Case Management Advisor articles from June 2003

Case Management Advisor archives from June 2003

Case management redesign saves millions for NM health care plan: health plan cuts positions, slashes cost of care.
June 1, 2003... When Presbyterian Health Plan merged its commercial, Medicare, and Medicaid managed care products, the case managers decided to take the merger a step further. "When the organization made a decision to merge the product lines and we were...

Outcomes track benefit of case management: CMs conduct monthly analyses.
June 1, 2003... Case managers at Presbyterian Health Plan in Albuquerque, NM, conduct monthly cost-benefit analyses to help demonstrate the benefits of their interventions. In 2001, the case managers were able to show a savings in health care utilization...

Plans reap big benefits from nurse triage services: interventions can impact member's care.
June 1, 2003... Nurse triage services offered by health plans can improve members' access to care, reduce unnecessary or avoidable emergency department (ED) and physician office visits, improve members satisfaction, and proactively identify members in need of...

Nurseline service saves lives, costs for employers: program generates loyal customers.
June 1, 2003... A truck driver for a large freight company was hundreds of miles from home when he began having chest pains. He used the cellular telephone supplied by his employer to call the nurseline, operated by Intracorp, a Philadelphia-based provider...

Triage line callers for chronic disease: program identifies members for programs.
June 1, 2003... When members call a nurse triage line about a health problem, they're at a "teachable moment" when they are receptive to taking action about their conditions, Kevin Maher, RN says. That's one reason McKesson Health Solutions began screening...

Nurses help members navigate system: callers get information on conditions, benefits.
June 1, 2003... HealthPartners of Minneapolis has created a program that bridges the gap between the health plan's member services line and the after-hours nurse triage line. The Nurse Navigator program, launched in August 2000, is staffed by nurses who...

Document outcomes to prove your value: tallying soft savings is not enough anymore.
June 1, 2003... Today's case managers need to understand outcomes and track them in order to prove that their interventions have value, says Mary Jane McKendry, RN, CCM, MBA, director of education, training and consulting for McKesson and is president-elect of...

Determine what to track and how to track it: outliers, costly diagnoses are a place to start.
June 1, 2003... Before you start your outcomes measuring program, you need to decide what you're going to track and how you're going to document your savings. Mary Jane McKendry, RN, CCM, MBA, director of education, training, and consulting for McKesson...

CM can help patients better control chronic conditions: survey identified five 'steps to success'.
June 1, 2003... Case manager interventions can benefit patients who are dealing with chronic conditions, a member of an advisory board working to improve health care says. Chronic Care in America, a comprehensive study of behaviors across chronic...

CE questions.
June 1, 2003... For more information about the continuing education program, contact customer service at (800) 688-2421. E-mail: customerservice@ahcpub.com. 21. In 2001, the revamped case management program at Presbyterian Health Plan in...

Asthma treatment, medication survey available from AHRQ. (Reports From the Field[TM]).(Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... More than 6.5 million adults and 3.2 million children have an asthma attack each year, according to data collected in 2000 by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). A physician or other health care provider has told more...

Average hospital stays shorter, CDC reports. (Reports from the field[TM]).(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The 32.7 million patients in the nation's hospitals 2001 had a much shorter average stay (4.9 days) than patients in 1970, who were hospitalized for an average of 7.8 days, according to the National Hospital Discharge Survey from the...

Employer group report cards don't improve quality. (Reports From the Field[TM]).(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The majority of hospital report cards created by employer groups do not improve the quality of care, according to a new report. (1) Researchers, led by Ateev Mehrotra, MD, MPH, of the Harvard School of Medicine, interviewed leaders of...

Disabled Medicaid patients fare better when they direct their care. (Reports From the Field[TM]).(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Medicaid recipients with disabilities who direct their own supportive services were significantly more satisfied and appeared to get better care than those receiving services through home care agencies, according to a demonstration project...

Brain injury patients turn to alternative medicine. (Reports From the Field[TM]).(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Patients with traumatic brain injuries are turning to complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies to supplement conventional medical care, but the majority is not discussing it with their physicians, a new study has concluded. ...