What You Need to Get Started
We are often asked by lawyers what we need from them to get started on writing a Future Care Cost or Vocational Report. It comes up often enough that we decided to put together a checklist of the items typically needed to create a report. This list applies whether the report is for the plaintiff or defence side.
√ Medical Records, including ambulance and hospital records as well as rehabilitation reports. If there is a pre-existing condition, any information related to that should be included, too.
√ Formal Assessments, which identify current function and need. These will typically include some or all of the following: physiotherapy, functional ability evaluations, psychology, psychiatry, physiatry, occupational therapy home assessments, driving evaluations, vocational and/or psycho-vocational assessments. Expert opinions, defence reports and insurers’ examinations should be included, too.
√ Employment Records. The employment history of the injured person often provides important insight into the pre-accident level of function and achievement. Any records related to supplementary training, attendance or awards in the workplace for things like safe driving or committee participation are also valuable. Income tax records will confirm earnings, which can be useful when determining vocational losses.
√ Discovery Transcripts are an excellent source of information that we use, especially in reports for the defence where access to the injured person is not always available.
√ Educational Records are useful particularly if the injury has taken place within five years of being a student. Full school records, not just end-of-year results, are the best information for us as they include comments on ongoing behaviours and patterns of strengths and weaknesses.
Remember: Review of as many of these records as possible is essential for a life care planner to effectively identify and substantiate recommendations – and thereby build the strong foundation for a quality Future Care Cost or Vocational Report.
If you or a colleague is handling a case needing vocational expertise,
be sure to contact Spencer Experts to find out how we can help.
Toll Free: 866.295.9195
W: www.spencerexperts.com
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