An Eye for an Eye: The Legal Consequences of Vision Loss

Transcript Price: $47.00

MP3 Price: $47.00

CD* Price: $47.00

* Shipping and handling will be added to CD orders.

Program Description

Audience: Defense and plaintiff attorneys, legal nurse consultants, and healthcare providers

A uniquely qualified presenter, Dr. Joe Citron is both an ophthalmologist and an attorney. He explains the mystery of how we see and what goes wrong when the visual system is injured. Loss of vision can have profound effects on a plaintiff, affecting vocational, social, and psychological issues. Dr. Citron pulls back the covers to share his knowledge. Eyes, vision and injuries have long been the province of a few specially trained medical people. No more! He’ll use common English and a minimum of medical terms to explain how people see. He’ll help you understand the connections between the eyes and the brain as well as the methods used for testing these areas. What’s the eye case worth? Dr. Citron will help you determine the value of eye injuries.

Evaluation and Post-Test for CEUs (pdf)

Presenter

This webinar is narrated by Dr. Joe Citron and is presented with Powerpoint slides. Viewers will have an opportunity to download the slides in advance of the program.

Joseph Citron, MD Esq simultaneously practices medicine as an ophthalmologist and law as an attorney. He works and lives in the Atlanta area. He earned his medical degree from Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Yeshiva University, NY and his law degree from Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA. Dr. Citron trained at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester and is a board certified ophthalmologist. He is especially trained in detecting sobriety in field testing and has spoken extensively about the criminal and medical aspects of driving under the influence.

Moderator: Patricia Iyer, who has 22-years of experience as a legal nurse consultant.

Related Programs

Screening Potential Medical Malpractice Claims: From the Frivolous to the Egregious
An experienced medical malpractice and negligence attorney will help you spot the claims that potentially have merit—from both the medical and legal perspectives.

After the Fall
Older adults are at higher risk of falls and also have a higher rate of poor outcomes. Fractures are a serious consequence of falls in the older population and have significant morbidity/mortality, legal and financial implications. Falls are now classified by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid as “never events”, for which reimbursement will be denied.

Navigating the Slippery Legal Slope of Falls
An experienced medical malpractice and negligence attorney will help you spot the claims that potentially have merit—from both the medical and legal perspectives.

Related Reading

Excerpt from Elliott Korn, MD, “Ophthalmology Records” in Patricia Iyer and Barbara Levin, Medical Legal Aspects of Medical Records, Second Edition, 2010:

Blunt trauma to the eye can occur as a result of a blow, airbag deployment, paint ball shot at the face, a fall, and so on. Blunt trauma to the retina is known as “commotion” or the more severe form, “contusion retinae”. Examination of the eye reveals gray discoloration of the retina area that is involved in the trauma. Vision loss is severe. In commotion retinae, the edema resolves with full restitution of vision, whereas contusion retinae can lead to scar formation with residual visual loss or distortion.

Blunt trauma to the eye can cause transitory corneal edema. Painful reactions to bright light (photophobia), pain, and tears are common. Sudden severe vision loss due to anterior chamber hemorrhages from a ruptured iris vessel may occur. Many malpractice claims are based on delay in therapy. Blunt trauma resulting in a dense hemorrhage in the eye or an acute fracture of the bony orbit with severe swelling can delay diagnosis of a retinal detachment. In these situations, ultrasound may need to be done. There may be a long period between the trauma and the occurrence of the detachment.