d h e a l t h a u t h o c o m m e n t e d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s m o t h e r h e l p s h i m I n t h e R F R S u b m i s s i o n s , t h e a d v o c a t e s t a t e s t h a t t h e a p s e v e r e p h y s i c a l a n d m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t w h i c h s i g n i f i c a n c o n t i n u o u s a s s i s t a n c e t o p e r f o r m D L A . T h e a d v o c a t e r e t h e a p p e l l a n t h a s s i g n i f i c a n t d e f i c i t s w i t h c o g n i t i v e a n d e r e f e r e n c e s t h e A R , s t a t i n g t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t r e q u i r e s c o a n d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t h a s m a j o r i m p a c t s i n f i v e a r e a s o f D L A , t h e a d v o c a t e a g a i n r e f e r e n c e s t h e A R s t a t i n g t h a t w i t h t r a n s f e r s o n / o f f a c h a i r , l a u n d r y , b a s i c h o u s e k e e p i n t a k e s i g n i f i c a n t l y l o n g e r . T h e a d v o c a t e n o t e s t h e G P ' s c c o n t i n u o u s a s s i s t a n c e a n d t a k e s s i g n i f i c a n t l y l o n g e r w i t h s t o r a g e o f f o o d , t h a t h e r e q u i r e s a s s i s t a n c e w i t h g e t t i n g s c h e d u l e s , t h a t h e n e e d s c o n t i n u o u s s u p p o r t w i t h t w o a r f u n c l i o n i n a w i t h h i s i m m e d i a t e a n d s o c i a l n e t w o r k s .g , t h e G P n o t e s t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t i s i n d e p e n d e n t a n d m a i n t a i n i n g r e l a t i o n s h i p s a n d i n t e r a c t i n g o n t i n u o u s s u p p o r t a n d s u p e r v i s i o n d e a l i n g a p p r o p r i a t e l y n c e f r o m o t h e r s d u e t o a n x i e t y , d e p r e s s i o n a n d b a c k i n a l f u n c t i o n i n g i n h i s i m m e d i a t e a n d e x t e n d e d s o c i a l n p r e s c r i b e d m e d i c a t i o n s o r t r e a t m e n t s t h a t i n t e r f e r e a t t h e a p p e l l a n t " h a s p r o b l e m s d o i n g h i s a c t i v i t i e s o f r f o r m a s i n g l e c h o r e . " i n d e p e n d e n t w i t h a l l t a s k s o f t h e D L A p e r s o n a l c a r e n o t e d a s r e q u i r i n g p e r i o d i c a s s i s t a n c e f r o m a n o t h e r a l . " a t t h e a p p e l l a n t r e q u i r e s c o n t i n u o u s a s s i s t a n c e f r o m i c h o u s e k e e p i n g d u e t o b a c k p a i n a n d t h a t f o r e a c h o f c a l . p e n d e n t i n a l l a s p e c t s o t h e r t h a n c a r r y i n g p u r c h a s e s p e l l a n t r e q u i r e s c o n t i n u o u s a s s i s t a n c e f r o m a n o t h e r i n a n d t h a t h e t a k e s s i g n i f i c a n t l y l o n g e r t h a n t y p i c a l . g c o n t i n u o u s a s s i s t a n c e f r o m a n o t h e r p e r s o n o r i s e r t h a n t y p i c a l a n d t h e G P c o m m e n t s t h a t t h e . p e l l a n t i s a s s e s s e d a s i n d e p e n d e n t i n a l l a s p e c t s r e q u i r i n g p e r i o d i c a s s i s t a n c e f r o m a n o t h e r p e r s o n w i t h i t a n d u s i n g t r a n s i t s c h e d u l e s a n d a r r a n g i n g u e t o b a c k p a i n a n d [ d e c r e a s e d ] m e m o r y . ' ' l a n t r e q u i r e s a n a s s i s t i v e d e v i c e . s w i t h h i s p a r e n t s a n d t h a t t h e h e l p p r o v i d e d b y o t h e r r i t y p r o f e s s i o n a l s . A s n o t e d p r e v i o u s l y , t h e G P h a s w i t h m e a l p l a n n i n g . p e l l a n t s h o u l d b e e l i g i b l e f o r b e n e f i t s , t h a t h e h a s a t l y r e s t r i c t s h i s a b i l i t y t o p e r f o r m D L A , a n d h e r e q u i r e s f e r e n c e s t h e P R , s p e c i f i c a l l y t h e G P ' s c o m m e n t s t h a t m o t i o n a l f u n c t i o n i n t h r e e a r e a s . T h e a d v o c a t e f u r t h e r n t i n u o u s a s s i s t a n c e w i t h l i f t i n g , c a r r y i n