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Hi all,

 It has come to my attention that some professionals who dont even have the experience to call them selves Life care Planners are writing so called Life Care Plans.  They are of course not certified......is there anything I can do about this?

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Jane Burns, Director
jane@lighthousehealthgroup.com
Chatswood Australia
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My apologies.  I should have done so initially.

 "Although this author recommends that the rehabilitation expert possess credentials related to life care planning consulting and testimony, it is not necessary for the rehabilitation professional to be certified or possess a certain level of education to be considered an expert" (Weed & Berens, 2010, p. 742).

Weed, R., & Berens, D. (2010). Life care planning and case management handbook. Boca Raton: CRC Press.

This is the primary text that is utilized by the University of Florida Life Care Planning Pre-certification program, of which I am currently enrolled.  Therefore, I consider it to be the LCP manual.

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Burt Ashman
Licensed Rehab Counselor
burt@mcnabbrehab.com
Lafayette, LA United States
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Burt,  I knew exactly what you were talking about :)  I refer to that same manual when I am asked about credentialing.  

Jane, did you run into a problem with a LCP you reviewed that a non-certified planner prepared?  I am just curious as to what you want to do about it?  Maybe I am misunderstanding the concern.

Regards,

Mary

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Mary Salerno RN, BS, CRRN, CDMS, LNCC, CCM, CBIS, CLCP
Certified Life Care Planner
Catastrophic Case Manager

M. Salerno & Associates, Inc.
A Medical Legal Nurse Consulting Corporation
Maryville, TN USA
mary.salerno@msalernoinc.com
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Jane,

First, remember that LCPing is a role, not a profession, so there is no regulatory entity. Just as you could work in other roles such as hands-on clinician, educator, or administrator, roles do not have regulation, but the profession (e.g. RN, OT, PT, etc.) does.

Second, turn to the Standards of Practice.  These are applicable to the role of LCP, regardless of what profession the person belongs to.  If the document is not really a life care plan, you should be able to point to specific standards to show this.  The 2nd edition of the SOP is available on the IARP website under the IALCP section.  The 3rd edition will be released within the next month or so, if you can wait for it.  It is a good guide for helping you aid the attorneys in identifying questions to ask in depositions and to evaluate whether the person doing the "LCP" really has the knowledge and skills to properly create a LCP.

You cannot ensure that people who do not know how to write LCP do not write them, but you can ensure that their lack of knowledge and skill is identified. That becomes a credibility and marketing issue for that person, and over time they may be weeded out as consumers of LCP services know how to select good LCPers.

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Karen Preston, FIALCP
Consultant
rnsconsult@aol.com
Sacramento, CA United States
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