Certified Cost of Future Care / Life Care Planner

This course provides a comprehensive framework for evaluating the future care needs, functional requirements, and associated costs of individuals with significant injury, disability, or chronic health conditions. Participants learn to integrate medical, rehabilitation, functional, psychosocial, and environmental information into a coherent and defensible life care plan.

Cost of Future Care and Life Care Planning continues to grow throughout Canada and the United States as insurers, legal professionals, healthcare organizations, and courts increasingly rely on qualified professionals to provide objective projections of future care needs. This course prepares rehabilitation professionals to apply their existing clinical expertise within this specialized area of practice.

Participants examine the complete life care planning process: referral and case analysis, medical and rehabilitation record review, functional assessment, identification of future care needs, development of recommendations, determination of the frequency and duration of services, cost research, and preparation of the final report.

Special attention is given to the clinical reasoning required to distinguish current treatment from anticipated future care. Participants learn to evaluate how diagnosis, prognosis, functional capacity, aging, environmental circumstances, psychosocial factors, and anticipated changes over the lifespan may influence future needs, so that recommendations remain individualized and evidence-informed rather than based on diagnosis alone.

The course also addresses the evaluator's role within medical-legal and insurance settings, spanning cases from soft-tissue and orthopedic injuries through catastrophic and complex conditions such as traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, complex pain, and mental health diagnoses. Participants learn to communicate the basis for their opinions clearly, identify the sources of information supporting each recommendation, recognize the limits of their professional scope, and develop reports capable of withstanding review by insurers, attorneys, other healthcare professionals, and courts. The goal is not simply to produce a list of anticipated services, but to build a coherent, well-supported plan that explains what future care is reasonably required, why it is required, how frequently it may be needed, and what it is expected to cost.

Target Audience:

Occupational Therapists, Physical Therapists, Vocational Counselors, Rehabilitation Counselors, and other licensed rehabilitation professionals involved in work rehabilitation, functional restoration, and return-to-work decision-making.

Instructional Level:

Advanced

Prerequisites:

Prior experience and/or formal training in Functional Capacity Evaluation is strongly recommended. Professionals pursuing certification must have an appropriate rehabilitation background and experience relevant to functional assessment and disability; a curriculum vitae review is required when specified by the program., Kinesiologists are considered for admission only after CV review, and must have practiced for at least 5 years, completed additional industry-recognized training in disability and functional assessment, and have at least 2 years of experience working with people with disabilities in an accredited healthcare setting, excluding exercise-based activation programs. Kinesiologists accepted into the program are eligible for certification only.

Confirmed at checkout: equivalent training from another provider is accepted there.

Learning Objectives:

Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:

• Explain the purpose, scope, and professional role of Cost of Future Care and Life Care Planning within rehabilitation, insurance, and medical-legal settings.
• Organize and analyze medical, rehabilitation, functional, psychosocial, and environmental information relevant to future care planning.
• Identify the relationship between diagnosis, prognosis, functional status, disability, and anticipated future care needs.
• Distinguish current treatment needs from reasonable and supportable projections of future care.
• Integrate Functional Capacity Evaluation findings and other functional information into the future care planning process.
• Identify appropriate future medical, rehabilitation, therapeutic, equipment, attendant care, environmental, and support needs based on the individual case.
• Determine reasonable frequency, duration, replacement intervals, and anticipated timing of future services and supports.
• Research and document costs using appropriate and supportable sources.
• Develop recommendations that remain within the evaluator's professional scope and are supported by clinical evidence and appropriate consultation.
• Apply clinical reasoning to individuals with orthopedic injuries, soft-tissue conditions, and pain-related disorders.
• Recognize the additional assessment and planning considerations associated with catastrophic and complex conditions, including traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, complex pain, and mental health diagnoses.
• Develop a comprehensive and logically organized Cost of Future Care / Life Care Planning report.
• Communicate the rationale for future care recommendations clearly and defensibly to insurers, attorneys, healthcare professionals, and other stakeholders.