g a n d h o l d i n g c o g n i t i v e a n d e m o t i o n a l f u n c t i o n i n g . W i t h r e s p e c t t o t h e G P n o t e d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t r e q u i r e s a s s i s t a n c e g a n d c a r r y i n g p u r c h a s e s h o m e a n d t h a t t h e s e t a s k s o m m e n t s i n t h e A R t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t n e e d s m e a l p l a n n i n g , f o o d p r e p a r a t i o n , c o o k i n g a n d s a f e i n / o u t o f a v e h i c l e , u s i n g p u b l i c t r a n s i t a n d u s i n g t r a n s i t e a s o f s o c i a l f u n c t i o n i n g a n d t h a t h e h a s m a r g i n a l
I n hi s Notic e of A ppeal dated February 7, 2014, the appell workpl ace in hi s curr ent s t ate a nd th at t h e vagueness of hi The ministry relied on its recon si deration decision. At the hearing, the ministry acknowledged th evidence establishes tha t t h e a ppellant has a severe me duration requirem ent s as set out in section 2 o f the EAPWDA. in s uff icient evidence to establish that he has a severe physical impai signifi cantly restricts h is DLA con tinuously or periodicall the evidence as be t wee n t he PR and the AR was inco nsistent ii unable to make a det ermination a s to the PWD designation. several of the st ateme nts m ad e b y the appellant's advocate in the RFR submissions. In re s po nse t o a quest i on, the ministry reiterated that while the diagnosis of there was enough evidence to confi rm that the appellant has a r es p e c t t o phy sica l impairment as se t o ut in the P R and the A In res po ns e t o a qu e stio n, the mi nistr y con fi rmed its pos t he ap pellant' s physical con dition that impa ct ed his DLA and not his hi s p h y sica l condition was not a s e v e r e ph y sical i mp ai rment, t had not been met. ant states that he is inca pable of functioning in a s doctor d id n ot c ompletely po rt r a y this. at the nta l impairment and that he has me t t h e age and However, the ministry found that there was rmen t and that his impairment directl y a nd y fo r e xtended periods . The ministry further stat e d that and con tr adictory without explanation which left The min i s tr y commented that i i dis agre ed wi th men tal impair m ent was c lear a nd severe mental impairment, the evidence w ith R was contradictory. ition that the evid en ce of th e G P indicate d that it was severe mental i mpa irment, and b ec a use he legi slativ e t es t i n sectio n 2 o f the EAPWDA
P A R T F R e a s o n s f o r P a n e l D e c i s i o n T h e i s s u e o n t h e a p p e a l i s w h e t h e r t h e m i n i s t r y ' s r e c o n n o t e l i g i b l e f o r d e s i g n a t i o n a s a p e r s o n w i t h d i s a b i l i t i e s w a s a r e a s o n a b l e a p p l i c a t i o n o f t h e a p p l i c a b l e e n a c t m e f o u n d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t d o e s n o t h a v e a s e v e r e p h y s i c a p r e s c r i b e d p r o f e s s i o n a l , d i r e c t l y a n d s i g n i f i c a n t l y r e s t p e r i o d s . T h e m i n i s t r y f u r t h e r f o u n d t h a t , a s a r e s u l t o f t a p p e l l a n t r e q u i r e s t h e s i g n i f i c a n t h e l p o r s u p e r v i s i o n o f s e r v i c e s o f a n a s s i s t a n c e a n i m a l t o p e r f o r m D L A . T h e c r i t e r i a f o r b e i n g d e s i g n a t e d a s a P W D a r e s e t o u t P e r s o n s w i t h d i s a b i l i t i e s 2 ( 1 ) I n t h i s s e c t i o n : " a s s i s t i v e d e v i c e " m e a n s a d e v i c e d e s i g n e d t o e n a b l e s e v e r e m e n t a l o r p h y s i c a l i m p a i r m e n t , t h e p e r s o n i s u n " d a i l y l i v i n g a c t i v i t y " h a s t h e p r e s c r i b e d m e a n i n g ; " p r e s c r i b e d p r o f e s s i o n a l " h a s t h e p r e s c r i b e d m e a n i n g ( 2 ) T h e m i n i s t e r m a y d e s i g n a t e a p e r s o n w h o h a s r e