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 " m i n i s t r y " ) r e c o n s i d e r a t i o n d e c i s i o n o f J a n u a r y 2 2 , 2 t h r e e o f f i v e 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 D i s a b i l i t i e s A c t ( " E A P W D A " ) f o r d e s i g n a t i o n a s a p e 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 a n d t h a t a p 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 t o c o n t i n u e f o r a t l e a s a t i s 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 a p p e l l a n t h • 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 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 e i t h e r c o n t h a t • 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 a p p e l l a n a n o t h e r p e r s o n , a n a s s i s t i v e d e v i c e , o r t h e s 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 fo r P e r s o n s w i t h D i s a b 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 E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )D e v 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 ( t h e 0 1 4 , 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 d i d n o t m e e t e 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 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 i n i s t r y f o u n d 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 t h e 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 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 ; r e , 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 , 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 ; a n d 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 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 . il i t i e s A c t ( " E A P W D A " ) , s e c t i o n 2 i l i t i e 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 i n f o r m a t i o n b e f o r e t h e m i n i s t r y a t t h e t i m e o f r e • T h e a p p e l l a n t ' s P W D a p p l i c a t i o n f o r m c o n s i s 2 0 1 3 ] , a n d a p h y s i c i a n ' s r e p o r t ( " P R " ) a n d a s p h y s i c i a n [ b o t h d a t e d J u l y 2 9 , 2 0 1 3 }. • T h e a p p e l l a n t ' s R e q u e s t f o r R e c o n s i d e r a t i o n 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 p h y s i c i a n d i a g n o s e d t h e a p p e l f r a c t u r e o f t h e l e f t e l b o w , w i t h o n g o i n g l e f t e l b a n d t h r o b b i n g i n t h e l e f t e l b o w t h a t w a k e s t h e • W i t h r e s p e c t t o f u n c t i o n a l s k i l l s , t h e p h y s i c i a n 5 + s t a i r s u n a i d e d , l i f t 5 t o 1 5 p o u n d s ( l e f t a r m • I n t h e A R t h e p h y s i c i a n i n d i c a t e d t h a t t h e a p 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 s t a n d 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 a l a n d n e e d s p e a n y t h i n g 1 0 p o u n d s o r o v e r . • I n h i s s e l f r e p o r t t h e a p p e l l a n t s a i d t h a t h i s l e a n d c a u s e s c o n s t a n t u n d e r l y i n g p a i n . H e w r p a i n , a n d p r e v e n t s h i m f r o m w o r k i n g p h y s i c a • I n h i s o r a l t e s t i m o n y t h e a p p e l l a n t s a i d t h a t h a f t e r h e s u b m i t t e d h i s P W D a p p l i c a t i o n . H e a n d r e q u i r e s p h y s i o t h e r a p y b u t c a n ' t a f f o r d i i n e c k p a i n w h i c h h a s s i n c e r e s o l v e d i t s e l f . H e a p p l i c a t i o n f o r m f o r h i m , b u t t h e p h y