Beyond disability: Unum’s support helps employee find new job
Lisa Goin was resigned to the fact that her arm simply wasn’t going to get better. In 2012, Goin injured her wrist and forearm at work and it left her in constant pain and unable to grasp objects.
Goin attempted lighter-duty work, but her pain continued to get worse and she eventually had to stop working and go on long term disability leave.
“After months of being misdiagnosed and being told there’s nothing wrong with my arm, my benefit administrator recommended I get a second medical opinion,” said Goin. “My new doctor found a significant tear in my forearm, and because it had not been immobilized it hadn’t healed.”
Goin’s arm was placed in a cast, followed by eight weeks of occupational therapy. But her pain continued.
To get a better understanding of her injury and why it wasn’t healing, Goin had an independent medical exam by a hand specialist who said the tendon was torn completely from the bone and needed to be surgically repaired. She had two surgical procedures in 2014 and is finally feeling relief.
Without my long term disability benefits from Unum, I would have been bad off,” she said. “Not having an income would have put a tremendous strain on my family and marriage. We used that money to pay the mortgage and other bills, to buy my three kids their school clothes and books.”
When Goin had recovered enough to return to work, a vocational rehabilitation specialist helped her find a new job.
“I got help turning my past employment into an awesome resume,” Goin said. “She really helped me figure out which jobs I could apply for and kept me focused on things I could really physically do. She was so funny, we got along so well, but she was also stern and realistic about what I was going to be able to do, which I really appreciated.”
Goin got a new job, and today she’s focused on moving up the career ladder.
“It’s great my company offered long term disability benefits to their employees, because my family had no one else to turn to,” Goin said. “It’s an amazing benefit to offer.”