Worst Tbi C&p Exam Ever

[manni]

Hello all,

So today I went to this C&P exam for my TBI increase (currrently rated 10%, decreased from 40% which I had earlier). I'm already diagnosed with TBI after IED and a suicide bomber.

Anyway, so I sat infront of the Doctor waiting for him to ask me anything. For 20 minutes he didn't say anything, he was just reading my medical notes on his screen. Then he asked me, what about your dizziness when did it start? I told him a week or two after the incident. He told me no, not true!!! I was like WHAT!!?? He said not true. I was really surprised as I didn't expect to say this.

He didn't ask me anything more about my dizziness he was about to continue reading when I told him that I went to ENT specialist outside the VA and he told me that my dzziness is related to my ears, I gave the papers that I got from the ENT clinic. He looked at them and then he gave them back to me. He told me, this is nothing, there is no diagnosis and no medication mentioned here. Ofcourse the diagnosis was there (menier's disease) but he chosed to ignore it. Then I told him here are the medication (Dyazide and Diazepam). He said no doctor will give this for dizziness. After that I decided to stop arguing with him.

His next question was about my headaches, he asked me if I have any headaches. The answer was yes. How often? The answer was more than once a week. He replied more than once a year? NO, more than once a week. More than once in two months. NO, more than once a week. I think he was paying stupid or something because then he asked if I said more than once a month, and I answered no sir, it's more than once a week like six a month.

He asked about medication, and I, again, showed him notes from a private neurologist, which mentioned Hydrocodene and Gabapentine 600mg 3 times a day for migraines. He did the same thing again, he said no neurologist will give Gabapentine for headaches and it's given for tingling. I told that's what the specialist gave me.

Then he said we are all done. No physical exam and no any other kind of exam. That's it, it took about 40 minutes .

So can anyone tell me what to do now and how to proceed from here. I think I lost my claim for dizziness and there is no way that I can appeal it, or reopen it. Any advice will be highly appreciated.

Thanks and sorry for this long post

[USMC_VET]

As others have stated above make sure that you go and get an exam from a civilian doctor (the one who gave you the meds etc maybe?) that CONNECTS your diagnosis as well as the treatment for that diagnosis to a specific event in service, ie the suicide bomber and make sure you consult the IMO/IME exam info in the forum here so the doctor knows to write those all important words "as likely as not" "more likely than not" or "Is due to" when relating your current diagnoiss, symptoms and the bombing.

My Recommendations

1) Start keeping a headache diary now.

1) keep a hardcopy, print off 6 months worth and start keeping track today (i use this one )

2) go into ebenefits and keep a mirror copy in you MYHealthevet account (go there then into "Track health" then to "Medical events")

For that matter anything that is related to anything service related injury wise from back pain to foot pain to mental health episdodes (panic attacks, depression, etc) note that down.

2) Next i would get copies of all medical records from the private physician who has treated you, get the doctors notes, any exam/test records, prescription records. you can usually do this through their medical records dept if they are a decent size operation, if not ask the receptionist for smaller clinics. (and ask for copies of the records after each visit/consult wiht private physicians, every time, i know its a pain but its worth it)...

3) Also if you physician who gave you this is a Nurse practitioner or Physicians assistant of just a regular MD you might and i recommend having them ask for a consult with a Neurologist. This opinion will hold much more weight than a NP or PA or even a general MD. Specialists are gold. If the VA douche who did yours was a neurologist and your evidence is from a NP you will probably lose.

4) File a statement in support of claim and in that statement....

a) as Mr. Hill stated above write out a emotionless and cold hard fact statement of the exam, dont speculate or offer opinion such as "I didnt think that was necessary" or "He didnt listen to me" write instead. "The physician questioned me as to the frequency of my headaches in which i responded by stating they occur more than once a week, whereas he then asked again if i had them more than once a year, i repeated my statement, then he asked if more than once every 2 months, i repeated my statment and then he finished the line of quesitoning asking if they occured more than once a once a month and i again repeatedmy earlier statement" something along those lines. "the Physician asked if i had any recent diagnosis or medications where upon i gave him the most recent medical records from ______ Clinic (attached to Statement in Support of claim) where he disregarded them as being not of material concern to the exam in question. I retained the documents and continued to answer all questions asked during the exam. I request a new Compensation and Pension Examination in support of my claim for _____ due to my belief that the exam described above, occuring on __/__/____ was not full and complete.

b) Attach all medical records to this Statement in support of claim, and number each page by hand according to the different notes for example as well as total page count

10 TOTAL PAGES ATTACHED

1) Doctor/Exam Notes to ___ Clinic Date __/__/____ 4 pages

2) Prescription for ____ and ____ Dated __/__/____ 1 pages

3) Doctor/Exam Notes to ___ Clinic Date __/__/____ 5 page

etc etc.

You want to do this so that when you send this in you can make sure it all goes in your file for consideration not that you send it in and only half magically makes it in or none at all, if you dont number them there is no way for you to definitively claim that not all the evidence was considered IF you need to appeal. This way if only the statement made it into your c file but not your medical records you can claim a CUE or make that part of you Notice of Disagreement IF you need to appeal.

Send this all in CERTIFIED MAIL with RETURN RECEIPT and FAX this as well as send a IRIS message "requesting this message to be included in my c file pertaining to my veterans claim for ____, containing a statement in support of claim and including 10 pages of medical evidence" Cover all your bases. keep a file of all correspondence and letters TO and FROM the VA and in this file(s) put all the letters, and i mean ALL that they send you as well as copies of what you send them, and then staple the certified mail receipts, copies of fax transmissions and the return receipt when you get it back. You may need it, you may not, but having it when you need it is golden.

However I will say that i do agree with the folks above saying that you should maybe hold off on requesting a new exam. for sure send in the evidence, but you never know that doctor may have been an ass but did giv eyou a favorable exam regardless of him not taking your evidence seriously, etc. Wait until the decision comes out, if its denied then send in a Notice of Disagreement stating why you thought the exam was not fair and full for the same reasons i mentioned above. no emotion just facts.

As far as your claim for dizziness, you may not have "lost it" it may have been incorporated into your TBI claim as a symptom of it, if diszziness is used to help rate you for it you cant claim it again. my panic attacks are part of the symptoms for my PTSD i cannot claim that as secondary because of that. Its better that way anyways to get a higher percentage (and thus more weight) with one claim than another 0% or maybe 10%

*EDIT*

I would also add that you want to provide the medical evidence do not sign any consent to share your medical records with the VA, provide them with what they need, a carte blanche ticket for the VA to look through all your medical records could allow for them to find things taken not in the context you want them regarding other issues/claims you have. Get copies and send them to them.

Also go and get sworn affidavits from friends and fmaily how the disability affects you, your work, them. submit those with the statement in support of claim this is not as silver bullet as medical evidence, however it does help to complete the picture of how this affect syour life and those around you currently.

Edited June 22, 2015 by USMC_VET

[Buck52]

If your denied from this ''cantankerous'' C&P Doc, File NOD (Notice of Disagreement) Request a RO DRO Hearing.

and do what Matthew Hill Advised.

Get an IMO/IME

you may want to get a Doc that is board certified specialist in the field of your disability's.

Dr's don't like to rebute each other but the VA certainly will take into consideration if the Private Dr has a better explanation or Impression better than the C&P Examiner.

VA will consider them more reliable.

jmo

......................Buck