#3 MISTAKE: Your patient not having a medical provider coordinating their care following an accident
QUESTION: What is the most important thing a patient can do when getting treatment from multiple medical providers for the care they receive following a car accident?
ANSWER: If you have a patient who is seeing several medical providers, who do not work together, for treatment following a car accident, it’s a good idea to talk with your patient about designating one of their providers to act as the coordinator of their medical care. This helps avoid the problems with over treatment or PIP being exhausted before they have made a full recovery It’s a good idea to be proactive and talk with your patient about this to help them avoid possible issues with their claims being paid.
Not having a medical provider coordinating their care is the third biggest mistake your patient can make in getting the medical treatment they need following a car accident.
When a medical provider works in a clinic where there may be an acupuncturist, chiropractor, massage therapist, or naturopath — there is typically someone within the clinic coordinating each patient’s treatment. This can become a problem when a patient is seeing various medical providers in different areas of town, who don’t work together.
If you have a patient who is in this situation, it’s important that one of the medical providers they’re treating with is designated to coordinate all of the medical treatment they’re receiving as part of their personal injury claim. If that doesn’t happen, your patient may have challenges getting their medical bills being paid. If your patient is seeing multiple providers, their fifteen thousand dollar PIP policy will likely be depleted in three or four months — and if no one is coordinating your patient’s care, no one will have any idea it’s happening.
Additionally, your patient may be answering questions that the other medical providers are not asking — which can cause problems in their chart notes — leading to the insurance company requiring an IME — or a less effective overall recovery. There is no way your patient is going to know this without you letting them know.
If your patient is getting treatment from other medical providers, it’s a good idea to talk with them about designating a provider to act as the coordinator of their medical care. This will benefit all medical providers treating your patient, and mostly it’s going to benefit your patient in helping them have a full recovery from their car accident.