Medical Record Review for Mass Tort Litigation

MOS Medical Record Reviews 1­800­670­2809

Medical Record Review for Mass Tort Litigation Cost containment and reduced workload are important aspects mass tort law firms need to focus on when processing client files. Mass tort litigation is highly complicated because the structure of a mass tort lawsuit does not necessarily follow standard, conventional legal procedure.

Determining settlements and compensation becomes difficult because of the numerous claims that are to be dealt with.

A mass tort litigation case that generated considerable public curiosity recently is that involving Endo International Plc (ENDP).

The company agreed to pay more than $400 million to resolve lawsuits related to its vaginal-mesh implants that eroded in some women causing considerable pain and discomfort. It is hardly six months since Endo agreed to pay $830 million to settle other mesh lawsuits. The current settlement will resolve more than 10,000 lawsuits, each amounting to about $48,000 according to reports. Endo has already paid around $1.3 billion to resolve its mesh device related lawsuits. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has already pointed out

MOS Medical Record Reviews 1­800­670­2809

that vaginal mesh inserts should be subject to stricter safety requirements because they are high-risk devices.

In a mass tort case such as the above, medical records play a vital role in substantiating the claimant’s argument. It is difficult to diagnose vaginal wall erosion because patients may show a variety of symptoms or may be completely asymptomatic. According to doctors, a pelvic exam can usually identify extrusion of mesh components. However, exam under anesthesia often becomes necessary when extrusion is highly suspected, but the extruded mesh is not visualized.

Sometimes, a procedure such as cystourethroscopy is carried out to rule out erosion of the mesh material into the urinary bladder or urethra. Studies show that more than thirty percent of patients with vaginal extrusions needed to be examined under anesthesia for a clear diagnosis.

Reviewing Medical Records for Substantial Evidence Mass tort lawyers undertake a thorough review of the claimant’s medical records to look for complications such as diagnosed organ damage, and persistent severe symptoms. They also consider whether the patient had to be hospitalized after the mesh implantation. In case of organ damage, usually the treating doctor would recommend mesh removal, replacement or repair surgery, or tissue reconstruction surgery. Symptoms that indicate injury due to the mesh may include unexplained infection, recurring infection, vaginal scarring, erosion of vaginal tissue, urinary problems, uterine prolapse, etc.

MOS Medical Record Reviews 1­800­670­2809

Easing the Medical Record Review Challenge Attorneys and their staff handling such cases are faced with the difficult challenge of organizing, summarizing and reviewing medical records and preparing plaintiff fact sheets for large groups. If the large volume medical charts involved are managed in-house, it is sure to minimize the efficient use of available staff resources. Moreover, they may find it really challenging to comprehend complex medical terminology contained in the records.

An outside solution in the form of a reliable medical record review company is most essential for mass tort litigators.

Legal professionals can decide whether to have the work done in the United States or at some offshore location where quality services are available at a more affordable rate.

Ideally, a firm based in the U.S with offshore facilities can bring the expected benefits. Typically, such a firm would have medical personnel to review and highlight important class parameters that would help determine claimant inclusion in the class and prepare Plaintiff Fact Sheets. All facts of the case are presented on Excel spreadsheets that display all class data, evaluate all important parameters and contain hyperlinks that link to the claimant’s medical record – this makes verification easy. Usually there are medical review teams to handle specific litigations and this enables completion of thousands of reviews in minimum time.

MOS Medical Record Reviews 1­800­670­2809

Organizing and Reviewing the Medical Charts Transmission of the documents to the onshore or offshore location of the provider is easy online. The records can be scanned and uploaded via an HIPAA-compliant internet portal to the service provider. They are organized, and arranged chronologically so that the medical encounters are clearly understood. The end product is a concise medical record summary that enables the reviewer to quickly and clearly understand all facts of the case. Important points can be highlighted. The files are delivered in the desired format, most preferred formats being Word and PDF. The PDF format is highly versatile, containing navigation tools such as hyperlinks and bookmarks. Hyperlinks enable immediate navigation from summaries and timelines to the corresponding source pages whereas bookmarks allow organizing documents on the basis of user-defined categories such as provider of service and date of service.

An objective consideration of outsourcing will bring home both its advantages and disadvantages. Evidently, chronologically organized, navigable electronic files are a great boon to legal professionals on account of benefits such as reduced reviewing time and effort. There may be concerns regarding the security of the documents transferred, which can be effectively addressed if the work is assigned to a dependable provider. Outsourced medical record review for mass torts will surely enable lawyers and their staff to maximize the business potential of the World Wide Web.