s i c i a n a d p r o c e s s f i r s t . M e n t a l I m p a i r m e n t • I n t h e P R t h e p h y s i c i a n d i d n o t d i a g n o s e a m 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 t h e a r e a s a n d o t h e r ( r e d u c e d s l e e p ) . • I n t h e A R t h e p h y s i c i a n i n d i c a t e d m i n i m a l i m p e m o t i o n a l f u n c t i o n ( s l e e p d i s t u r b a n c e , e m o t i o i n d i c a t e d n o i m p a c t t o t h e r e m a i n i n g 1 0 c a t e g • T h e p h y s i c i a n r e p o r t e d t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s a b i l i t y • T h e p h y s i c i a n n o t e d t h a t a s p e c t s o f t h e a p p e r e l a t i o n s h i p s , a p p r o p r i a t e i n t e r a c t i o n w i t h o t h d e m a n d s ) g e t w o r s e w i t h d e c r e a s e d s l e e p o r • I n h i s s e l f r e p o r t t h e a p p e l l a n t i n d i c a t e d t h a t c s l e e p d e p r i v a t i o n , a n d d e p r e s s i o n . • T h e a p p e l l a n t s a i d t h a t h e s e l d o m g o e s o u t a e l b o w , s o l o n e l i n e s s i s e x a c e r b a t i n g h i s a n x i e E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 1 0 6 1 0 1 )c o n s i d e r a t i o n i n c l u d e d t h e f o l l o w i n g : t i n g o f t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s s e l f r e p o r t { d a t e d J u l y 2 4 , s e s s o r ' s r e p o r t ( " A R " ) s i g n e d b y t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s d a t e d D e c e m b e r 1 1 , 2 0 1 3 . l a n t w i t h a p r e v i o u s c o m p o u n d c o m m i n u t e d o w p a i n . T h e p h y s i c i a n r e f e r r e d t o c o n s t a n t p a i n a p p e l l a n t u p a t n i g h t . r e p o r t e d t h e a p p e l l a n t c a n w a l k 4 + b l o c k s , c l i m b ) , a n d r e m a i n s e a t e d w i t h o u t l i m i t a t i o n . p e l l a n t i n d e p e n d e n t l y m a n a g e s w a l k i n g i n d o o r s H e a l s o 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 t a k e s r i o d i c 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 / h o l d i n g f t e l b o w i s c u r r e n t l y h e l d t o g e t h e r w i t h m e t a l p i n s o t e t h a t a f t e r 5 m i n u t e s o f u s e h i s l e f t a r m c a u s e s l l y a n d m e n t a l l y . e w a s i n a c a r a c c i d e n t i n A u g u s t , 2 0 1 3 , s h o r t l y s t a t e d t h a t h e n o w h a s s i g n i f i c a n t l o w e r b a c k p a i n . H e s a i d t h a t t h e a c c i d e n t a l s o c a u s e d s e v e r e w a s g o i n g t o h a v e h i s p h y s i c i a n c o m p l e t e a n e w v i s e d h i m t o a w a i t t h e o u t c o m e o f t h i s a p p e a l e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t , b u t i n d i c a t e d d e f i c i t s w i t h o f e m o t i o n a l d i s t u r b a n c e , a t t e n t i o n / c o n c e n t r a t i o n , a c t s t o 4 o f 1 4 c a t e g o r i e s o f c o g n i t i v e a n d n , a t t e n t i o n / c o n c e n t r a t i o n , a n d m e m o r y ) . H e o r i e s . t o c o m m u n i c a t e a s b e i n g g o o d i n a l l r e s p e c t s . l l a n t ' s s o c i a l f u n c t i o n i n g ( d e v e l o p / m a i n t a i n e r s , d e a l i n g a p p r o p r i a t e l y w i t h u n e x p e c t e d i n c r e a s e d a n x i e t y . o n s t a n t p a i n f r o m h i s l e f t e l b o w c a u s e s a n x i e t y , n y m o r e b e c a u s e o f p a i n f r o m h i s b a c k a n d t y a n d d e p r e s s i o n .
