My Functional Capacity Evaluation

This week I went to my Functional Capacity Evaluation that was orchestrated by my LTD provider to determine what kind work I might be able to do given my new limitations. I didn't feel bullied but I left feeling beat up for sure. I had to do tasks in spite of the work restrictions made by my doctor. In fact it was like a showcase of all the things I should not be doing. My competitive nature pushed me to prove I can do these things. In the course of the evaluation my pain level started at a 4 and went to a 6 and went to a 7 while home and has stayed at about a 5 since then (its been 7 days now).

For the benefit of any others that may have an arm RSI and have to do a FCE here's a list of the things I did. Almost all of my tasks were administered and monitored by a high tech Occupational Therapy program. First, I verbally gave my work, injury, daily routine, and what-I-do-for-fun histories then this is what I did:
1. strapped a wireless pulse monitor on and took blood pressure
2. Treadmill- power walking! 10 minutes
3-5. Hand Dynamometer for hand strength:

• left then right hand (5 sec each time??), alternating hands 6x for each of all six grip positions
• left to right rapidly 6x for only one position
• left to right (5 sec each time??) 6x, same position

6-9. Pinch Gauge for finger strength:

• key pinch position. alternating right then left hand for 5seconds each 6x
• index finger to thumb pinch position. same as before
• index finger & middle finger to thumb pinch position. same as before

++++++++ these next ones were done on something that looks like a weight gym system but its completely sensored and part of the same computer administered program++++++++++++++

10. Push with all my force one time for 5 seconds
11. Pull ...... one time, 5 seconds.
12. Weighted milk crate (not sure how much it weighed but I would guess 5 lbs) pick it up from a waist level platform and put it on another platform at shoulder height, then back again. 4 times. Repeat after 4x but with a weight added. (couldn't do it myself- if you can, they will keep adding weights til you can't)
13.Weighted milk crate- pick it up from the floor to the waist level platform, then back down. 4 times. Same deal after 4x, with weights. (More added if you can handle it.)
14. Weighted milk crate- pick up from the floor to shoulder level platform 4x. (Then weights added.)
+++++++++ no more exercises using the sensor equipment +++++++++++++
15. Pick weighted crate up from waist level platform and carry it 10 feet away, turn around, out it back down. Repeat 5x.
16. Stand, stoop & kneel + motor skills: moving 6 rows of 2 pegs at a time from a peg board wall starting at the floor- knee height to coordinating slots at knee height to chest height. Repeat 7x. This was timed.
17. 2 step stairs up and down. 24x. timed.
18. Crawl on hands and knees for a minute. (really)
19-22. Fine motor peg board:

• right hand: pick up pegs from dish and put as many in the peg board w/ right hand in 15 seconds (?)
• left hand: same
• both hands: same task at the same time for 15 seconds
• use both hands to assemble as many peg, washer, grommet & washer formations in 15 seconds

23. Writing. Copied an article out of a magazine for 5 minutes.
24. Took blood pressure.
25. DONE!

Looking over your benefits from work while disabled

What does work benefits have to do with being disabled? Isn't that what Workers' Compensation Insurance is for??
Turns out, if you have enrolled in your employer's benefit package prior to your injury, the ins and outs of your work benefits can provide some interesting plot twists in your WC saga. I recommend going through your entire benefit brochure. Don't have one? Request one or go online (- it would be online if you have the option of managing your benefits online). The things that affected me in my time out of work due to injury in terms of my benefits I paid for are:
1. Losing Medical, Prescription Plan, Dental, Vision benefits due to reduction in PAID HOURS.
2. Short term disability and 3. Long term disability which are benefits that most often is paid for through some benefit plan at work.. Part of that automatic deduction from your check every week if you are enrolled in these particular benefits. It helps you out if you become disabled either randomly or from a work related injury.They provide income that you are not receiving normally- however they have limits, and in some cases, won't provide the same dollar amount income as one had before the disability. *IMPORTANT* To receive STD benefits, you — or someone acting on your behalf — must file a claim.

*other points of interest are enrollment, average weekly earnings, paying for these benefits out of pocket while on disability (aka missed payroll deductions) , pre-existing and recurrent disabilities

1. yikes! I didn't know that
2. Short term disability (STD) covered me for the first 26 weeks of my injury. And at which time I had no idea it existed. I am just now understanding that STD and LTD are thing that I have already paid for and I'm figuring out now how they have or have not helped me. With STD, I'm still like HUH?. I'm not sure if I was supposed to receive $ from this plan. I didn't get any... thinking it was because I earned "too much" from WC. There are several sources of potential income while you are out, but they seems to cancel each other out, and the lowest amount is the winner as your main source of income :D
3. Long Term Disability (LTD) has just kicked in although my STD period ended 7 months ago... I guess this normal?? I will admit I was slow to provide them info they needed. My doctors and WC adjustor were slow too. Also. Now that I am PS and WC has ended LTD seems to be my only income now. There are steps I am taking to increase my benefit $ amount right now. It involves lots of forms and reading both fine print AND in between the lines Whereas Another service mine provides is Vocational Retraining $... This week I have a Functional Capacity Evaluation (FCE)- this is the LTD's in house doctor review- to see if I can work at for the same company in any position. I think. HUH? I want to stop here though, because I am still learning about this system.

I will fill in the holes on the questions I have as I get them answered