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Catastrophic accidents often lead to claims for severe emotional distress including allegations of post-traumatic stress disorder ("PTSD"). Similarly, allegations of acute neuropsychological disorders and fear of cancer can follow environmental releases and toxic exposures. So, too, with product liability claims and even claims from entire "classes" of individual employees. A single incident or condition may produce thousands of claims.
Forensic psychiatry is a medical subspecialty of psychiatry. Its focus is the interface between the law and behavioral medicine. Like the law, forensic psychiatry is divided into various sections. According to the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN):
In prehistoric times, when our earliest ancestors lived in dread of their mortal enemy, the saber-toothed tiger, those cave men (and women) who were fortunate enough to be genetically endowed with the quickest "fight or flight" reactions survived, and became our ancestors. That's where the story begins..
Although federal and state laws prohibit employment discrimination against individuals with physical and mental disabilities and require an employer to make reasonable accommodations for both kinds of disabilities, interpreting and implementing the law with regard to mental disabilities has proven very difficult.
An hour earlier, a commuter train with 180 passengers struck a sport utility vehicle left on the tracks-an aborted suicide attempt. The parking lot adjacent to the tracks is filled with people dazed and confused.