e-QME is being designed to streamline the medical-legal workflow: ingest case artifacts, convert physician dictation to text, structure the preliminary QME, identify missing evaluation criteria, apply a validated AMA Guides 5th Edition rules engine, and prepare the report for physician review and certification.
The goal is not to replace physician judgment. It is to remove repetitive clerical work and make completeness, rating logic, and source review easier to verify.
e-QME is being developed around the day-to-day medical-legal workflow of Douglas J. Abeles, MD, an orthopaedic surgeon in Castro Valley, California. The objective is simple: reduce repetitive administrative work while preserving physician control over every medical finding, rating methodology, opinion, and final report.
Dr. Abeles has maintained an active orthopaedic practice since 1996. His public practice biography describes extensive experience in sports medicine, spinal surgery, general orthopaedics, workers’ compensation, and medical-legal evaluation; more than 4,000 procedures; and substantial litigation and expert-witness experience.
Professional biography summarized from Dr. Abeles’s public practice website. Final external marketing copy remains subject to Dr. Abeles’s approval.
e-QME did not begin as a generic software concept. It grew out of a long friendship, a physician’s real-world workflow, and a shared belief that modern technology should remove repetitive work without replacing medical judgment.
Doug Abeles and Richard Paczan met in 10th grade at Eleanor Roosevelt High School as members of the ERHS golf team. Their friendship grew around a shared interest in medicine, science, skiing, and a desire to become doctors.
They took AP Biology together, ran the ERHS Ski Club during their junior and senior years, and both obtained senior-year internships at the NIH Cancer Research Institute.
Doug built a career in orthopaedic surgery and medical-legal evaluation. Richard followed a different professional path, but the friendship remained—and so did a shared habit of asking how complex problems could be solved better.
Conversations about Doug’s QME workflow exposed opportunities in transcription, document handling, AMA rating support, completeness review, and report preparation. e-QME is being designed around those real pain points rather than asking the physician to adapt to the software.
Here are the QME cases that need your attention.
| Patient | Exam | Location | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michael R. | Sep 1 | Castro Valley | Missing criteria |
| Jennifer L. | Sep 3 | Castro Valley | Draft ready |
| Robert C. | Sep 8 | Castro Valley | Scheduled |
Upload the artifacts Doug already receives. e-QME extracts the details.
Prototype calendar. Future integration can use the scheduling system Doug’s staff already maintains.
QME workspace • Castro Valley • Draft status
Panel #: 1234567
Claim #: WC-DEMO-001
DOI: 08/01/2026
Representation: Represented
✓ Form 110 / Intake
✓ Patient History
✓ Dictation Audio
✓ Dragon Transcript
2 AMA rating criteria require physician confirmation before the draft can be completed.
This area will display the uploaded history and the structured history extracted for the preliminary QME. Important statements can retain source-document/page provenance.
RIGHT KNEE: Patient reports no current pain. Flexion measured to 120 degrees. No gross instability is appreciated. Alignment demonstrates valgus...
Prototype: original transcript is treated as a source artifact. e-QME-generated report text is separate.
Based on the physician-confirmed examination findings, the preliminary impairment calculation is shown here with the applicable AMA Guides 5th Edition methodology and cross-reference.
Dr. Abeles must complete missing criteria, review the entire report, and certify responsibility for the final medical opinions and accuracy before Finalize is enabled.