Medical Malpractice Consultants: 67

James M. Wheeler, MD, MPH, JD, magna cum laude in Biology / Psychology from Harvard, is an OB/GYN trained at Baylor, with subspecialty training in Reproductive Endocrinology / Infertility at Yale. He is also a graduate of the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program at Yale, focusing upon clinical epidemiology and biostatistics and health policy. He also earned his MPH at Yale majoring in Biostatistics, minoring in Maternal/Child Health. He graduated from the University of Houston Law Center with a JD in 2005, and was invited to join the Health Law division there. He has completed ADR training, having completed training programs separately in mediation, and arbitration.

Dr. Wheeler is a former national officer of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), and served on several of their health policy committees including the Health Care Commission and the Hysterectomy Committee. He has published over 40 peer-reviewed papers on a wide array of topics in ob/gyn, with a particular emphasis on methodology. He has given over 200 invited lectures to ob/gyns, reproductive endocrinologists, radiologists, midwives, nurses, surgical technologists, law students et al. He sees himself first and foremost as a caregiver, and second to only that, as a teacher.

Dr. Wheeler has consulted in several hundred medicolegal matters for over 20 years, mostly in ob/gyn, but including family practice, internal medicine and several of its subspecialties, general surgery and several of its subspecialties, and dermatology. He has been a testifying expert before the FDA for drugs and devices, and has testified before U.S. Congressional staffers on health policy issues. He reviews for attorneys from both plaintiff and defense bars, as well as insurance companies (e.g. Pro-Assurance), and health plans (e.g. Harvard Community Health Plan). He has helped with Board of Medicine reviews, and constructing/defending class action suits. The combination of his training in medicine, basic and clinical research, clinical epidemiology, biostatistics and law make him a uniquely qualified person to review the complex issues of medicolegal cases.

Dr. Wheeler is a qualified first-reviewer, and a convincing expert during testimony. He has never been excused from a case as insufficiently expert.

Areas of expertise:

Gynecologic surgery Forceps / Vacuum Uses/ Complications Fetal Stress vs. Distress Cesarean vs. Vaginal Birth Shoulder Dystocia Pregnancy induced Hypertension / HELLP Syndrome Hysterectomy: Indications and Complications

Preterm Labor Incompetent Cervix Endometriosis Pelvic Adhesions Leiomyomata Uteri Infertility Advanced Reproductive Technology (IVF)

Clinton F. Merrill, Jr., MD, has over 35 years of experience in clinical Internal Medicine and 28 years of experience in Medical Oncology and Hematology.

Dr. Merrill is experienced in the diagnosis and treatment of all solid tumors as well as the full range of hematologic malignancies. He has special expertise in benign hematology including: anemias, low blood cell counts, iron overload disorders, bleeding and clotting disorders.

Litigation Support - Dr. Merrill offers expert witness services to counsel representing Plaintiff and Defendant. His services include medical record review, written reports, depositions, and trial testimony. Dr. Merrill takes pride in providing thorough record review, meticulously researched reports reflecting unbiased opinions, and excellent communication skills with the ability to make the complex understandable.

Areas of Expertise:

Breast Cancer Colon Cancer Lung Cancer Tumors Leukemias Lymphomas

Myeloma Myeloproliferative Disorders Myelodysplastic Syndromes Benign Hematology Anemia Bleeding and Clotting Disorders

Tracy L. Skaer, PharmD, FASHP, FASCP is a Professor Emeritus of Pharmacotherapy with over 30 years of pharmaceutical experience. Dr. Skaer's research and professional experience include pharmacy practice, chronic pain, mental health, substance abuse, and complementary and alternative medicine. She is licensed pharmacist in California, Idaho, and Washington.

Dr. Skaer’s current research involves the use of mindfulness and multiple family group problem solving for the Treatment of Chronic Pain in those with high risk of Opioid Use. Her plans are to expand this intervention to manage chronic insomnia and post-traumatic stress disorder in children and adolescents, American Indians, veterans, and other populations. Other research interests include chronic pain, comorbid mental illness in chronic disease, depression, anxiety disorders, insomnia, mindfulness, complementary and alternative medicine, and pharamcoeconomics and pharmacoepidemiology. Her research has been supported by over $3.2 million in grants from foundations and pharmaceutical industry.