a c h e d o f t h i s A c t i f t h e m i n i s t e r i s s a t i s f i e d t h a t t h e p e r s o n h a s ( a ) i n t h e o p i n i o n o f a m e d i c a l p r a c t i t i o n e r i s l i k e l y t o c o n ( b ) i n t h e o p i n i o n o f a p r e s c r i b e d p r o f e s s i o n a l ( i ) d i r e c t l y a n d s i g n i f i c a n t l y r e s t r i c t s t h e p e r s o n ' s a b i l i ( A ) c o n t i n u o u s l y , o r ( B ) p e r i o d i c a l l y f o r e x t e n d e d p e r i o d s , a n d ( i i ) a s a r e s u l t o f t h o s e r e s t r i c t i o n s , t h e p e r s o n r e q u i r e ( 3 ) F o r t h e p u r p o s e s o f s u b s e c t i o n ( 2 ) , ( a ) a p e r s o n w h o h a s a s e v e r e m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t i n c l u ( b ) a p e r s o n r e q u i r e s h e l p i n r e l a t i o n t o a d a i l y l i v i n g a c t ( i ) a n a s s i s t i v e d e v i c e , ( i i ) t h e s i g n i f i c a n t h e l p o r s u p e r v i s i o n o f a n o t h e r p e r s ( i i i ) t h e s e r v i c e s o f a n a s s i s t a n c e a n i m a l . ( 4 ) T h e m i n i s t e r m a y r e s c i n d a d e s i g n a t i o n u n d e r s u b s e c t i o S e c t i o n 2 ( 1 ) ( a ) o f t h e E A P W D R d e f i n e s D L A f o r a p e r s o f o l l o w s : D e f i n i t i o n s f o r A c t 2 ( 1 ) F o r t h e p u r p o s e s o f t h e A c t a n d t h i s r e g u l a t i o n , " d a i l y l i ( a ) i n r e l a t i o n t o a p e r s o n w h o h a s a s e v e r e p h y s i c a l i m p a c t i v i t i e s : ( i ) p r e p a r e o w n m e a l s ; ( i i ) m a n a g e p e r s o n a l f i n a n c e s ; . , . . . , . . ( i i i ) s t] o p . f o r p e r � o n 11 l n e. e q s ; L _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ s i d e r a t i o n d e c i s i o n , w h i c h f o u n d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t i s ( P W D ) , w a s r e a s o n a b l y s u p p o r t e d b y t h e e v i d e n c e o r n t i n t h e c i r c u m s t a n c e s o f t h e a p p e l l a n t . T h e m i n i s t r y a l i m p a i r m e n t a n d t h a t h i s D L A a r e n o t , i n t h e o p i n i o n o f r i c t e d e i t h e r c o n t i n u o u s l y o r p e r i o d i c a l l y f o r e x t e n d e d h o s e r e s t r i c t i o n s , i i c o u l d n o t b e d e t e r m i n e d t h a t t h e a n o t h e r p e r s o n , t h e u s e o f a n a s s i s t i v e d e v i c e , o r t h e i n S e c t i o n 2 o f t h e E A P W D A a s f o l l o w s : a p e r s o n t o p e r f o r m a d a i l y l i v i n g a c t i v i t y t h a t , b e c a u s e o f a a b l e t o p e r f o r m ; . 1 8 y e a r s o f a g e a s a p e r s o n w i t h d i s a b i l i t i e s f o r t h e p u r p o s e s a s e v e r e m e n t a l o r p h y s i c a l i m p a i r m e n t t h a t t i n u e f o r a t l e a s t 2 y e a r s , a n d t y t o p e r f o r m d a i l y l i v i n g a c t i v i t i e s e i t h e r s h e l p t o p e r f o r m t h o s e a c t i v i t i e s . d e s a p e r s o n w i t h a m e n t a l d i s o r d e r , a n d i v i t y i f , i n o r d e r t o p e r f o r m i t , t h e p e r s o n r e q u i r e s o n , o r n ( 2 ) . n w h o h a s a s e v e r e p h y s i c a l o r m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t a s v i n g a c t i v i t i e s " , a i r m e n t o r a s e v e r e m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t , m e a n s t h e f o l l o w i n g " . _ __: _ _ ___: ___ _ _ _:.._ � :_c.c -'-"' "-"-- --"-- '--'- � cc___ �
