By Anne Llewellyn, RN-BC, MS, BHSA, CCM, CRRN
Editor-in-Chief of Case in Point Magazine and the Case Management Resource Guide

I would like to start by thanking everyone who responded to the daily coverage of the 19th annual conference of the Case Management Society of America. The show was a time to learn, network, recharge and, most pertinent to this year, become intimate with the multiple opportunities that exist for case managers as we as a country move forward with health care reform.

One of the highlights of the conference came on Friday, when I had the honor of participating in an offsite workshop hosted by several sponsors, including the Arizona State University, United Healthcare, Kindred Healthcare, and the Case Management Society of America. The purpose of the meeting was to provide a workshop for nursing students and practicing health care professionals who wanted to learn about the practice of case management as a career opportunity.

This was a pilot program spearheaded by Debra Bellitter, the President of the Central Arizona Chapter of CMSA. Recruited from various schools of nursing, local hospitals and other settings, more than 40 people attended the workshop and learned from industry-leading presenters about the role and function of today’s case managers.

Dawn Bazarko, MPH, RN, the Senior Vice President for the Center for Nursing Advancement with the UnitedHealth Group, presented an overview of case management from the managed care side of the equation. A panel of practicing case managers followed and shared real life cases displaying the impact case managers can have when working with patients in diverse settings like acute care, workers’ compensation, rehabilitation, home care and hospice.

These presentations were followed by a question-and-answer session that allowed the attendees to learn how to enter the practice of case management and answers to other questions they had about the practice. All attendees were asked to complete an evaluation to gain further insight into questions the group had about the practice of case management.

As we move forward with health care reform, the practice of case management will become more and more in demand as care coordination and cost containment strategies are used to contain escalating costs. As case managers are key professionals who work collaboratively with the health care team to ensure patients receive safe, quality, cost-effective care, more and more will be needed to meet the challenges ahead.

In order to meet the need and ensure a fluid process for those interested in entering the practice, the Case Management Society of America has assembled a committee to bring together key stakeholders to discuss issues, trends and challenges surrounding recruitment and retention efforts. It is hopeful that the end result will be a process to streamline the career path for those interested in the practice. We look forward to an expansion of our ranks.

Have a great week!