PART C -Deci sion u nd e r Appeal The decisi on unde r appeal i s t h e Min istr y of Social "mi nist r y ") rec ons ide rat i o n d ecision of Ma y 2 8, 20 14, t h ree of f ive s tatutory requiremen ts of section 2 of the Empl Disa biliti es Act ( "EA PWD A") fo r designa tion as a p erson th at the ap pel lan t met the a ge re qui reme nt a nd that a pp e l lan t's imp airm ent is likely t o cont inu e for at le ast satisfied t ha t: o t h e evidenc e es ta bli she s tha t t h e appel lan t has • the appell ant's daily li ving activ ities ("DLA") are, di r ectl y an d si gn i f i cant l y restric t ed e i t her c ontinuously that • as a result of th ose rest r ict ions, t he ap pellan another person, an assis tive devic e, or the services of an assi PART D -Releva nt Leg isla tio n Em plo y me nt and Ass i s t ance for P e rso ns w ith D i sabilities Employmen t and Ass is tanc e for P er sons w ith Di sab EMT 003(1 0/ 0 6/01) I APPl=� I " Develo pme nt an d So cia l Inn ovat ion ( t he which fou nd tha t th e ap pel lan t did n ot me et oyme nt and Ass i s ta nc e fo r Perso ns With wit h dis abili ties ("P WD"). The mini stry f ound in the o pin ion of a me di cal p ractit ioner the t wo yea r s . Howe ver, t he mi nis t ry was n ot a s ever e ph y sic a l or menta l imp airment; i n t h e opi nio n of a p r e scribe d pr ofe s si o na l , or p eriod i call y f or exten de d p erio ds; a nd t requi r e s the s ignifi can t help or sup ervisio n of sta nce animal . Ac t ( "EAP WDA"), section 2 i li ties R e gula t io n (" E A PWDR" ), secti on 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 d a t e d r e p o r t , a n d a p h y s i c i a n ' s r e p o rt ( " P R " ) a n d a p h y s i c i a n . • A r e c o n s i d e r a t i o n s u b m i s s i o n s i g n e d b y t h e A d d i t i o n a l I n f o r m a t i o n S u b m i t t e d P r i o r t o t h e a p p e a l h e a r i n g , t h e a p p e l l a n t s u b m i t t e d E m p l o y m e n t a n d A s s i s t a n c e T r i b u n a l ( t h e " T r i b u n a 1 . A d i a g n o s t i c i m a g i n g r e p o r t d a t e d M a r c h 2 1 , t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s l u m b a r s p i n e n o t e d n o p r o g r e i n J u n e 2 0 0 6 . I t r e p o r t e d d e g e n e r a t i v e c h a n c h a n g e s o r s i g n i f i c a n t o s t e o p h y t e s a r e h o w e 2 . A d i a g n o s t i c i m a g i n g r e p o r t d a t e d J u l y 1 7 , 2 0 d e g e n e r a t i v e d i s c d i s e a s e a t L 5 S 1 , b u t n o s 3 . A n o t e f r o m t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s n u r s e p r a c t i t i o n e i s u n a b l e t o w o r k i n a n y c a p a c i t y d u e t o s e v e m o d e r a t e / s e v e r e o s t e o a r t h r i t i s a n d m o d e r a t e u n l i k e l y . " 4 . A p r e s c r i p t i o n f o r m f o r p a i n r e l i e f m e d i c a t i o n 5 . A l e t t e r f r o m t h e m i n i s t r y , d a t e d M a y 2 3 , 2 0 1 d e s i g n a t i o n a s a P W D . A t t h e a p p e a l h e a r i n g , t h e a p p e l l a n t s u b m i t t e d t h e f 6 . A l e t t e r f r o m t h e n u r s e p r a c t i t i o n e r , d a t e d J u n 7 . A l e t t e r f r o m a c a s e m a n a g e r o f t h e a p p e l l a n D i a g n o s e s • 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 d i s o r d e r , a n d c h r o n i c b a c k p a i n a l l o f w h i c h • I n t h e r e c o n s i d e r a t i o n s u b m i s s i o n t h e P h y s i c g e n e r a l i z e d o s t e o a r t h r i t i s w h i c h i s d i s a b l i n g a c h r o n i c a n d w i l l g r a d u a l l y g e t w o r s e o v e r t i m e P h y s i c a l I m p a i r m e n t • I n t e r m s o f p h y s i c a l f u n c t i o n i n g t h e p h y s i c i a n t o 4 b l o c k s u n a i d e d o n a f l a t s u r f a c e , c l i m b 5 + f o r l e s s t h a n 1 h o u r . E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )'. A P P E A L # 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 : D e c e m b e r , 2 0 1 3 c o n s i s t i n g o f t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s