The Foundation for Life Care Planning Research (FLCPR) was established by Dr. Paul Deutsch in 2002 as a non-profit organization with articles of incorporation, bylaws, and a board of directors. For nearly 20 years, its primary focus was on life care planning validation studies and rehabilitation research. The Foundation provided grants to conduct research and forged associations among universities and academic training programs, private practitioners, and masters and doctoral level students. The research funded by the Foundation has been published in peer-reviewed journals, re-printed in textbook publications, and cited in support of practice decisions. In 2019, the Foundation, under the direction of Dr. Debra Berens, became affiliated with IARP and was renamed the Foundation for Life Care Planning and Rehabilitation Research (FLCPRR). Staying true to the vision of Paul Deutsch and the founding members, the mission of the FLCPRR remains broad to encourage a range of research that will advance the field, make significant contributions, and provide meaningful data that can be applied to life care planning and rehabilitation practices.
For a more in depth history, please see the Journal of Life Care Planning, Vol. 17, No. 3, (61-69).
The original Board of Directors included the following members:
- Debra Berens, Ph.D.
- Paul M. Deutsch, Ph.D.
- Paul Kornberg, MD
- James Krause, MD
- Christine Reid, Ph.D.
- Susan Riddick-Grisham, RN
- Ruth Rimmer, Ph.D.
- Roger Weed, Ph.D.
In addition to providing grant funding for research projects, the original FLCPR presented five awards that recognized outstanding practitioners and rehabilitation professionals within or related to the practice of life care planning. Under the affiliation with IARP, two awards, the Outstanding Life Care Planning Educator Award and the Lifetime Achievement Award, have been transferred to the Life Care Planning IALCP Section of IARP. The criteria for these awards and a list of past award recipients can be found at https://connect.rehabpro.org/lcp/about/ialcp-awards.
The remaining three awards, the Patricia McCollom/FLCPR Research Award, the Sheri Jasper Memorial Recognition Award, and the Emerging Scholar Award (formerly the Graduate Student Paper Award), continue to be presented by the FLCPRR. A new award, the Paul Deutsch Professional Development Award, was created in 2021 to honor the FLCPRR founder and encourage further development of research skills. The criteria for these awards and a list of past award recipients can be found at https://connect.rehabpro.org/flcprr/awards.