[Lynda2020]

Hi everyone hope you are all as well as you can be. I am wanting to get a vocational medical assessment done to take into Court with me. Rung ACC to see who is in my area and got told by them to talk to my case manager. My apparent case manager has said she is a case administrator and not a manager and I am still waiting for the appointment with her that she was getting back to me with since October 08. So instead I went to ACC and asked for their list of vocational medical assessors and first was told they don't have a list as such. Then I asked her to ask my case administrator and was told that this relates to vocational independence and that this is not an area of her expertise. Told to contact previous manager. I told her no - there must be someone in this building that knows who the local vocational medical assessors are. So eventually I was told they can make me a list.

The end result is the following people - Ben Cheeseman, Michael Kahan, Paul Noonan, Bill Turner, David Ruttenburg, David Prestage and Ian Kelman. Have any of you had vocational medical assessments done by any of these people and what are they like? Also is it correct that you can't have an assessment done by someone who has done one for you before? Is there someone that is not on this list that you can recommend in the Rotorua/Taupo/Tauranga/Hamilton area.

Also thanks everyone for the info about being able to choose your assessor. I have never been told this or been given a choice. Just a letter telling me to go to this person on this date at this place.

[scared]

Hey Lynda - it is not true you can be assessed to death over and over by the same person. Hubby had noonan and ruttenburg a couple of times each - can't say either was great, will have to go thru paperwork but I do know one was bad bad bad and the other ok - sucks aye!! after a while you start losing what end of the stick you are holding when you keep going in circles. Lots here know of both of them so you can do a search on site for either and it should show who is what.
Good Luck and keep your chin up!!!

[Sparrow]

Dont go to any of these guys.
you go to a specialist in your medical condition, ie a neurosurgeon if you are spinal injuries etc.

all these guys are miserable toades amd the worst of course is Turner and
ruttenberg and
kahan.

Why are you wanting occ assessoring Doc's??
The court will acceot a specialist report but it must mention if you are fit for working.

[MINI]

Lynda

I agree with Sparrow in so far as I have had Ruttenburg and Turner for Initial medical assessment.

I had the assessment with Ruttenburg first and he refused to write a report. My GP was horrified by this guys attitude, and when I asked him why Ruttenburg would have done this, as I thought our session had gone off ok. He said: "Proberly doesnt want to get sued"!!! with a little smirk on his face.

Turner was OK at session but report was a load of turds dust!!! Saying on the one hand that I could work with all this adjustments, including carpark, no stairs etc etc.

Never got as far as Voc hab.

Sparrow is right a specialist report with notation as to their impression as to your fitness for work, would be excellent. Thats what I used and my Dr's own input as well.

Now the ACC Dr says that while I still maintain a lot of the skills I used in my work, it is his opinion that I would not be able to work anywhere near the 35 hour a week, so hence Long term.

Good Luck with you hearing Lynda.

Mini

[doppelganger]

Did you previously asked for help in getting information beforecarrying out an assessment. I offered to help but you made no contact. Like lots of people make no contact so that you have your documentation ready before the assessment and now you are off to court and further on the slipery slide into being rehabilitated as can complete employmentof more than 35 hours per week.

Now you want another assessor to over ride the assessor of a toadie. Two things the assessor will have to be more qualified and will need to find error in the toadies report.

Follow instructions and you will not be in the position. this is instructions not from ACC.

[Gloria Mitchell]

Lynda2020, on Jan 31 2009, 12:35 AM, said:

Hi everyone hope you are all as well as you can be. I am wanting to get a vocational medical assessment done to take into Court with me.

What you need is an assessment done as sparrow and mini advise....I would say.....a specialist with the highest qualifications so the toadies (who don't have the highest qualies) cannot be coerced into a report which has any chance at overriding your assessment/report. For this, it does not have to be an acc accredited assessor.

In the court system, as far as I understand, the higher qualification will still stand above the nonsense.

Your specialist should be ok with writing you a report and you can ask him to comment on specifics.

Make sure you have answered the specific question which relates exactly to the legal point of your court battle.
and good luck.

Gloria

[Lynda2020]

Sparrow, on Jan 31 2009, 11:29 AM, said:

Dont go to any of these guys.
you go to a specialist in your medical condition, ie a neurosurgeon if you are spinal injuries etc.

all these guys are miserable toades amd the worst of course is Turner and
ruttenberg and
kahan.

Why are you wanting occ assessoring Doc's??
The court will acceot a specialist report but it must mention if you are fit for working.

I am wanting an independent report against the vocational medical report ACC did where I had Blair Christian. As I need a specialist/ medical assessor to say why I can't work the 4 job types that he said were okay. Medical history not taken into account. I have specialist report now saying neck degeneration although not natural. I also have specialist report saying fibromyalgia but neither of these reports comment on my working capacity.

[Lynda2020]

MINI, on Jan 31 2009, 12:29 PM, said:

Lynda

I agree with Sparrow in so far as I have had Ruttenburg and Turner for Initial medical assessment.

I had the assessment with Ruttenburg first and he refused to write a report. My GP was horrified by this guys attitude, and when I asked him why Ruttenburg would have done this, as I thought our session had gone off ok. He said: "Proberly doesnt want to get sued"!!! with a little smirk on his face.

Turner was OK at session but report was a load of turds dust!!! Saying on the one hand that I could work with all this adjustments, including carpark, no stairs etc etc.

Never got as far as Voc hab.

Sparrow is right a specialist report with notation as to their impression as to your fitness for work, would be excellent. Thats what I used and my Dr's own input as well.

Now the ACC Dr says that while I still maintain a lot of the skills I used in my work, it is his opinion that I would not be able to work anywhere near the 35 hour a week, so hence Long term.

Good Luck with you hearing Lynda.

Hi Mini - what doctor did you have??

Mini

[MINI]

Lynda

For what???

Initial Medical Assessment
You should have had this before Vocational Assessment

Dr Ruttenberg and
Dr Turner

CM
GP - Depends on where you are, but remember ACC do not like claimants jumping GP's

Dr Codyre in Auckland and
Local ACC Medical Doctor.

They all had a say along the rocky path to keeping weekly compensation.

None of it is easy thats for sure.

What area are you in??

Mini

[doppelganger]

Lynda2020, on Feb 1 2009, 01:15 AM, said:

I am wanting an independent report against the vocational medical report ACC did where I had Blair Christian. As I need a specialist/ medical assessor to say why I can't work the 4 job types that he said were okay. Medical history not taken into account. I have specialist report now saying neck degeneration although not natural. I also have specialist report saying fibromyalgia but neither of these reports comment on my working capacity.

By my reading Lynda 2000 has been for the Vocational Independance medical assessment were the assessor has not included all of the injuries that have to be covered.

in my opinion even your GP should be able to override the assessors report by confirming that not all of the injuries were taken into consideration.

The Assessors instructions ftom the Coprporation is that they only need to assess the injuries presented by the Corporation and not all of the covered injuries.

steps that you need to take is

tell the case manager or administrator that you have cover for (list the injuries that have been presented to the corporation and there is no decision to decline the injury)

Ask the case manager for the written decision that the corporation has made to revise the acceptance of the injury.

If there is no reply with in 28 days tell thecase manager to carry out an complete rehabilitation assessments and this time to include all covered injuries.

Also advise that if the case manager or administrator uses any of the assessments for the purpose of the removal of entitlements then you will request the police to carry out anfraud investigation because the assessor did not have the correct information from the Corporation.

Once you start doing this every one will find very quickly that all injuries are placed on all requested assessments.