s e l f s s e s s o r ' s r e p o r t s i g n e d b y t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s a p p e l l a n t a n d t h e p h y s i c i a n o n A p r i l 2 5 , 2 0 1 4 . t h e f o l l o w i n g d o c u m e n t s t o t h e o f f i c e s o f t h e l " ) : 2 0 1 3 . T h e r e p o r t s t a t e d t h a t a n e x a m i n a t i o n o f s s i o n o f d i s e a s e s i n c e t h e p r e v i o u s e x a m i n a t i o n g e s i n t h e s a c r o i l i a c j o i n t , a n d n o t e d " N o e r o s i v e v e r s e e n . " 1 3 . T h e r e p o r t s u m m a r y s t a t e d " M o d e r a t e p i n a l o r f o r a m i n a l s t e n o s i s . " r d a t e d J u n e 1 1 , 2 0 1 4 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 d e p r e s s i o n a n d c h r o n i c b a c k p a i n c a u s e d b y d e g e n e r a t i v e d i s c d i s e a s e . I m p r o v e m e n t i s f o r t h e a p p e l l a n t , d a t e d J u n e 1 1 , 2 0 1 4 . 4 , n o t i n g t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t h a d b e e n a p p r o v e d f o r o l l o w i n g d o c u m e n t s : e 2 5 , 2 0 1 4 . t ' s r e g i o n a l h e a l t h a u t h o r i t y , d a t e d J u n e 2 6 , 2 0 1 4 . l l a n t w i t h d e p r e s s i o n , a n x i e t y , p e r s o n a l i t y t h e P h y s i c i a n d e s c r i b e d a s " l o n g s t a n d i n g " . i a n 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 ] d o e s h a v e s h e d e s c r i b e s " a n d " a l l h i s c o n d i t i o n s a r e . " r e p o r t e d i n t h e P R t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t c a n w a l k 2 s t e p s u n a i d e d , l i f t 1 5 t o 3 5 p o u n d s , a n d c a n s i t
• 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 , s t a n d i n g , a n d c a n e t o w a l k s o m e t i m e s . " • 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 w r o t e t h a t h i s s l o w p a c e , a n d t h a t w a l k i n g u p h i l l i s v e r y d i f f a p p e l l a n t w r o t e t h a t h e c a n l i f t 1 5 t o 3 5 p o u n • I n r e s p o n s e t o a q u e s t i o n f r o m t h e p a n e l a s t h e a p p e l l a n t s a i d t h a t h e d o e s n ' t l i k e t o t a k e f o r p a i n r e l i e f . H e s a i d h e ' s b e e n t a k i n g i t f o r M e n t a l I m p a i r m e n t • W i t h r e s p e c t t o h i s a b i l i t y t o c o m m u n i c a t e , t h s p e a k i n g a n d h e a r i n g a r e g o o d , r e a d i n g i s s a • 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 ' s m c a t e g o r i e s o f 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 i m p a c t s i n t h e a r e a s o f i n s i g h t / j u d g m e n t , a t t e ( l e a r n i n g d i s a b i l i t y ) . • I n t h e r e c o n s i d e r a t i o n s u b m i s s i o n , t h e a p p e l l a n y o n e b e y o n d f a m i l y m e m b e r s a n d o n e g o o • I n h i s l e t t e r o f J u n e 2 5 , 2 0 1 4 t h e n u r s e p r a c t i a v o i d a n t p e r s o n a l i t y . H e s t a t e d t h a t t h e a p p e l i f e s o t h a t h i s c o n d i t i o n s h a v e r e m a i n e d u n t r s u m m a r i z e d b y w r i t i n g " [ t h e a p p e l l a n t ] s u f f e r s p e r s o n a l i t y d i s o r d 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 w r o t e t h a t h e l i n k e d i t t o h i s f a t h e r ' s a l c o h o l i s m . O L A • I n t h e P 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 p o r t r e a t m e n t s t h a t i n t e rf e r e w i t h h i s a b i l i t y t o p • 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 e a p p e l l a n 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 n t o p a y i n g f o r p u r c h a s e s t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t " n e • 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 a s i n d e p D L A o f u s e o f t r a n s p o r t a t i o n , i n t h a t t h e a p p e g e t s i n a n d o u t o f h i s v e h i c l e , b u t t h a t h e m a y t r a n s p o r t a t i o n . H e a l s o r e p o rt e d t h e a p p e l l a 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 , b