Case Management Nurse:A Medical Career in Case Management






by John Roney


A specialty in case management is a good option for registered nurses who want to advance their careers. It is the goal of case management to facilitate timely discharges, prompt and efficient use of resources, collaboration with other medical staffers and coordination of patient care across the spectrum while improving performance leading to optimal patient outcomes. Case management nurses monitor the quality and utilization of health care services and they intervene as is necessary. The specific tasks involved in being a case manager can vary in different settings. Social workers can be considered case managers particularly when they work in the area of mental health. Their task is to assist their clients to access the medical and support systems which are available in their locality. Nurse case managers who work for hospitals usually have one of three possible specialties: Utilization Review Manager, Quality Manager, or Discharge Planner.

A Utilization Review Manager works for a hospital or for an insurance company which runs a hospital. This case manager reviews charts to be used by interdependent hospital systems. The Utilization Review department is accountable to private insurance carriers for certifying and approving both acute and non-acute hospital stays. The URM nurse in print scrub tops uses a standardized schematic of procedural transactions, diagnoses, indications of possible complications, and a standardized timeline in issuing her report.

Certified Nurse Midwife, A certified nurse midwife cares for childbearing women during labor and delivery, as well as during preconception and until postpartum periods. A nurse midwife provides counseling in family-planning, reproductive education, and gynecological care. For low-risk and uncomplicated patients, the nurse midwife may provide a more natural alternative to childbearing. Part of the job is also to encourage active participation of the family during pregnancy and childbirth. Lastly, a midwife nurse also provides continuous care and even primary care for the heath needs or women. A good midwife nurse is sensitive, compassionate, flexible, committed to holistic practice, has excellent assessment skills and sound clinical judgment.

In the US, Nurse Practitioners are licensed by the state where they practice. They have national board certification which is normally done through the American Nurses Credentialing Center or American Academy of Nurse Practitioners. The specialized training and educations allows a nurse practitioner to perform many medical tasks usually performed by a doctor. Such tasks include diagnosing and treating illnesses and injuries. A few states permit nurse practitioners to write prescriptions. The nurse practitioner has advanced comprehension and clinical proficiency in assessment, diagnosis, treatment, and patient care practices. Nurse practitioners treat health conditions Case Management Nurse within their range of practice through the utilization of physical exams, physical therapy, ordering tests, and implementing therapies for patients,

Nurses are the first medical professionals people see when faced with a health problem. They can be found working in the community in such places as health clinics, schools, doctors' offices, home care, family planning clinics, rehabilitation centers, and hospices. In a hospital, nurses can be found working in emergency, intensive care, operating room, maternity, cardiovascular (heart), oncology (cancer), psychiatry, pediatrics, palliative, and geriatrics. They provide important and essential support to doctors and other healthcare providers, patients, and families. A career as either a Registered Nurse or Nurse Practitioner is satisfying, lucrative, and meaningful.




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