Workers Compensation

Hokitika Guardian, 4 July 1922, Page 3

Workers Compensation

lev TEI.KOItAI'H PKIt I’ll ESS ASSOCIATION | WELLINGTON, duly 1. The Court of Arbitration ha-s given judgment ill the case ol Susan May Sanders, of Kiripaka, widow, versus tin' New Zealand Insurance Company. 'l’be ease was beard at Auckland oil the Nth ult.. when decision was reserved. The plaintiff was tlm widow of James Sunders, a eoalrininer. who died ill Whaiigarei Hospital on Kith September last, and as the Northern Coal Company, in whose employ plaint i alleged deceased had been injured, bad in the meantime gone into voluntary liquidation, proceedings were taken against the liability imposed by the Workers’ Compensation Act. The plain tiff’s ease was that on 2btli August, 15121. deceased was employed by the Northern Coal Conipanw with another miner in removing the timber from an abandoned norton ol tbe Kiripaka mine. While bo was in the act of unscrewing a nut from a bolt in the I resiling of a bridge be slipped and fell u-oaiust., some of the timbering, as a itslilt of which he sustained a slight wound on the left side of the bead He did not complain, however, but went on working, but subsequently bis mate noticed bis cheek smeared with blood, and, on drawing bis attention to it. Sanders explained bow lie bad struck bis head. He went, on working,

•ipppiiring to ai/tticii in# the blow, though lie did remark oikac or twice that he thought he bad hurt himself somewhat. He worked on for ten days, when the job was finished, and on tbe night 'of tbe (ith Septcm--ber he comjdained to bis wife of severe pains in the bead. He continued unwell, and two days later Dr Good, of AVliangarei, was sent for, who ordeicd

him into the. AVliangarei Hospital. Dfec.cased was admitted on the 9th., and soon aft er "lie' became unconscious and died the next day. A partial postmortem was made by Dr Frazer Hurst, with Dr Good in attendance'. Dr Frazer Hurst certified that the cause of death was lethargic, encephalitis, hut Ur Good dissented from this view, hold ' ing that the cause of death was suppurative meningitis, resulting from an abscess on the brain.- Dr Good was further of opinion, from the locality of the abscess a.nd the history of the case, that the blow on the head on 20th August, was the onset of the fatal condition. When the case was heard at Auckland medical experts having heard the evidence of Drs Frazer Hurst and (,'ood. gave evidence also. . Dr 1 bhnour was certain that the cause of death was not lethargic encephlitis. and lie supported the view expressed by Dr Good. Drs Lindsay and Tews lev,' who were called for the defendant company, were of opinion that the ease was not one of lethargic encephalitis, but suppurative meningitis unconnected with the injury. Under these circumstances the Court, with the approval of counsel for both parties, referred the case to n medical expert of its own choosing, and it selected Dr Marshall Macdonald, of Dunedin, whose view is quoted at length in the judgment. Dr Afnedoniild was decidedly of the opinion that the case of death was suppurative meningitis due to the blow. As to the I'm t that the injured man 'forked In- ten days after the accident, Dr .Macdonald says that cases have occurred where moil have continued to work even longer after such an. injury; and that the probable explanation of Sander’s death is that the blow caused a hcniorrngc. as a result of which meningitis supervened. Accordingly judgment was entered for plaintiff for £750 compensation, medical and funeral expenses amounting to £25 10s, costs £ls 15s .with witnesses’ expenses to hr settled by the Clerk of Awards. At the hearing Air P. J. O’Uegan appeared for the plaintiff, and Air 11. I>, liichmond for the deiendant company. fc-ujw i ■■