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ESA medical result
- Arron Pitt
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9 years 11 months ago - 9 years 11 months ago #122239 by Arron Pitt
ESA medical result was created by Arron Pitt
Hi, I am new to the forum and after some advice. Sorry for the long post.
My wife had a medical for ESA in January and was placed in the WRAG.
She is in constant pain due to injuries received at work and has been medically retired due to this.
Any walking increases her pain and more than 20 m she is in 'severe discomfort' as they like to put it. She also suffers from depression due to this and has issues with her arm going numb due to related nerve damaged. She is under a pain management team and has chronic pain disorder.
We had previously thought that she would be placed in the support group but no.
At the medical the HCP told her that she did not need to do any bending, squatting, walking etc as it was clear that it would cause her pain, although she did have to raise her arms etc. the HCP stated that she would have to put down that she can walk 15 metres as that is the distance from the waiting room to the examination room.
We asked for a mandatory reconsideration and were told by the lady who called that she did score 21 points but she did not score any of the 15 point indicators and 0 for the walking section. We were told that this was because the HCP was of the opinion that she could self propel herself on a wheelchair.
we have considered getting a wheelchair in the past and was referred for one by our GP but the local NHS department who deals with this said she didn't fit the criteria as she didn't need it all the time, and in any case, days like today wear she has a 'dead arm' due to numbness she wouldn't be able to propel herself anyway. I doubt she would be able to do it anyway but don't really know how to go about proving this.
In short, can they agree that she can't walk any distance but can self propel in a wheelchair over 200 m.
Thanks for your time
My wife had a medical for ESA in January and was placed in the WRAG.
She is in constant pain due to injuries received at work and has been medically retired due to this.
Any walking increases her pain and more than 20 m she is in 'severe discomfort' as they like to put it. She also suffers from depression due to this and has issues with her arm going numb due to related nerve damaged. She is under a pain management team and has chronic pain disorder.
We had previously thought that she would be placed in the support group but no.
At the medical the HCP told her that she did not need to do any bending, squatting, walking etc as it was clear that it would cause her pain, although she did have to raise her arms etc. the HCP stated that she would have to put down that she can walk 15 metres as that is the distance from the waiting room to the examination room.
We asked for a mandatory reconsideration and were told by the lady who called that she did score 21 points but she did not score any of the 15 point indicators and 0 for the walking section. We were told that this was because the HCP was of the opinion that she could self propel herself on a wheelchair.
we have considered getting a wheelchair in the past and was referred for one by our GP but the local NHS department who deals with this said she didn't fit the criteria as she didn't need it all the time, and in any case, days like today wear she has a 'dead arm' due to numbness she wouldn't be able to propel herself anyway. I doubt she would be able to do it anyway but don't really know how to go about proving this.
In short, can they agree that she can't walk any distance but can self propel in a wheelchair over 200 m.
Thanks for your time
Last edit: 9 years 11 months ago by Gordon.
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- Gordon
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9 years 11 months ago #122245 by Gordon
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Replied by Gordon on topic ESA medical result
AP
Welcome to the forum, you might want to have a look at the following FAQ which explain where everything is
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I'm afraid that the test does not only consider a claimants ability to walk but also looks at whether they can propel a manual wheelchair over an equivalent distance. You do not need to be using a wheelchair, in fact you do not need to even own one for the Decision Maker to consider the usage, as long as the usage is deemed to be reasonable it can be included in the test.
If the only Descriptor that you wife might meet the Support Group criteria for is the Mobilising one, then the only way that she will qualify is if you can show that the usage of a wheelchair is not reasonable, this could be for two reasons.
- the usage is prevented by environmental constraints, for example you live in a flat with no lift and your wife would not be able to carry it down to the street.
- your wife is unable to self propel a wheelchair, this could be due to problems with the upper body and in particular the back, shoulders or hands, or she suffers from disability that restricts her abilities in regard to physical exertion, for example, heart or lung problems.
Once the MR is completed you have the choice of making an appeal to the Tribunal Service, any such appeal will only be decided on the basis of your wife meeting the criteria for the SG or not.
Have a look at our ESA MR & Appeal guide for more information about the process and our ESA Claim guides for info on the ESA Descriptors.
www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/help-for-claimants/esa
If you have any questions on the above or any other questions then please reply to this post and we will do our best to help you.
Gordon
Welcome to the forum, you might want to have a look at the following FAQ which explain where everything is
Welcome to Benefits and Work
In case you are not aware, your real name appears to be showing in the forum, if you want to change this then follow the instructions in the following FAQ
My full name is showing, how can I stop it?
I'm afraid that the test does not only consider a claimants ability to walk but also looks at whether they can propel a manual wheelchair over an equivalent distance. You do not need to be using a wheelchair, in fact you do not need to even own one for the Decision Maker to consider the usage, as long as the usage is deemed to be reasonable it can be included in the test.
If the only Descriptor that you wife might meet the Support Group criteria for is the Mobilising one, then the only way that she will qualify is if you can show that the usage of a wheelchair is not reasonable, this could be for two reasons.
- the usage is prevented by environmental constraints, for example you live in a flat with no lift and your wife would not be able to carry it down to the street.
- your wife is unable to self propel a wheelchair, this could be due to problems with the upper body and in particular the back, shoulders or hands, or she suffers from disability that restricts her abilities in regard to physical exertion, for example, heart or lung problems.
Once the MR is completed you have the choice of making an appeal to the Tribunal Service, any such appeal will only be decided on the basis of your wife meeting the criteria for the SG or not.
Have a look at our ESA MR & Appeal guide for more information about the process and our ESA Claim guides for info on the ESA Descriptors.
www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/help-for-claimants/esa
If you have any questions on the above or any other questions then please reply to this post and we will do our best to help you.
Gordon
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
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- Arron Pitt
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9 years 11 months ago #122249 by Arron Pitt
Replied by Arron Pitt on topic ESA medical result
Thanks for the reply. I think we may have valid issues with both points but if you could confirm that would be great.
1)We have a drive way leading to our house that is approximately 18 meters long but raises about 2 metres. ( it is very steep) which it would be impossible to manually propel a wheelchair up and would be very dangerous to go down. We have been in touch with the council who have done other work on our house to make things easier but they have told us that they can not do anything on the drive to help get down to road level as it is too steep.
2)My wife is not physically strong and would find it difficult to propel herself any distance. She also has the issue with one of her arms and lower back injury caused by the accident that I feel would prevent her from using one.
Cheers
1)We have a drive way leading to our house that is approximately 18 meters long but raises about 2 metres. ( it is very steep) which it would be impossible to manually propel a wheelchair up and would be very dangerous to go down. We have been in touch with the council who have done other work on our house to make things easier but they have told us that they can not do anything on the drive to help get down to road level as it is too steep.
2)My wife is not physically strong and would find it difficult to propel herself any distance. She also has the issue with one of her arms and lower back injury caused by the accident that I feel would prevent her from using one.
Cheers
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- Puccalove
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9 years 11 months ago #122252 by Puccalove
Replied by Puccalove on topic ESA medical result
If you can get medical evidence of your wifes arm and shoulder problems you should have a good case for the SG, particularly as the assessor noted she cannot walk further than 20m.
You could also argue that using a wheelchair could in the long term result in a further deterioration in her mobility, through lack of use, and ultimately further undermine her independence.
You could also argue that using a wheelchair could in the long term result in a further deterioration in her mobility, through lack of use, and ultimately further undermine her independence.
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