What is the Role of Life Care Planning in Catastrophic Personal Injury Cases?

It is hard to quantify the loss equated with a catastrophic personal injury. Catastrophic injuries bring with them a unique set of physical and emotional challenges that require a significant amount of care and demand much from health systems.  

Not only do catastrophic injuries dramatically change the lives of those who are injured, but also changes the lives of the patient’s family.  

In this article, we will begin with a short case study on what a catastrophic injury means to someone’s day-to-day life, and why it is important to obtain compensation to offset the many associated costs. We will also discuss the  vital  role that life care planning plays in those lawsuits that seek such compensation.  

If you have more questions about  life care plans  in relation to a personal injury case, regardless of whether you are a plaintiff or defendant, then we welcome you to talk to us at Occupational Assessment Services, Inc. (OAS). We are one of the most experienced employability and life care planning firms in the United States. To discuss your case, call us at 1-800-292-1919 , contact us at a location near you, or through  our online form .

Let us take the example of a young many, the early 20s, who is involved in an accident with a truck, and it impacted his spinal cord. Sadly, his injuries are catastrophic because he now has been rendered a quadriplegic due to the accident.  

Being a quadriplegic comes with a host of obstacles just to go from day to day. Quadriplegia means that he cannot move or feel his body from the shoulders down. Thus, this young man, after receiving treatment immediately after the accident had to settle into how he would manage his life from a wheelchair. Activities that he once enjoyed were no longer available to him, simple tasks, like making a bed, or even getting into bed became daily challenges.  

In addition, there are significant emotional issues that result from being the victim of a catastrophic injury. In fact, the young man in the accident had many more obstacles to maintaining a social life. The loss of independence connected with such an injury has, as you could understand, a negative impact on the ability to socialize. 

Also, his family has been significantly impacted by the injury. As caregivers, they must shoulder the increased medical and household costs that come with his injury, while dealing with a reduced family income to allow time for caregiving. 

In sum, there are a vast number of factors to consider when looking at what is lost in someone’s life due to a catastrophic injury.  

That, of course is where life care planning comes into play.  

If an injured victim, like the young man described above, initiates a lawsuit in order to obtain compensation for his injuries, then life care planning is a crucial. That is because it is a component that allows attorneys to understand and assess the financial considerations of any given case.  

As noted in our previous blogs, a life care plan is a dynamic report that follows standards of practice and provides:

An overall assessment of a patient;

1. Data analysis of costs and other financial considerations;
2. Research on relevant medical needs; and
3. An organized narrative, describing the injured person’s current and future needs.  

A person’s quality of life is inextricably linked to his or her ability to work, need for constant medical care, need for day-to-day caregiving, and overall mental state. Thus, life care planning takes into account all of the financial demands that relate to improving, as best as possible, a person’s quality of life.

With regard to how life care planning is used, such plans are sought after by courts so judges and juries can understand the long-term financial costs of caring for an accident victim. Those life care planners who engage in life care planning work closely with an injured person’s doctor and other health care professionals to make sure of the accuracy of the life care plan that eventually goes in front of a judge and/or jury.

Further, the person who created the life care plan will also frequently serve as an expert witness in an injured person’s court case.  

Life care planning, however, is not only used in court. The plan itself is actually rather significant in the life of the injured person. The plan can help the injured person and his family manage and organize the medical and daily care needs for the injured person.  

In order to learn more about life care planning for your catastrophic injury case, contact an experienced life care planner. Those who do life care planning, such as OAS, will be able to help you through every aspect of the process.  

OAS specializes in working with the plaintiff or defense attorney to assist in objectively  documenting the economic damages  in a case. From the initial referral to the trial testimony, OAS works with the retaining attorney so that the damages of the case can be objectively and efficiently presented. 

We strongly believe in the importance of a clear and understandable presentation of the facts. OAS is the leading provider of  Vocational Expert  and Life Care Planning Services for Plaintiff and Defense attorneys. 

The company specializes in assisting attorneys in documenting the damages in cases where an individual has been severely injured by providing objective findings on how the injuries affect a persons’ ability to work and earn money, as well as the cost of care required in catastrophic injuries.

OAS is your Vocational Expert &  Life Care Planner  Nationwide, with offices in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Florida, Texas, Nevada, and California.  

Occupational Assessment Services, Inc. is one of the most experienced employability and  life care planning firms in the United States . To discuss your case, call us at   1-800-292-1919 , contact us at a location near you, or through  our online form .