Independent Medical Evaluations (IMEs)
The value of an independent assessment depends not only on selecting the right expert, but also on asking the right questions.
Independent medical and specialized assessments provide objective expert opinions when additional expertise is required to clarify medical, psychological, cognitive, or functional issues affecting disability management, accommodation, fitness for work, or return-to-work decisions.
Dallas Mercer brings specialized expertise to the independent assessment process through an extensive national network of experienced physicians and healthcare professionals. We identify the issues requiring clarification, determine the expertise required, develop focused referral questions, select the appropriate expert, and review the resulting opinion to support informed workplace decisions.
Independent Assessment Expertise
Assessment Planning & Strategy
Start with the question that needs to be answered.
Determine the purpose and scope of the assessment, identify the issues requiring clarification, and establish an assessment strategy designed to obtain the information needed for informed workplace decision-making.
Expert Identification & Selection
Match the assessment to the right expertise.
Access our national network of physicians and specialized healthcare professionals to select the professional best suited to address the medical, psychological, cognitive, functional, or occupational issues involved.
Referral Question Development
Ask the questions that matter.
Develop clear, case-specific referral questions addressing the issues necessary to support disability management, accommodation, fitness-for-work, and return-to-work decisions.
Medical & Specialized Assessments
Access the assessment the case requires.
Facilitate independent medical evaluations and other specialized assessments, including psychological, psychiatric, cognitive, neuropsychological, or other assessments where appropriate.
Functional & Job-Specific Considerations
Connect the assessment to the work.
Ensure referral questions and relevant job information reflect the physical, cognitive, psychological, and environmental demands of the position where appropriate.
Report Review & Case Integration
Make the assessment meaningful to the case.
Review reports to determine whether referral questions have been addressed and consider relevant findings in disability management, accommodation, fitness-for-work, and return-to-work planning.
Documentation & Expert Evidence
Support defensible decision-making.
Facilitate access to independent expert opinions that may inform administrative, legal, or tribunal processes where required.
The Result: The right assessment, from the right expert, focused on the right questions—providing objective information to clarify complex issues and support informed workplace decisions.
“We just happened to be struggling to manage a particularly challenging WCB claim to the point where we were just about ready to throw in the towel.”
— East Coast Catering