D L A • T h e p h y s i c i a n n o t e d i n t h e P R t h a t t h e a p p e l a n d / 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 w i t h h i s a b i l i t • I n t h e A R t h e p h y s i c i a n r e p o r t e d t h a t t h e a p p D L A o f p e r s o n a l s e l f c a r e , b a s i c h o u s e k e e p i ( p a y r e n t a n d b i l l s ) , m a n a g i n g p e r s o n a l m e d • W i t h r e s p e c t t o t h e D L A o f d a i l y s h o p p i n g , t h i n a l l r e s p e c t s e x c e p t t h a t h e r e q u i r e s p e r i o d u n a b l e t o l i f t m o r e t h a n 1 0 p o u n d s w i t h h i s l e • R e g a r d i n g t h e D L A o f s o c i a l f u n c t i o n i n g ( r e l a e f f e c t i v e l y ) t h e p h y s i c i a n i n d i c a t e d t h a t t h e a 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 n d t o s e c u r e a 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 w i t h t h e a s p i n t e r a c t 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 d e a T h e p h y s i c i a n d e s c r i b e d t h e a p p e l l a n t a s f u n a n d e x t e n d e d s o c i a l n e t w o r k s . • I n h i s o r a l t e s t i m o n y t h e a p p e l l a n t s a i d t h a t t h c u r r e n t l y u s i n g i n t e r f e r e w i t h h i s a b i l i t y t o w o r • I n r e s p o n s e t o q u e s t i o n s f r o m t h e p a n e l , t h e ► H e i s n a t u r a l l y r i g h t h a n d e d . ► H e r e l i e s o n h i s r o o m m a t e f o p u t s h i s l a u n d r y i n w i t h h i s r o ► H e d o e s n ' t g o t o t h e g r o c e r y ► H e d o e s n ' t c l e a n a r o u n d t h e t o h i s r o o m m a t e . ► H e t r i e s t o m i n i m i z e t h e u s e ► H e d o e s n o t u n d e r s t a n d w h y w i t h h i s D L A . • W h e n a s k e d w h a t t h e p h y s i c i a n w a s r e f e r r i n g p e r i o d i c s u p p o r t / s u p e r v i s i o n f o r s o c i a l f u n c t i o s u r e . H e s a i d t h a t h e f e e l s m o r e a n x i e t y r e g a H e l p • T h e p h y s i c i a n 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 d o i m p a i r m e n t , a n d t h a t h e d o e s n o t h a v e a n a s • T h e p h y s i c i a n 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 r e c • T h e a p p e l l a n t i n d i c a t e d i n h i s o r a l t e s t i m o n y p e r f o r m D L A . A d m i s s i b i l i t y o f N e w I n fo r m a t i o n I n o r a l t e s t i m o n y t h e a p p e l l a n t p r o v i d e d n e w i n f o r m a p r o v i d e s a d d i t i o n a l d e t a i l w i t h r e s p e c t t o i s s u e s a d d A c c o r d i n g l y , t h e p a n e l h a s a d m i t t e d t h i s n e w i n f o r m r e c o r d s t h a t w e r e b e f o r e t h e m i n i s t r y a t t h e t i m e o f r E m p l o y m e n t a n d A s s i s t a n c e A c t . T h e m i n i s t r y r e l i e d n o n e w i n f o r m a t i o n . E M T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )l a n t h a s n o t b e e n p r e s c r i b e d a n y m e d i c a t i o n y t o p e r f o r m D L A . e l l a n t i n d e p e n d e n t l y m a n a g e s a l l a s p e c t s o f t h e 6 n g , m e a l p r e p a r a t i o n , m a n a g i n g p e r s o n a l f i n a n c e s i c a t i o n s , a n d u s e o f t r a n s p o rt a t i o n . e p h y s i c i a n i n d i c a t e d 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 i c a s s i s t a n c e c a r r y i n g p u r c h a s e s h o m e a s h e i s f t a r m . t e t o , c o m m u n i c a t e o r i n t e r a c t w i t h o t h e r s p p e l l a n t i n d e p e n d e n t l y m a n a g e s t o m a k e s s i s t a n c e f r o m o t h e r s . H e r e p o r t e d t h e a p p e l l a n t e c t s o f d e v e l o p i n g / m a i n t a i n i n g r e l a t i o n s h i p s , l i n g a p p r o p r i a t e l y w i t h u n e x p e c t e d d e m a n d s . c t i o n i n g m a r g i n a l l y w i t h r e s p e c t t o h i s i m m e d i a t e e m e d i c a t i o n s ( p r i m a r i l y p a i n k i l l e r s ) h e i s k a n d t o p e r f o r m D L A , p a r t i c u l a r l y i n t h e m o r n i n g . a p p e l l a n t s t a t e d t h a t : r D L A . H e c a n ' t s t a n d f o r l o n g t o d o d i s h e s . H e o m m a t e ' s a n d t h e r o o m m a t e d o e s t h e l a u n d r y . s t o r e h e l e a