Medical Record Review Consultants: 106

Barry Zakireh, PhD, is a licensed Clinical and Forensic Psychologist with over 20 years of experience in his field. In private practice since 2000, he focuses principally on the assessment and treatment of Sexual Aggression and Violent Behavior. 

Dr. Zakireh currently teaches, trains, and provide clinical and psychological assessment in affiliation with the Psychiatry Department at the University of Pennsylvania, Perelman Scool of Medicine, and other mental health organizations. He works closely with social service as well as private sources related to allegations of sexually inappropriate behavior in the context of custody and family risk assessment. 

Consultation, Assessment, and Treatment:

• Adult and Juvenile Sexual Offenders and Victims
• Behavior Disorders
• Forensic Neuropsychology
• Assessment of Violence
• Custody and Parenting Evaluations
• Psychoeducational Evaluations of Adults, Adolescents, and Children

Consultation & Educational Services

• Risk Assessment Procedures, Standards of Practice, Program Development
• Supervision and Treatment of Offenders
• Supervision of Professionals and Clergy with Sexual Misconduct
• Supervision / Training of Clinical Personnel involved in Psychological Interventions in Civil or Criminal Systems

View Dr. Zakireh's Expert Witness Profile.

Andrew Wittenberg, MD, MPH, FACEP, is the medical director of his Emergency Department and a practicing Emergency Medicine Physician with over 15 years of experience. He is certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine (ABEM) and is a fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP).  

Dr. Wittenberg currently works in a tertiary care center in southern California that is a stroke center, trauma center, STEMI-receiving center, and Pediatric Medical Center.  Dr. Wittenberg also has significant experience working in a smaller, single-coverage community emergency department.  Dr. Wittenberg graduated from Temple University School of Medicine and completed his residency at LA County-USC Medical Center. He has been recognized for excellence in teaching with awards from two residency programs. He also a national board examiner for ABEM.   

Litigation Support - Dr. Wittenberg offers expert witness services in medical malpractice cases involving Emergency Medicine. He provides consultation for chart reviews, expert witness depositions, and testimony. Dr. Wittenberg's services are available to both plaintiff and defense attorneys.  

Areas of Expertise:

Trauma Stroke Myocardial Infarction / STEMI /NSTEMI / ACS Pregnancy / Ectopic Pregnancy Sepsis Pulmonary Embolism (PE) Aortic Dissection Endocarditis Cauda Equina Spinal Epidural Abscess Meningitis

Aneurysm Pneumonia Appendicitis Intubation Ischemia Testicular Torsion and Ovarian Torsion Airway Management Fracture  Diabetic Ketoacidosis

Jonathan Wiesen, MD received training in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine with a special focus on Medical Ethics.

Dr. Wiesen is currently a Pulmonary and Intensive Care Attending Physician at Community Intensivists where his duties include general clinical care and workflow organization and protocol authorship. He also serves as a Medical Technology Analyst at OurCrowd where he is responsible for the Scientific and financial assessment of medical technology start up companies and provides multi-disciplinary interactions for assessments and investments.

Dr. Wiesen has extensive academic experience with over 75 publications, including first authorship on over a dozen full length manuscripts. He has been honored with the Teaching Excellence Award from the Cleveland Clinic, a non-profit academic medical center, which provides clinical and hospital care and leads in research, education, and health information. He also received the Best Abstract Award, Critical Care session, at the ACCP CHEST annual conference in 2014.

Litigation Support - Dr. Wiesen provides expert witness services to attorneys representing plaintiff and defendant. His services include medical record review, written reports, depositions, and trial testimony as needed.

Areas of Expertise:

Cardio-Pulmonary Hemodynamics Respiratory Physiology End of Life Sepsis / Septic Shock Pneumonia COPD Asthma Life Support

Mechanical Ventilation Smoking Related Diseases Interstitial Lung Disease Pulmonary Hypertension Lung Transplantation Biomedical Ethics Conflict Resolution Triage

Gregory T. Whitman MD is a board-certified neurologist, author, speaker and formerly on the faculty of Harvard Medical School. He practices Neurology in California and is available to consult and testify in other states.

Dr. Whitman is an expert in Neurology, Otoneurology, dizziness, vertigo, BPPV, gait, balance, falls, inner ear and vestibular disorders, vestibular neuritis, labyrinthitis, Meniere's disease, vestibular tests, VNG, labyrinthine concussion, orthostatic intolerance, syncope, loss of consciousness, neurological effects of medications, head trauma, concussion, traumatic brain injury, TBI, construction injuries, stroke, brain hemorrhage, Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease, cognitive impairment, dementia, carbon monoxide, encephalopathy, brain injury, seizure, sleep apnea, neuropathy, spinal disorders, disability, and other areas of Neurology.

Formerly on medical faculty at Harvard, UCLA and UC Irvine. Previous Neurology Residency Program Director, Neurology Clerkship Director. Contributor to multiple medical books. Co-author of "Dizziness Why You Feel Dizzy and What Will Help You Feel Better" (Johns Hopkins Univ. Press). Experienced public speaker. Over 10 years’ forensic experience, including depositions and testimony in state and federal court.

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.

Emin Gharibian, PsyD, is a Clinical Psychologist specializing in Forensic Psychology and Neuropsychology with over 10 years of experience in assessing, treating, and consulting on psychological disorders.

Dr. Gharibian's training and experience have been in psychological and neuropsychological assessments in a variety of clinical settings including private practice, outpatient mental health clinics, psychiatric hospitals, forensic hospitals, and correctional facilities. 

He specializes in providing comprehensive psychological and neuropsychological evaluations for various conditions including dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, complications from a stroke, traumatic brain injury, concussions, learning disabilities, ADHD, and PTSD.

