Articles Posted in Researching Experts

Cardiology expert witnesses may provide reports concerning cardiologists, cardiovascular disease, and cardiac surgery. In the news, EMH Regional Medical Center, has agreed to pay $3.9M to settle accusations that it billed Medicare for unnecessary PCIs (Percutaneous coronary intervention, commonly known as coronary angioplasty). The DOJ accused the hospital and doctors of performing angioplasties and stent placement procedures on patients who did not need them. On its website EMH in Elyria, OH, advertises it “is one of America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Coronary Intervention and Cardiac Care!”

Proprietary knowledge expert witnesses may testify on trade secrets, confidential information, patents, software , and related matters. On December 21, 2012, the Hewlett-Packard Company petitioned the Travis County District Court (TX), to take depositions from former HP executives Gregg Hansen and Todd MacKenzie. Grounds for the petition state:

On November 30, 2012, eighteen employees working in HP’s Global Information Technology (IT) organization in Austin, Texas, including Hansen and MacKenzie, resigned en masse and without notice (collectively, “departed employees”).

HP is investigating potential claims against executives and members of four teams within HP’s IT organization which moved to GM. At issue is HP confidential and proprietary information.

Products liability expert witnesses may consult on issues involving consumer products safety, consumer products warnings, and product design. In the news, the massive products liability case against ExxonMobil and Citgo is scheduled to go to trial on January 7, 2013 in U.S. District Court New Hampshire. The oil companies are charged with failing to warn consumers of the dangers of MTBE and the prosecution alleges that ExxonMobil and Citgo ignored their own experts who said not to use MTBE. 50,000 exhibits have been marked in the Concord, NH, case (http://www.nhd.uscourts.gov/).

In Expert witnesses on trial, neurosurgery expert witness Dr. Jeffrey Segal writes that the ideal goal of an expert during testimony is to be “an indifferent advocate for the truth.” Dr. Segal is a board certified neurosurgeon and Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Medical Justice.

In 2000, he co-founded and served as CEO of DarPharma, Inc, a biotechnology company in Chapel Hill, NC, focused on the discovery and development of first-of-class pharmaceuticals for neuropsychiatric disorders.

Read his publications: http://www.medicaljustice.com/news/our-publications/.

Thoracic surgery expert witnesses may opine on pulmonology, chest medicine, respiratory medicine, and more. The American Association for Thoracic Surgery has adopted a statement of qualifications for expert witnesses and guidelines for behavior of AATS members when acting as experts in the legal system including:

Making false, misleading, or deceptive statements exposes physician expert witnesses to risks of criminal prosecution for perjury, civil suits for negligence, and revocation or suspension of their professional licenses. Violation of these guidelines may lead to disciplinary action by the AATS. (See Article IX of the AATS By-laws.)

Read more: http://www.aats.org/

In EMTALA What is the “Appropriate Medical Screening Examination,” emergency medicine expert witness Dainius A. Drukteinis writes:

Chances are if you are an emergency medicine physician or nurse you have probably heard of the acronym EMTALA. Even without knowing what it stands for, you likely shudder at the mere mention of the word, with its authoritative ring as if bellowed from a voice up above . . . E-M-T-A-L-A. If a senior physician tells you, “That violates EMTALA,” you don’t ask questions. You simply look down and respond “Yes, Sensai, it will not happen again.” If you have been in the emergency medicine field a few years, you probably know that EMTALA prohibits a hospital from turning patients away from the Emergency Department, and it also prohibits transferring unstable patients to another facility. You know that a violation of EMTALA means bad things will happen. What those bad things are, however, you are not sure. This is usually the extent of people’s knowledge because to know more would require reading the EMTALA statute, both boring and confusing, or court case opinions, more boring and more confusing.

This article introduces the basic concepts of EMTALA by providing a brief history of the statute with its original purpose, a discussion of the statute’s actual form, and subsequent interpretations of EMTALA based on cases. It is written in non-legal fashion, with details in the endnotes for those of you for whom “seeing is believing.” It then challenges your understanding of EMTALA by having you work through a real case before being given the Court’s rationale for its opinion. It will hopefully answer basic questions you have regarding the application of EMTALA, specifically the requirement to perform an “appropriate medical screening examination.” It does not discuss details regarding transferring unstable patients. Do not read this article if you think it will give you EMTALA peace. It will only lead to more questions, as any discussion of legal principles invariably leads to more questions than answers. For the obsessive-compulsive, welcome to the EMTALA black hole.

Thoracic surgery expert witnesses may opine on pulmonology, chest medicine, respiratory medicine, and more. The American Association for Thoracic Surgery has adopted a statement of qualifications for expert witnesses and guidelines for behavior of AATS members when acting as experts in the legal system including:

The physician expert witness should state the basis of his or her testimony or opinion, and whether it is based on personal experience, specific clinical references, evidence-based guidelines, or a generally accepted opinion in the specialty field.

Read more: http://www.aats.org/

School safety expert witnesses may provide testimony regarding school violence, school crisis preparedness training, and school crisis services, as well as related topics. In Fight, Flight or Lockdown – Teaching Students and Staff to Attack Active Shooters could Result in Decreased Casualties or Needless Deaths, authors Michael S. Dorn and Stephen Satterly, Jr., of Safe Havens International write on incidents where victims are trapped by an active shooter.

Mike Dorn serves as the Executive Director of Safe Havens International, a non-profit school safety center. He has authored and co-authored 26 books on school safety and have served as a university police lieutenant, school district police chief and as the lead expert for the nation’s largest state government Pre K-20 school safety center. His articles may be found here: http://www.safehavensinternational.org/resources/articles/.

In Screen a Medical Expert Witness with 5 Easy Questions, Mednick Associates writes that “Locating a medical expert witness to provide an objective opinion is a crucial, make or break moment for your case. Just spending the hours and energy searching for and locating a medical expert who will review your case file is not enough. Asking the right questions via a proper screening process is as important as the search itself.”

The five questions, including “Will you testify?,” may be found here: www.mednickassociates.

Bus safety expert witnesses may testify on commercial vehicles, school bus safety, and bus maintenance, among other topics. In Screening School Bus Safety and Security Expert Witnesses, Mike Dorn writes:

While there are fortunately many well qualified and highly credible expert witnesses who are men and women of integrity, it can sometimes be difficult for busy attorneys and insurance personnel to sort out the best from those who are questionable in any particular field of expertise.

Mike Dorn serves as the Executive Director of Safe Havens International, a non-profit school safety center. He has authored and co-authored 26 books on school safety and have served as a university police lieutenant, school district police chief and as the lead expert for the nation’s largest state government Pre K-20 school safety center. His articles may be found here: http://www.safehavensinternational.org/resources/articles/.