Medical Record Reviewer Expert Witness

Education

Ponce Medical Center, Ponce, PR
Residency in Internal Medicine
Year of diploma – 1981

Hospital Clínico Universitario de Barcelona, España. – Medical School
Year of diploma 1974
University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras, PR.
Premedical Education
Year of diploma – 1968

San Felipe College, Arecibo PR.
High School
Year of diploma 1965

Licensure

License – Practice medicine in Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
License – Prescribe controlled substances in P. R.
License – Prescribe controlled substances in USA.
License – State of Michigan, Board of Medicine
License – State of Michigan, Board of Pharmacy

Job Related Skills

– Bilingual – Spanish and English
– Typing skills
– Computers skills
– Team work

Academic Appointments

Available Upon Request

Administrative Duties

-Ex-Director of Internal Medicine Department, Fajardo Medical Center.  Fajardo, Puerto Rico.
-Ex-Medical Director of the “Instituto Psicopedagógico de Puerto Rico”

Membership

-American Academy of Disability Evaluating Physicians
-American College of Physicians
-Colegio de Medicos de Puerto Rico

Work Experience

“Civil Action and Education Corporation”
Duties and related activities:

-Record reviewer and evaluation of the medical evidence for plaintiff and defense cases equally.
– Expert witness in Court of Justice.

University of Puerto Rico (UPR), Junta de Síndicos, Sistema de Retiro.
Duties and related activities:

– Record reviewer and evaluation of the medical evidence to determine disability.
– To evaluate actual process of determining disability, and to make recommendations in order to develop and establish a rules and regulation manual for the sequential evaluation of it, and any change as deemed necessary.

Disability Determination System of the Social Security Administration since 1989 to present. Duties and related activities:

– Record reviewer and evaluation of the medical evidence to Determine disability and / or residual functiona capacity.
-To train personal and new medical staff members
– To interview and train external medical consultants.
– To attend and represent our DDS office in Regional Directors Meetings in New York DDS regional office.
– Lectures in:
– “CIMO” (Congreso Iberoamericano Medicina Ocupacional): “Disability Evaluation for the SSA- Disability VS Impairment”. –  Dorado Beech Hotel
– Puerto Rico Medical Association: “The Role of
Medical Consultant in the Process of Disability Determination”.
– IRS (Office of PR): “ADA in the Working Enviropment; Reasonable Accommodation”.

“Instituto Psicopedagógico De Puerto Rico”: since 1985 to 2009. This is an institution for training, and direct medical care to mentally retarded patients from all ages, residents and outpatients.
– Duties and work related activities:

– Medical Director.
– Direct patient care,
– attend to Court of Justice as an expert witness in  issues related to clients.

“Disability Determination System of the Retirement System Administration of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and Judicature”(Administracion de los Sistemas de Retiro de los Empleados del ELA y   de la Judicatura): since 1991 to 1993, and from June 2001 to present. In 1991 I was hired by the Retirement System to create, develop and establish a disability determination system.
Duties and work related activities:

– Establishing the parameters to be use in the process of evaluation and adjudication, based in the “Listing of Impairments” of the SSA,
– creating a “Manual of Policies and Procedures” to be use as a guide for the evaluation and adjudication process,
– Meeting with the lawyers of the Agency to temper the legal aspect to the Agency and the proposed process,
– presenting the full program to the Board of Director of the Agency,
– presenting the full program to the “Junta de Sindicos” of the Agency,
– training the technical and medical staff.

The whole program was accepted and since then has being functioning.  In June 2001 I was call back as a medical consultant, and to review the program according to the new rules and regulation of the Agency.

State Insurance Fund of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (“Corporacion del Fondo del Seguro del Estado”): from 1998 to 2001.
Duties and work related activities:

– Internal Medicine consultant: direct patient care,
-consultant in disability evaluation using as a base reference the “AMA Guide to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairments”.
– training personal about rating impairment and disability according to the AMA Guides.

“Asociación De Empleados del Estado Libre Asociado de PR” (AEELA): from 1995 to 1997.
Duties and work related activities:

– Record reviewer and medical consultant for the legal office of the Agency, and as expert witness in different forums including the Court of Justice of PR.
-Clinical practice in Internal Medicine, office and hospital base, since 1981.