Andrew Tisser, DOEmergency Medicine Expert Witness
Attorney Resources

Working with an emergency medicine expert, made straightforward.

A practical guide to getting a fast, accurate assessment: what to send, how the standard of care is evaluated, what to expect on timing, and the terms that come up most.

Records to Send

What makes a review fast and accurate.

The more complete the record, the sharper the analysis. Send what you have; gaps themselves are often informative.

Complete emergency department chart (all encounters at issue)
Triage and nursing documentation with timestamps
Physician and APP notes, including addenda
EMS / prehospital run reports
All imaging and radiology interpretations
Laboratory results and order timestamps
ECG tracings and cardiac monitoring
Prior and subsequent records establishing course
Depositions and expert disclosures, if available
The complaint and relevant pleadings

How the standard of care is evaluated.

The question is never whether a better outcome was theoretically possible. It is whether a reasonable emergency physician, facing the same presentation with the same information and resources, would have acted similarly.

Emergency medicine is practiced under uncertainty and time pressure, often with incomplete histories and undifferentiated symptoms. A credible opinion holds the care to that reality, not to a retrospective ideal.

What you receive.

  • A clear statement of the applicable standard of care
  • The specific facts and timeline that matter
  • Whether the care met, or fell below, that standard
  • The clinical reasoning connecting facts to opinion
Timing

Realistic expectations, agreed in advance.

Every timeline is confirmed before work begins and built around your deadlines.

Merit screen

Typically a few days after records are received.

Full record analysis

Scoped case-by-case with the volume of records.

Written report

Delivered against an agreed, deadline-driven schedule.

Testimony

Scheduled around deposition and trial calendars.

Terminology

Key terms, plainly defined.

A shared vocabulary makes every conversation more efficient.

Standard of care
What a reasonably prudent emergency physician would have done under the same circumstances, with the information available at the time.
Hindsight bias
Judging a clinical decision by its outcome rather than by what was known when it was made. A defensible opinion avoids it.
Disposition
The decision to admit, discharge, transfer, or observe a patient; a frequent focus of emergency medicine litigation.
EMTALA
The federal law requiring a medical screening exam and stabilization of emergency conditions regardless of ability to pay.
Boarding
Holding admitted patients in the emergency department due to lack of inpatient beds, which can affect care.
APP supervision
The physician oversight of advanced practice providers (PAs and NPs) delivering emergency care.
Retain Dr. Tisser

Ready to send a case for review?

Email the records or start with a summary. You'll hear back with clear next steps quickly.

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