Frequently Asked Questions

What is an IME?
The term " I M E " is an acronym for Independent Medical Evaluation, and refers to any psychiatric or medical evaluation performed by a "neutral" practitioner who has no treatment, financial, or professional relationship with the examinee or the examinee's care givers.

Why are IMEs performed?
IMEs are typically requested by insurance companies to independently evaluate disability status and/or appropriateness and need for treatment issues. Similarly, HMOs and PPOs will also sometimes request that an IME be performed on a member or recipient of benefits.

Why are IMEs Necessary?
Insurance companies must periodically perform IMEs in disability cases to corroborate disability status and make sure benefit recipients are under the care of a physician and are being appropriately treated. Without the IME process, it would be impossible for insurers to offer disability coverage.

Helpful Links and Resources:

• American Academy of Neurology
  http://www.aan.com/
  The American Academy of Neurology provides fact sheets on dozens of diseases including headaches, Alzheimer's disease and stroke. Check the neurology news section for recent breakthroughs or learn more about the AAN's education efforts.
  
  
• Alzheimer Research Forum
  http://www.alzforum.org/
  Physicians, researchers and layperson's can check this site for news and information about Alzheimer's, research findings, forums, an index of online support groups, information about patient care and links to Alzheimer's associations.
  
  
• Archives of Neurology: American Medical Association
  http://archneur.ama-assn.org/
  The journal is dedicated to publishing scientific information useful to physicians caring for people with neurological disorders. It offers online abstracts and tables of contents.
  
  
• Journal of Contemporary Neurology
  http://mitpress.mit.edu/e-journals/CONE/
  Access abstracts from this Massachusetts Institute of Technology journal on clinical and research topics in human neurology, neuroscience and related fields.
  
  
• Journal of Neuroscience
  http://www.jneurosci.org/
  Published by the Society for Neuroscience, this journal offers non subscribers access to tables of contents, abstracts and searching.
  
  
• Learning Guide for the Human Brain
  http://uta.marymt.edu/~psychol/brain.html
  Browse through a collection of learning modules that focus on different aspects of the human brain. Click your mouse on any part of the picture, and the name of the structure you have designated appears along with an explanation.
  
  
• Neurocase Online
  http://neucas.oupjournals.org/contents-by-date.0.shtml
  This is the online version of the journal Neurocase, which publishes case studies in neuropsychology, neuropsychiatry and behavioral neurology. It offers tables of contents, abstracts and some full-text articles dating to 1996.
  
  
• Whole Brain Atlas at Harvard
  http://www.med.harvard.edu/AANLIB/home.html
  Take a tour of what lies between the ears with this detailed anatomical exploration of the human brain. You'll find plenty of slides of tissue cross sections, details on numerous brain disorders and diseases, and a primer on neuroimaging.