 |
 |
Janet... Given similar circumstances with the US Social Security's Administration's "No-shades-of-gray" form letters, the verbiage of which is no doubt much like the Canadian-equivalent form letters, I was advised by the attorney I'd hired - a person who ONLY handles Social Security disability claims - to narrow my choice to the WORST possible scenario permitted by the limitations of the words used in the form letter. If you don't do that, yet DO have "worse-case-scenario-days (and what Parkie doesn't every so often?) <Heck... many of us have worst-case-scenario-HOURS a few TIMES A DAY!> chances are your condition will be entered into the government computers by some 18 year old fresh-outta-high-school-minimum-wage-employee who has no idea what PD is or how erratic and debilitating it's effects are on the lives of PWPs and their families. If ya don't START with the worse-case-scenario, LONG after that clerk has moved onto some other job and grown old, YOUR records'll state that you're doing just fine, except for a slight twitch or tremor every once in a while! M'dear.... ya gotta think one step ahead of the them government agencies, 'cause they ARE out to make us crazy! AAAAAAAARGH!!! (OHMAGOD! IN MY case, they're succeeding!) <rueful grin> Barb Mallut [log in to unmask] ---------- From: Parkinson's Information Exchange on behalf of Janet313 Sent: Saturday, May 02, 1998 10:50 AM To: Multiple recipients of list PARKINSN Subject: help help help - re disability pension this time hi gang here i am again requesting your advice re disability application forms this time now that i am re-established as a resident of the province of ontario, canada i have started the process of applying for disability assistance via the family benefits act of ontario [there is a federal pension plan in place but i would not qualify for it since i was non-resident and a non-contributor for 16 years] a medical form has already been completed by my neurologist who described advanced parkinson's, with severe episodes of akinesia, bradykinesia, and dyskinesia, resulting in an inability to work now and in the foreseeable future apparently, the wording used so far is acceptable to the powers that be however, i now have to complete a multi-page form of supplementary medical information this form looks suspiciously computer-database-oriented i.e. it appears that the answers will have to be entered into a computer the problem is the black/white answer format allows for no shades of grey for example: >How would you rate your ability in doing the following tasks or functions? > >Put one number in each box. The numbers mean: > >1 = You are fully capable of doing this function >2 = You have minor dificulty doing this function. >3 = You have moderate dificulty doing this function. >4 = You have serious dificulty doing this function. >5 = You have severe dificulty doing this function. > > ___ Sitting > ___ Standing > ___ Walking > ___ Bending > ___ Lifting > ___ Carrying > ___ Using Hands and Fingers > ___ Breathing et cetera et cetera et cetera the grey area here is in the fact that the effectiveness of my meds and the degree of side-effects and thus my abilities vary from one hour to the next so my answer to the above in re walking could range from 1 all the way up to 5 depending on my 'on/off' status what to do? janet janet paterson 51/10 - sinemet/selegiline/prozac almonte/ontario/canada - [log in to unmask]