Medical Case Review in Medical Malpractice Defense

Medical malpractice cases can be very complex. They require attorneys to have the necessary knowledge of medical terminology, treatment procedures and complex medical concepts. Whether representing the plaintiff or defendant, a notable degree of specialty-specific medical knowledge, legal insight and trial skills are indispensable for medical negligence attorneys. Whether to accept or reject a medical malpractice case – this is a major concern attorneys have. To make a good decision, it is necessary to determine whether the case is meritorious or not. Actual facts are most important in this regard. Apart from what the client provides, attorneys need valuable information provided by a detailed review of the relevant medical records that can be provided by a medical review company. This review and analysis of the relevant documentation is also important when arguing a malpractice case.

Significance of the Medical Review Process

It is vital that the medical documentation is assessed by reviewers who can understand and identify the medical-legal issues involved – ideally a team that includes medical professionals belonging to the specific specialty wherein the negligence occurred.

• The team comprising physicians, RNAs, and documentation specialists will be able to analyze and summarize the complex medical issues involved.
• With properly organized medical records and informative medical case summaries, the medical malpractice attorney gets to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the case in hand.
• Expert reviews will reveal whether there has been any departure from the standard of care, whether the injury caused is due to malpractice or an unfortunate outcome that could not have been prevented.

Defending Healthcare Professionals Effectively

Medical professionals work hard to serve their patients and build their reputation. However, occasions may arise when they find themselves in a tight spot facing medical negligence charges. Defense attorneys represent healthcare professionals against claims that include the following, and take up the responsibility of protecting their clients’ license and practice.

• Wrong diagnosis/wrong treatment
• Medication/dosing errors
• Negligence
• Failure to diagnose
• Anesthesia errors
• Surgical errors
• Wrongful death
• Birth injuries
• Medical product liability

As mentioned earlier, the medical records of patients become the important players in the above mentioned cases – both the defense and the prosecution use these documents in court. There is the recent case of a Cape Cod doctor reported in CapeCod.com. The doctor was indicted by a grand jury on 11 counts of illegal prescribing of opioids, 9 counts of Medicaid false claims and one count of larceny over $250. This physician is alleged to have defrauded the state’s Medicaid program by illegally prescribing opioids. Now his attorneys are planning to compare his treatment of patients to that of other doctors. They plan to serve subpoenas to obtain the medical records of the 8 patients concerned from other physicians and study how other doctors handled the same patients. Some of the patients had medical conditions such as multiple surgeries and herniated disks. The attorneys hold that it is up to the medical judgment of the patient’s doctor to determine whether or not to prescribe opioids for the patient’s pain.

Once the requested medical records are available, they would be organized, indexed and reviewed to obtain the necessary information. A clear medical chronology will be prepared to provide the proper sequence of medical encounters. This information will be used by the accused doctor’s attorneys to argue against the Attorney General’s claim the doctor was acting like a drug dealer, not a doctor when he prescribed opioids to his patients.

Expert Medical Review Solutions Help Save Time and Labor

Whether it involves paper records or electronic medical records review, attorneys can utilize reliable medical review services. Attorneys working for insurers as well as those representing physicians and patients can enjoy a smooth and hassle-free review process and be armed with the required information. Apart from expert case analyses and chronological medical records, such service providers also help in preparing for deposition and trial.

Managed Outsource Solutions (Mos) has providing value-added medical record review services for the medico-legal industries.