v e s i t u p t o h i s r o o m m a t e . h o u s e o r t a k e o u t t h e g a r b a g e h e l e a v e s t h e s e o f h i s l e f t a r m . h i s p h y s i c i a n i n d i c a t e d t h a t h e i s i n d e p e n d e n t t o w h e n h e i n d i c a t e d t h e a p p e l l a n t r e q u i r e s n i n g , t h e a p p e l l a n t r e s p o n d e d t h a t h e w a s n ' t r d i n g s o c i a l a c t i v i t y . e s n o t r e q 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 s i s t a n c e a n i m a l . e i v e s a s s i s t a n c e w i t h D L A f r o m h i s r o o m m a t e . t h a t h e r e l i e s s u b s t a n t i a l l y o n h i s r o o m m a t e t o t i o n r e g a r d i n g h i s i m p a i r m e n t . T h i s i n f o r m a t i o n r e s s e d i n t h e o r i g i n a l P W D a p p l i c a t i o n . a t i o n a s b e i n g i n s u p p o r t o f i n f o r m a t i o n a n d e c o n s i d e r a t i o n , i n a c c o r d a n c e w i t h s . 2 2 ( 4 ) o f t h e o n i t s r e c o n s i d e r a t i o n d e c i s i o n a n d s u b m i t t e d
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 i s 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 d 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 e n a c t m e 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 . I n d e t e r m i n i n g 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 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 t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s r e s t r i c t h i m f r o m p e r f o r m i n g D L A e i t h e r c o n t i n u o u s l 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 a p p e l l a n t d o e s n o t T h e r e l e v a n t l e g i s l a t i o n i s a s f o l l o w s : E A P W D A : 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 a c t i v i t y t h a t , b e c a u s e o f a s e v e r e m e n t a 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 y " h a s t h e p r e " 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 ( 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 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 o f t h i s A c t i f 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 ( a ) i n t h e o p i n i o n o f a m e d i c y e a r s , a n d ( b ) i n t h e o p i n i o n o f a p r e s c ( i ) d i r e c t l y a n d s i g n i f l i v i n g a c t i v i t i e s e i t h e r ( A ) c o n t i n u o u ( B ) p e r i o d i c a l l ( i i ) a s a r e s u l t o f t h o s t h o s e a c t i v i t i e s . ( 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 m e n t a l d i s o r d e r , a n d ( b ) a p e r s o n r e q u i r e s h e l p i n p e r f o r m i t , t h e p e r s o n r e q u i r ( 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 ( i i i ) t h e s e r v i c e s o f a n E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )e c i s i o n t o d e n y t h e a p p e l l a n t d e s i g n a t i o n a s a 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 p a r t i c u l a r , w a s t h e m i n i s t r y r e a s o n a b l e i n 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 n d t h a t i n t h e i m p a i r m e n t s d o n o t d i r e c t l y a n d s i g n i f i c a n t l y 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 , a n d t h a t a s r e q u i r e h e l p t o p e r f o r m D L A ? e d t o e n a b l e 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 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 a b l e t o s c r i b e d m e a n i n g ; e p r e s c r i b e d m e a n i n g . w h o h a s r e a c h e d 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 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 s e v e r e 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 fo r a t l e a s t 2 r i b e d p r o f e s s i o n a l 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 t y t o p e r f o r m d a i l y s l y , o r y f o r e x t e n d e d p e r i o d s , a n d 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 s h e l p t o p e r f o r m r e m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t i n c l u d e s a p e r s o n w i t h a 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 v i t y i f , i n o r d e r t o e s , 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 o n , o r a s s i s t a n c e a n i m a l .
