Jeffrey R. Wahl, JD

Last month’s commentary introduced the concept of participating as an expert witness in medical-legal litigation, noting that legitimate cases could not proceed without the participation of a credible expert witness. In this month’s continuation, I offer some practical advice on several important aspects of being an expert consultant in medical-legal matters.

As a medical malpractice attorney, I have seen hundreds of cases that turned on charting by a physician, nurse or other health care provider. In November, I was retained in two such matters: one where there was a lengthy gap in the charting that happened to coincide with the period of time in which the patient had the untoward event in the hospital emergency department; the other where all of the relevant records had simply disappeared from the physician’s office. Both cases, ultimately, will be resolved based on compliance with the standard of care by the health care providers involved and by consideration of the charting issues. These kinds of cases are problematic for providers and their insurers, because of the collateral “damage” caused by the charting problems.

Jeffrey R. Wahl

As a medical malpractice attorney, I have seen hundreds of cases that turned on charting by a physician, nurse or other health care provider. In November, I was retained in two such matters: one where there was a lengthy gap in the charting that happened to coincide with the period of time in which the patient had the untoward event in the hospital emergency department; the other where all of the relevant records had simply disappeared from the physician’s office. Both cases, ultimately, will be resolved based on compliance with the standard of care by the health care providers involved and by consideration of the charting issues. These kinds of cases are problematic for providers and their insurers, because of the collateral “damage” caused by the charting problems.