(iv) use public or personal transportation facilities; (v) perform housework to maintain the person's place of residence in acceptable sanitary condition; (vi) move about indoors and outdoors; (vii) perform personal hygiene and self care; (viii) manage personal medication, and (b) in relation to a person who has a severe mental impairment, includes the following activities: (i) make decisions about personal activities, care or finances; (ii) relate to, communicate or interact with others effectively. In the Reconsideration Decision, the ministry found that there is evidence that the Appellant is at least i8 years of age and that he has a severe mental impairment that will continue for two years or more. These tow criteria are not in dispute in this appeal. In the RFR Submissions, the advocate argues that the panel is bound by the British Columbia Supreme Court decision of Hudson vs. Employment and Assistance Appeal Tribunal, 2009 BCSC 1461 ("Hudson') and a summary of that decision was provided. Specifically, the advocate notes various findings in Hudson including that there is no statutory requirement that more than two D. LA be restricted and that a PWD application is sufficient if either the medical practitioner or the assessor confirms that the person's severe impairment directly and significantly restricts their ability to perform DLA, or, when read together confirms the same restriction on DLA. The advocate notes further findings from Hudson including that the evidence of the physician and assessor must be read in their entirety and in a broad way, that significant weight must be placed on the evidence of the applicant unless there is a legitimate reason not to do so, that any ambiguity in the interpretation of the EAPWO legislation must be resolved in favour of the applicant and it must be interpreted with a benevolent purpose in mind. Severity of physical impairment The advocate states in the RFR Submissions that the appellant has a severe physical impairment.. The ministry takes the position that based on the information provided by the GP in the PR and the AR, the evidence does not establish a severe physical impairment. Panel Decision Section 2(2)(a) of the EAPWDA is clear that when addressing the issue of a severe physical impairment in the context of a person applying for a PWD designation, that person must be found to have a severe physical impairment that, in the opinion of a medical practitioner, is likely to continue for at least 2 years. The panel notes that the appellant's GP, while describing his condition as "chronic lumbar pain due to concentric bulging disc since 2008", indicates that the appellant is able to walk more than 4 blocks unaided on a flat surface, climb more than 5 stairs unaided and lift between 2 and 7 kg. The panel notes that no medical records or diagnostic test results were submitted in support of the GP's diagnosis and that further, the GP describes the appellant as being independent walking indoors and outdoors, climbing stairs and standing but requiring continuous assistance with lifting, carrying and holding despite his advice in the PR that the appellant is able to lift between 2 and 7 kg. Where there is inconsistent or contradictory evidence as to the appellant's functional skills, the panel must look to see whether the appellant provides a reasonable explanation and in the present case, the panel is unable to find such an explanation. Despite the general practitioner's diagnosis of chronic lumbar pain, the inconsistent ADP <contr_ a_ciictory nc1tur. e_ .of_the functional skill$ as s e. t out in the PR and AR,. for example, i,nJh,� [Jaj@_ n f!?__� . • · . -. • • ·• -�•-·--· •• ···--·· • ···-•-------··----·------· -• ···•• -••' , -----'-•·•-• ---'"---•--••-•, .' • ' ,0 C , , •• ••·
a b i l i t y t o l i f t , l e a d s t h e p a n e l t o c o n c l u d e t h a t t h e m i n i s t n o t e s t a b l i s h t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t h a s a s e v e r e p h y s i c a l i m R e s t r i c t i o n s i n t h e a b i l i t y t o p e rf o r m D L A T h e a d v o c a t e s t a t e s i n t h e R F R S u b m i s s i o n s t h a t t h e a p e r f o r m D L A . T h e m i n i s t r y ' s p o s i t i o n i s t h a t i t h a s n o t b e e n e s t a b l i s h e D L A h a s b e e n d i r e c t l y a n d s i g n i f i c a n t l y r e s t r i c t e d b y h i s d u e t o h i s p h y s i c a l c o n d i t i o n w h