Dr. Skaer has published 110 professional abstracts, 82 research papers, 43 review articles, and 6 book chapters. She serves on the editorial boards of 3 medical professional journals, Clinical Therapeutics, Journal of Sleep Medicine and Disorders, and Pain Studies and Treatment. Dr. Skaer's publications have appeared in numerous journals including, Drugs, Clinical Drug Investigation, PharmacoEconomics, Journal of Clinical Pharmacy & Therapeutics, American Journal of Medicine, Harvard Review of Psychiatry, and the New England Journal of Medicine among others.

View Dr. Skaer's Expert Witness Profile.

Timothy P. Luckett, BS, RN, CNOR, CRNFA, CIC, LNC a Legal Nurse Consultant (LNC) gives expert opinions and testimony in all types of medical malpractice cases for both Plaintiff and Defense. Mr. Luckett is a Registered Nurse Expert in Surgery, ICU, Nursing Home Neglect, Outpatient Surgery Center Matters, and Hospital Surgical Matters.

Mr. Luckett has served as a circulating nurse, RR nurse, and as a registry nurse in General Surgery, Orthopedics, Neurosurgery, Gynecology, Vascular and Urology Surgeries. He has given numerous laser safety lectures and is a clinical assistant for the University of California at Los Angeles, Registered Nurse First Assist (RNFA) program. Mr. Luckett has also served as a case consultant and reviews nurse malpractice cases for the California Board of Registered Nursing.

Matthew E. Karlovsky, MD, FACS is double board certified in Urology as well as in Female Pelvic Medicine & Reconstructive Surgery, by the American Board of Urology, a distinction held by a select few of all urologists in the United States. He is fellowship trained in Neurourology & Prosthetics (Female Urology) and has been in private practice in Phoenix, AZ since 2005.

Dr. Karlovsky's expertise is in Injury to Male or Female Genitalia or Urinary Tract whether from surgery, a motor vehicle accident, device implantation, or other occurrence which may result in significant morbidity and possible long term difficulty with urination or sexual function. Traumatic injury to nerves that affect urinary and sexual function, assessment of mechanism of injury, and assessment of function and form of the genitourinary tract are critical to establishing causation, damages, and any potential lifelong debility.

Litigation Support - Dr. Karlovsky has reviewed medical malpractice for plaintiff, defense, and national insurance carriers (GEICO, MetLife). He provides timely review of records, reports, case research, testimony at deposition or trial, and IMEs. A thorough case review involves, but is not limited to, assessing the diagnosis and surgical indication, surgeon training, implant or surgery selection, patient risk factors, unforeseen issues, expectations, definitions of a successful surgery, post operative care and complication management, accident reports, radiology images if available, medical and billing records, Interrogatories, depositions and reports. He opines on cases involving:

Pelvic Mesh Sexual / Genital Injury Personal Injury / Motor Vehicle Accident

Criminal Cases Foley Catheter Implant / Device Complications

Dr. Karlovsky has reviewed cases for attorneys and clients in Alaska, Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Colorado, Idaho, Wyoming, Washington, Missouri, Michigan, Georgia, Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Indiana, Kansas, Tennessee, Alabama, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Maine, and Connecticut.

Seminars & Speaking Engagements - Urology & Mesh Medical Consulting PLLC and Dr. Karlovsky provide seminars on assisting with malpractice and litigation avoidance. Education and better understanding of perioperative and surgical planning benefits patients and physicians. Their standard seminar reviews common Negligence and Standard of Care concepts, Informed Consent, Informed Refusal, Disclosures, and Documentation Pitfalls. This seminar may benefit: residency training programs; private physician groups; physician societies; insurance malpractice carriers who may wish to lower risk or potential claims among their insured physicians.

