One concept, different tables
In the Polish social insurance (ZUS, work accidents and occupational diseases), permanent impairment means a loss of bodily function with no prospect of improvement, while long-term impairment lasts more than six months but may improve. The rating is made after treatment and rehabilitation have ended, and a one-off payment is due for each percentage point. Personal accident policies use tables from their own terms, and seafarers’ collective agreements have their own procedures. The same injury can therefore be rated differently depending on the table and procedure.
Returning to work is not the same as no impairment
A fitness-for-work certificate answers whether a person can perform particular work. An impairment rating concerns lasting consequences: reduced range of motion, loss of strength, anatomical changes, scars and adhesions, implants or pain under load. These questions should be kept apart — returning to work does not rule out permanent impairment, and impairment does not automatically mean incapacity for work.
Reliable ratings need measurements
Functional assessment relies on data: joint range of motion measured with the neutral-zero method, limb circumferences compared with the healthy side, strength tests and gait observations. If the records lack them, a records-based opinion must say so clearly. Missing measurements can be provided by the treating physician or a physiotherapist; if that is not enough, an examination in Germany is possible after case assessment.
What an INEM opinion can clarify
After case assessment, a physician of the relevant specialty can relate the documented consequences to the table you or your lawyer specify, assess whether the condition has stabilised and give a reasoned percentage rating — or explain why the material does not allow one. The amount of any benefit is decided by ZUS, the insurer or a court; a private opinion does not replace a ZUS medical examiner’s decision or a court-appointed expert.
What to prepare
Discharge summaries, the operation report, imaging reports, rehabilitation records with measurements, recent consultations, earlier decisions and the table or agreement under which the rating is to be made. Missing records can be requested directly from providers with your authorisation. Documents are transferred only via INEM Cloud.