An accident can alter the course of your life. You might suffer serious injuries that necessitate long-term medical care, physical therapy, and counseling. Moreover, your ability to work may be significantly impacted, forcing you to change your job or stop working altogether. In this situation, a trusted Denver accident lawyer can be a powerful ally.
When an accident upends your daily existence, Frank Azar Car & Truck Accident Lawyers can help you seek comprehensive compensation to meet your evolving needs.
What Is a Life Care Plan?
A life care plan is a detailed set of treatment guidelines, projected expenses, and related considerations that helps your loved ones and those providing professional care identify your medical and financial needs. It’s tailored to your situation and reflects the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment plan for your injuries.
Who Are Life Care Planners?
Life care planners can vary depending on the situation. For example, if you suffer a catastrophic injury that prevents you from meeting your day-to-day needs, your primary caretaker may help prepare your plan.
The following professionals might participate in the drafting and execution of your life care plan:
- Family members
- Doctors
- Nurses
- Caretakers
- Physical therapists
- Occupational therapists
- Mental health counselors
Depending on your circumstances, other professionals may also participate. For instance, your accountant or financial advisor might provide input regarding your economic resources, ongoing financial commitments, and cost projections following an accident involving a commercial truck.
When you work with a Denver truck accident or car accident lawyer from our firm, you’re working with a partner who understands the costs you may be facing. Part of our role as your advocate is to help you plan for the future.
What Should You Include in Your Post-Accident Life Care Plan?
A post-accident life care plan is like a road map for your long-term care. It will start with your diagnosis and current prognosis from your medical team. This information can then be used to prepare a plan that includes the following components:
Medical and Care Requirements
The heart of your plan is your current and future medical needs. It should include everything pertaining to the treatment plan your doctor and their team have put into place, such as:
- Treatments
- Surgeries and other procedures
- Prescription and over-the-counter medications
- Testing and monitoring
- Medical equipment, prostheses, and similar supplies
You’ll also likely have rehabilitation and therapy needs that may go beyond the time frame for your medical care. Your plan should include any therapy you anticipate, including:
- Physical therapy to preserve or expand your physical functions
- Mental health counseling to treat depression, anxiety, or PTSD stemming from your injuries
- Vocational therapy to regain job-related knowledge and skills
- Occupational therapy to recover the abilities of self-care and independent living, if possible
At this point, you should focus on the care your doctor recommends or prescribes without worrying about the expenses associated with those needs. The financial part of the plan will come later.
Living Needs
You should also include a list of your requirements for daily life. For instance, you may need to modify your home to accommodate certain disabilities. Similarly, you may require a new vehicle or modifications to your existing vehicle so you can use it with your physical limitations.
If you’re unable to care for yourself, you should document your short- and long-term care needs. These may include a caretaker who makes periodic in-home visits or the intensive assistance provided by a residential rehab or nursing facility.
Vocational Assessment
Your plan should feature a description of your prospects for working and earning money. If you’ve seen a vocational rehabilitation expert, incorporate the assessment that describes your work limitations, the accommodations you require to return to your old job, or the training you need for a new job. If you cannot work, the plan should state that.
You’ll also need to project your earning capacity based on the aforementioned assessment. Describing your earning capacity will present a clear picture of your unmet financial needs for the personal injury lawyer handling your case.
Lifetime Cost Projection
The life care plan should contain a projection of the costs associated with your medical and care requirements, which should be calculated over your expected lifetime based on your prognosis. These costs should be presented as a present value based on the time and expected inflation rate.
Additional Elements
Other documents, statements, or information relevant to your long-term planning may also be necessary. For example, your plan should mention any required assistance, such as transportation, from family members who won’t receive compensation. This will help you assess the needs that might go unmet if something happens to your loved one.
You may also include any documents, records, and expert opinions used to prepare your plan. This documentation will enable you to update your plan as your health and medical needs evolve.
How We Determine the Value of a Life Care Plan for Injury Victims
Our Denver truck accident attorneys work with professional life care planners to review your plan and use it in your case. We may also call these planners to testify in your case to help the jury understand your economic losses.
To provide admissible testimony, the life care planner will base the value of your plan on solid evidence, such as medical bills and medical opinion letters, rather than speculation.
Additionally, the planner may interview you, visit your home, or talk to your doctor or therapists. With the information they gather, they can provide a sound opinion about the value of your life care plan when called to testify by an injury lawyer from Frank Azar Car & Truck Accident Lawyers.
Who Benefits Most From Life Care Plans?
For the most part, life care plans are intended for the victims of life-changing injuries. Catastrophic injuries like paralysis, traumatic brain injuries, and third-degree burns typically require ongoing or lifelong treatment, care, and therapy. People with these injuries need a comprehensive plan to ensure that their needs are met. Their families can also benefit from life care planning. These plans can provide a path forward and reduce some of the stress that comes with such an unexpected change.
Life Care Planning After a Work Injury
A life care plan can benefit you whether you were injured in a car crash or a workplace accident. However, workers’ compensation cases are handled differently from personal injury cases. Consequently, a car accident lawyer would use your life care plan differently from a workers’ comp lawyer.
Call Frank Azar Car & Truck Accident Lawyers in Denver Today
A life care plan can serve many purposes, from guiding you through the challenges and costs you’ll face after an injury to supporting your ensuing legal claim. The injury attorneys at Frank Azar Car & Truck Accident Lawyers in Denver can use your life care plan to take stock of your financial needs and pursue a fair settlement or jury award to cover them.
Our firm has offices throughout Colorado to make it easy for you to discuss your case with a qualified attorney. Contact us today to learn more about how we use life care plans to advocate for our clients.