u t t h a t t h e a p p • I n t h e a d v o c a t e p r e p a r e d r e c o n s i d e r a t i o n s u b o b s e r v a t i o n s r e l a t e d t o h i s a b i l i t y t o p e r f o r m D w h i c h h a d a p r e p a r e d s t a t e m e n t t o t h e e f f e c t a s k e d m e t o l o o k a t t h e a b o v e s t a t e m e n t . I h a p p e l l a n t ' s ] c o n d i t i o n , I w o u l d e x p e c t h i m t o h I f i n d h i s d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h e l i m i t a t i o n s h e f a c e ► I n t h e r e c o n s i d e r a t i o n s u b m i s s i o n , t h e ► h i s k n e e s g i v e o u t o n a d a i l y b a s i s ; ► h e c a n n o t s t a n d f o r I o n e r i o d s o f t i m E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )'. A P P E A L # 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 l i f t i n g / c a r r y i n g / h o l d i n g . H e c o m m e n t e d " u s e s a w a l k i n g i s c u t d o w n t o a b o u t 2 t o 3 b l o c k s a t a i c u l t . H e s t a t e d t h a t d r i v i n g c a n b e p a i n f u l . T h e d s . t o t h e m e d i c a t i o n p r e s c r i b e d o n J u n e 1 1 , 2 0 1 4 , m e d i c a t i o n a n d t h a t t h i s i s a r e c e n t p r e s c r i p t i o n a b o u t a w e e k b u t " I t d o e s n ' t d o m u c h . " e p h y s i c i a n 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 ' s t i s f a c t o r y , a n d w r i t i n g i s p o o r . e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t h a s m a j o r i m p a c t s i n 2 o f 1 4 n i n g : e m o t i o n a n d m o t i v a t i o n . H e n o t e d m o d e r a t e n t i o n / c o n c e n t r a t i o n , e x e c u t i v e , a n d o t h e r a n t w r o t e t h a t h e m i n i m i z e s h i s i n t e r a c t i o n s w i t h d f r i e n d , a n d t h a t h e a v o i d s c r o w d s . t i o n e r w r o t e t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t h a s f e a t u r e s o f a n l l a n t h a s b e e n m e d i c a l l y a v o i d a n t t h r o u g h o u t h i s e a t e d a n d h a v e g r a d u a l l y w o r s e n e d . H e f r o m a m o d e r a t e s e v e r e m o o d d i s o r d e r a n d h a s b e e n v e r y d e p r e s s e d f o r m a n y y e a r s , a n d e l 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 s e r f o r m D L A . t i n d e p e n d e n t l y m a n a g e s a l l t a s k s r e l a t e d t o t h e g , a n d d a i l y s h o p p i n g ( t h o u g h n o t i n g w i t h r e s p e c t e d s $ " . e n d e n t l y m a n a g i n g m o s t t a s k s r e l a t e d t o t h e l l a n t d r i v e s h i s o w n v e h i c l e a n d i n d e p e n d e n t l y n e e d h e l p 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 t i n d e p e n d e n t l y m a n a g i n g m o s t a s p e c t s o f e l l a n t ' s s i s t e r p a y s h i s r e n t a n d b i l l s . m i s s i o n , t h e a p p e l l a n t w r o t e a n u m b e r o f L A . T h e p h y s i c i a n e n d o r s e d t h e d o c u m e n t t h a t " I a m [ t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s ] p h y s i c i a n . H e h a s a v e d o n e s o . G i v e n w h a t I k n o w o f [ t h e a v e t h e l i m i t a t i o n s h e d e s c r i b e s o n a d a i l y b a s i s . s o n a d a i l y b a s i s t o b e c r e d i b l e . " a p p e l l a n t w r o t e t h a t : e ;
► he is basi c al ly bed-ridden about te n days ► he has limite d s trength i n h is ha nds and c ► he has to be s l ow and c ar eful gett i ng dre sh ow er to s t e a d y him s elf. • In h is let ter o f Ju ne 25, 2014 the nurse pract t he appellant submit ted h is PWD application, A R w as not as famili ar with the appe l lant as was the wr o t e th at the appe l lant had r elie d o n a sti p end fro his m othe r pas se d away he was l eft wit hout wit hout the socia l functio ning r e quir e d to engage with em ploymen t. He wrot e " [ T he appellant ' s] abil requires con st ant assistan ce fro m h is sis ter ho us ekeep ing. He n eeds constant remindin " In the le tt er of Ju ne 26, 2014 t he re g io nal h e appel lant has been re ceiving couns ell i n