Rejecting employer’s rehab provider not fatal to claim

Usually, when an employer offers a rehabilitation training program, employees may be denied benefits if they don’t accept it as offered. As a recent case before the Arkansas Court of Appeals demonstrates, however, using an alternative provider may not be seen as a refusal of the employer’s training program.

Background

While working as a custodian with the Alma School District, Sylvia Tillery suffered an admittedly compensable back injury. After receiving both conservative and surgical treatment for her injury, her treating physician, Dr. James Blankenship, determined that she had reached maximum medical improvement and released her from further medical treatment.

At his direction, Tillery underwent a functional capacity evaluation (FCE) which indicated that she was able to perform work within the medium classification. However, Dr. Blankenship concluded that this wouldn’t allow her to return to her job as a custodian with the school district. He concluded that she would be limited to performing a sedentary job with a permanent weight-lifting restriction of 20 pounds.

The school district requested that Tillery undergo a vocational-rehabilitation evaluation (VRE), which was performed in February 2021 by Heather Taylor, a vocational-rehabilitation specialist. Taylor reported that Tillery wanted to work and expressed an interest in acquiring new skills (such as typing, word processing, and other computer-related skills) which would allow her to perform a more sedentary job in the future.