Why do we engage Physiotherapists to write our Care / DA reports?

There appears to be some misconception within the Personal Injury community that Medico Legal reports of this nature are the sole domain of Occupational Therapists. Within the health profession these assessment reports are titled Activity of Daily Living Reports and in everyday practice are undertaken by a range of Health Professionals – Registered Nurses, Occupational Therapists and Physiotherapists who have all received appropriate training in this area as part of their respective undergraduate degrees.

Whilst there is often overlap of the various Allied Health Professional roles, each discipline will approach a Medico Legal Activity of Daily Living Assessment from their own particular professional focus.

When considering allocation of a case we match the claimant’s injuries / impairments to the most appropriate Expert based on their clinical experience, knowledge and area of specialty.

CDC has successfully engaged both Physiotherapists and OT’S to prepare ADL reports in Orthopaedic and Neurological cases over many years. Physiotherapists have extensive knowledge of muscular – skeletal assessment, neurological impairment, functional movement patterns and disabilities. Their training involves bio mechanical analysis, ergonomics, occupational injury management and radiology interpretation. When performing a physical in home assessment using various outcome measures, functional tests and diagnostic tools to identify impairments, they can:

  • Relate findings to daily living activities to advise which activities are contra indicated to the clients condition
  • Identify compensation strategies which place the client at risk of further injury
  • Prescribe treatments, exercise regimes, equipment / aids in order to improve or restore function
  • Educate the client on modification strategies to avoid further injury and aid recovery
  • Anticipated outcomes

Hopefully this provides clarity for you, but please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have.

Cost of Care

In 2011 we launched our online Cost of Care Reporting service where law firms can obtain Cost of Care reports that provide the most accurate reflection of the market prices available in the industry today. Within NSW we have 21 regions providing specific pricing data within each region. We have expanded this service into the ACT and are currently moving into Queensland.

These online cost of care reports are extremely cost effective when you are running a small case and when you don’t require a full in-home assessment Care / DA report.  Links to this online service can be accessed via our main website www.cdcservices.com.au. If you would like to find out more about how this service can save you both time and money for smaller cases please contact us directly.

Do you need Vocational Assessments?

Ross Girdler is a key member of our team and has conducted over 800 medico-legal vocational assessments, presenting the resulting reports as expert witness testimony for the District and Supreme Courts of NSW and the County Court of Victoria. He is a Rehabilitation Counsellor whose expertise lies in his ability to assess a claimant’s residual earning capacity after injury, and compare that with an assessment of the person’s likely achievements were it not for the injury.

His expertise has been gained through 15 years of providing rehabilitation services to people injured at work and in motor vehicle accidents.  This experience has enabled Ross to develop a thorough appreciation of how various impairments affect a person’s ability to work in specific occupations, and in how injuries affect employability in differing labour markets.

Ross has provided other professionals with an understanding of what is required to achieve effective assessments through the delivery of seminar presentations at the invitation of the NSW College of Law and through the Australian Society of Rehabilitation Counsellors.

To request a Vocational Assessment, simply contact us – turnaround averages 21 days.

Brain Injury and Neuro-Psych testing

Article: Manchester, D., Priestley, N & Jackson, H. (2004). ‘The assessment of executive functions’ Journal: Brain Injury. Vol 18 No.11 page 1067-1081

This interesting article written by a psychologist proposes that neuropsychological assessment may rely too heavily on data derived from office based tests to identify deficits in executive function for clients who have sustained brain injuries.

Executive functioning refers to cognitive functions of the brain which regulate planning, memory, attention and problem solving skills.

The author proposes that office based testing can be problematic due to;

  • test insensitivity;
  • an often weak-moderate relationship between performance on tests compared with everyday behaviour and;
  • testing in an office which is free from distractions does not reflect the real world.

It concludes that a more contextual approach with greater emphasis on behavioural observation would optimise reporting of deficits.