i c h i i a r g u e s i s n o t a s e t h e E A P W D A . P a n e l D e c i s i o n S e c t i o n 2 ( 2 ) ( b ) o f t h e E A P W D A r e q u i r e s t h a t i n t h e o p i n d i r e c t l y a n d s i g n i f i c a n t l y r e s t r i c t e d b y t h e i r s e v e r e i m p a p e r i o d s . I n t h e A R t h e G P r e p o r t s t h e a p p e l l a n t t o b e i n d e p e n d e s h o p p i n g a c t i v i t i e s , a l l o f t h e p a y i n g r e n t a n d b i l l s a c t i v i t a p p e l l a n t i s n o t e d i n t h e A R a s r e q u i r i n g c o n t i n u o u s a s s l o n g e r w i t h l a u n d r y , b a s i c h o u s e k e e p i n g a n d c a r r y i n g p d u e t o " b a c k p a i n " a s o p p o s e d t o h i s d i a g n o s e d s e v e r e d e s c r i b e d a s r e q u i r i n g c o n t i n u o u s a s s i s t a n c e f r o m a n o t a s p e c t s o f m e a l s , t h e r e i s n o e x p l a n a t i o n i n t h e A R a s t t h a n t h e c o m m e n t " m o t h e r h e l p s h i m . " F i n a l l y , t h e a p p e a n o t h e r p e r s o n w i t h a l l a s p e c t s o f t r a n s p o rt a t i o n b u t t h e d e c r e a s e d m e m o r y . W h i l e t h e a p p e l l a n t i s n o t e d i n t h e A R a s h a v i n g m a r g i n s o c i a l n e t w o r k s , h e i s f u r t h e r d e s c r i b e d a s b e i n g i n d e p e d e v e l o p i n g a n d m a i n t a i n i n g r e l a t i o n s h i p s a n d i n t e r a c t i n g c o n t i n u o u s s u p p o r t o r s u p e r v i s i o n i n d e a l i n g a p p r o p r i a t e f r o m o t h e r i s d e s c r i b e d a s b e i n g d u e t o a c o m b i n a t i o n o I n t h e p r e s e n t c a s e , t h e e v i d e n c e o f a p r e s c r i b e d p r o f e s t o p e rf o r m t h e m a j o r i t y o f h i s D L A i n d e p e n d e n t l y . F o r t h e v i d e n c e i s u n c l e a r a s t o w h e t h e r t h e a s s i s t a n c e i s n e e d 2 ( 2 ) ( b ) o f t h e E A P W D A . F o r t h e t a s k s i n w h i c h t h e a p p t h e p a n e l f i n d s t h a t t h e m i n i s t r y w a s r e a s o n a b l e i n c o n c t h a t t h e c o n t i n u o u s n a t u r e o f t h e d i r e c t a n d s i g n i f i c a n t r e a p p e l l a n t ' s s e v e r e m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t . O n r e v i e w o f t h e h o u s e k e e p i n g a n d c a r r y i n g p u r c h a s e s h o m e a r e e x p l a i n r e s t r i c t i o n s o n a l l a s p e c t s o f m e a l s a r e n o t e x p l a i n e d o r p h y s i c a l o r m e n t a l c o n d i t i o n . B a s e d o n t h e e v i d e n c e , t h e p a n e l c o n c l u d e s t h a t t h e m i n s e v e r e m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t d o e s n o t d i r e c t l y a n d s i g n i f i c a c o n t i n u o u s l y o r p e r i o d i c a l l y f o r e x t e n d e d p e r i o d s u n d e r s r y w a s r e a s o n a b l e i n d e t e r m i n i n g t h a t t h e e v i d e n c e d i d p a i r m e n t u n d e r s e c t i o n 2 ( 2 ) o f t h e E A P W D A . p p e l l a n t ' s i m p a i r m e n t s s i g n i f i c a n t l y r e s t r i c t h i s a b i l i t y t o d b y t h e e v i d e n c e t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s a b i l i t y t o p e r f o r m s e v e r e m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t b u t r a t h e r , a n y r e s t r i c t i o n i s v e r e p h y s i c a l i m p a i r m e n t a s r e q u i r e d b y s e c t i o n 2 ( 2 ) o f i o n o f a p r e s c r i b e d p r o f e s s i o n a l , a p e r s o n ' s D L A a r e i r m e n t e i t h e r c o n t i n u o u s l y o r p e r i o d i c a l l y f o r e x t e n d e d n t i n 7 o u t o f 8 p e r s o n a l c a r e a c t i v i t i e s , 4 o u t o f 5 i e s a n d a l l o f t h e m e d i c a t i o n s a c t i v i t i e s . W h i l e t h e i s t a n c e f r o m a n o t h e r p e r s o n a n d t a k i n g s i g n i f i c a n t l y u r c h a s e s h o m e , t h e G P h a s e