William Santoro, MD is Board Certified in Addiction Medicine and board eligible in Family Medicine. His professional consultant services are utilized by Pharmaceutical companies to educate doctors on why and how to use medication for substance use disorders. Dr. Santoro also gives talks and seminars to groups on all aspects of addiction medicine.

In addition to being the Chief of the Section of Addiction Medicine at Tower Health System, he was the Medical Director at the Reading Hospital & Medical Center detoxification and rehabilitation program for 36 years. He was also the Medical Director for a Methadone Treatment facility for 22 years where he was responsible for all admission physical examinations and for prescribing methadone to approximately 950 opiate dependent patients.

Dr. Santoro is the Addictionist on staff at The Reading Hospital & Medical Center within the Department of Family & Community Medicine. He is consulted by hospitalists to care for patients admitted to the hospital with addiction complicating their condition. Dr. Santoro runs an outpatient program utilizing buprenorphine and naltrexone maintenance for over 300 patients. With a special interest in Sports Medicine, in 2001, he served as a volunteer physician for the U.S. Olympic Training Team in Lake Placid, New York. 

Professional Services:

• Consultant speaker for Forrest Pharmaceuticals. Responsible for teaching physicians about using Campral for alcohol dependence, 2005 to 2007
• Consultant speaker for Indivior (formerly Rickett-Benckiser). Mentoring program to teach physicians how to appropriately use Suboxone and Sublocade  for opioid use disorder, 2005 to present
• Consultant speaker for Pfizer Labs. Responsible for teaching physicians how and why to use Chantix for tobacco addiction, 2007 to present

View William Santoro's Expert Witness Profile.

Suzanne Dupée. MD is a triple-board certified Child, Adolescent, and Forensic Psychiatrist practicing in Manhattan Beach in Los Angeles County, Southern California.  She specializes in a wide range of psychiatric services for children, adolescents, adults and families.

Dr  Dupée completed her general psychiatric residency at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.  She furthered her training by studying Child & Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego.  She then moved to New York City to complete a Forensic Psychiatric Fellowship at New York University.

In private practice in Los Angeles since 2002, Dr. Dupée's practice includes treating children, adolescents and adults for Medication Management.  She specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of Attention Deficit, Hyperactivity Disorder, Depression, Anxiety, and other Psychiatric Conditions in children, adolescents and adults. 

Dr. Dupée is invited to speak to at presentations and trainings for mental health and legal professionals.  Her Manhattan Beach office is located one block from the beach and one block from the pier in beautiful Manhattan Beach, CA.  Her office provides a warm, comfortable, child-friendly relaxing atmosphere for her patients and evaluees.

Dr. Dupée is currently authoring several chapters in the seminal forensic psychiatric textbook, Principles and Practice of Forensic Psychiatry.  Dr. Dupée taught forensic psychiatry trainees at UCLA for over 10 years until the Forensic Psychiatry program ended.  She is an Associate Clinical Professor at the University of California, Irvine where she trains forensic psychiatry trainees.

View Dr. Dupée's Expert Witness Profile.

Steven Burres has over 30 years of experience in the practice of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Dr. Burres provides all aspects of care including surgery, evaluation, treatment, and complications. He specializes in:

• Ear, Nose, and Throat
• Facial Plastic Surgery
• Liposuction
• Allergy

Dr. Burres has in-depth expertise in procedures such as cosmetic plastic surgery including hair, forehead, eyelids, nose, lip, facelift, neck lift, ear pinning and reshaping, cheek and chin implants, fillers, Botox, lasers, skin, scars, liposuction, and others except for breast implants and tummy tuck.

Dr. Burres' ear nose and throat experience includes broken noses and other facial fractures, hearing loss, vertigo, dizziness, smell, taste, nasal obstruction, sinusitis, tinnitus, hoarseness, GERD, sleep apnea, cancer, headaches, TMJ, skin disorders, facial nerve, and allergy.

Dr. Burres also has expertise in medical manufacturing having creative from concept-to-sales two medical businesses, one an injectable filler and the second a set of ear cleaning tools sold at major retailers.