g for d "C o -mo rbi d depressio n an d c hr onic pai n are co worsen the se verit y of each. Wh ile he r epo rts a desi f o r m o re than a fe w h o u rs befor e becoming debil his de pre ssion i n and of itsel f is po ss i bly not c ondi t i ons certainly make him un able to e nga • In r esp o nse to a question from the panel, the hom e a bout 12 k il omet res outside o f t o w n . The app of hi s meals be c ause it is easie r for hi m, and that • In r esp o nse to a qu es tion from t he panel as to wha re n t and bill s, the appe ll an t and his sis t e r sa id of dep ositing h is in come assist a nce ch e q ue s. bi l ls. The appel la n t's sis ter sai d t ha t since he is livi owned by t h e fami l y) he "h as no bills to p ay " -h Help • In the PR the physic ian indica t ed that the appe impairm ent . • In the AR the physician indicated the appellant uses a cane, and that the appell have an assistance animal. He indicate d that assistance is provided to "family''. • In response to a question in the AR as to what help the appellant requires that is not avail the p hysician w r ote " $ management, [increased] socialization." Admi ssibility of Additional Information In their oral testimony the appellant and his sister provided additional informatio impairment. This information g e n era lly provi des additional detail with respect to matter original PWD application. Accordingly, the panel has admitted this new information as being in support of information and records that were before the ministry accordance withs. 22(4) of the Employmen t and Assi In resoonse to a auestion from the panel as to whv documents 6 and 7 had not been submitted orior EAAT 003(10/06/01) APPE AL# � out of the month and h e r eg ularly us es a cane; an l ift ma y be 25 pounds; ss ed, and has t o h ol d o n t o the walls in the itione r wrote that he had n o t b e en ava il a b le when a n d tha t t he p h ys i c i an w ho had com p lete d the nu r se pr a c titioner. The nu rse p ractitio ner m hi s mother for m any years , but t hat w he n f ina nc i al means to get b y, as we ll as bei n g left the public or to pursu e wage-b as ed it y t o car e fo r hi ms elf is very b o rderline and he with tas k s o f shop pin g, budgeting , a n d g t o main t ain h is personal care. " a lt h authorit y ca s e ma na ger repo rted t hat t he epressi on since Novem ber 25, 2013. He w ro t e ndi tion s wh ich often a ct to aggrav ate and re t o work, he is un abl e t o exe rt himself it ated by severe pain and exha ust io n. While s u f fic ient t o pr event wo r k, his co m b ined ge in gai nf ul employment at this time." app ell an t s a id that h e l i ve s alo ne i n the f amily ell a nt' s sis t e r sai d that s h e pr epar es 9 9% she does t he house k e eping. t hel p the app ell an t requires with paying his t ha t the app ell an t d o es his o wn b anking in te rms The app ell an t sai d that he does n't li ke payi n g ng i n h is mother 's form er h ome (now is sis t e r p ays the h yd ro bi ll s etc. llant re quir e s no p rost h e ses or a ids for his a nt does not the appellant b y able, n regarding his s raised in the at the time of reconsid erati o n, in stance Act.
to the hear ing, the app ellant s aid that the nurse p r ac ava ilable earlier. The ministry ha d n o o bjection t o a documents 1 throu gh 7 (except f or docu ment 5) as be that were before the ministry at the time of reconsi d Wi t h respect to docum ent 5, th e ministry stated that it had mistakenly been sent t o th e app ell ant. The appe l lant, had been an error but wa nted t he panel to understand the The panel asse s se d do cument 5 as g oing to argument. The m i nistry rel ie d on its reconsideratio n d ecisi o n and EAAT 003(10/06/01) I APPEAL# � � titio ne r an d the case manager had not been d mitting thes e documen t s . T he p a nel ad mitt ed in g i n s upp o rt of the informati o n and rec or d s er ation. been generated by clerical error, and had through his sister, acknowledged that the letter con fusion an d f r u s tration it had caused. s ub mitted no n e w inform ation.
