Cervical Disc Injury On The Job

I was injured on the job in October 1999. I am a nurse. I ended up in the ER and was given valium and muscle relaxers and told to go to occupational health the following Monday.

I was placed on physical therapy for a few months but was still in pain. I began having tingling in my fingers and toes and the pain was getting worse. Because of the tingling, the workers comp doctor ordered an MRi and that's when i found out I had 3 slipped disks in my neck pressing on my spinal cord and 2 slipped disks in my low back as well. Within days, i received a call from workers comp asking for a deposition.

I was sent to a total of 8 neurosurgeons over the next several months until the last one made a report that i was a smoker and alcoholic and that was the report the hospital i worked for used in court. The other 7 neurosurgeons all said i needed surgery but the last one said i was faking everything. I have not received any workers comp checks since Jan 2001. This is Jan 2002. My husband's insurance covered the needed neck surgery and i now have a titanium plate with 5 screws in my neck but my low back has not had surgery.

I hired a lawyer and the case was changed into two cases, the neck and the low back. I won on the low back but the hospital appealed at . That one went to court June 15,2001 in Oklahoma city and i have yet to hear anything on it. The neck is going to the supreme court and to my understanding, doesn't even have a court date set yet! In the meantime, i am in the middle of a divorce, ( my husband said if i can walk, i can work) i have no job, and about 40 dollars left to my name.

If it were up to workers comp, i would still be taking Demerol every 2-4 hours to make it through the day. As it stands now, if i don't get some money on at least the low back case, i will soon lose my house and my car. There is no way i can come up with the car payment by Feb 14th or the house payment which is due Feb 28th, 2002.

And to think....i got hurt saving a patients life...this is how i'm treated?

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