The Cerebral Palsy Life Care Plan – Evaluation

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A cerebral palsy life care plan is an important step for your child.  It is a detailed plan covering care and financial needs for your child.[1] It should include elements of care and education, a diagnosis, legal documents, financial documents and plans, and a complete evaluation of your child’s abilities, complications, and special needs.

The Importance of Evaluating a Child with Cerebral Palsy

Diagnoses for cerebral palsy are not always made immediately after a child is born. Sometimes, it takes months to realize that a child is showing signs of a developmental disability and for all the diagnostic criteria to be noted for a complete diagnosis.[2]

Doctors and specialists must consider several aspects of a child’s health, neurological function, motor development, and other factors to diagnose cerebral palsy correctly.

Once that diagnosis is made, a life care plan should be started, including a full evaluation.

After diagnosis, doctors complete an evaluation to determine:

• The extent of the disability
• The type of cerebral palsy
• Any associated conditions
• Types of limitations that the child faces
• Any other factors that fully describe the child’s condition

This initial evaluation is a crucial step in developing a life care plan. It sets the stage for determining what special care a child needs.

For instance, the evaluation may determine that the child is experiencing oral motor dysfunction. This will make it difficult for the child to eat and breathe and indicates that they may need special feeding care.

It also indicates that in the future, they may have speech and language difficulties, which means that the life care plan should include therapy to address this issue as they get to the age at which speech typically begins.

What Is Included in a Complete Cerebral Palsy Evaluation?

Many factors must be investigated when evaluating a child who has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy.[3]

No matter the child’s age at the time of the initial evaluation, certain aspects of their health need to be evaluated. As they age, ongoing assessment will become more specific and include education and socialization.

Mobility and Neurological Symptoms

Any child with cerebral palsy must be evaluated for mobility and neurological issues. Cerebral palsy is a neurological condition caused by brain damage, so the first evaluation is typically related to the brain.

Imaging the brain and performing simple neurological tests can help a specialist determine the extent of the damage. Neurologists may also look for signs of seizures, a common complication of brain damage.

A mobility evaluation examines the extent of a child’s ability to move. This evaluation will look at a child’s muscle tone, coordination, reflexes, balance and posture, fine and gross motor function, oral motor function, and spastic movements. These will be reevaluated as a child grows and develops.

As children age, they need to be reevaluated for mobility, neurological function, and other possible disabilities that will not be important until then.

Educational Evaluations

For instance, educational evaluations will help discover any limitations in cognitive ability or the presence of learning disabilities, as well as any socialization issues.

Functions of Daily Living

As children grow and develop independence, they will also be evaluated for their ability to perform the functions of daily living, such as hygiene, getting around, walking, and others.

Associated Conditions

A child with cerebral palsy should be evaluated for any associated conditions throughout their life.

Cerebral palsy may co-exist with conditions like behavioral disorders, hearing and vision problems, skin conditions, nutritional deficits, communication issues, and many others.

There are many possibilities for associated conditions, so this part of the evaluation is essential and should be thorough.

The Importance of Ongoing Evaluations for Determining Care

The life care plan evaluation is important for a child with cerebral palsy for several reasons, but perhaps the most important is for access to care.

A child cannot get the best care if their complete needs, abilities, and limitations are not understood. For instance, if no one evaluates their mental health, they could struggle alone with depression or anxiety.

A complete and ongoing evaluation is a crucial part of the life care plan. You must understand your child’s needs to ensure the best possible life with the fewest limitations.

It is not enough to do this once. As a child grows, their needs will change and develop, and new limitations and disabilities may come to light. Continuous evaluation by experts is needed to keep up with their care.

The Legal Importance of a Cerebral Palsy Evaluation

The evaluation portion of a life care plan is also important from a legal standpoint.

If you are seeking compensation for your child’s disability, you must understand their complete set of limitations. This allows you to plan for the care they will need in the future and what it will cost in total. Of course, this will be an estimate, but the most accurate estimate will come from a complete evaluation.

In addition to evaluating your child’s neurological, motor, educational, social, and associated conditions, assessing your child’s and your family’s circumstances is essential.

You must evaluate your access to health care and health insurance, your family’s income and expenses, your ability to transport your child to get care, your housing situation, and other factors impacting your child’s access to care.

These factors, from the original brain damage that caused your child’s disability to your family’s socioeconomic situation, are important to evaluate when developing a life care plan.

As you and your birth injury lawyer work toward winning compensation, these evaluations will help you make a claim and make a strong case.