By Stacy G. Jackson
If you are a health care provider practicing in Missouri, you probably have been or will be a witness in litigation. Workers’ compensation claims, personal injury or medical malpractice; chances are one of your patients has filed a personal injury claim. As a treating physician or health care provider, your opinions are vital. After you receive medical authorizations and records requests, your office will probably receive a phone call from the attorneys for the defendant, wanting to know what you know about your patient in regard to the litigation. They may even tell you that this is a good way to avoid a deposition: an informal meeting just to get your opinions. It seems easier than a deposition and, after all, it is perfectly okay in Missouri. Or at least, it was!
