When analyzing medical records as a Certified Legal Nurse Consultant one thing is certain – medical records lead to more medical records. Sometimes it’s the additional records that hold the answers to the issues in the case. Savvy CLNC consultants don’t jump the gun, delivering opinions prematurely.
Independent medical examinations (IMEs) of an injured plaintiff in a medical malpractice or personal injury case are not truly independent because they are demanded by the insurance company. And since it’s the insurance company who is paying for the examining physician, it’s arguable that a defense bias pervades the whole exam – especially if the MD has a continuing relationship with that insurer (i.e., lots and lots of IMEs).
I’ve blogged about the absolute best ever computer and iPad keyboards for Certified Legal Nurse Consultants. When I did, I was serious about them being the best ever (and I did mean ever) keyboards invented – but that was last year.
I recently mentored a Certified Legal Nurse Consultant who needed to crank up the level of quality she was delivering to her attorney-clients. She admitted she had gotten a bit too relaxed and wasn’t putting her all into her CLNC work product. She was still delivering decent work, but just not what she was capable of. Her less than stellar work ethic hadn’t yet destroyed her CLNC business, but she was at risk of losing a good thing and she knew it. By the time she contacted LegalNurse.com for mentoring, it was too late for anything less than Vickie-style buck-up advice: “Sounds to me like you’re getting a bit lazy and that you’re not as grateful for your attorney-clients as when you first started consulting. My recommendation is to buckle down, get to work and put yourself into each and every case as though it’s your first.”
I recently went for a routine mammogram. I should have realized things were going to go badly when I had to check in at a central area rather than the mammogram waiting room. After the initial check-in, I then waited 50 minutes to be called to yet another room where I would receive my wristband ID that was the ticket into the mammogram room.
I don’t like hoarding. I naturally keep my house, closet and life slim and trim. I just found a pair of comfortable casual shoes I’ve been in search of for two years now. Finally I can get rid of the two pairs of old shoes that I’ve been holding on to (partly in hopes that the designer would bring them back) until I found a new pair. Don’t ask me why I held on to them for so long – it’s not like I’ve been wearing them or anything.
Unless you’re in the ICU, the medical world moves slowly. If you’ve ever accompanied a friend to the emergency department (ED), and sat for hours, you know what I’m talking about. Doctors’ offices are much the same way. The closest they come to an on-time appointment is moving you out of the lobby/waiting room and into an examination/waiting room (to decrease the appearance of stacked up patients).
We’re just seven days into the New Year and I’ve already fallen back into many of my old patterns. I purposely don’t make New Year’s Resolutions but instead make plans. Sometimes I even make progress on those plans. So far this year… well, I’m just not saying.
Contrary to popular belief, plaintiff attorneys don’t pursue every medical malpractice case that comes through the door. They have to be selective because they only make money if they win or settle the case. Considering a plaintiff attorney will invest $100,000-$200,000 to get a case to trial, losing is a pricey proposition. The more successful the attorney, the more selective he will be about the threshold level of damages he’ll expect to recover in the case.
Throughout the years I have had vendors and subcontractors invoice me every which way including up. I have one vendor who invoices me weekly, one who almost invoices me daily and, at the other extreme, a CLNC subcontractor who invoices every six months or so…”
*The opinions and statements made by Vickie Milazzo, the founder of Medical-Legal Consulting Institute, Inc. are based on her experiences and expertise, should not be applied beyond the specific context provided, and do not guaranty or project actual results. Vickie Milazzo is no longer involved in the operations or management of the business, but is involved as an independent education consultant.
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