Economical however relied on the reports of Dr. Saplys, an orthopaedic surgeon, and Ms. Delize L. Rollocks-Roberts, an O.T., to suggest that Ms. Comito did not require attendant care services, and hence that the provision of such services was neither reasonable nor necessary.
Dr. Saplys briefly examined Ms. Comito for the Insurer. He testified without the benefit of his notes, since he shredded them shortly after the examination. Ms. Comito was not offered the services of a Spanish interpreter, although she is a native Spanish speaker whose English appears to be variable.
It was Dr. Saplys’ opinion that Ms. Comito:
…suffered uncomplicated soft tissue injuries, that being musculoligamentous strains to the paracervical and paralumbar structures. It is my orthopaedic opinion she has no significant functional orthopaedic impairment as of today’s assessment.
Dr. Saplys in cross admitted that he did not have the family doctor’s records, nor any radiographic images when he made his assessment and did not consider requesting them. Also missing from the documentation to be considered was the actual attendant care report. Nonetheless Dr. Saplys stated that he was satisfied in assessing Ms. Comito without such background information.
That Dr. Saplys took a narrow view of impairment was clear. He did not consider that either pain or a limp such as displayed by Ms. Comito could constitute a functional impairment. Indeed, extension of the aural spine that was 50% of normal was likewise unworthy of comment. In cross-examination, Dr. Saplys was blunt, never willingly conceding anything that ran contrary to his view.
Ms. Comito did not allege that she suffered any fractures or other skeletal injuries. She claimed she suffered from pain arising from the accident. Dr. Saplys would not have known that these reports of pain were endorsed by a family physician some two weeks after the accident and ongoing treatment recommended, since he did not bother to ask for family physician notes.
Sometimes, however, even the most perfunctory assessor can inadvertently be right. I note, however, that while Dr. Saplys rejected attendant care, he recognized that some physical therapy treatment was called for. As such, he agreed (without knowing it) with Dr. Dakhil, the family physician.