During the Workmen’s Comp lawsuit, the insurance company was trying to claim that I became ill working in my garden or the antigen was in my house. Though they denied that I had HP, (caused by fungus, mold, or organic dust - a "filthy environment"), they were still pressing these claims. At that time, I made a list of reasons why neither was true and that; in fact, I became ill due to the portable.
So today’s blog will include the reasons we felt the portable was the cause of the disease:
1. Beginning early 2002, Natalie brought a Mr. Coffee into work to make tea in the afternoons. We would make the tea, put the bags in the pot and pour it into cups. The next morning, any leftover tea in the pot or cups would have a thick layer of mold covering it.
2. I began to experience memory problems beginning 2002-2003. I had to write down phone calls to be returned for the first time ever. I would also forget full conversations. I also experienced an ongoing cold, low-grade fevers and headaches. I talked to *** at the front desk about them and she told me which headache/fever medications to take.
3. While in the hospital after the biopsy – January 12, 2005 – the resident said that my lungs looked so much better than they had expected. Said to keep doing what I was doing. Before the biopsy, I had not been in the portable for an entire week since December 6, 2005.
4. While recovering for a month at home, my husband noticed that I was breathing so much better at night. No panting and struggling for breath.
5. After three weeks at home, I went into the portable to see my workmates. I stayed three hours. Coughed for the first time since the biopsy on the way to the car. Husband said breathing was back to struggling at night. Was back to the improved breathing after three days at home. It was at that time he told me that he thought the problem was the portable.
6. Returned to school and breathing continued to get worse. Went on high dosages of Prednisone in March of 05. MANIC. Hyper. Doctor wanted me to go on disability at that time but I refused. I had just hired three people and was working to set up a summer Jazz program.
7. Told HR person that the portable was on the short list of possible exposure on March 13, 2005.
8. April 2005, I was told that portables are renown for this disease because of poor air circulation per the resident upon consultation. He asked if I had ever looked at the exterior of the portable. I had not. I discovered that the outside walls were filthy with green and black growth. Dr. K. removed me from the portable on May 11, 2005.
I continued to have to go into the portable because all of my materials were still in there. I also used the other portable during the summer of 2005 to do the scheduling and *** bills and contracts and e-mails when all the other rooms on campus were being used for summer school. I spent the following days on campus doing e-mails but also spent other days doing work: E-mail sent summer of 05: 7/7, 7/21, 7/29, 7/30, 8/1, 8/8, 8/9, 8/10, 8/12, 8/14, 8/16, 8/17, 8/23, 8/24, 8/25 for sure. Don't know after that which was sent from school or home due to *** e-mail to let me know how to sent e-mails from home. That was sent on 8/25.
9.*** Technologies was hired to do mold test in May 2005. Natalie watched while he took at least 12 samples throughout the music office and music room. Shocked when we got the results and reported only 4 tests. The final page of the report retracted the recommendation to fix a moisture problem under the portable. What are the circumstances of this retraction as it was also noted in the OSHA report in Oct 2005? Who talked to him to chance his mind?
10. No maintenance, except carpet cleaning, had been done to the building except we heard people on the roof on occasion or the air conditioning guy came in to reset the system per our complaints. Heard from Operation there was dry rot throughout the walls.
11. Rats. Lots of rats. Several found dead in our office. Traps were in our office. Rats lived under the portable. Rats lived in the ceiling. One hopped down onto the top of the door jam while Natalie was working on evaluations one evening. We even had a rat and cat fight under us during the school day. The cat won. Met with Head of the school on 9.10.04 complaining of the rats and worried about the dried rat urine in the ceiling tiles. Also small mice. Poison control was there and said that the smart rats stop eating the poison. In October 04, someone turned the ceiling tiles at an angle to clean the rat feces and showered the room with the feces. Natalie and I contact operations to clean it up. We wiped our desks off of hundreds of black rat feces. It was not cleaned the next day. I went into janitor closet and got the sweeper and swept it up.
12. Winter 2005 water intrusions into classroom and office. Puddles.
13. The room had the heating and air conditioning vent that blew directly onto my head. OSHA man told me that he wrote them up for 5 years of dirty vents but thought that they had never been cleaned. Almost 20 years. OSHA guy told me they only had the ventilation records for 2003. None for 2004 and 2005.
14. Vent in music office was heating and the cold air return was in the music room. In the mornings when I would arrive first, the janitors per the request of the school would close the door to the office. The room would be extremely hot. I would breath all the junk that had been released through the vents during the night.
15. Both Dr. K. and Dr. C, leading doctors in the field also state that they believe the portable to be at fault.
16. (This is the really important one) I left school in Aug 2005 and had the next PFT and CT Scan on Oct 14, 2005. There was a huge improvement in the CT scan and PFTs when I saw the doctor for the report on Oct 31, 2005. She said that this was the proof that I was now out of the environment that caused my problem. I saw her again in the hallway Oct 18 and again said she was thrilled that we can confirm that the problem was at school and I was now removed from it.
Tomorrow, I will post about the reasons why my gardening and house were not the causes of my disease.
Next: House and Garden
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