Litigation Support - Dr. Burres has 20 years of experience serving as an expert witness and evaluator. He is a licensed QME/IME in California. His services are available to attorneys representing plaintiff and defendant for any medical legal matter including personal injury, workman's compensation, QME, IME, medical malpractice, or other medical manufacturing issues.

Education / Training:

• BA - University of Chicago, 1975
• MD -University of Chicago-Pritzker School of Medicine, 1979
• Residency Otolaryngology / Head and Neck Surgery, 1983
• Fellowship Facial Plastic surgery - Stanford University, 1985

William B. Stetson, MD specializes in Sports Medicine with an expertise in Arthroscopic and Reconstructive Surgery of the shoulder, knee, elbow and ankle. He has first hand knowledge of athletic injuries and the desire that all of us have to “get back in the game”. He is an associate clinical professor of orthopedic surgery at the USC Keck School of Medicine and is the team physician on the USA Men’s and Women’s volleyball teams and was with both teams in London, England for the 2012 Summer Olympics. 

Dr. Stetson utilizes leading edge diagnostic solutions to assess and repair knee injuries, shoulder injuries, elbow injuries, and conditions relating to Arthritis . State-of-the-art, minimally invasive surgery techniques such as arthroscopic surgery means faster recovery times.

Areas of Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Specialization:

Knee Arthroscopy Shoulder Arthroscopy Rotator Cuff Repair ACL Reconstruction Treatment of Arthritis

Knee Ligament Reconstruction Recurrent Shoulder Dislocation Shoulder Impingement / Bursitis Meniscus Repair and Meniscectomy Elbow Arthroscopy

Dr. Stetson has traveled extensively throughout the world teaching and lecturing about shoulder arthroscopy and recently returned from Romania and Beijing, China where he lectured about the latest techniques of shoulder arthroscopy. He has started a non-profit organization, Operation Arthroscopy, whose mission is to bring orthopaedic surgery and arthroscopy to countries and communities in need.

View Dr. Stetson's Expert Witness Profile.

Stephen M. Raffle, M.D. is double Board-Certified in Psychiatry and Forensic Psychiatry. Dr. Raffle has over 49 years as a clinical and forensic psychiatrist offering his expert opinion in Federal and State jurisdictions nationwide. In addition to serving as an expert witness, Dr. Raffle consults to attorneys, judges, insurers, and to employers regarding Fitness for Duty and Risk of Violence (Threat) Assessment:

• 5000+ psychiatric assessments
• Expert testimony in 700 depositions and trials
• Successful clinical practice

The job of an expert witness is to educate a jury, judge, attorney, and trier of fact about the forensic psychiatrist's conclusions and how those opinions were derived in a manner well-reasoned, skillful, and easily understood by every person, not only another forensic psychiatrist. In short, an educator. Dr. Raffle’s experience as an educator extends well beyond a forensic venue, yet underpins the key to his ability to explain his opinions.

• Prof. of Psychiatry, UCSF Medical School, 20 years
• U.C. Hastings College of the Law postgraduate course "Trial and Appellate Advocacy" instructing seasoned attorneys about the direct and cross-examination of expert witnesses, with special focus on mental health experts and licensed medical professionals, Psychiatrists (MDs), Psychologists (LCSWs / MFTs), and physicians in other medical specialties, 11 years

Stephen M. Raffle, M.D. & Associates' expertise is well-established in forensic assessment in the areas of:

• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Dementia and Competency
• Testamentary Capacity
• Undue Influence
• Traumatic Brain Injury
• Malingering
• Emotional Distress: Intentional & Unintentional infliction
• Emotional Distress: Forensic Evaluation to render medical-legal opinion
• Diagnosis and Need for Treatment
• Fitness For Duty
• Risk/Threat Workplace Violence Assessment
• Wrongful Termination
• Discrimination (ADA, Title VII, EEOC)
• Harassment
• Employment Litigation
• Medical Malpractice
• Catastrophic Injury
• Temporary and Permanent Disability
• Medical Records Review
• Assist in Preparation for Direct and Cross-examination of Expert Witnesses and Deposition of expert witnesses

Licensed in California.

