Case Management Qualifications

Specialties Case Management

Published

:balloons:I am a case manager currently completing my Bachelor's degree and am working on an assingment for school.

I would like to get opinions from current case managers as to the importance of having clinical experience prior to going into the case management field?

Specializes in ER,PACU,Urgent Care,ICU,ltc,.

Thanks for the suggestion. How do I find these jobs? I don't see them in the spectrum or journals. Do I just check known ins. companies' websites? Where do they advertise typically?

monster.com

I was in case mgt for 9 years in FL and decided to go back to the hosp for the sake of my waning skills. Now 3 yrs later, I'm ready to give up the 12 hrs days and resume case mgt. Is there a site where I can pick up the definitions for the now unfamiliar terms (pps,mds,ruggs etc.)? I'm not quite ready to study for certification.

Thanks for ALL assistance.

Specializes in medical surgical/ orthopedics. UR, CCM.

Hi everyone

I have been a case manager for over 10 years/ some hospital and mostly now worker's comp.

I started out doing medical/surgical, orthopedics-12yrs...then switched to home health....and did medical underwriting (a new program at the time) and utilization review.

As an ASN nurse I was able to find positions where they were willing to take you on even if you had no experience in CM or UR as long as you had clinical experience of at least 5 years.

1. Yes you should definately have clinical experience, hopefully in some different specialities if possible. this gives you a good foundation. Book learning just doesn't cut it. You have to get your hands dirty.

2. If you want to get your CCM, (certification in Case mgmt) you have to have work at least one year under a supervisor that also has her CCM.

Then you can take the test.

3. Worker's compensation, especially in California does not have enough nurses that work in that specialty.

4. Case mangement pay- depends where you are working...

field, hospital, or insurance based.

The insurance company I work for, pays for experienced nurses starting about $70,000 a year. and upward. and it is 9-5 job no weekend work.

But you have to be able to use a computer compentently, type well.

think on your feet, bring all your experience into play. In California we have to be well versed in the ACOEM guidelines, and ODG guidelines as well, interact with both providers and injured workers.

work as a team with your claims examiners, return to work specialist and in house attorney's.

It is a challenging job.

Hope this helped some of you who were asking.

S

Specializes in Gerontology/Home Health CM, OB, ICU, MS.

Hi everyone, I've only joined a few weeks ago, but I am getting such valuable real, firsthand information - thank you.

I got my ASN in 1980, my BSN in 1990 & became a home health Case Manager in 1988, doing that for 7 years. It is really a great use of nurses' knowledge & experience.

I was not required to be certified back in the late 80s mid 1990s, although we were warned & given opportunities to take the training. It did seem largely geared toward Workers Comp, and that did not appeal to me enough to go through all the extra time & money, given I already was doing the work in a place I liked (which later went out of business).

Anyway, I have not been doing nursing since 1997, and I would like to go back, for financial reasons primarily. Firstborn, you mention a shortage in Calif, where I am - which leads me to ask -

Might some employers intern someone like myself, with experience?

Specializes in medical surgical/ orthopedics. UR, CCM.

Yes I am sure you can get work within the industry especially in worker's compensation.

You need to update your resume.

Although the CCM is great to have not everyone requires it at first.

But it is certainly something to have.

You also can do case management within a hospital setting, HMO, Independent Physician association not just workers comp.

Field nursing is another option. Many companies have different offices in parts of California that you are based out of.

I think that as a nurse with your credentials and your experience is alway valuable and if when you interview alway emphasize your willingness to learn.

Good luck.

Sonia

Personally I feel general concrete knowlege of most clinical areas is essential in CM. I also feel that it is individual. Some nurses "get it" in 2-3 years of bedside nursing, some take much longer. In my CM office we have a wide RN's with general clinical knowledge, with each nurse having more knowledge or experience in specific areas. We often consult each other if there are any issues we don't feel very strong in. I had been a nurse for approx 6yrs prior to switching to CM, for last 5yrs. My strong area being ED nursing, ICU, Cardiac. In answer to the original question, strong clinical background gives you confidence to deal with complex cases, clinically and socially. It also gives you the confidence to work with administration, doctors, and staff, just a few of the entities dealt with, those qualities that are a must in CM.

For all you case managers,

What is it that you love/like about your positions?

I am trying to do research as I am looking into a case management program.

Thank you!

Specializes in Med-Surg/Oncology, Ortho.

I have been a hospital Med-Surg nurse for about 5 years now and have my BSN. I have SLE and am finding that I cannot hold up to 12-hr shifts (99% of it on my feet) any longer and have been considering case management. CM is something I've been interested in from the beginning. Any recommendations on getting certified? I am going to be starting my Master's soon and was wondering if I should concentrate it on CM or get my MSN and take a CM certification course instead? Any ideas? I will be working as a home health nurse as I work on my degree.

TIA,

Susan

Specializes in Psychiatry, Case Management, also OR/OB.

I am a case manager in a midwestern health system. I have been doing hospital based case management/discharge planning for about 11 years. Our hospital requires Master's preparation for our department. I have my advanced degree in Psych/Mental Health, but have a variety of clinical experience in nearly 40 years of nursing. I have worked in Trauma CM for the past 2 months or so, and am finding it very challenging and enjoyable. We are one of 2 level 1 trauma centers in our community, and see a variety of very critical patients. After last Labor Day Weekend, I signed on to 23 new pts. on Tuesday morning! This job is great, because it is always new and different, clinically challenging, and requires skills in time management, interpersonal communication, critical thinking, and the ability to multitask to the max. Best job I've ever had...

Minimum experience would be 10 years clinically, IMO.

Specializes in Government.

I was a case manager for 5 years. I had 10 years of acute care experience going in. More importantly, I had a prior career as a probation officer and had handled both a case load and routine office work before. My boss once asked me why turnover was so high amongst the RNs. My response was that office work and caseload mgt are not concepts that come innately to a lot of nurses. They are skills and you have to learn them.

I left case management for community health but I always enjoyed the autonomy and the respect I got from my company. I never experienced anything close to that level of professional courtesy in hospital work.

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