doctors

Published on: November 8, 2021

Developing The Medical Evidence Increases The Value Of Your Alabama Personal Injury Case!

Earlier this week, I took the deposition of a local orthopedic surgeon in a client’s car accident case. I take several medical depositions each month. So, it’s not unusual to be in a deposition. It’s part of our process to help clients by building their cases. The case involved a car accident. The crash actually happened pretty close to my office in Huntsville. An uninsured driver crashed into my client at a busy intersection along University Drive. Because an uninsured driver caused the Huntsville accident, we made a claim against my client’s own auto insurer for uninsured coverage. The carrier — Allstate! Yes, I have a pretty negative opinion about how that company treats its own insureds. Are you really in good hands? Any Alabama lawyer who regularly handles car accident and injury cases likely agrees with me.

As is so often the case, Allstate offered practically nothing to my client after her wreck. But, then we took the ortho’s deposition. We obtained his testimony for use at trial. After his testimony, the adjuster suddenly started calling and wanting to pay. Developing the medical evidence increases case value significantly! That’s an obvious no-brainer. Yet, so many lawyers simply refuse to prepare their cases! I know lawyers who claim to handle car accident cases but have never taken key testimony from medical providers. It’s shocking to think how little value they add to cases.

How Settlement Mill Law Firms Fail Clients By Failing To Build Case Value!

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Published on: September 9, 2019

Work Comp Wants An “Independent Medical Examination.” What Should I Expect?

By Jeff Blackwell

The weeks and months following a serious work-related accident can be some of the most stressful in your life. One day you are fine. The next, you are hurt and unable to work. Medical treatment, long-term recovery, household bills, and job security, are the most important things in your mind.

Work comp should provide needed medical care without delay. That was the original intent. Yet, the system often fails. Insurance companies and their adjusters ignore doctor requests, fail to return your calls, and work to delay care. You suffer. I hear these complaints about adjusters on a daily basis. You are not alone in your frustration.

Many times, an adjuster or case nurse will suddenly call you out of the blue with an appointment for an “independent medical examination” by some new doctor. They may even tell you the visit is needed to understand treatment options. Don’t forget, the real goal of the insurance company is ALWAYS to save its money.

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Published on: February 4, 2019

Eight Mistakes Personal Injury Victims Make With Their Doctors (Part 2)

By Jeff Blackwell

Last week, I began discussing eight mistakes personal injury victims make during medical visits. You can read the first four mistakes with my advice, here. Today, I’m going to finish this topic with a discussion of four more mistakes. My hope is that you make the most of your visits and the treatment offered you. Your health and healing should be your top priority. With that in mind, here are four additional mistakes with my commentary about each:

V. Stopping Treatment Before Completion

This issue frustrates doctors. The doctor recommended a course of treatment because he or she felt it necessary to treat your injury. You should complete treatment. If you do not want to complete a specific course of treatment, you should talk with your doctor. Do not simply quit.

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Published on: February 5, 2018

The Curse Of Employer Controlled Medical Care

By Jeff Blackwell

If you have suffered a serious work-related injury, you may know the frustration. You report the accident. You ask for medical care. Then, your employer sends you to its “occupational” doctor. In Huntsville and many other communities, we have an “occupational” health clinic that typically serves this purpose.

You arrive at the occupational health clinic thinking you will get care. Does the occupational doctor ignore your pain or problems? Does the occupational doctor seem more concerned with the drug test than your injury? Does the occupational doctor misconstrue your history to claim the injury was a pre-existing problem? Or, does the occupational doctor simply neglect your care as long as possible? I’ve heard all the common frustrations. Trust me, they call that physician the “company doctor” for a very good reason.

If you continue to hurt, the occupational doctor may eventually refer you to a specialist. Now, you have a whole new set of frustrations. It takes forever to get an appointment. Afterwards, the insurance company (falsely) claims it never received the specialist’s reports or recommendations for treatment. You sit. You wait. You cannot get the treatment needed to heal. The insurance company uses “paperwork” and “approval” tactics to delay your treatment.

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Published on: July 17, 2017

Seeing A Doctor For Your Injury? Here Are Six Tips.

By Jeff Blackwell

Who enjoys doctor’s visits? Almost nobody. Most people view doctor’s appointments as times of stress, anxiety and confusion. Yet, these appointments are essential to your health and healing following a personal injury.

You need to make the most of your doctor visits. Appointments can be hard to schedule. And, you may only get a few minutes with the doctor before his/her next appointment. So, here are six tips to help with your doctor visits.

1. Be Friendly. I know — this is obvious. It “goes without saying.” But, sometimes being friendly is not easy. If you are hurt on the job in Alabama and getting workers’ compensation, then your employer (or its insurance carrier) picks the doctor. Often, these insurance carriers schedule and cancel your appointments with very little concern for you. That process can be extremely frustrating. In other personal injury cases, like car accidents, you get to pick your doctor. Yet, scheduling and waiting for appointments can still be frustrating. How many people can still easily smile after sitting a couple hours in a patient waiting room? How many people can still smile after repeating their story to, yet, another person in another medical office. Any number of issues and inconveniences can sour your mood before you ever see the actual doctor. Don’t let outside issues cause you to be unfriendly or confrontational with the doctor. Trust me — It will not help your treatment or your case.

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Published on: July 10, 2017

Medical Mismanagement: When Employers Delay Medical Care For Work-Related Injuries

By Jeff Blackwell

The process was intended to be simple. The steps meant to be clear. You suffer a work-related accident and injury. You notify your boss of that injury. Your employer then communicates the accident or injury information to its insurance carrier. And, the insurance carrier arranges for you to see a doctor. Simple? While it should be simple, it often is not. Many injured workers face hurdles getting necessary medical care. In some cases, it is the employer creating hurdles. In others, it is the insurance carrier.

I recently prepared for the deposition of a plant nurse in a case where the employer created several hurdles to medical care. Why would an employer delay or refuse to start the medical treatment process for its injured employee? An employer may have several reasons to delay care or ignore injury problems. Some employers have insurance policies with high deductibles. A few large employers in Alabama qualify as self-insured. In both situations, an employer may be looking at its out-of-pocket costs. Other employers simply don’t want to file a claim and risk a premium increase. Regardless of the reason, employer delays in medical care harm you the most.

An article in the Occupational Health & Safety (OH&S) journal detailed the story of one company cited by OSHA for “medical mismanagement” because of these issues. The article is titled OSHA Cites Pilgrim’s Pride for Medical Mismanagement and Other Safety Hazards. An OSHA area director was quoted in the article:

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Published on: March 21, 2016

Traumatic Brain Injury: Four Reasons Cases Are Not Diagnosed

By Jeff Blackwell

Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) often go undiagnosed and untreated. I regularly meet families with a loved one suffering significant changes in behavior, memory or cognitive function from a brain injury. Despite these life-altering injuries, the injured person’s medical records frequently omit any mention of problems. Why do many TBI cases go undiagnosed and untreated?

I believe factors within both the medical community and affected families lead to this problem. March is brain injury awareness month. More families should be aware of the need for TBI assessment and treatment following a head injury. Here are four reasons TBI cases are often undiagnosed.

EMERGENCY ROOMS IGNORE MILD TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY SYMPTOMS

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