Elliott M. Stein, MD is Board Certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in General Psychiatry (October, 1979), and in Geriatric Psychiatry (April, 1991; Re-Certified, December, 2001, and in April, 2011). Caring for the elderly for over 40 years, Dr. Stein has received numerous honors and awards for his contribution to his field. Dr. Stein is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine. He is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and a Distinguished Fellow of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry.

For 33 years, Dr. Stein was in the Private Practice of Geriatric Psychiatry in Miami and Miami Beach, Florida. His experience includes working with the elderly in various settings, including having been Medical Director for the Community Mental Health Center of Miami Beach, Medical Director of an Inpatient Geriatric Psychiatry program, and Medical Director of an Inpatient Mood Disorder program, as well as consulting at Nursing Homes, Assisted Living and other facilities. Dr. Stein was the Director of Psychiatry at the Jewish Home of San Francisco from 2010-2020, and the Medical Director of their Geriatric Psychiatry Hospital. He has treated older individuals, typically people who have complex combination of psychiatric and medical problems.

Dr. Stein has been a Member of the Task Force on Testamentary Capacity and Undue Influence, for the International PsychoGeriatric Association.  He is also the author/co-author of teaching and professional materials, including books and book chapters, and articles in the professional literature.

Consulting Specialties:

• Contested Wills and Trusts
• Testamentary Capacity, Undue Influence, Insane Delusions
• Geriatric Competence
• Dementia and Delirium, Alzheimer’s Disease
• Geriatric Psychiatry Evaluation and Treatment, Psychiatric Medication, Psychotherapeutic Issues
• Depression and Anxiety Disorders
• Relationship Problems between the Elderly and their Adult Children
• Aging and Mental Disorders
• Geriatric Psychiatry issues concerning Hospitals, Nursing Homes, Independent and Assisted Living Facilities
• Medicare Psychiatric Services Coding and Documentation

View Dr. Stein's Expert Witness Profile.

Anthony Scarcella, MD, JD, FAAEM, FACEP, is a full-time practicing, Board Certified Emergency Medicine Physician who has been providing Medical Consultation services since 1996.

As a board certified emergency medicine doctor with a law degree, Dr. Scarcella is uniquely qualified to provide case review and medical claims. He currently reviews Punitive Claims against doctors to determine culpability regarding Standard of Care for the Florida Department of Health in Tallahassee, Florida.

Dr. Scarcella speaks both Spanish and English and has full-time privileges as an Attending Physician in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, CA. He is also a part-time Attending Physician at St. Helena Hospital in Clearlake, CA and at Wuesthoff Medical Center Rockledge, Florida and Melbourne, Florida.

Dr. Scarcella's background includes instruction for the Internal Medicine and Family Practice Residency Program at Eisenhower and for Emergency Medicine Residency Programs in Florida.

California Office 78-365 Highway 111, #135 La Quinta, CA 92253

Florida Office 127 W. Fairbanks Ave. #109 Winter Park, FL 32789

View Dr. Scarcella's Expert Witness Profile.

Sasse Surgical Associates, PC is Northern Nevada’s premier provider of minimally invasive surgical solutions. Dr. Sasse is a nationally recognized expert in bariatric surgery, colorectal surgery, minimally invasive hernia and gallbladder surgery, and regenerative wound healing. 

Areas of Expertise:

Bariatric Surgery Gastric Sleeve Gastric Bypass Adjustable Band Gastric Balloon Bariatric Surgery Revision

Colorectal Surgery Gallbladder Surgery da Vinci Robotic Single Site Surgery Hernia Surgery Medically Supervised Weight Loss Regenerative Wound Care

Founder and Medical Director, Kent C. Sasse, MD, MPH, FACS, FASCRS, FASMBS, is certified by the American Board of Colon and Rectal Surgery, American Board of Surgery, and the American Society for Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery. 