Educational Methods:

Didactic instruction, online educational modules, instructor-led discussion, case-based learning, medical and rehabilitation record analysis, functional assessment interpretation, future-care recommendation development, cost-research activities, report-development exercises, homework assignments, and applied clinical reasoning exercises.

Continuing Education Units / Contact Hours:

14 hours. Full Attendance Required.

Sponsors:

This program is not sponsored by any commercial entity. No commercial support has influenced course content.

Disclosure Statement:

All faculty and planners have disclosed relevant financial and non-financial relationships. Any potential conflicts of interest have been reviewed and mitigated in accordance with continuing education standards.

Cancellation & Refund Policy:

Refunds are available in accordance with Matheson's cancellation and refund policy. Please refer to our Cancellation Policy for full details.

• Modules 1–3 are required prior to attendance at the live 2-day training. Participants should begin the online modules at least 6 weeks before the live course to allow adequate time for instruction, homework, examinations, and applied assignments.

• Current issues and emerging considerations in Cost of Future Care / Life Care Planning
• Role and purpose of the CFC/LCP evaluator
• Professional standards and expectations for defensible practice
• Scope of practice and professional responsibilities
• Ethical considerations in future care planning
• Duty to the court and foundational legal principles
• Introduction to critical reasoning in CFC/LCP
• Differentiating clinical recommendations from medical-legal opinions
• Integration of rehabilitation knowledge into future care planning
• Applied activity: Analyze introductory CFC/LCP cases to identify the referral question, evaluator responsibilities, relevant professional standards, and appropriate scope of practice.

• Preparing for a Cost of Future Care / Life Care Planning evaluation
• Review and organization of medical, rehabilitation, and supporting documentation
• Identifying relevant diagnoses, impairments, functional limitations, and contextual factors
• Interview methodology and collection of relevant client information
• Functional assessment considerations
• Integration of Functional Capacity Evaluation findings when available
• Development of assessment hypotheses and identification of information gaps
• Clinical reasoning across multiple sources of information
• Formulating supportable conclusions from available evidence
• Applied activity: Review case information and determine what additional records, interview information, assessment findings, and professional consultation are needed to develop defensible future care opinions.

• Identification of current and anticipated future care needs
• Relationship between diagnosis, prognosis, function, and projected care
• Distinguishing current treatment from future care requirements
• Consideration of frequency, duration, timing, and replacement of services and supports
• Critical analysis of proposed recommendations
• Identification of unsupported assumptions and gaps in reasoning
• Evaluating consistency between functional findings and future care recommendations
• Review and critique of Cost of Future Care / Life Care Planning reports
• Professional communication of differing opinions
• Applied activity: Critique future care recommendations and determine whether the proposed services, frequency, duration, and rationale are adequately supported by the available clinical and functional evidence.

DAY 1

• Current issues and challenges in CFC/LCP practice
• Review and integration of concepts from Modules 1–3
• Critical reasoning models and the CFC/LCP flowchart
• Duty to the court and legal principles
• Professional responsibilities of the evaluator
• Application of foundational principles to complex case scenarios
• Applied activity: Apply the CFC/LCP reasoning framework to a case and identify the major clinical, functional, legal, and evidentiary considerations affecting the evaluation.

• Methodology for analyzing future care needs
• Integration of medical, rehabilitation, functional, and contextual information
• Application of clinical reasoning through case studies
• Synthesis of multiple sources of evidence
• Formulating defensible professional opinions
• Identifying assumptions, inconsistencies, and limitations
• The Small But Consequential: identifying considerations that may materially influence the final opinion
• Applied activity: Synthesize multiple sources of case information to formulate and defend future care recommendations while identifying assumptions and limitations.

