× Members

PIP , safety carrying out tasks regarding Injuries and fainting. ..

More
2 years 1 month ago #278484 by Flipeteeflop
Hi All.
Just a quick question regarding being able to carry out a task reliably, specifically safely.

I faint, and also fall, and obviously injure myself constantly due to how my condition affects me.
Like any normal human being, i self treat injuries unless i need stitches, have a potential broken bone or i, or a carer deem i need urgent medical care.

I faint with no warning at all, and also have visual clues. When I have visual clues am alot of the time able to "avert a fainting episode". This obviously is subjective as i do not know if i would have actually fainted or not.
For example, i can faint with no warning at all. I have historically fainted after getting out of breath dizzy, light headed, and after visual clues become extreme. This can occur too fast to act, which is half of the time i get a warning, or slowly in which case i can make myself safe by sitting down.
Symptoms that arlert me do not always end in a fainting episode, for example i can be mid walk up the stairs, feel dizzy, be unable to get to safety, and nothing has happened. My fainting is therefore highly fluctuating, and never safe.

The HP has chosen to make their comments that i am safe because i get warnings over half of the time.

However, the HP has also opted to state that i rarely get injured as my last A&E visit for an injury because of this was 2 years ago. The HP has stated i therefore do not get injured so am safe. Despite the HP being told i have cuts, bruises, scuffs, sprains, strains, pain and burns.
The HPs opinion, is that unless I attend A&E, I am not injured.

This is obviously a ludicrous statement to most people, yet i wanted to ask if this can be easily dismissed by stating that just because a serious injury has not occurred in 2 years, does not mean i am not at risk of serious injury in all aspects of my life and that fact is a cause of great anxiety for myself.
That warning signs for fainting cannot therefore be relied upon to get myself safe, for example walking up stairs i face a very real danger of fainting or falling on the stairs and killing myself, or as has happened, fainting and haveing warning signs whilst in the middle of crossing a road. Sitting down in the middle of a road to avoid fainting, is never safe, in any situation.

That the warning signs i have carry their own safety concerns, such as carrying a hot pan or using a knife when light headed, dizzy and mid visual disturbance, and that injuries caused by dizziness, lightheadedness and visual disturbance have occurred in the past, as my history shows.

Am i on the right track with this reply, and am i right in thinking, at tribunal at least, any injury is classed as an injury, regardless of A&E admission or not?
My body is literally riddled with scarring from injuries sustained by how my condtion affects me.
Is it worth a photo to include as evidence? My forearms for example, make people think i am a self harmer.

Thanks in Advance

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
2 years 1 month ago #278533 by Gary
Hi Flipeteeflop

Thank you for your question. I was at a tribunal a few years ago with a client who had the same condition as you describe, she would collapse unconscious without any warning, at the end of the hearing they asked us to leave the room whilst they deliberated as we stood up the client collapsed unconscious , a ambulanced was called and she was taken to hospital.

She was awarded std PIP for both components.

Yes you are on the right track, you need to try and explain the warning signs, what you have to do when you get them and also what happens when you don't get them.

You may want to keep a day diary for a week so that a tribunal can get a sense of your condition and how it affects you on a daily basis.

My question would be, you talk about fainting, so, do you faint or do you collapse unconscious? Do you have any supporting documents that discuss your condition.

Gary

Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
The following user(s) said Thank You: Flipeteeflop

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
2 years 1 month ago #278549 by Flipeteeflop
Thanks Gary,
Yes it is a hideous thing to live with, and it would not surprise me at all that this happened.
High stress sitiations just exacerbate symptoms.

I faint, collapsing unconcious and can be out for over 1 minute. I was admitted to hospital in 2014 for a severe concussion and not allowed to leave until i could tell the hospital i had someone to stay with me for at least 4 weeks afterwards.
I also suffer from blackouts where i apparently resemble a walking zombie, and can then collapse. I normally have no memory when in this state of what i was doing, of conversations i have engaged in and so forth. If i am with someone then they will invariably help me and sit or lay me down, if i have not collapsed already. I then come round as if i had fainted, thinking i had simply fainted and not being aware of blacking out but still being concious.
If on my own, i simply find myself on the floor. The bonus is when alone i generally am not being active. So i come around on the floor, where i remember being last. Not always, but 90% of the time due to having to avoid things incase it occurs as a coping mechanism.
This also fluctuates. I can have no memory of everything, or only partial memory, say of walking but not of speaking or carrying out a task at the same time. There is no clear pattern to this that i can pinpoint a %.
Pip have the consultationary evidence from my first application 10 years ago, and letters from Rehabilitation courses to manage my condition, where i was face to face assessed everyday for 2 weeks, OT reports, Employment disability assessment reports before i was made redundant due to me being too ill to work, my AR1 forms back then and now,and my previous report. The assessor who assessed me *in person* back then, did not disagree with a single point on my claim form, including grip and range of motion, which they tested and noted detailed notes on for every joint.
I was awarded enhanced for both because realistically, from a safety standpoint, I should have someone with me 24/7.
Their report in 2014, whilst short, included every key point in a succinct form and the assessor used their common sense. It was excellent, and thoroughly professional.
This years was 32 pages of abysmal, inelligable quality.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
2 years 1 month ago #278550 by Flipeteeflop
Also worth stating the obvious.
If i did go to A&E each time i fainted, or injured myself, i wouod be there at least 2 times a day if not more.
I am of the firm belief, and my rehabilitation and condition management courses pound this home, that A&E is for emergencies.
Not all injuries are.
I have been trained by professionals with more knowledge of my condition that myself, not to be an unneccessary burden on the nhs, unless it is valid.
This is subjective of course, but i know why i faint. Nothing can be done. Fainting in itself is therefore not an emergency for me, unless injured. And even then, the injury has to be severe enough to do so.
Anything else is not applying a modicum of common sense, and if this is what Pip wants to happen, then they are forcing people to overburden the NHS for proof of injury, just so they do not have to apply common sense

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
2 years 1 month ago #278562 by BIS
Hi Flipeteeflop

One of the things the assessor seems to have overlooked is that your risk of injuring yourself is extremely high which means it is difficult for you to do anything safely and the fact you haven't been to A&E is a side issue.

BIS

Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
The following user(s) said Thank You: ivyfox, Flipeteeflop

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

Moderators: GordonGaryBISCatherineWendyKellygreekqueenpeterKatherineSuper UserChrisDavid
We use cookies

We use cookies on our website. Some of them are essential for the operation of the site, while others help us to improve this site and the user experience (tracking cookies). You can decide for yourself whether you want to allow cookies or not. Please note that if you reject them, you may not be able to use all the functionalities of the site.