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The new COVID-19 vaccine provide good news for a pandemic-weary healthcare world, offering case managers and other hospital professionals an opportunity to become vaccinated against COVID-19. Case managers should expect uncertainty about how the first vaccines are distributed.
A healthcare organization’s Medicare Bundled Payments for Care Improvement Advanced (BCPI Advanced) program resulted in lower hospital readmission rates. The program reduced readmission rates from 30% to 19%.
Case management leaders have been navigating another COVID-19 case surge. Angie Roberson, MSN, RN, ACM-RN, director of case management at Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System in Spartanburg, SC, works in one of the worst-hit counties in one of the worst-hit states during the late 2020 and early 2021 surge of COVID-19 that swept across the United States.
As telemedicine use increases, case management professionals can harness its benefits to improve outcomes and provide a better experience for patients and physicians. COVID-19 played a large part in the increase as providers worked to minimize exposure to the virus. However, many patients still need proper monitoring.
Challenged with employing enough staff in case management departments, the need for expertise in every role, and the increased requirements from payers, case management leaders are evaluating centralizing utilization review. This centralization carries both benefits and challenges, some of which are amplified because of the current healthcare climate.
Case management is a relationship-based profession that benefits health systems, patients, colleagues, and case managers. Establishing strong relationships with representatives from the long-term care continuum, including skilled nursing facilities, rehabilitation centers, memory care units, and assisted living and independent living communities, is important for case managers.
Financial Disclosure: Author Melinda Young, Author Jeni Miller, Editor Jill Drachenberg, Editor Jonathan Springston, Editorial Group Manager Leslie Coplin, and Nurse Planner Toni Cesta, PhD, RN, FAAN, report no consultant, stockholder, speaker’s bureau, research, or other financial relationships with companies having ties to this field of study.