PART F -Reasons for P anel D e cision The issue on this appeal is wh ether the ministry's decision PWD was reasonably su p port ed by th e evide nce or was a reasonable ap enact ment in the circum stances of the appella nt. In particular, was th det ermini ng that the appellan t does not hav e a severe opi nion o f a prescribed professiona l th e appellant's impair restri ct him fro m performi ng D LA either conti nuously a result of those restrictions the appellant do e s not requir The relevant legisla tion is as follows: EAPWDA: 2 (1) In this section: "as sist i v e de vice " mean s a d ev ice design activi ty t h at , becau se of a s e vere m ental p er form; " dail y li v i ng ac tivity" ha s th e pr es "prescribed p r ofess i onal " h as t he (2) The mi niste r may desi g n ate a person who d isabi liti e s fo r t h e p u r poses of this A c t if me ntal or phy sic a l impai rment that (a) in the op ini on of a me dic year s, and (b ) in the op i ni o n o f a pres c (i) dire ctl y and s i g nific li v in g ac tiviti e s eit her (A ) cont i nuo usly, ( B) p eriodi call (ii) as a resul t of those restrictions, the person requires help to those activities. (3) Fo r the purposes of su bsection (2), ( a ) a p erson who ha s a sever men tal disorder, and (b) a person requires help in relation to a daily living activity If, in order to perform it, the person requires (i) an assistive device, (ii) the significant help or supervision of a (iii) the services of an assist E M T 003( 10/06/ 0 1) A PPEAL # '. . to d eny t he appell a nt de signation a s a plication of the a pp li c a ble e ministry reason able in physical or mental impai rm ent, and that in the m ents do n o t directly and signif i c a ntl y o r periodically for exten ded periods, and that as e h elp t o pe rfo r m DLA . ed to en able a p erso n t o p er fo r m a daily livi ng or phys ic a l im p airment, the p e r son is unable to cr i bed meaning; pr es cr i bed mean i n g. ha s reache d 1 8 yea rs of ag e as a pe r son with the minister is sati sfie d that the pers on ha s a severe al pra c tition e r is lik ely to contin ue for a t le ast 2 r i be d p rofessional an t ly restric ts the person's a bili ty t o perform d aily or y f or extended periods, and perform e me ntal impairment includes a person with a n o t h er pe rso n, or a n ce anima l .
E A P W D R s e c t i o n 2 ( 1 ) : 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 ( a ) i n r e l a t i o n t o a p e r s o n m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t , m e a n ( i ) p r e p a r e o w n m ( i i ) m a n a g e p e r s o ( i i i ) s h o p f o r p e r s o ( i v ) u s e p u b l i c o r p ( v ) p e r f o r m h o u s e a c c e p t a b l e s a n i t a r ( v i ) m o v e a b o u t i n ( v i i ) p e r f o r m p e r s o ( v i i i ) m a n a g e p e r s ( b ) i n r e l a t i o n t o a p e r s o n f o l l o w i n g a c t i v i t i e s : ( i ) m a k e d e c i s i o n s ( i i ) r e l a t e t o , c o m m ( 2 ) F o r t h e p u r p o s e s o f t h e A c t , " p r e s c r ( a ) a u t h o r i z e d u n d e r a n e ( i ) m e d i c a l p r a c t i t ( i i ) r e g i s t e r e d p s y ( i i i ) r e g i s t e r e d n u r ( i v ) o c c u p a t i o n a l ( v ) p h y s i c a l t h e r a ( v i ) s o c i a l w o r k e r , ( v i i ) c h i r o p r a c t o r , ( v i i i ) n u r s e p r a c t i t ( b ) a c t i n g i n t h e c o u r s e o f b y ( I ) a n a u t h o r i t y , a I n d e p e n d e n t S c h o o ( i i ) a b o a r d o r a f r d e f i n e d I n s e c t i o n 1 i f q u a l i f i c a t i o n s i n p s y c h o l o g y a r e a c o n d i t * 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 p o s i t i o n i s t h a t h i s o s t e o a r t h r i t i s a n d i m p a i r m e n t , w h i c h i s e x a c e r b a t e d b y h i s d e p r e s s i o n c o m p l e t e d t h e P W D a p p l i c a t i o n f o r m s d i d n ' t k n o w h t h a t t h e n u r s e p r a c t i t i o n e r ' s e v i d e n c e d e m o n s t r a t e d E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )I A P P E A L # e g u l a t i o n , " d a i l y l i v i n g a c t i v i t i e s " , 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 i r m e n t o r a s e v e r e s t h e f o l l o w i n g a c t i v i t i e s : e a l s ; n a l f i n a n c e s ; n a l n e e d s ; e r s o n a l t r a n s p o r t a t i o n f a c i l i t i e s ; w o r k t o m a i n t a i n t h e p e r s o n ' s p l a c e o f r e s i d e n c e i n y c o n d i t i o n ; d o o r s a n d o u t d o o r s ; n a l h y g i e n e a n d s e l f c a r e ; o n a l m e d i c a t i o n , a n