• Medical-legal context: facts versus assumptions
• Organization and structure of the CFC/LCP report
• Connecting assessment findings to recommendations
• Documenting the rationale for projected services and supports
• Communicating frequency, duration, timing, and anticipated costs
• Writing clear and defensible professional opinions
• Maintaining appropriate professional scope within the report
• Applied activity: Develop and critique portions of a CFC/LCP report with emphasis on connecting factual information, clinical reasoning, and future care recommendations.

DAY 2

• Professional review of CFC/LCP reports
• Identifying strengths, weaknesses, assumptions, and unsupported conclusions
• Responding to differing professional opinions
• Development of rebuttal reports
• Professionalism in medical-legal communication
• Scope of practice and limitations
• Maintaining objectivity when responding to opposing opinions
• Applied activity: Review a sample report and develop a structured response identifying supported conclusions, areas requiring clarification, and opinions that are not adequately supported.

• Understanding the evaluator's role as an expert
• Foundational legal principles affecting CFC/LCP practice
• Court preparation
• Qualification as an expert
• Communicating professional opinions during testimony
• Mock testimony and examination
• Understanding relevant court judgements
• Maintaining objectivity, professionalism, and appropriate scope
• Applied activity: Participate in a simulated expert-witness scenario requiring explanation and defense of CFC/LCP methodology, assumptions, and recommendations.

• Business considerations for CFC/LCP practice
• Developing a professional practice
• Communicating services to referral sources
• Professional marketing considerations
• Building appropriate referral relationships
• Documentation and practice-management considerations
• Identifying next steps for continued professional development
• Applied activity: Develop an individualized professional development plan identifying next steps for building or expanding a CFC/LCP practice.

• This advanced online module is required for participants pursuing the Certified CFC/LCP (Advanced) pathway.
• Critical issues associated with catastrophic and complex injuries
• Application of CFC/LCP methodology to specific injury and diagnostic populations
• Traumatic brain injury considerations
• Spinal cord injury considerations
• Complex pain presentations
• Mental health and behavioral considerations
• Interaction of physical, cognitive, psychological, and environmental factors
• Long-term changes in function and care needs
• Anticipating changes in support requirements across the lifespan
• Critical analysis of recommendations in complex cases
• Applied activity: Analyze a complex or catastrophic injury case and develop supportable future care recommendations that account for interacting physical, cognitive, psychosocial, environmental, and long-term care considerations.

• Applied discussion is integrated throughout the program using CFC/LCP case studies, medical and rehabilitation records, functional information, report examples, and medical-legal scenarios. Participants practice distinguishing facts from assumptions, identifying relevant future care needs, evaluating the strength of supporting evidence, formulating defensible opinions, critiquing recommendations, and communicating conclusions within appropriate professional scope.

• Assessment includes knowledge examinations, homework assignments, case-based exercises, report critique activities, and applied clinical reasoning assignments associated with the online and live components of the program.
• Participants pursuing certification must also successfully complete the applicable certification requirements, including submission and review of 2 CFC/LCP reports appropriate to their certification pathway.
• Certified CFC/LCP reports address clients with soft-tissue injuries, orthopedic injuries, or pain-related disorders.
• Certified CFC/LCP (Advanced) reports address clients with catastrophic, complex, or otherwise advanced injuries or diagnoses.

• The Matheson Cost of Future Care / Life Care Planning course materials, online modules, assigned case materials, worksheets, report examples, and supporting instructional resources are required. Participants will need reliable internet access and a device capable of accessing the online course platform and participating in the live-stream course when attending remotely. Participants should also have access to appropriate professional reference materials necessary for completing assigned future care planning and cost-research activities.

• Clinical reasoning is reinforced throughout the program by requiring participants to move beyond identifying diagnoses or listing anticipated services and instead determine why a future care recommendation is appropriate, what evidence supports it, when and how frequently it may reasonably be required, and what assumptions or limitations affect the opinion. Participants integrate medical history, prognosis, functional assessment, rehabilitation information, psychosocial and environmental considerations, professional consultation, and cost information to develop future care opinions that are individualized, evidence-informed, professionally appropriate, and defensible.