Medical chronologies for QME, IME and AME evaluations
A medical chronology puts every relevant event in an injured worker's records in date order, with each entry tied to the page it came from. Docura builds one from the full case file, so you spend less time assembling the record and can stand behind every fact in your report.
- For QME, IME and AME physicians
- HIPAA compliant
- Every entry source-linked
Sample case · illustrative
What is a med-legal medical chronology?
A med-legal medical chronology is a date-ordered summary of the medical events in an injured worker's records: the injury, visits, diagnoses, imaging, procedures, treatment and work status, along with prior injuries and conditions. Each entry cites the document and page it came from. QME, IME and AME physicians use it to follow the course of care, test the worker's history against the record, and find the evidence behind each opinion in the report.
- Every relevant event in date order
- Prior injuries and conditions included
- Each entry cites its document and page
- Duplicate pages listed once
What a good medical chronology includes
Each entry should let a reader find the original record without asking you. Across the whole file, the chronology should be complete, neutral and honest about what is missing.
- Date of service
- 05/22/2023
- Provider and document
- Neurology · Electrodiagnostic study
- Finding
- L5 radiculopathy
- Source
- Records · p. 156
When the care happened, not when the record arrived.
Who saw the worker and what kind of record it is.
What the record says, in the record's own terms.
The document and page, so anyone can check it.
Across the whole file
- Complete coverage
Every relevant record you received, not only the ones that support one reading of the case.
- Prior injuries and conditions
Earlier treatment to the same body part. California reports include the worker's medical history, including prior injuries (8 CCR §10682(b)(5)).
- Duplicates listed once
The same note resubmitted three times is one visit, not three.
- Gaps noted, not filled in
Missing records and breaks in care are marked as missing, never guessed at.
- Neutral wording
Entries record what the document says. Interpretation belongs in your analysis.
- A record of what you reviewed
California QME reports must list and summarize the records reviewed (8 CCR §41(c)(2)).
Why source links matter under cross-examination
A med-legal report is weighed on its reasoning, and its facts get tested. In California, the Appeals Board considers whether a report follows the reporting rules when it weighs the evidence, and those rules call for a listing of all information received or relied on (8 CCR §10682).
In deposition, the question is often simple: where in the record does it say that? A chronology without citations sends you back through hundreds of pages to find out. When every entry links to its document and page, you can open the original, confirm it before it shapes your opinion, and point to it when it is challenged.
Source links also keep the chronology in its place. California requires the QME to review all available relevant records and to list and summarize them in the report (8 CCR §41(c)(2)). The chronology is how you find and check that evidence. It is not a substitute for reading it.
How Docura organizes records chronologically
Docura takes the administrative weight of assembling the record off your desk. You keep the work only you can do: reviewing the evidence, examining the worker and signing the opinion.
See how Docura supports evaluatorsBring in the full case file
Add records, audio and video together, in whatever order they arrive. Docura handles large record sets of hundreds of pages.
Docura builds the chronology
Key findings, diagnoses, treatment history and prior diagnoses go into date order. Duplicate pages are listed once, and every entry links to the document and page it came from.
You review and write the report
Check any entry against its source, then work from customizable QME, IME, AME, Permanent & Stationary and Supplemental templates. You add the findings and analysis and make every final decision before you sign.
Medical chronology questions evaluators ask
Short answers about med-legal chronologies, source links and how Docura builds them.
A med-legal medical chronology is a date-ordered summary of the medical events in an injured worker's records: the injury, visits, diagnoses, imaging, procedures, treatment and work status, along with prior injuries and conditions. Each entry cites the document and page it came from. QME, IME and AME physicians use it to follow the course of care, test the worker's history against the record, and find the evidence behind each opinion in the report.
Every relevant medical event in date order, with the date of service, the provider or document type, the finding, and the document and page it came from. A good chronology also covers prior injuries and conditions, diagnoses, imaging, procedures, treatment and work status. It lists duplicate pages once and notes gaps in the record instead of filling them in.
The facts in a med-legal report get tested. In deposition or at trial, counsel can ask where in the record a finding appears. A source-linked chronology lets the physician open the exact page behind each entry, confirm it before relying on it, and point to it when challenged.
No. California's QME regulations require the evaluator to review all available relevant medical and non-medical records, and the report must list and summarize the records reviewed (8 CCR §41(c)(2)). A chronology helps the physician find and verify information in the record. It does not replace the physician's own review.
Docura organizes the full case file, including records, audio and video, and puts key findings, diagnoses, treatment history and prior diagnoses into a chronological summary. Duplicate pages are listed once, and each entry links back to its source document so the physician can verify it.
No. Docura organizes case materials, structures report sections and supports impairment-rating calculations. The physician reviews the record, adds examination findings and analysis, and makes every final decision before signing the report.
QME, IME, AME, Permanent & Stationary, Supplemental and narrative medical reports, from customizable templates. Docura also supports AMA Guides (5th and 6th Edition) impairment-rating calculations with documented steps.
Yes. Docura handles large record sets of hundreds of pages, along with audio and video. Contact Docura for specific volume requirements.
Yes. Docura is HIPAA compliant. Data is encrypted in transit and at rest, with access controls and audit logs, and patient data is not used to train AI models.
Keep reading
- Docura for evaluatorsHow Docura supports IME, QME and AME report preparation, from records to ratings.
- The credibility gap in IME reportsHow scope, sourcing and honest uncertainty make an evaluation easier to trust.
- When medical records arrive after the QME examWhat late records change in the history, the findings and the report.
Build your next chronology with the evidence attached
Book a demo to see how Docura organizes the case file, links every chronology entry to its source and structures your report.