He also specializes in forensic psychological and neuropsychological evaluations for immigration hearings, mental health diversion and mitigation, testamentary capacity, competency to stand trial, personal injury, worker's compensation, and fitness for duty. He provides consultation services to personal injury and worker's compensation attorneys on psychological and neuropsychological-related matters.  He has also testified as an expert and served as a consultant for the defense and prosecution in state and federal court.

In addition to his private practice, he is a forensic psychologist for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. He conducts psychological evaluations to evaluate patients for violence risk and determine if they meet the criteria to be committed to a state hospital, write court reports, and testify in court as an expert witness.

Dr. Gharibian has been appointed to the Los Angeles Juvenile Court Expert Witness Panel. He is also a member of the National Academy of Neuropsychology and the American Psychology and Law Society.

Areas of Forensic Expertise:

Personal Injury Independent Medical Evaluations Worker's Compensation Fitness for Duty Police Officer Pre-Employment Evaluations Immigration Evaluation Diminished Capacity Violence Risk Assessments Mitigating Factors in Criminal Cases Civil Capacity (Testamentary Capacity, Undue Influence, Contractual Capacity) Symptom Validity/ Malingering Mitigation in Criminal Cases Alcohol-Induced Blackout Alcohol Myopia

Forensic Psychology Forensic Neuropsychology Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Concussions Neurocognitive Impairment from Substance Use Complications from stroke Dementia Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Learning Disabilities ADHD Sexual Harassment Discrimination Mental Health Diversion

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.

William Santoro, MD is Board Certified in Addiction Medicine and Family Medicine. His professional consultant services are utilized by Pharmaceutical companies to educate doctors on why and how to use medication for subbstance 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 is the Medical Director at the Reading Hospital & Medical Center detoxification and rehabilitation program and the Medical Director for New Directions, a Methadone Treatment center where he is responsible for all admission physical examinations and for prescribing methadone to approximately 950 opiate dependant patients.

Dr. Santoro is the Addictionist on staff at The Reading Hospital & Medical Center within the Department of Psychiatry. He is consulted by hospitalists to care for patients admitted to the hospital with addiction complicating their condition. Dr. Santoro runs a Medication Assisted Recovery Clinic, an outpatient program utilizing buprenorphine and naltrexone maintenance for over 200 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 opiod 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.

The Rehberg Konin Group provides scientific investigation, research and analysis, expert testimony, and litigation support services for incidents involving Sports and Physical Activity. Their services are available nationwide. The Rehberg Konin Group's world-class experts have distinguished backgrounds in the areas of sports Risk Management and Injury Prevention. Their associates have extensive experience in specific disciplines such as sports medicine, athletic training, physical therapy, medicine, exercise science and emergency care. Selected Services Include: 

Sports Risk Management

• Development of Policy and Procedure Manuals
• Development of Injury Prevention Programs (including concussion, heat illness, and sudden cardiac death)
• Review of League, Institutional, and/or Departmental Policies and Procedures
• Independent Safety and Risk Management Audits
• Risk and Hazard Analysis of Sports Facilities

Educational Programming

• Professional Development Standards
• Customized Continuing Education Course Offerings
• Organizational Planning
• Online Continuing Education for Health Care Providers, Physicians, Coaches, Administrators, Athletes and Parents

Dr. Robb S. Rehberg, PhD, ATC, CSCS, NREMT has extensive experience as an educator and clinician. He has spent over 20 years working with athletes of all levels, from high school to Olympic competitors. His teaching experience is just as comprehensive with 18 years as an instructor in a variety of courses. Prior to his current role as Associate Professor and Coordinator of Athletic Training Clinical Education, he was the Chief Athletic Trainer for the prestigious Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation. In addition, he spent 13 years overseeing the sports medicine needs of 39 interscholastic athletic teams.

Dr. Jeff G. Konin, PhD, ATC, PT, FACSM, FNATA  is currently the Director of Athletics at Eastern Connecticut State University, in Willimantic, Connecticut. Prior to this role, he was an Associate Professor and the Vice Chair of Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine at the University of South Florida, in Tampa, FL, where he also served as the Executive Director of the Sports Medicine and Athletic Related Trauma (SMART) Institute and the Director of the Graduate Athletic Training Program. Dr. Konin has an extensive background as a clinician, educator, administrator, author, and public speaker.

 

View The Rehberg Konin Group Expert Witness Profile.

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.

Richard M. Sobel, MD, DFAPA, has over 30 years of experience practicing Adult Psychiatry and Pain Management / Medicine. His specialty focus is in Pain Medicine, for which he has sub-specialty board certification, Psychotherapy, and Psychopharmacology. Dr. Sobel believes in a collaborative, mutually-respectful doctor-patient relationship when recovering from mental illness and daunting chronic pain. His treatments include Psychotherapy, Psychopharmacology, Pain management, including medication monitoring, and Suboxone. Specialty Areas:

Adjustment Disorders Anxiety / Panic Disorder Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Bipolar Disorder Chronic Pain

Depression / Mood Disorders Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Post Traumatic Stress Disorder / PTSD Schizophrenia Workers Compensation / Disability

Dr. Sobel is currently a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Jefferson Medical School. A Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association, Dr. Sobel is immediate Past President and continues to serve on the board of the Greater Philadelphia Pain Society, one of six regional chapters of the American Pain Society. He is a Representative of the Pennsylvania Psychiatry Society to the Safe and Effective Prescribing Practices and Pain Management Work Group of the Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs. In 2014, Dr. Sobel was the recipient of the Dean's Award for Excellence in Education at Jefferson Medical College and, in 2013, was nominated Practitioner of the Year by the Philadelphia Psychiatric Society. View Dr. Sobel's Expert Witness Profile.