This issue of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics devoted to Life Care Planning is Guest Edited by Michel Lacerte, MD, Richard Paul Bonfiglio, MD, and Cloie B. Johnson, M.Ed., ABVE, CCM. This issue will focus on the long-term care of a patient’s rehabilitation, typically after a major life event. Articles in this issue will focus on the life care planning of patients with spinal cord injury, acquired brain injury, spinal pain, Cerebral Palsy, neuropathic pain, and life care planning for amputees. Other articles in this issue include: The Life Care Planning Process; The Physiatrist’s Role in Life Care Planning; Life Expectancy Determination; and Vocational Rehabilitation and Work Life Expectancy.

Celebrating 25 years since its first publication, the fifth edition of this best-selling text is the most up-to-date and complete resource available on what a life care planner does, how the life care planner does it, and issues that affect the day-to-day role of a life care planner. Now featuring new material on pediatric life care planning and case management, including brachial plexus injuries and neurodevelopmental disorders, this new edition provides guidance and planning for cases across the lifespan. It begins with a series of chapters examining ten different professional specializations that often contribute to a life care plan, before providing critical information for developing life care plans for individuals with different physical, mental, and cognitive conditions including spinal cord injury, brain injury, and chronic pain. Uniquely comprehensive, the book also includes chapters on the forensic and legal context of life care planning, as well as equipment/technology, evidence-based literature/resources, and special education/special needs planning relevant to pediatric life care planning. Also including chapters dedicated to life care planning methodology and life care planning research, this is an essential resource for anyone practicing or studying life care planning or managing the needs of those requiring chronic medical care over the lifespan.

Life Care Planning and Case Management Handbook, Second Edition brings together the many concepts, beliefs, and procedures regarding life care plans into one state-of-the-art publication. This second edition of a bestseller is focused on prioritizing and managing the spectrum of services for people with serious medical problems and their families.

Life Care Planning and Case Management Handbook, Second Edition brings together the many concepts, beliefs, and procedures regarding life care plans into one state-of-the-art publication. This second edition of a bestseller is focused on prioritizing and managing the spectrum of services for people with serious medical problems and their families. Keeping up with advances in the field, this is the most comprehensive reference for everyone concerned with coordinating, evaluating, assessing, and monitoring care.

This textbook is an essential resource for life care planners in understanding and assessing a range of medical disabilities, life care planning as a health care service delivery practice, certification under the International Commission on Health Care Certification, as well as the path to rehabilitation for mild to catastrophic injuries. Written by a team comprised of expert physicians and doctoral-level practitioners, the book covers the key areas of traumatic injury, and resultant disability that life care planners so often face. From acquired brain injury and spinal disorders to amputation, chronic pain, post-traumatic debilitating headaches, and plastic reconstructive surgery, the book provides a road map not only to the treatment options available, but also the strategies that can lead to rehabilitation and a possible return to work. Each chapter also discusses possible complications, allowing a holistic perspective on each issue. Also including chapters on medical cost projection analysis and functional capacity evaluation, this is the complete text for both professionals in the fields of rehabilitation services and life care planning, as well as students training to qualify.