EAPWDR section 2(1): 2 (1) For the purposes of the Act and this regulation, "daily living activities", (a) in relation to a person who has a severe physical impairment or a severe mental impairment, means the following activities: (i) prepare own meals; (ii) manage personal finances; (iii) shop for personal needs; (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. (2) For the purposes of the Act, "prescribed professional" means a person who is (a) authorized under an enactment to practise the profession of (i) medical practitioner, (ii) registered psychologist, (iii) registered nurse or registered psychiatric nurse, (iv) occupational therapist, (v) physical therapist, (vi) social worker, (vii) chiropractor, or (viii) nurse practitioner, or (b) acting in the course of the person's employment as a school psychologist by (i) an authority, as that term is defined in section 1 (1) of the Independent School Act, or (ii) a board or a francophone education authority, as those terms are defined in section 1 (1) of the School Act, if qualifications in psychology are a condition of such employment. ******* Severe Physical Impairment The appellant's position is that constant severe pain from his left elbow and his back constitutes a severe physical impairment. He argued that he is unable to work and that he is taking pain killers "24/7". EAAT003(10/06/01)
The ministr y' s position is that th e phy s ician's evidence with resp functional skills is not sufficient to demo n st rate a severe physical impairment. Pa n e l Deci sion A diagno s is of a se r i ous medi cal condition does not in itse se v e re im pairment. An "impairme nt" is a medical c onditio a bility to function independently or effectively. To a ssess the sever ity o f a n impai r me nt o ne mus t consider the nature of the impair extent of its impa ct on dai l y functio ning as ev id e n ced by fun which performing DLA is restricted. A medic al barrier to t employ ment is not a legislated cr i t erio n f o r s everity . d et ermi n ation o f sever ity is a t the d i sc re t ion of the minist Ho w e ver, the legislation is al so clea r t ha t the fundamental ba a prescribe d pr ofess ional -in this cas e, the appell a T he ph ysician' s e vide n ce from th e PR is th at the appe cl imbing stair s, s tan di n g, an d sit ti ng. H i s evid ence in the A indicated the a ppellant is li mited to liftin g up t o 10 pounds with left arm, but t any li mita tions with re spect to his r igh t a r m. T he panel n otes t h a t the a ppellan t r ep orts th at he is subs fr om a n aut o accident w hich occu r red after comp letio the pa ne l must base its decisi o n on im pairme nts that practi tioner. As di scu s sed in m ore d e t ail in th e subse qu e nt sect ion R es trict io n s to D LA , any f unct iona l skills limita tion s a pp ear to have tr a nsl a te d in to si gn ific ant res tric tion s For the fo re go i ng reas ons, the pan e l has concluded h e alth i ssues, th e minist r y re a sonably determined that the evidence falls short of establishing has a severe physical impairme nt as contem pl a ted by the le Severe Mental Impairment Th e appellant d idn't expressly advance an argument with stated that his physical condition contribu tes to his depression and anxiety. The ministry's positio n , as set out in its reconsideration decision, is that the physician has not provided a diagnosis of a mental impai rment, and that the deficits to cog functioning are mi nimal. Panel Decision Though the physician identified some minimal deficits to cognitive and emotional functioning, he did not diaanose a specific mental imoairment. In terms of mental functional skills, the evidence EAA T003(10/06/01) ect to th e appellant's p hy s ical l f d e t e rmine PWD eligibility or establish a n that results in res trictions to a pe r s o n's men t and the ctional skill limitatio ns and the degree to he appella n t's ab il ity to engage in paid The legislation makes it cl e ar t h at t he e r , taking int o a c count all o f the e vidence. sis f or the a nalysis is the evidence from nt' s ph ysician. llan t is unr est r ic ted in t erms of walking, R is consi sten t with this. The physicia n h ere i s n o indic atio n of tant ially im pai r e d b y back pain re su lting n o f the P R an d AR b y the physici a n. Ho w ever , have be en ide n ti f i ed or confi r me d b y a medical of this d e cision under the heading Sig n ific ant resulting f rom the appell ant' s imp airme nts do n ot i n h is a bility t o man ag e his DLA independentl y. that whi l e the appell ant does hav e s ome ph y sic al that he gisl at i on. respect to severe m enta l impa ir ment, b u t n i tive and emotional
