Page 34 - FDCC Insights Spring 2022

· Did the doctor ask you questions about your medical condition?
· Did you respond honestly, accurately and completely to the questions? Because you wanted
to get better?
· In addition, you realized the doctor needed accurate information to reach an accurate diagnosis.
· Moreover, an accurate diagnosis is needed for the doctor to develop an effective plan of treatment and an effective plan of treatment that would get you better, correct?
· And if the doctor had bad information, he or she may not reach an accurate diagnosis or develop an effective plan of treatment?
Note that the power lies in the questions regardless of how the witness answers. A “yes” is a trap and a “no” is devastating. And the technique can work in an infinite number of other contexts.
· Was there a return to employment or (even better) new employment in a job that required walking, standing, sitting, bending, lifting, carrying, etc. (and most do to some extent no matter how sedentary).
· Was the plaintiff aware of what the job entailed?
· In applying for the job, did the plaintiff want to be productive in the position?
· Did the plaintiff realize that an inability to perform the job impacts supervisors, co-workers, and customers?
· That it would be unfair to the employer if the plaintiff took a job he or she was incapable of performing?
· Was there a discussion of the accident?
· The injuries?
· Were any accommodations for the injuries discussed or requested?
After a few years of practice, we’ve all seen many cases where plaintiffs treat briefly then have surgery from a doctor recommended by their attorney under Letters of Protection without getting a second opinion. This creates hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt (technically). But the plaintiff never gets better (yet is never disappointed by their doctors). We lose sight on how strange this may be to those not involved in the process. We, our colleagues in the office, the adjusters to whom we report, and the judges are as immersed in these behaviors as we are. However, we should be mindful that there is larger world out there where people can see this as abnormal, if we help them do so.
· How did you feel after three months of therapy three times a week?
· Did you tell the therapist you weren’t getting better?
· How about after the second three months? The three months after that?
· Did you do any investigation into the doctor independent of the lawyer’s recommendation?
· What exactly did you know about this doctor before the procedure? The doctor’s specialty, how long in practice, how many times he or she did this procedure, how large a part of the practice is this surgery?
· Did you get a second opinion?
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Insights SPRING2021