Don’t try this at home. After an accident, there is a lot of paperwork generated. Accident Reports and photos, Ambulance and Paramedic notes, Emergency Room and Hospital records, and PCP (Primary Care Physician) records. That just covers the day of the accident, and treatment can take months or years. Records can easily exceed 500 pages, and we have seen a case with more than 2,500 pages. That’s a stack of paper about 2 feet tall. The point is, we read a lot.
We rarely have to spread paperwork all over the living room floor. The records usually come to us electronically in the form of one or more “.pdf” files. Some time in the future, when they are all collected electronically, they will be delivered to us in a logical form. You know, legible and sorted chronologically. Today, however, ain’t the future.
Most of the records we see are still paper that has been scanned. Some are 2nd and 3rd generation Faxes that have been scanned. On occasion, the stack of paper put into the scanner is sorted into chronological order, all the pages are right side up, the edges are straight, and everything comes out legible. The rest of the time, going through the records is an exercise in patience.
In addition to the legislated requirements of knowledge, skill, experience, training, and education, our Experts must possess qualities unique to this type of work. Though every case is unique, they all have to be investigated thoroughly and documented similarly. The Expert must possess organizational and communication skills adequate to produce an Analysis that is factual, objective, and understandable.