What Is A Nurse Life Care Planner?

Serious injuries can have life-changing consequences for the afflicted individual and their family. This is exactly why life care planning is so important in these circumstances.

A nurse life care planner can accurately assess and plan for future care needs, helping ensure that those with serious medical conditions can receive the right support and resources. 

Despite their importance, the position of a nurse life care planner is often overlooked when discussing care providers.

In today’s article, we’ll focus on the role of life care planning in a disabled person’s recovery, as well as clarify in which circumstances these services are necessary. 

What Does A Nurse Life Care Planner Do?

A nurse life care planner is, as the name suggests, an expert with a background in nursing who helps individuals with chronic illnesses or catastrophic injuries improve their quality of life. The main responsibility of this professional is assessing the future care needs of the patient and developing a detailed care plan tailored to their medical needs. 

Life care planners, in general, evaluate the disabled person’s medical history, current status, and prognosis. During the process, they’ll collaborate with other medical professionals to establish a full holistic understanding of the needs of the patient dealing with serious conditions. 

The result of the entire process is a life care plan that allows the planner to effectively anticipate all medical and other services the patient will require in the future. 

Along with conducting thorough assessments and developing a care plan, a nurse life care planner may also provide the patient with a cost estimation of all the recommended medical and support services. This includes cost estimation of medical treatments, medications, therapies, assistive devices, and even required home modifications. If needed, the life care planner may also evaluate the costs of nursing services or personal care attendants. 

Skills And Qualifications Of A Nurse Life Care Planner

Due to the sensitivity of the matter in question, life care planners need to possess a specialized set of skills along with the necessary qualifications, some of which include:

• Medical knowledge: a life care planner must have a deep knowledge related to the medical field. While medical education may not be necessary, the majority of life care planners have a medical background.

• Communication skills: since putting together a life care plan requires close collaboration with a variety of medical practitioners, a life care planning specialist must possess effective communication skills.

• Analytical skills: due to the complexity of a life care plan, a person in charge of making it must have a strong ability to analyze complex diagnostic tests, treatment plans, and medical records.

• Attention to detail: a single oversight can have a negative impact on the individual’s care plans, which is why a life care planner must possess a strong attention to detail.

Nurse Life Care Plans In Legal Cases

Along with providing individual life care services to individuals affected by catastrophic injuries or illnesses, life care planners may also provide their expertise in legal cases. 

Since they have the ability to accurately assess future care needs and the associated costs, attorneys may leverage a life care planner’s expertise to calculate damages, thus allowing the plaintiff to receive adequate compensation. 

For instance, in a personal injury case, a nurse life care planner might assess the extent of the injury together with its financial impact on the plaintiff’s future. In other words, a life care plan will quantify the value of care and support services, which the attorney can use to determine the economic damages caused by the injury. 

Similarly, a life care planner may also provide the same expertise in a medical malpractice case. Also, if they have a medical background, they can help the attorney determine if the standard of care was met by the physician. 

When Should You Hire A Nurse Life Care Planner?

Many of those who are dealing with injuries or chronic conditions have never heard about life care planning services. With that said, regardless of whether you want to hire a planner yourself or for a loved one, here are some of the signs you can benefit from their services:

• Primary caregiver (spouse, family member) for the injured person is suffering from burnout, physical or mental health problems, or is otherwise frustrated with the situation

• Family or the injured individual themselves are uninformed with their healthcare options and are unable to take the next step or don’t know how to seek help 

• Individual who suffered a debilitating injury, such as a traumatic brain or spinal injury

• Injured individual has a serious disability but has no immediate family who can provide them with assistance

• Person with a traumatic brain injury is showing signs of cognitive changes that the family is unable to cope with or handle appropriately 

• Family and the afflicted individual are worried about how they’ll pay for ongoing medical care

• Injured individual was recently hospitalized and their family was informed that the individual may not be able to return home since they require constant care or specialized medical equipment

• Family and the individual are in disagreement about the appropriate healthcare options or disagree about the best way to allocate available financial resources. 

Want To Learn More About Life Care Planning?

A life care plan is the best way to help the suffering individual and their family work through the whole ordeal. By closely collaborating with the family, a nurse life care planner can help them prepare for all the medical and, more importantly, financial challenges that are yet to come. 

In addition, if you’re looking to pursue litigation against another party to recover damages for the injury, a life care planner can strengthen your case and provide a scientific approach to calculating the cost of all the damages involved - ensuring that all the medical care needs are accurately accounted for. 

To learn more about life care planning, how it can help you, and the price of the service, reach out to life care professionals at OAS.

Our experts have been national leaders in the field for over 30 years, and no matter what your care needs are, we are ready to help you - all you need to do is call 800-292-1919.

Note: 

The information in this blog post is for reference only and not legal advice. As such, you should not make legal decisions based on the information in this blog post. Moreover, there is no lawyer-client relationship resulting from this blog post, nor should any such relationship be implied. If you need legal counsel, please consult a lawyer licensed to practice in your jurisdiction.