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 c o m m u n i c a t i o n s s k i l l s S e c t i o n 2 ( 1 ) ( b ) o f t h e E A P W D R p r e s c r i b e s t w o D L A d e c i s i o n s a b o u t p e r s o n a l a c t i v i t i e s , c a r e o r f i n a n c e s i n t e r a c t w i t h o t h e r s e ff e c t i v e l y ( s o c i a l f u n c t i o n i n g ) . T h e e v i d e n c e 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 i s n o t s i g n i n t h a t h e i n d e p e n d e n t l y m a n a g e s h i s f i n a n c e s ( p a y e v i d e n c e i n t h e A R , h e a l s o i n d e p e n d e n t l y m a n a g e s d a i l y s h o p p i n g ( m a k i n g a p p r o p r i a t e c h o i c e s ) , m e a l p s o c i a l f u n c t i o n i n g ( 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 W i t h r e s p e c t t o s o c i a l f u n c t i o n i n g , t h e r e i s e v i d e n c e t o s o m e e x t e n t , a n d t h a t s o m e a s p e c t s o f s o c i a l f u n H o w e v e r , t h e r e i s n o e v i d e n c e b e f o r e t h e p a n e l a s t a p p e l l a n t m a y r e q u i r e , a n d t h e p h y s i c i a n ' s e v i d e n c e ( a l b e i t m a r g i n a l l y ) i n r e s p e c t o f h i s i m m e d i a t e a n d e C o n s i d e r i n g t h e e v i d e n c e a s a w h o l e , t h e p a n e l c o n t h a t i t d o e s n o t d e m o n s t r a t e a s e v e r e m e n t a l i m p a i r S i g n i f i c a n t R e s t r i c t i o n s t o D L A T h e a p p e l l a n t ' s p o s i t i o n i s t h a t h i s D L A a r e s i g n i f i c a a n d t h a t h e r e l i e s o n h i s r o o m m a t e t o p e r f o r m m a n y 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 t h e m a j o r i t y o f t h e a p p r e q u i r e l i t t l e h e l p f r o m o t h e r s , a n d t h a t t h e p h y s i c i a n f r e q u e n c y , o r d u r a t i o n o f a n y a s s i s t a n c e r e q u i r e d b y i n f o r m a t i o n f r o m t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s p r e s c r i b e d p r o f e s s i o i m p a i r m e n t s i g n i f i c a n t l y r e s t r i c t s D L A e i t h e r c o n t i n u o P a n e l D e c i s i o n T h e r e a r e s i g n i f i c a n t d i s c r e p a n c i e s i n t h e e v i d e n c e o e v i d e n c e a n d t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s o r a l t e s t i m o n y . T h e a p r e s u l t i n g f r o m t h e b a c k i n j u r y s u s t a i n e d i h t h e c a r a c c o m p l e t e d t h e P R a n d A R , h o w e v e r e v e n t a k i n g t h i s p h y s i c i a n ' s e v i d e n c e d i d n o t a c c u r a t e l y r e f l e c t h i s l e A s m e n t i o n e d a b o v e , t h e l e g i s l a t i o n r e q u i r e s t h a t p h m e d i c a l p r a c t i t i o n e r . T h e r e i s n o s u c h c o n f i r m a t i o n A c c o r d i n g l y , t h e p a n e l h a s g i v e n m o r e w e i g h t t o t h e r e s t r i c t i o n s . I n t h e p a n e l ' s v i e w , t h e p r o f e s s i o n a l e v i d e n c e i s c o n s i g n i f i c a n t l y r e s t r i c t e d w i t h r e s p e c t t o t h e f o l l o w i n g 8 m e a l r e a r a t i o n , m a n a e m e n t o f m e d i c a t i o n s , m a n EAA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 1 0 6 1 0 1 )a r e g o o d i n a l l r e s p e c t s . t h a t a r e s p e c i f i c t o m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t m a k e ( d e c i s i o n m a k i n g ) , a n d r e l a t e t o , c o m m u n i c a t e o r i f i c a n t l y r e s t r i c t e d w i t h r e s p e c t t o d e c i s i o n m a k i n g r e n t a n d b i l l s ) a n d h i s m e d i c a t i o n s . B a s e d o n t h e t h e d e c i s i o n m a k i n g c o m p o n e n t s o f t h e D L A o f r e p a ra t i o n ( m e a l p l a n n i n g a n d f o o d s t o r a g e ) , a n d n s ) . t o i n d i c a t e