IME Letter
Posted by: Bob Menard
June 05, 2009

When you get injured on the job, some insurance companies will require you to attend an IME (Independent Medical Exam), where a doctor hired by the insurance company will examine you to determine if you are in fact injured from an accident that occurred from your workplace.

If an IME has been scheduled for you, please keep these ideas in mind:

• Be prompt, polite and cooperative.
• Be aware of video surveillance activities to and from the exam.
• Do not exceed any physical limitations set by your doctor (i.e. carry a purse that weighs over ten pounds).
• If you have a back injury, be careful to wear flat shoes.
• If you have a shoulder injury, please wear a shirt that is easily removed.
• Be aware that the doctor and/or employees of the IME office routinely watch individual=s movement in and out of the exam, from the parking lot to the exam office and exiting the building.
• Be honest, accurate and consistent on your recollection on how your injury occurred (stick to your story/history). Be sure to tell the doctor about your current pain and discomfort as a result of your injury and answer truthfully about prior accidents or injuries if specifically asked (do not volunteer information that is not asked).
• Do not complete a questionnaire! If asked to do so, indicate that this is at the advisement of your attorney. Do not bring records, MRI or x-ray films, or lists of complaints to the appointment.
• Do not sign any authorizations, tell them you are represented and they can obtain them through your attorney.
• Do not answer medical and employment questions that are not reasonably related to your injury being claimed.
• Do not ask the IME doctor what his opinion is! He/she will provide a report to the insurance carrier upon the completion of it. He/she is hired to write a report and not to treat your condition.
• Be careful to be exact in your responses (i.e. sometimes a doctor will ask for the exact pinpoint of pain and then mark it with a pen. Later, they will touch a spot an inch away from the mark and ask you again. If you now answer yes to this different spot, they will note it.)
• If you have a back injury, often a doctor will press on your head and ask you if this causes back pain. Please be careful to only answer yes if you actually feel back pain.

This doctor has been hired by the insurance company to provide an independent evaluation of your case. Their report can indicate whether your benefits will continue, or if your benefits will be denied. If you have been denied your benefits, contact the law firm of Derzon & Menard, S.C. here.

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