FCE

[Deb]

Can anyone tell me what to expect at an FCE exam?

Thanks,
Deb

[AQA]

The functional capacity exam is used to determine your physical abilities. I have had a few and seen others do them. As far as what you will be doing depends on what your occupation is/was. The few things that were common among them was, lifting a box with wieghts in it waist high and shoulder high. pushing a sled with weight on it, kneeling down and working with a peg board, walking up and down stairs. Some of the things that I had to do that others I saw did not were walking while carring weights, climbing a ladder, bending over a bar and lifting weights without using my legs. Your heart rate will be monitored during the exam. I suggest that you do not take any pain killers before the exam. I was in pain after all my fce's. There is nothing that can be done about that. Hence, have your meds. available for after the exam. If you are feeling any pain let it be known. If you are in to much pain STOP. The results of the exam will be used to determine your abilities. If you do something that hurts to much you will not be able to do it in your line of employment.

[Still in Limbo]

Great Post AQA, You Covered All of the Bases!!

[ksgirl]

One thing to add, they will be watching you from the moment you walk in the door. They will comment on how you tolerate sitting, but they won't ask you how you feel while doing it. My FCE therapist was really nice. Give it your all, but if at any time you feel like you can't do something, let them know.

[Deb]

Ya know sometimes I just do not understand the thought process of some of the people we have to deal with. I have been going through physical therapy but we have been working slowly. I walk on the treadmill for 15 min. at .5 then I do a few stretches then I come back to walk on the treadmill at the same speed for another 15 min. During the FCE I am walking at the .5 speed and the guy starts speeding it up to a 2 he almost knocked me off of the treadmill. He asks you can't do a 2? I told him that I hadn't tried it before that we have been working at a .5 and why would he not ask that before starting instead of risking something like that. He wanted me to twist at the waist 10 times and I told him that I could probably achieve that but first I wanted it noted in my records that he is requesting that I do something the doctor has told me not to do. He told me that we have to have something to put down and I told him to put the truth no more no less just the truth. A little rant and rave there - sorry.

Anyhow I don't think I scored too highly on their exam. Then I got to spend 3 hours with the councelor going over all of the questions they had me answer last week. Now just how many different ways can they ask the same questions. I wrote notes on every single one. Not a questions they ask fits my problems right out.

I finished my 2nd set of PT and complained to the doctor again that I don't see how I can achieve the goals that the Pain Management Specialist is requesting of me if the insurance company is going to approve sessions 6 at a time with 2 weeks intervals off. Doc says that the insurance company doesn't want to pay for the physical therapy and that they think I should do it on my own. I went out and bought me my own treadmill so that I can continue what the doc is asking of me at home. I need to build up the muscle tone in my left hip so that I can have another steroid injection to see if that will help. I sure hope the treadmill will help. I guess I will just have to do it on my own. Just seems like the insurance company should be glad that something more economical was being asked of them instead of the high cost of surgery. There I go ranting again - sorry.

Deb

[backache]

Deb,
If you have a lawyer I would ask him/her if the IC should have to pay for the treadmill you bought. After all you wouldn't have had to buy it if it wasn't for your injury and them not wanting to pay for PT.
I know what you mean about pushing you at the FCE. My pulse was 134 BPM and I wasn't doing anything at the time. My pulse was high because of my pain that day. When I requested the RN on duty take my BP the smart (Jayne's lame attempt to bypass the Bad Word Filter) doing the test said. I took a CPR class and I haven't had to use it yet, but there is always a first time. He refused to let me have the RN check me. I then refused to do many of the things he requested because I was afraid I was going to have an MI. He told me I wasn't trying, NO CHIT I wasn't going to kill myself just because he wanted me to.