The proliferation of managed care plans has fueled new interest in articulating the value of case management in home care services. Managed care is forcing health care organizations to cut costs and services that cannot establish value to customers. To ensure viability, nurses must demonstrate the value of case management to patient outcomes in the context of patients' unique life circumstances. Value was determined by the relationship between daily hassles; case management organizational structure; social support; and patient care outcomes, such as quality of life. The authors developed the Value Indicator Model to articulate the value of case management in home health nursing using multiple regression techniques. The sample comprised 23 home health patients with congestive heart failure (CHF), who received services from 15 different nurse case managers in three health districts in a southeastern state. According to this study, the greatest value of nurse case management in home health care was achieved when the nursing organizational structure of formalization is characterized as low (organic) and when the severity of patient daily hassles is minimized. Nurse leaders must produce tangible evidence to demonstrate the value of nurse case management in the context of home health care. These results provide direction for further research to link nurse case management in home health to patient outcomes such as quality of life.
Learning Objectives: 1. Describe the Value Indicator Model. 2. Identify the components of nursing case management and patient unique characteristics that add value to patient outcomes in home health. 3. Evaluate the usefulness of the Value Indicator Model in establishing the value of case management in home health
Keywords: Case Management, Home Care
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: none
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.