d 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 d e s t h e 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 ; 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 e f f e c t i v e l y . i b e d p r o f e s s i o n a l " m e a n s a p e r s o n w h o i s n a c t m e n t t o p r a c t i s e t h e p r o f e s s i o n o f i o n e r , c h o l o g i s t , s e o r r e g i s t e r e d p s y c h i a t r i c n u r s e , t h e r a p i s t , p i s t , o r i o n e r , o r t h e p e r s o n ' s e m p l o y m e n t a s a s c h o o l p s y c h o l o g i s t s t h a t t e r m I s d e f i n e d i n s e c t i o n 1 ( 1 ) o f t h e l A c t , o r a n c o p h o n e e d u c a t i o n a u t h o r i t y , a s t h o s e t e r m s a r e ( 1 ) o f t h e S c h o o l A c t , i o n o f s u c h e m p l o y m e n t . * * * * * * b a c k p a i n c o n s t i t u t e a s e v e r e p h y s i c a l . H e a r g u e d t h a t t h e p h y s i c i a n w h o h a d i s l i m i t a t i o n s a s w e l l a s t h e n u r s e p r a c t i t i o n e r , a n d t h e s e v e r i t v o f h i s i m p a i r m e n t s .
The ministry's position, as s e t out in it s r econsideration functional skills is more in kee pin g with a moderate degree no medicat i o n or treatment information had been gi analgesics would be expected to ameliorate the back an functionali t y . Panel Decision A diagn osis of a serious medic a l c on d ition does not se vere impa irment. An "impairment" is the re sulting inde pendentl y or eff ectivel y. To assess th e severity of an im pair m ent th e nat ur e daily functi on i ng as evidenced by fu nctional sk i ll limitations and the degr is restrict ed a re key considera t ions. A me dica l barri e m ploym e nt is not a l e gi slate d criterion fo r severity. c onsid er a l l the relevant evid enc e , inc lud in g t hat of the the funda men tal b asis f or the a nalysi s is the evidenc decis ion -mak i n g power the ministry can no t m erely de resp e ct to whether th e stat ut ory req uireme nts a re met as that approa f e tter i ng of d iscre tion. T he pro fessi o nal e v ide n ce has to e v ide n ce. I n t erms of ph ys i c al functio nal skills, the evidenc e in the PR the appellan t is in the mi d-ra ng e of func tiona lit y. The m conc lusio n a s they rep ort moderate degene r at i ve di pr evious imag ing d at ed June 2006. T he pan el notes tha w ith pa in-r e lie f med icatio n an d, despi t e the a p pell ant's no me dica l evidenc e t o t hat eff ect. There are frequent references in the eviden ce to th e imp on his ability to work at paid employment. The panel notes that employability is not a statutory crite rion regarding PWD de signation -the focus of the legislati T he regional h e al t h aut hority case ma nager e xpressed t p hysi c al impairments m ay "aggravate and worsen the more detail in the subsequent section of this decision under the heading Significant Restrictions to DLA , any limi t a tions resulting from the appellant's impairments do not appear to have significant restrictions in h i s abi l i ty to man age hi s DLA independently. For the foregoing reasons, the panel has concluded th physical health issues, the ministry reasonably determined establishing that he has a severe physical impairment as contempl EMT 003(10/06/01) I A PPEAL# decision, is that the app el la nt' s l evel of of impairme n t. The ministry argued t hat ven, and that remedial meas u re s in the form o f d arthritis pain an d a l low for more physical in itself determine PWD eligibili ty or establish a re strictions to a person' s ab ilit y to functio n of t he im pairment and the exte nt of it s impact on e e to which performing DLA e r t o t he appella nt's abi lity t o en gage i n p a i d In ma kin g its determinatio n the ministry must a p pella nt. While t he legislatio n i s clea r tha t e f rom p res crib ed professi ona l s, in exercising its f e r to the opi nion of the p rofession als w ith ch would a mount to a n i m proper be weighed an d assesse d l i k e any other , a nd tha t of the appell a nt, ind icate that edic al imaging r e p orts tend to su pport this sc disea se w ith "no pr o gres sion " com p a r ed to t t h e a p pe llant has on ly j us t started treatmen t o b servation th at "I t doesn' t do mu c h " there is a ct t h e a p pellant's medi c al c ondit io ns have o n i s on th e abili t y to perform DLA. h e v iew t hat the appellant's me ntal and severity of each." H owever, as discussed in t ranslated into a t whil e the ap pellant cle a r ly has s ome that the evidence falls short of ated by the l e gislati o n .
