# Give a paper-only opinion without pretending you saw the person

> A file review has no examination, so every gap in the records becomes a gap in the opinion.

Source: https://imecore.com/use-cases/file-review

## You asked for a file review and received an examination-shaped report

There is no appointment. There is no current presentation. The examiner still writes as if they saw the person, or they refuse to answer because a clinic note is missing. Meanwhile a live examination in BC can sit in a booking queue for months.

- Nobody lists what the examiner did not have.
- The opinion comments on effort without an examination.
- Duplicates hide the one missing operative report.
- The quote assumed an examination fee.
- Counsel wanted this while the in-person date is still months out.

## What IMECore does about it

### The case is marked paper-only

Intake sets file review as the service. The template drops examination headings and blocks language that implies attendance.

### Gaps are the product

IMECore lists sources that arrived and sources that did not. The examiner answers against that list, or declines the question.

### Questions a paper review can actually answer

Causation from the chart, consistency, and further records to request. Not current effort, and not a physical finding.

### Sorted records, no waiting room

Duplicates collapse. Pages sort by provider and date. The examiner spends time reading, not stacking.

### The invoice matches a review, not an exam

Charges follow record-review time. There is no no-show fee, because there was no appointment.

### Use it while the examination is still booking

Open a file review on the same case. Convert to a full examination later without losing the record set.

## How it runs

1. **Open a file review, not an examination.** Set the service type first. The questions and the fee schedule follow that choice.
2. **Close the record gaps you can.** Request the missing sources. Send the brief only when the remaining gaps are ones you accept.
3. **Brief the examiner on paper limits.** The portal shows the questions and the gap list. It does not offer an appointment.
4. **Review language before release.** Strip any sentence that implies the examiner saw the person, then send the report.

## Numbers worth knowing

| Figure | What it measures | Source |
|---|---|---|
| $122 / 15 min | Doctors of BC recommended physician record-review fee | Doctors of BC uninsured services guide, 2024 |
| $1,294 | Doctors of BC recommended fee for a simple factual medico-legal report | Doctors of BC uninsured services guide, 2024 |
| 2–6 months | Typical wait to book a BC specialist IME | lawyerinfo.ca, BC WCAT guide |

## Questions people ask

### When should we order a file review instead of an examination?

When the questions can be answered from paper, or when a specialist examination will not land in time. A file review cannot speak to current presentation or effort.

### Which claim types use file reviews?

Long-term disability, workers' compensation, and some med-legal files. Accident-benefits IEs often still need an examination because the SABS question set asks about current function.

### What if a key record is missing?

Leave the gap on the case. The examiner can answer around it or decline that question. Do not hide the gap in the brief.

### Can we convert a file review into an examination later?

Yes. Open the examination on the same case. The record set and the questions carry forward.

### How is a file review billed?

By review time, not by an examination fee. There is no attendance and no no-show charge.