Industrial Disability Examination

in the USSR, a medical examination of a sick person in order to determine the extent of any loss of work capacity and to ascertain the causes thereof.

The industrial disability examination is given by a medical labor commission of experts. It is administered in order to determine the medical facts of the situation (the symptoms and course of a disease, the extent of functional impairment, and the efficacy of treatment), the underlying sociopsychological factors (such as personality traits and the patient’s attitude toward a change in occupation), the degree of disability (in the case of invalids), the causes and time of onset, and the measures required for rehabilitation (including corrective therapy, the use of a prosthesis, occupational training, special arrangements in the workplace, and the provision of transport). The decision and recommendations of the medical labor commission serve as the basis for deciding whether or not a person receives a pension or other monetary aid, determining the amount of the pension or aid, compensating for such injury as the loss of a limb, making new work arrangements, or transferring the person to another job. The decision and recommendations are recorded on a certificate that is issued to the disabled individual.