S e v e r e M e n t 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 p o s i t i o n i s t h a t h i s c h r o n i c d e p r e s s i i s e x a c e r b a t e d b y c h r o n i c p a i n . T h e m i n i s t r y ' s p o s i t i o n , a s s e t o u t i n i t s r e c o n s i d e r a e s t a b l i s h 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 e m i n i s t r y d e c i s i o n s a b o u t d a i l y a c t i v i t i e s a r e o n l y s o m e w h a t r f u n c t i o n i n g p r o v i d e d i n t h e r e c o n s i d e r a t i o n s u b m i s s t h e o r i g i n a l a p p l i c a t i o n . P a n e l D e c i s i o n 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 ' s m e n t a l 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 , a n d m o d e r a t e i m p m i n i m a l o r n o i m p a c t . T h e p a n e l n o t e s t h a t t h e a p p d a y s b e f o r e t h e p h y s i c i a n c o m p l e t e d t h e P W D a p p t h e c o u n s e l l i n g t h e r a p y t o h a v e a n y e f f e c t . I n h i s l e e x p r e s s e d t h e v i e w t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s f u n c t i o n a l d n o r t h e r e g i o n a l h e a l t h a u t h o r i t y c a s e m a n a g e r p r o v t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t i s n o w u n d e r g o i n g a f t e r y e a r s o f a 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 f f 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 p e r s o n a l f i n a f i n a n c e s r e l a t i n g t o t h e f a m i l y o w n e d h o m e ) . B a s e d i n d e p e n d e n t l y m a n a g e s t h e d e c i s i o n m a k i n g c o m p o a p p r o p r i a t e c h o i c e s ) a n d s o c i a l f u n c t i o n i n g ( m a k i n g W i t h r e s p e c t t o 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 , t h e r e i s o l a t i n g h i m s e l f t o a n e x t e n t . H o w e v e r , t h e e v i d e n c 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 ( a l b e i t m a r g i n a s o c i a l n e t w o r k s s u f f i c i e n t l y t o m e e t h i s b a s i c n e e d s . 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 m o b i l i t y i s s u e s , p a i n , a n d d e p r e s s i o n , a n d t h a t h e r e 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 e v i d e n c e i s i n s u f f i c s i q n i f i c a n t l v r e s t r i c t s t h e a o o e l l a n t ' s a b i l i t v t o p e r f o r m E M T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )I A P P E A L # o n c o n s t i t u t e s a s e v e r e m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t w h i c h t i o n d e c i s i o n , i s t h a t t h e e v i d e n c e d o e s n o t a r g u e d t h a t D L A t h a t i n v o l v e t h e a b i l i t y t o m a k e e s t r i c t e d , a n d t h a t t h e a s s e s s m e n t o f m e n t a l i o n d i d n o t d i f f e r s i g n i f i c a n t l y f r o m t h a t p r o v i d e d i n i m p a i r m e n t h a s m a j o r i m p a c t s i n 2 o f 1 4 a r e a s o f a c t s i n 4 o f 1 4 a r e a s . T h e r e m a i n i n g a r e a s s h o w e l l a n t ' s c o u n s e l l i n g t h e r a p y h a d o n l y s t a r t e d a f e w l i c a t i o n f o r m s s o t h e r e w a s l i m i t e d t i m e i n w h i c h t t e r o f J u n e 2 5 , 2 0 1 4 t h e n u r s e p r a c t i t i o n e r i s a b i l i t y w i l l d e t e r i o r a t e o v e r t i m e , b u t n e i t h e r h e i d e d a n y p r o g n o s i s f o r t h e c o u n s e l l i n g t h e r a p y v o i d a n c e . 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 n c e s ( o t h e r t h a n h i s s i s t e r t a k i n g c a r e o f t h e o n t h e e v i d e n c e i n t h e A R , h e a l s o n e n t s o f t h e D L A o f d a il 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 s o c i a l d e c i s i o n s ) . i s e v i d e n c e t o d e m o n s t r a t e t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t i s e o f t h e p h y s i c i a n a n d t h e a p p e l l a n t i n d i c a t e s 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 x t e n d e d 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 l i e s o n h i s f a m i l y f o r h e l p w i t h D L A . i e n t t o e s t a b l i s h t h a t a s e v e r e i m p a i r m e n t D L A e i t h e r c o n t i n u o u s l v o r p e r i o d i c a l l v f o r