t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t i s i s o l a t i n g h i m s e l f c t i o n i n g a r e i m p a c t e d b y l a c k o f s l e e p o r a n x i e t y . o w h a t s o r t o f s u p p o r t o r s u p e r v i s i o n t h e 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 r e m a i n s f u n c t i o n a l x t e n d e d s o c i a l n e t w o r k s . c l u d e s t h a t t h e m i n i s t r y r e a s o n a b l y d e t e r m i n e d m e n t . n t l y r e s t r i c t e d . H e s t a t e d t h a t h e i s l i m i t e d b y p a i n o f h i s D LA . e l l a n t ' s D L A a r e p e r f o r m e d i n d e p e n d e n t l y o r h a s p r o v i d e d n o e v i d e n c e a s t o t h e t y p e , t h e a p p e l l a n t . T h e m i n i s t r y a r g u e d t h a t t h e n a l ( h i s p h y s i c i a n ) d o e s n o t e s t a b l i s h t h a t h i s 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 . f r e s t r i c t i o n s t o D L A b e t w e e n t h e p h y s i c i a n ' s p e l l a n t e x p l a i n s m o s t o f t h e d i s c r e p a n c y a s c i d e n t w h i c h o c c u r r e d a f t e r t h e p h y s i c i a n i n t o a c c o u n t t h e a p p e l l a n t f e l t t h a t t h e v e l o f r e s t r i c t i o n s e v e n p r i o r t o t h e a u t o a c c i d e n t . y s i c a l i m p a i r m e n t s m u s t b e c o n f i r m e d b y a w i t h r e s p e c t t o a b a c k i n j u r y b e f o r e t h e p a n e l . p h y s i c i a n ' s e v i d e n c e r e g a r d i n g t h e d e g r e e o f s i s t e n t i n i n d i c a t i n g t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t i s n o t o f t h e 1 O p r e s c r i b e d D L A p e r s o n a l s e l f c a r e , a e m e n t o f fi n a n c e s , u s e o f t r a n s o rt a t i o n , b a s i c
housekeeping, moving about indoors and outdoors, and decision-making. With respect to social functioning, based on the analysis provided above under the discussion of severe mental impairment, the panel concludes that the evidence does not demonstrate a significant restriction. Regarding the DLA of daily shopping, the physician's evidence indicates that the appellant's only limitation is that he requires periodic assistance carrying purchases home because he is unable to lift more than 10 pounds with his left arm. The appellant stated that he leaves it up to his roommate to do all the household shopping, but the panel is not convinced by the evidence that this arrangement results from restrictions imposed by the appellant's impairments. In the panel's view, the evidence does not establish on th. e balance of probabilities that the appellant's ability to manage his DLA is significantly restricted as contemplated by the legislative scheme. Accordingly, the panel concludes that the ministry reasonably determined that the appellant's ability to manage his DLA independently is not significantly restricted either continuously or periodically for extended periods. Help with DLA The appellant's position is that he relies on help from his roommate to perform his DLA. The ministry's position is that since it has not been established that the appellant's DLA are significantly restricted, it cannot be determined that significant help is required from other persons. Panel Decision On the evidence, the panel cannot conclude that the help provided to the appellant by his roommate constitutes "the significant help or supervision of another person" that is required by s. 2(3)(b )(ii) of the EAPWDA. There is no evidence to indicate that the appellant requires an assistive device, or that he has an assistance animal. For these reasons, the panel finds that the ministry reasonably concluded it could not be determined that the appellant requires help with DLA as defined bys. 2(3)(b) of the EAPWDA. Conclusion The panel acknowledges that the appellant's medical conditions have some impact on his ability to function. However, having reviewed and considered all of the evidence and the relevant legislation, the panel concludes that the ministry's decision finding the appellant ineligible for PWD designation is a reasonable application of the legislation in the circumstances of the appellant. The panel therefore confirms the ministry's decision. EAAT 003(10/06/01)
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.