CAT determination
Catastrophic impairment assessments tested against the SABS criteria
We coordinate the examinations and deliver a report with a finding on each catastrophic criterion your file names.
The problem
The file is thick. Nobody has tested it against the criteria.
A CAT referral asks whether the person meets the SABS catastrophic definition. The brief is a hospital dump plus rehab notes with no Glasgow score pulled forward. The examiner hunts for the criteria in hundreds of pages, and the report discusses disability in general instead of the test that pays.
- Acute-care scores are buried and never listed on the file.
- Physiatry, neurology, and psychiatry opinions are not sequenced.
- The report talks about impairment and never applies the SABS test.
- Plaintiff and insurer CAT files use different question lists on the same desk.
- The specialist wait blows the date the benefits decision needed.
What changes
What IMECore does about it
Your CAT questions run the file
Tell us which catastrophic criteria to test. Those tests stay visible from referral through review.
Acute care, rehab, and neuropsychology in order
We collect hospital records, Glasgow documentation, rehab, and neuropsychological testing by source and date, and show the gaps before booking.
Specialties sequenced to the tests
Physiatry, neurology, or psychiatry booked against the criteria, not against whoever had a slot.
A report that applies the test
Each criterion you named gets a finding. A general disability narrative does not leave our review.
A date the benefits decision can use
Psychiatric and neurological diaries run long. You see the committed report date from the day you refer.
A trail for the dispute that follows
CAT files are fought. You get the records index, the criteria list, and the audit log with the report.
How it runs
Four steps, start to finish
- 1
Name the criteria when you refer
Send the accident date, the SABS CAT questions, and which tests to apply.
- 2
We pull acute care before booking
We request hospital records, Glasgow documentation, rehab notes, and neuropsychological testing.
- 3
We book the specialties the tests need
Physiatry, neurology, or psychiatry matched to the criteria, with the report date set.
- 4
You get findings per criterion
Each named SABS test answered, then the report and the index released.
Where the time goes
Numbers worth knowing before you buy
Published figures from fee schedules and industry surveys. Each carries its source.
- Typical BC psychiatric or neurological IME cost
- $4,000–$8,000+Typical BC psychiatric or neurological IME costlawyerinfo.ca, BC WCAT guide
- Typical wait to book a BC specialist IME
- 2–6 monthsTypical wait to book a BC specialist IMElawyerinfo.ca, BC WCAT guide
- Typical wait for the report after the exam in BC
- 4–8 weeksTypical wait for the report after the exam in BClawyerinfo.ca, BC WCAT guide
Free tools
Try the calculation first
No account, no upload. These run in your browser.
- Free tool
Records review time estimator
Turn a page count into a review-time range and a cost. Handwriting, duplication, and complexity all change the answer.
Read - Free tool
Report turnaround planner
Enter the exam date and the date you need the report. See the slack, the critical path, and the latest workable exam date.
Read - Free tool
Medical chronology builder
Paste dated lines from any file. Get a sorted chronology with gaps and duplicates flagged.
Read
FAQ
Questions people ask
Is catastrophic impairment only an Ontario SABS issue?
The CAT designation in this page means the Ontario SABS catastrophic definition, overseen by FSRA. Other provinces have serious-impairment questions, but they are not the same test.
Which records decide a CAT file?
Acute-care notes, Glasgow documentation, rehab, imaging, and neuropsychological testing. A family-doctor chart alone will not meet the criteria questions.
Who refers CAT assessments?
Accident-benefits insurers and plaintiff counsel. Defence counsel refer them when the CAT designation is in dispute.
Do we need more than one specialty?
Often yes. Physiatry, neurology, and psychiatry answer different criteria. We put each on the same file so the record set is shared.
Can we start with a file review?
Yes, to see whether the paper supports a CAT examination. A paper review cannot complete every SABS catastrophic test on its own.
Keep reading
Related pages
- Claim type
Auto and accident benefits
We coordinate the examination and deliver the records and a report that answers each question the referral asked.
Read - Claim type
Med-legal and litigation
We coordinate the examination and deliver a report where every finding cites a record, so the opinion holds up in the room.
Read - For teams
Law firms
We arrange Independent Medical Examinations, Medical File Reviews, and rebuttal opinions for plaintiff and defence files. Examiners attend to speak to their reports where the file needs it, and a named reviewer signs off every report before release.
Read - For teams
Insurers and adjusters
We deliver Independent Medical Examinations, Functional Capacity Evaluations, and Medical File Reviews for ICBC Part 7, Ontario SABS, Section B, LTD, and life and health files. A named reviewer signs off every report before it reaches your desk.
Read - Service
Neuropsychological Assessment
A neuropsychologist measures attention, memory, processing speed, and executive function with a full test battery that includes effort testing, then maps the scores to work demands. Counsel and insurers order one after brain injury, or when cognitive complaints need objective measurement.
Read - Service
Catastrophic Impairment Assessment
A multidisciplinary assessment that tests whether an injured person meets the catastrophic impairment criteria in Ontario's Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule (SABS). Insurers and plaintiff counsel order one when the injuries may meet the threshold, usually through an Application for Determination of Catastrophic Impairment (the OCF-19 form).
Read - Service
Future Care Cost Assessment
A clinician works from the records and the examination findings and prices the care the injury will need: treatment, attendant care, equipment, home changes, and medications, year by year. Counsel and insurers order one — often called a life care plan — when settlement or benefits turn on what the future costs.
Read
Refer a case, get back a signed report
Send the referral and the questions. A coordinator confirms the file and what it still needs, then IMECore coordinates the examination and delivers a signed report.