extended periods. Panel Decision The l egis l ation requires t hat a severe impa ir ment directly and significantly restricts the appel ab il ity to perform DLA eith e r cont i n uously o r pe riodica means t hat t here must be a causa l link bet ween the severe im restr iction must also be sig nificant. Fi n ally, there is a component relate direct and sig nificant restr ictio n may be either continuous or per exte nd e d time. Inherently, any ana ly sis of periodicity must also inc freque n c y. All other t hing s being equal, a r estric tion that on s ig nific a nt than one which occurs se v e r al t im e s a we e vidence ind icate s that a rest riction arises pe riodically, evide n ce of the dura ti o n an d frequency of the restricti criterion is met. I n the AR th e physici a n i n dicated t hat the appe l lant inde mo s t of the 1 O prescri b ed DLA. H e r epor ted th at the a his sister wit h re spect to "pay ren t an d bil ls", b ut t he or de m onstrat e d that this ass ista nce is in the form o f the hom e. The phy sici an a lso r e p orte d tha t t he appe l lant req mea l p rep a ration a nd that h is siste r i s " helpfu l at times i n wh i ch she stated that sh e p repar es 99% of t he app The p a nel no t es that in the r econsid erat ion d eci sio n wi th res p e c t to man y DLA, bu t did not c ontradic t the ph p r ep ar ati on or m a n a ge m e n t of pe rsona l f i nances . Th e letter s of the n u rs e p ract iti one r an d t he region al an d 7) provide add i tiona l detail with r espect to th e re of the ca se m ana ge r in particu la r v i e w s th e a ppellan ra the r than DL A . C onsi der i ng th e evid en ce as a whole, while i t d emonstrates cause some limitations, it does not establish on the b to manage his DLA is significantly restricted as contemplat the panel concludes that the ministry reasonably de DLA indepe n d ently is not s ignificantly restricted either periods. Help with DLA The appellant's position is that he relies almost entirely on his sister and other majority of 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 sianificant help is required from other persons. EMT 003(10/06/01) � APPEAL # lant's l ly for extend ed periods. The ter m "directl y" pa irm en t a nd the restriction. T h e dire ct d to time or durat i o n. The io dic. I f it is periodic it must be fo r an lud e consideration of the ly a r ises once a y ear is le s s likely t o be ek. Accordingly, in circumstances whe re the it is appropriate for the ministry to require o n in or d er to be "satisfied" that this legislative pend entl y manage s most tasks related to p pell an t requ i res continuous ass istance from a l testimony of t he a p pe l lan t an d his si ster sister pa ying the bills f or the fam i ly-o wned u ir e s p er i odic a ssistan ce wit h the D LA o f " . Th i s co nt rasts wi t h the sister's oral evidenc e e ll ant 's mea l s beca use it is " easier'' f or h i m. , the appella nt p rovi ded addi t i onal i nf or mation ys i ci a n's obs ervati o ns with re s pe ct to me al health authorit y case manager (docu ments 6 stric tions ex perienced by t he appel la nt, but that t's e m ploy men t thr ou gh th e le n s o f employ abi l i ty tha t t he ap pell an t's impa irments do alance of probabilities that the appellan t's ability ed by the legislative scheme. Accordingly, term i ned that the appellant's ability to manage his continuously or pe r iodica l l y fo r e x t ended family to perf orm t h e
APPEAL# � Panel Decision Findings of a severe impairment and significant restrictions in the ability to perform DLA are preconditions to a finding that an appellant requires help with DLA. For the reasons provided above, 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 which found 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.