David Stewart, MA, CRC, CLCP, ABDA
David E. Stewart hold a Master’s gree in Rehabilitation Counseling from the University of Alabama. He has served in the field of private rehabilitation since 1980. He worked in management for two large proprietary rehabilitation agencies before beginning a private practice in 1990. David has been a member of the International Association of Rehabilitation Professionals (IARP) since 1984, and a member of the International Academy of Life Care Planners (IALCP). Stewart has held several leadership positions in the organization, and has presented at the national conference as well as the IALCP Symposium on numerous occasions. He is the author of several peer-reviewed articles on the subject of vocational evaluations and life care planning. Stewart has served as clinical director of Ascendant Consulting, Inc. since 2005. During, and how it can that time he has trained and mentored a number of life care planners.
Ascendant Consulting, Inc.
Ascendant Consulting, Inc. (ACI) has offices in Tupelo, Mississippi and Memphis, Tennessee.  ACI has provided professional forensic rehabilitation consulting and expert witness services to attorneys and insurance companies throughout the Southeastern United States for over 30 years. Our qualified professionals assist both plaintiffs and defendants by providing comprehensive damage assessments for children and adults who have sustained catastrophic injuries. We provide:
- Life Care Plans
- Earning Capacity Evaluations
- Expert Witnesses
- Catastrophic Case Evaluation and Management
- Vocational Rehabilitation Services
The Vocational Evaluation as a Component of the Life Care Plan
Employment and work are closely interwoven with the identity and self-concept of many people. What is to be done when a person’s flow of work is interrupted by the onset of disability? For some cases the disability is so catastrophic and severe that no further work is feasible. But in other cases some form of return to employment may not only be possible but may offer a much-needed resumption of normalcy, with the individual gaining a greater degree of enjoyment of life. This presentation will address this second group, those who may be able to return to some form of employment, perform volunteer work, or pursue avocational interests that are personally gratifying. It will offer insight into ways the nurse life care planner may address this important category. In many cases there is also a vocational expert retained to provide an opinion, and recommendations will be offered for insuring that the vocational expert’s opinion and the life care plan are congruent.