A serious medical illness or injury

Adjustment disorder - A serious medical illness or injury Factor

The SOP factor is 'having a medical illness or injury which is life-threatening or which results in serious physical or cognitive disability'.  The RMA has not defined this factor.

Whether a condition is life-threatening can be a difficult assessment, particularly where cancer has been diagnosed in the past but is currently causing little, if any, incapacity – for example a man with cancer of the prostate that attracts only 10 points under GARP for urinary problems.  It can be argued that cancer of any type (except perhaps skin) is always a serious disease, but in this case it is clearly not a serious physical or cognitive disability.  But is it "life-threatening"?  An assessment in terms of the Life-Expectancy table in GARP can help.  The phrase "normal, or near normal, five year survival" used in table 14.2 of GARP means that statistically there is little chance of dying from the disease in the next five years.  It doesn't mean the person will remain disease free, but if the person is disease free at five years after diagnosis or staging then there is little prospect of disease recurrence.  To a certain extent "life-threatening" is also a matter of perspective.  An 80 year old with low grade prostate cancer does not have a life threatening disease.  A 50 year old with aggressive prostate cancer does.

Last reviewed for CCPS 15 October 2008.

Preliminary questions [40208]

40267 there is some evidence that a serious medical illness or injury may be a factor in the development of the condition under consideration.

37310 the veteran has had a serious medical illness or injury at some time.

37311  a serious medical illness or injury means a medical illness or injury which is life-threatening or which results in serious physical or cognitive disability.

40268 the identified illness or injury, a serious medical illness or injury, was life-threatening or resulting in serious physical or cognitive disability within the three months before the clinical onset of the condition under consideration.

40269  the veteran has established the causal connection between the serious medical illness or injury and VEA service for the clinical onset of adjustment disorder.

40270   the veteran has established the causal connection between the serious medical illness or injury and operational service for the clinical onset of adjustment disorder.

or

40271   the veteran has established the causal connection between the serious medical illness or injury and eligible service for the clinical onset of adjustment disorder.

Clinical onset and operational service [40270]

37316  the identified illness or injury, a serious medical illness or injury, is causally related to operational service.

Clinical onset and eligible service [40271]

37317  the identified illness or injury, a serious medical illness or injury, is causally related to eligible service.