The
Valid PTSD Comp Exam
If you receive physical wounds in
combat, and the VA examines you for compensation, the examiner won't be the guy
who works in the cafeteria or a social worker. The examiner will be a medical
doctor, one who probably specializes in your injury. Veterans should
expect the same treatment when being examined for a PTSD rating. If the VA
calls you in for a Compensation Exam, you must be examined by a psychiatrist.
A psychiatrist is also a medical doctor. A psychologist is not a
medical doctor, and any Comp Exam for PTSD by a psychologist, if it goes
against the veteran, should be considered an invalid Comp Exam based on
non-medical opinion.
I'm bringing this up because a
veteran just contacted me saying they are sending him to a child psychologist
for a PTSD Comp Exam. That makes it an automatic invalid Comp Exam if it goes
against him. So, if you apply for PTSD and you get turned down, and you find
out the person you saw is not a medical doctor, then appeal on the grounds of
an invalid Comp Exam. Say this:
I wish to appeal the decision
on my PTSD claim because it was an invalid Comp Exam and I was not examined by
a qualified medical doctor.
That is all you have to put in the
appeal. Also, if the Comp Exam does not cover your war issues that are causing
the PTSD, it is also an invalid Comp Exam.
I wish to appeal the decision
on my PTSD claim because the examiner did not cover the war issues that have
caused my PTSD.
If you get caught in such a scenario,
appeal just as above. If your National Service Officer does not want to
co-operate with you (a lot of them don't want to be bothered or don't like
you knowing what to do), tell that person you will go over their head if
they don't want to help you. Since they may not want to lose their job, that
should bring them around.
Remember, you can file a claim at any
time for anything that injured you in the military. Don't let anyone tell you
that you can't or you are wasting your time.
Semper Fi
Dennis, someone has been giving you some bad information. Psychologists conduct at least 80%, and probably more like 90% of VA C&P exams for PTSD and other mental disorders. I don't want to get into a pissing contest about the two professions but suffice to say that one could mount a strong argument that a psychologist's training better prepares him or her for these types of evaluations, compared to modern psychiatry's emphasis on psychopharmacology.
ReplyDeleteIn my experience the quality of a C&P exam has a lot more to do with the individual clinician than the letters after their name. When I was a C&P examiner, I worked with an superb psychiatrist, one awful psychiatrist, a top-notch neuropsychologist, a highly-skilled forensic psychologist, and a lazy ass slacker psychologist who sought a C&P job because he knew he could do quick interviews, check off a few boxes on the new DBQs, and have lots of time to surf the 'Net.
I keep up with the case law regarding Veteran's compensation pretty well and I have never seen a Veteran win an appeal simply because the examiner was a psychologist, rather than a psychiatrist.
Joey:
ReplyDeleteThat's because 90% of veterans don't know any better and won't file the appeal based on a invalid comp exam. A psychologist is not a medical doctor and cannot give a medical diagnosis for a medical condition. The slacker psychologist is the exact reason the diagnosis should be by a medical doctor. I didn't mean to say that a psychologist can't do a good comp exam, but if they turn down a vet, it leaves the door open to disagree based on the MD factor.