Dr. Sasse performed the first laparoscopic colon resection procedure and the first laparoscopic gastric bypass procedure in northern Nevada more than 14 years ago. More recently, he is credited with performing the first daVinci Single Site gallbladder procedure in late 2013. 

With over 20 years of experience, Dr. Sasse is a sought after speaker and mentor to surgeons around the nation. He hosts cadaver courses on surgical topics including complex abdominal wall reconstruction at the University of Nevada School of Medicine, for visiting surgeons. He has also authored numerous peer-reviewed research articles, and some of his most recent papers discuss sleeve gastrectomy, laparoscopic rectopexy, gastric physiology, endoscopic techniques for gastric repairs, and minimally invasive hernia repair. He is an acclaimed award-winning author of five books www.SasseSurgical.com/books.

View Dr. Sasse's Expert Witness Profile.

Sanjay Adhia, MD, MRO, is triple-Board-Certified in Psychiatry, Brain Injury Medicine and Forensic Psychiatry. In addition to forensic/expert witness practice, Dr. Adhia has provided patient care in the Houston area. Currently, he is a neuropsychiatrist at Memorial Herman TIRR where he treats those with brain injury, stroke, and other neurological injuries. His forensic practice focuses on the psychiatric impact of personal injury, medical malpractice, drug and alcohol abuse, sexual abuse, competency, violence, and complicating mental illness, as well as psychiatric disability. 

Dr. Adhia is among one of the few Forensic Psychiatrists who is also Board-Certified in Brain Injury Medicine. Often, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) can be a major factor in litigation as it can result in psychiatric or neurocognitive impairments. He has expertise in psychopharmacology, the medicine of medication. 

In addition, Dr. Adhia works with Physicians for Human Rights to assess victims of kidnapping and false imprisonment, human trafficking, undue influence, physical and sexual abuse, rape, and fear of imminent death. In all populations, he assesses PTSD, Anxiety, Depressive Disorders, risk of suicide, and malingering. He is experienced in the treatment and impact of drug and alcohol abuse on decision-making. Dr. Adhia has also treated severe psychosis (Schizophrenia, hallucinations) and psychopathology. Dr. Adhia was formerly treating patients at a Maximum Security Prison and prison psychiatric hospital. He has treated Opioid Use Disorders. 

Dr. Adhia’s findings consider complicating factors, such as emotional distress worsened by other active physical and mental conditions. Other factors are pre-existing mental and physical illness, competency and capacity (e.g. dementia, Intellectual Disability.) As a physician, Dr. Adhia is uniquely qualified to review medical records and doctor reports. Institutional medicine, medical malpractice, and standard of care apply to both public and private facilities, including government, regulated correctional institutions, and psychiatric hospitals. Dr. Adhia is skilled in these med-legal issues. He conducts Independent Medical Examinations, review of records, and reports his med-legal findings and opinions. He is available to testify in civil, criminal, probate, Federal, Immigration, military, and administrative jurisdictions.

Ms. Roughan is a Rehabilitation Nurse Specialist who functions in the capacity of case manager, life care planner and expert witness. Her company, Roughan & Associates at LINC, is a nationally recognized Case Management and Medical/Legal Consulting service. It has been in existence since 1987, providing coordination of patient care; construction of Life Care Plans; and, consultative services to both the defense and plaintiff bar on simple and complex cases alike. Ms. Roughan has experience with diagnoses involving both children and adults and are knowledgeable in current treatment philosophies, identification of appropriate resources.

Diagnoses include, but are not limited to:

• Neurological Injuries (Brain and Spinal Cord Injury)
• Burns
• Orthopedic Injures
• Amputation
• Chronic Pain
• Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Services Include:

• Expert Testimony
• Life Care Planning
• Mini/Preliminary Life Care Plan
• Video Services
• Medical Record Review
• RN Independent Medical Exam
• Medicare Set Aside Trust Analysis
• Medical Bill Auditing
• Questions: Deposition Cross Examining