Definition of Nursing
Nursing is the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, facilitation of healing, alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, groups, communities, and populations.
Definition of Nurse Life Care Planning
Nurse Life Care Planning is defined as the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities for individuals and families affected by catastrophic injuries, and chronic and complex health conditions; Nurse Life Care Planners apply advocacy, judgment, and critical thinking skills using the nursing process to develop long-term or lifetime plans of care. These plans include the future cost of identified interventions and associated costs for health maintenance, health promotion, and optimization of physical and psychological abilities for the life expectancy of the individual.
AANLCP® promotes the professional practice that the Registered Nurse delivers to the life care planning process. The goals of the AANLCP are to promote education, collegiality, collaboration, research, and standards related to the practice of Nurse Life Care Planning.
AANLCP is the only association for nurse life care planning in existence for nurse life care planners.
Definition of Life Care Plan (IASLCP)
A Life Care Plan is a dynamic document based upon published standards of practice, comprehensive assessment, data analysis, and research, which provides an organized, concise plan for current and future needs with associated costs, for individuals who have experienced catastrophic injury or have chronic health care needs
Nursing Process
Taught to all nurses and utilizes five steps:
- Assessment
- Diagnosis (nursing)
- Planning
- Implementation
- Evaluation
The Goal of a Life Care Plan
- Reduce or eliminate secondary diagnosis and complications
- Provide quality of life
- Promote an independent lifestyle
- Restore or make whole
- Bring the person back as close as possible to the day before the accident
My life care plan provides a recommendation that is reasonable and necessary for the person’s current and future needs.
Good afternoon, my name is Nancy Hamady.
I am a nurse and I specialize in the field of life care planning, case management, and Medicare Set-Aside allocations.
I work full time as a nurse with Quality Rehabilitation & Consulting Services which is my company. I am the owner and operator and I provide case management services, life care planning and Medicare Set-aside allocations. I also volunteer as a Mentor with the American Association of Nurse Life Care Planners and have served on the board as secretary and President.
A life care plan is a dynamic document based upon published standards of practice, comprehensive assessment, data analysis and research, which provides an organized, concise plan for current and future needs with associated costs, for individuals who have experienced catastrophic injury or have chronic health care needs.
The goal of a life care plan is to restore or make whole. Bring the person back as close as possible to the day before the accident.
Nurse Life Care Planning is defined as the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities for individual and families affected by catastrophic injuries, and chronic and complex health conditions; Nurse Life Care Planners apply advocacy, judgment, and critical thinking skills using the nursing process to develop long-term or lifetime plans of care. These plans include the future cost of identified interventions and associated costs for health maintenance, health promotion, and optimization of physical and psychological abilities for the life expectancy of the individual.
A life care plan is a detailed document that reflects needed care and associated costs. The life care plan for David Smith was developed to reduce or eliminate secondary diagnosis and complications, provide quality of life and promote an independent life style. The life care plan looks at Mr. Smith’s past medical history as it relates to his accident, and determines the services and items and the related costs over his lifetime.
Yes, I was asked to complete a life care plan for Mr. Smith in order to determine his future care needs.
I am a nurse with 20 plus years of experience and I use the nursing process in the development of my life care plans. The nursing process includes five steps:
- Assessment of the client, his family, and the community
- Diagnose
- Plan
- Implement
- Evaluate
As a nurse, I am qualified to give medical opinions and make recommendations.
I am a case manager and I work with ill or injured individuals to assist them in their care. Case management is a collaborative process of assessment, planning, facilitation, care coordination, evaluation, and advocacy for options and services to meet an individual’s and family’s comprehensive health needs through communication and available resources to promote quality, cost-effective outcomes.
As a life care planner, I have completed the required 120 hours of training, written a life care plan for review and passed the test necessary for certification. I am dual trained in both life care planning and nurse life care planning having completed both courses. Nurse life care planners use the nursing diagnosis and life care planners focus on the medical diagnosis.
The recommendations made in the life care plan are based on three foundations:
- Training and skill of 20 plus years of nursing experience
- Collaboration such as review of medical records to determine the recommendations of the provider, and a client assessment
- Research
I have completed life care plans for both defense and plaintiff cases. The plans use the same methodology. The only difference in the defense plan is that I may not be given access to the providers and the client.
The step-by-step process in the development of the life care plan:
- After the referral is made, I obtain all of the available medical records and depositions
- An assessment of the client, their family, and the community is completed.
- Medical records are reviewed
- Collaboration is done through the medical record review and speaking with the providers
- Research of disease process, costs and resources is conducted
- Long-term needs are determined (plan writing)
Review of the medical records is important for collaboration. I am looking at the past, present, and future care of the person in order to form the life care plan recommendations.
When I reviewed the available records of Mr. Smith, I was able to determine the cause of the accident, his disability, and his prosthesis requirements. I was able to determine if he experienced any complications related to the amputation, and his abilities and limitations.
I sent e-mails to Mr. Smith in order to fill in the blanks that I was unable to glean from the medical records and the deposition.
The steps in developing a life care plan are important because I use a methodology and a consistent process in each of my plans.
Mr. Smith’s movements are consistent with his physical disability, however, at this time, he is very active and works full time.
This is where I call it a life care plan (not minimal) and tell the jury that these items, which I recommended are necessary for a person with a below-the-knee amputation. I won’t be able to return him fully to the state he was in before, but the goal is to make him as close to that point as possible. The recommendations I provide are reasonable and necessary for his current and future needs.
If Mr. Smith does not receive the recommendations I outlined in my plan, the three goals of the life care plan won’t be met. Prevention, Restoration, and independence.
