In today’s case (Camilleri v. Bergen) the Plaintiff was injured in a 2011 collision. The Defendant admitted fault. The Plaintiff suffered from chronic myofascial pain symptoms which were not expected to improve. In assessing non-pecuniary damages at $90,000 Madam Justice Loo provided the following reasons:
[74] As discussed above, Ms. Camilleri
now suffers from chronic myofascial pain as a result of the accident.
She is unlikely to recover and, at best, she may mitigate some of her
symptoms. I can do no better than to summarize her symptoms as set out
in Dr. Dost’s report. She complains of:
1. Constant cervical or neck pain that
radiates to the interscapular region, left shoulder and diffusely down
her arm to her third and fifth fingers;
2. Constant thoracolumbar or back pain, without radicular symptoms, but with numbness and tingling;
3. Headaches almost daily. About four days a
week she has a dull headache, occipital pressure, and some nausea. Three
days a week her headaches are quite severe and radiate to her left eye
with pressure, pounding, nausea, and light and noise sensitivity;
4. Sleep disruption secondary to pain;
5. Altered mood;
6. Light-headedness (a faint-like sensation that occurs early in the morning);
7. Increased tinnitus;
8. Increased blurred vision requiring stronger prescription glasses; and
9. Difficulties with memory, processing speed, multitasking, attention and recall.
[75] Her symptoms are not likely to
improve. The evidence suggests that she can only learn to cope with her
symptoms with psychiatric or psychological counselling, a physiatrist to
deal with the physical complaints, and possibly a pain clinic to help
her deal with her pain.
[76] Ms. Camilleri’s life has been
affected dramatically and profoundly by the accident. Her symptoms have
been a tremendous challenge for her both emotionally and physically. She
was a very high energy person who was fully committed to her family and
to her work. She was a leader in her field. I could not help but have
the impression that Ms. Camilleri was so committed to her work and
patients at the eating disorder clinic that she was more concerned about
helping the patients and the community rather than making money. She
could easily have made more money in private practice but she was
committed to helping those who could not afford private care. She was so
committed to her work that she increased her hours of work after the
accident so that her patients would continue to have treatment despite
the toll it has taken on her physical and emotional health.
[77] Ms. Camilleri said that it has been
emotionally challenging for her to be forced to step back into what she
considers a lesser role in the treatment of the eating disordered. She
enjoyed her volunteer positions, she enjoyed teaching, she enjoyed the
continuing education opportunities with other health professionals, and
she enjoyed research. Those are things she can no longer enjoy.
[78] She was also a physically active
person who enjoying skiing with her family, running, cycling,
water-skiing, gardening, and she enjoyed sharing many of those
activities with her husband and daughters. Those are things she can no
longer enjoy. She no longer even travels.
[79] I have no reason to doubt
Ms. Camilleri’s evidence. There is no suggestion that she is anything
other than a credible, straightforward witness who keeps doing her best
in situations where others likely would have given up. But she has been
forced to give up many of the things in life that she enjoyed…
[88] I conclude that an appropriate award in this case for non-pecuniary damages is $90,000.
Source: http://bc-injury-law.com/blog/90000-nonpecuniary-assessment-chronic-myofascial-pain?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+IcbcLaw+%28ICBC+Law%29
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