x p l a i n e d t h e s e a s b e i n g m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t . F u r t h e r , w h i l e t h e a p p e l l a n t i s h e r p e r s o n a n d t a k i n g s i g n i f i c a n t l y l o n g e r w i t h a l l o w h y t h e a p p e l l a n t r e q u i r e s s u c h a s s i s t a n c e o t h e r l l a n t i s d e s c r i b e d a s r e q u i r i n g p e r i o d i c a s s i s t a n c e f r o m G P r e p o r t s t h a t i s d u e t o b o t h b a c k p a i n a n d a l f u n c t i o n i n g i n r e s p e c t o f i m m e d i a t e a n d e x t e n d e d n d e n t i n m a k i n g a p p r o p r i a t e s o c i a l d e c i s i o n s , a p p r o p r i a t e l y w i t h o t h e r s . H i s r e q u i r e m e n t o f l y w i t h u n e x p e c t e d d e m a n d s a n d s e c u r i n g a s s i s t a n c e f h i s p h y s i c a l a n d m e n t a l c o n d i t i o n s . s i o n a l , t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s G P , i s t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t i s a b l e e f o u r t a s k s t h a t r e q u i r e p e r i o d i c a s s i s t a n c e , t h e e d f o r e x t e n d e d p e r i o d s a s r e q u i r e d u n d e r s e c t i o n e l l a n t i s d e s c r i b e d a s r e q u i r i n g c o n t i n u o u s a s s i s t a n c e , l u d i n g t h a t t h e r e i s i n s u f f i c i e n t e v i d e n c e t o e s t a b l i s h s t r i c t i o n s o n t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s D L A a r e a s a r e s u l t o f t h e A R , t h e p a n e l n o t e s t h a t r e s t r i c t i o n s o n l a u n d r y , b a s i c e d b y t h e G P a s d u e t o " b a c k p a i n " a n d t h e d e s c r i b e d a s b e i n g d u e t o e i t h e r t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s i s t r y w a s r e a s o n a b l e i n f i n d i n g t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s n t l y r e s t r i c t h i s a b i l i t y t o p e r f o r m D L A , e i t h e r e c t i o n 2 ( 2 ) ( b ) o f t h e E A P W D A .
Help with DLA The appellant's position is that he requires continuous assistance to perform DLA. The ministry's position is that as it has not been established that the appellant's DLA are directly and significantly restricted, it cannot be determined that significant help is required from other persons. Panel Decision Section 2(2)(b)(ii) of the EAPWDA requires that, as a result of direct and significant restrictions in the ability to perform DLA, a person requires help to perform those activities. Section 2(3) of the EAPWDA provides that a person requires help in relation to a DLA if, in order to perform it, the person requires an assistive device, the significant help or supervision of another person, or the services of an assistance animal. While the ministry noted that the GP indicated in the AR that the appellant requires the assistance of family and health authority professionals to perform his DLA, the ministry concluded that the evidence of the prescribed professional does not establish that the appellant requires assistance with his DLA either continuously or periodically for extended periods of time. The panel therefore finds that the ministry reasonably determined that as direct and significant restrictions in the appellant's ability to perform DLA have not been established, it cannot be determined that the appellant requires help to perform DLA as a result of those restrictions, as defined in section 2(3)(b) of the EAPWDA. Conclusion Having reviewed and considered all of the evidence and relevant legislation, the panel finds that the ministry's reconsideration which determined that the appellant was not eligible for PWD designation was a reasonable application of the applicable enactment in the circumstances of the appellant, and therefore confirms the decision.
You are being directed to the most recent version of the statute which may not be the version considered at the time of the judgment.