How to Write Up Social Security Medical Disability
The Social Security Administration must determine if a patient has a disability that makes them unable to work; a doctor will be asked to make a report and send it to the Social Security Administration office. The doctor's report should be accurate and helpful, so the Social Security Administration can make a determination. As a medicail professional, if you are asked to write up a report, you should know the proper way to do so.
- Interview the person that is filing the application. Talk to the person about how his or her disability has affected them from working. Ask the patient if there are other ways they can make money. Find out what jobs the patient is qualified for. This will help to get an idea about the type of job the patient can do.
- Evaluate your patient by using a checklist, this is a basic checklist for all your patients but you may switch it around to match the patient’s needs. Your checklist must have things like walk, sit, balance, reach over their head, dexterous hands and stand. If the patient is filing a disability claim because of a mental capacity, you must conduct an assessment of their ability to understand and follow directions, complete all tasks and do daily activities.
- Provide the information you received from the patient’s chart that tells the patients' level of competencies and range of motion. If you are working with mental disability, provide information pulled from the chart that shows the patient's level of ability.
- Compile all the information in an objective format. Make sure your report is not biased and is simply stated and professional. Submit the form to the office that requested the information.