Watson, Nerissa

Applicant, a Detention Services Officer, was found by the WCJ to have sustained cumulative injury to multiple body parts (right wrist/hand, left knee, heart, lungs, psyche, headaches, GI) resulting in a 100% permanent disability award, calculated by combining (Kite) various impairments because the injuries were deemed inextricably intertwined under Benson. Defendant sought reconsideration arguing the record needed further development, that the AME and vocational reports were not substantial evidence, that it was entitled to cross-examine the AMEs, and that the WCJ failed to address Labor Code section 4664(c). The Board granted reconsideration but issued only a non-final order deferring a final decision on the merits. The Board flagged a previously unaddressed factual question—whether applicant actually sustained two cumulative trauma periods or one cumulative injury plus a compensable consequence (sepsis)—which bears on the 4664(c) analysis. The Board invoked liberal pleading principles and indicated it must further review the medical-legal reporting before deciding.