Joe Miller Wins VA Workers Comp Hearing for Nursing Assistant Disabled by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Virginia Beach, Virginia, July, 2014. Joe Miller won a hearing before a Deputy Commissioner on behalf of a Certified Nursing Assistant who claimed a mental injury. The client suffered Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) after receiving a call from a resident in the assistant living facility where she was employed. Upon checking on the resident, it was discovered the resident had shot herself with a handgun. She was found by the client in the shower, covered in blood, with the gun still in her hand. The client subsequently suffered from repeated ‘visions’ of the resident and re-lived the events of that day over and over. The client’s condition worsened and was ultimately unable to return to her job as a CNA or in any capacity. The Defendants claimed that the client did not have PTSD but suffered from psychological issues unrelated to the incident in question, and further claimed that the incident did not consist of sufficient ‘fright and shock’ to qualify for compensation under the law. The Deputy Commissioner, after hearing from our client, thought otherwise, and issued an Award in favor of the claimant.