What Are Customized Medical Case Summary Reports? How Are They Useful for Attorneys?

A customized medical case summary report has crucial details of the patient which are documented in the medical record. It will be in a narrative format and encompasses all the internal and external care providers along with the care settings. The customized report has a list of key healthcare providers. Attorneys can then objectively determine whether the standard of care was met. A comprehensive medical records analysis is essential to compose an engaging and concise narrative case summary that is customizable.

What is a medical case summary report?

It is an account of the flow of events in the medical history of the patient arranged chronologically. These reports assist the attorney in evaluating the case and preparing for a deposition so that the case can be successfully litigated.

Contents of a customized medical summary report are as follows:

• Events in chronological order

All the relevant medical events are compiled based on the timeline. Specific focus will be given to the details pertaining to the allegations.

• Briefing of the events

It has an organized structure of the sequence of events. The sequence of events is drafted in such a way that the document focuses on the plaintiff's allegations. This can assist attorneys in the determination of the causation of the injury or medical event.

• Laboratory and diagnostic inferences

These details are crucial for attorneys to understand the nature of the injury suffered by the plaintiff. An attorney can use the medical narrative summary to understand, determine, or ascertain the strength of a case by examining lab test results. It can also give information regarding the medication or about treatment strategies that might have exacerbated the injury.

• Treatment history of the patient

A customized medical narrative summary consists of a comprehensive list of the treatments undergone by the patient. This can help identify the necessity of the treatment and its impact on the health of the plaintiff. In the context of medical malpractice lawsuits, the treatment history plays an important role.

• The previous and current medical condition of the patient

In personal injury or medical malpractice claims, the defendant alleges that the existing health conditions of the plaintiff are the cause of the injury. However, in a medical narrative summary, the pre-existing conditions of the plaintiff are mentioned, if any. The documentation of the health conditions of the patient can assist attorneys in determining whether there was worsening of the pre-existing conditions of the patient.

• Demographic and vital details of the patient

It is the core data of the plaintiff. Attorneys can extract details regarding the identification of the plaintiff like date of birth, gender, and contact information.

How does a medical case summary of the plaintiff benefit attorneys?

• A customized medical summary report gives all the necessary information about the plaintiff, like biographical data, besides the medical history.
• Helps attorneys to have a focused approach to identify medical encounters of the plaintiff that supports the allegations.
• The summarized information about the facility and key health providers can be easily extracted.
• Details about the staff members who provided care to the patient can be noted and during the litigation process, their testimonies can be recorded.
• The case can be built based on the significant events at each facility.
• The inferences made by the healthcare providers help in substantiating the allegations of the plaintiff.

Medico-legal cases are complex. It requires expertise to evaluate the documents to prepare for the trial. So, professional medical records analysis would be a great solution for attorneys engaged in litigation.

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