Clinical Infectious Diseases 2005;40:1393-1394 � 2005 by the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. 1058-4838/2005/4010-0002$15.00
Guidelines for Infectious Diseases Specialists Serving as Expert Witnesses
Infectious Diseases Society of America
Received 12 March 2005; accepted 12 March 2005; electronically published 4 April 2005. This guideline was developed by the State and Regional Societies Board and Clinical Affairs Committee of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and was approved by the IDSA Board of Directors in November 2004. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Infectious diseases (ID) physicians are often called upon to provide expert witness testimony in judicial proceedings and have an ethical obligation to do so, when appropriate. The ID physician expert witness has an ethical responsibility to be objective, truthful and impartial in evaluating cases to determine the generally accepted practice standards. To ensure that unbiased testimony is available to the courts that are trying to determine the applicable standard of care, the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) encourages ID physicians with sufficient and relevant expertise to testify in these venues, and it has developed the following set of qualifications and guidelines for ID expert witnesses to follow. Abiding by these guidelines is confirmation of ID physician expert witnesses' commitment to maintain the highest standards of conduct and integrity in their participation in legal proceedings. We also refer ID physicians to the ethical guidelines of other professional medical organizations [17].
RECOMMENDED QUALIFICATIONS
1. The ID physician expert witness must have a current, valid, and unrestricted license to practice medicine as a Doctor of Medicine or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine in the state, territory, or area constituting legal jurisdiction of the United States in which he or she practices.
2. The ID physician expert witness, at a minimum, should be certified in the specialty of ID by the American Board of Internal Medicine or the American Board of Pediatrics and should be qualified by experience or demonstrated competence and evidence of continuing education in the subject matter of the case.
Note. This qualification was developed to define an expert witness put forth as an "ID specialist." It is acknowledged that physicians trained in other specialties may have the requisite expertise to serve as expert witnesses on matters directly related to their specialty area that involved the treatment and diagnosis of infectious diseases.
3. The ID physician expert witness must have been actively practicing or working in the pertinent area of ID for at least 3 years prior to the date of the incident under review [2].
4. The ID physician expert witness should affirm and be able to document that not more than 20% of his or her professional time involves serving as an expert witness.
5. The ID physician expert witness should be chosen on the basis of his or her experience in the area in which he or she is providing testimony and not solely on the basis of the offices or positions held in the IDSA, unless such positions are material to the witness's expertise.
RECOMMENDED GUIDELINES
1. The ID physician expert witness should testify honestly, fully, and impartially to his or her qualifications and the medical information involved in the case.
2. The ID physician expert witness should review standards of practice prevailing in that community and patient care environment at the time of the alleged occurrence.
3. The ID physician expert witness should offer expert testimony only in areas in which he or she has concurrent and sufficient patient care experience.
4. The ID physician expert witness should be prepared to state whether the testimony presented is based on personal experience, specific clinical references, and/or generally accepted opinion in the specialty or subspecialty field.
5. The ID physician expert witness should review the medical facts in a thorough, fair, and objective manner and should not exclude any relevant information to create a view favoring the plaintiff or defendant. The attorney for the party who calls the ID physician as a witness should be informed of all favorable and unfavorable information developed by the physician's evaluation of the case.
6. The ID physician expert witness should be aware that transcripts of depositions and courtroom testimony are public records, subject to independent peer review.
7. Financial compensation of the ID physician expert witness should be reasonable and commensurate with the time and effort given to preparation for depositions and court appearances. It is unethical for a physician expert witness to establish a fee arrangement contingent on the outcome of the case.
8. The ID physician should not engage in advertising or solicit employment as an expert witness where such advertising or solicitation contains representations about the physician's qualifications, experience, or background that are false or deceptive.
References 1. American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. Advisory statement on orthopedic medical testimony. Document 1006. 1996. Available at: http://www.aaos.org/wordhtml/papers/advistmt/1006.htm. Accessed 18 March 2005. First citation in article 2. American College of Emergency Physicians. Expert witness guidelines for the specialty of emergency medicine. Ann Emerg Med 2001; 38:486. First citation in article | PubMed 3. American College of Medical Genetics (ACMG). Guidelines for expert witness testimony for the specialty of medical genetics. Revised and approved by the ACMG Board of Directors on 4 October 2000. Genetics in Medicine 2000; 2(6). First citation in article 4. American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Consensus opinion statements: ethical guidelines for occupational and environmental medicine expert witnesses. Available at: http://www.acoem.org/guidelines/article.asp?ID=31. Accessed 31 March 2005. First citation in article 5. American College of Physicians. Guidelines for the physician expert witness. Ann Intern Med 1990; 113:789. First citation in article | PubMed 6. American College of Surgeons. Statement on the physician acting as an expert witness. Bull Am College of Surgeons 2004; 89. Available at: http://www.facs.org/fellows_info/statements/st-8.html. Accessed 31 March 2005. First citation in article 7. American Medical Association. Medical testimony. Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs reports. 2004. Available at: http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/3840.html. Accessed 31 March 2005. First citation in article
Posts: 6286 | From Oregon | Registered: Jan 2006
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posted
Apparently the "expert" witnesses appearing against lyme docs have not read this, or are ignoring it. How can any of those guys pretend to have experience with chronic lyme when none of them treat it?
Posts: 8430 | From Not available | Registered: Oct 2000
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northstar
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7911
posted
oooh, that's goood, Terry, and Lou!
N/
Posts: 1331 | From hither and yonder | Registered: Sep 2005
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TerryK
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 8552
posted
Yeah Lou, I thought the same thing. I suppose they feel it's OK because in their mind there is no chronic lyme. Still, they are violating the IDSA guidelines in my view.
This one really got me!! 6. The ID physician expert witness should be aware that transcripts of depositions and courtroom testimony are public records, subject to independent peer review.
I guess they are saying don't lie because you might get caught???
Terry
Posts: 6286 | From Oregon | Registered: Jan 2006
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posted
Yes, I think that is what it means, and maybe one day soon we will be using those transcripts to nail a few liars.
Posts: 8430 | From Not available | Registered: Oct 2000
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bettyg
Unregistered
posted
TERRY, OUTSTANDING FIND!!
please copy this link and post in activism, and also show as a reply to TREEPATROL'S NEWBIE LINKS asking him to post in future....thanks a lot.
most importantly, please copy the link and send to LDA PRES. PAT SMITH: [email protected]
so we can make sure ALL LLMDS BROUGHT UP ON CHARGES HAVE THIS INFO AVAILABLE TO THEIR LAWYERS DEFENDING THEM AND CONN. AG BLUMENTHAL!! tippee!
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TerryK
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 8552
posted
Thanks for your suggestions Betty! Done.
Terry
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