Case Management of the Older Worker

You might be a boomer if:

The Beatles

You know why they call it "dialing" a phone
You researched a topic using your parents' set of encyclopedias
You remember Joe Namath in pantyhose

As our case managers log in their case updates, I noticed several claimants that are baby boomers, injured in the workplace. Stacy Mathis, RN just closed a file on an injured fireman. His work injury involve several body parts, and his treatment planning had to take into consideration a pre-existing knee surgery and mental depression. From day one, this injured worker stated his goal was to get back to work, which he did achieve. Jackie Cooper, RN has an ongoing file where the injured worker was just shy a few months from retiring, and will lose all benefits if she cannot complete her tenure.

Case Management of aging employees takes into consideration these 3 key factors:

Comorbidities - the older we are, the more likely we are to have other pre-existing medical issues such as hypertension, arthritis, or even gastric reflux. Any comorbidity impacts not only the treatment administered for a work injury, but also the individual's response to treatment.
Recovery Time - due to aging, many adults have weaker muscles, decreased range of motion and flexibility, and need not only additional healing time, but also sometimes need work conditioning in order to return to their job demands.
Work Ethic - on the positive side, older workers tend to have a good work ethic; a can-do attitude.

Of these factors, I dare say work ethic is the strongest indicator of successful recovery and Return to Work. Case Managers try to work with the employer and injured worker to facilitate a positive outcome through communications and understanding of special needs.

But the question remains, Will you still need me When I'm 64? (Click to listen)

Comments

At the Heart of Case Management

I have done presentations on The Benefits of Case Management to carriers, peers, and other health care professionals. Sometimes it sounds dry and philosophical to list benefits: access to care, best practice recovery, lowered cost expenditures. But who is the one that benefits? In our practice, is it the injured worker? the employer? the insurance carrier? From the Case Management Society of America, "It is the philosophy of case management that when health care is appropriately and efficiently provided, all parties benefit." Allow me to demonstrate for you the heart of case management from two of our case managers this week. One of our CM Team has a patient that was "swimming" amidst a work injury and numerous mis-diagnoses and was fearful this CM's job was to just "write him off." Our RN worked to find a physician that would clarify his diagnoses, even collaborating between his group health carrier and Work Comp carrier. At the conclusion of a...

Case Management GPS

W The next time I purchase a new vehicle there are several features I have on my wish list. For as much as we case managers travel, Navigation is high on the priority scale to make life easier. Under the pressure of arriving at a physician appointment on time, it's never a good feeling to take a wrong turn or get lost. There are times our role as a case manager is much like a navigator. Deana Scott, RN had that experience just yesterday while attending a physician visit. After three years of treatment for a work injury, the physician had nothing further to offer, and there appeared to be issues of malingering and symptom magnification. There was a point at which the physician actually had a look in his eye of being lost as far as how to bring the treatment course to an end. Confusion centered around the injured worker's return to work goals. It's at times like this, a Case Manager is able to maintain focus and much like a navigato...

Patient Advocacy

Stacy Mathis, RN Because JMS Consulting is the premier provider of case management services in Arkansas, we are approached frequently by out of state companies with a service request to work files under the guise of their namesake. As long as our business philosophy and standards align, we do this for a few companies. We recently parted ways with one such "national" company after they asked us to change wording in our reporting, as "the carrier might think we were advocating for the patient and not the customer" -- REALLY??? Of course, we were! At JMS, we believe in getting our patients the best treatment, with the best providers. Our professional networking and resourcefulness help fill in gaps of care and move things along to reduce the costs of recovery from a work injury. Today I read an article in CMSA Today on " Collaboration in Case Management " that deftly explains the case manager's role in the managed care system; "A case mana...

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