Preventing and Resolving Inconsistencies in Medical Records in Personal Injury Cases
Medical records are kept by every doctor you go to. In fact, there are laws and statutes in the state of Florida that require doctors to keep medical records in a particular way. It’s important during a personal injury claim that your medical records are consistent. Any inconsistencies can hurt your credibility which could be detrimental to the value of your case. So what are some common inconsistencies that occur in medical records and how can you handle those inconsistencies?
Perhaps the most common type of inconsistency is neglecting to give your doctor all of the information that’s available. An example of this would be if you were in an auto accident and as a result you were suffering some pain in your lower back. You tell your doctor that before the accident you never had pain in your lower back. Down the line the defendant’s insurance adjuster gets copies of your prior medical records and finds out that about 2 years earlier you had complained to your doctor of pain in your lower back when you woke up in the morning. You didn’t remember this because your mind was focused on the pain caused by the accident and you just forgot the incident about 2 years prior. There is now an inconsistency in the record. There are now medical records that show that you have told your doctor that you hadn’t had pain in your back before, but there are other records which indicate that you have. This negatively affects your lawyer’s ability to convince the jury to find in your favor.
Another example of a common inconsistency is misunderstanding the doctor’s question. I had a client once who slipped and fell and injured her shoulder. Her doctor asked if she could lift her arm up over her head. She answered no. The defendant’s insurance company obtained some surveillance footage showing her hanging her laundry out on a line, raising her arms over her head. Obviously, this meant there was an inconsistency in her medical records. There was a record where she told her doctor she wasn’t capable of doing something, but in reality she was. The problem was that she misunderstood his question. When he asked “Can you lift your arm over your head?” he meant was she physically capable of doing it. When she said “no” she meant that she couldn’t do it without being in pain.
So how can you and your attorneys handle these inconsistencies? The best way is to prevent them from arising in the first place. Here are some ideas. Order copies of your medical records and just keep a running file of your medical history. When you are injured, review your records to refresh your memory of prior complaints. Also, when you are injured send your medical records to the doctor that will be treating you so he or she is able to review them and make a diagnosis with all of the knowledge available. This will also prevent the appearance that you are trying to hide something. If you are able to answer the doctors questions about your prior conditions accurately and you provide records he or she can reference, the defense can’t make the claim that you are trying to hide a preexisting condition. The way to prevent misunderstandings is to make sure you understand the question that is asked. If your doctor asks if you’ve ever been in an accident before, don’t assume he’s asking if you’ve ever been injured in an accident before. Clarify the question before you answer. Also, don’t assume that because you’ve seen this doctor before he will remember all of your prior complaints. Remind him of anything you’ve complained about before that may be relevant.
Tags: medical records inconsistencies, personal injury claim credibility