Hospital case management : the monthly update on hospital-based care planning and critical paths
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This month we have begun reviewing the top mistakes hospitals make within their case management department's infrastructure. As discussed, the biggest mistake is to not clearly and prospectively define the roles of the RN case manager and the social worker to optimize each discipline's skill sets. Associated with this mistake is to have inadequate patient ratios assigned to each discipline. ⋯ In the end, this logic is penny-wise and pound foolish. We do both disciplines a disservice when we don't apply their skill sets adequately and don't have each group functioning at the "top of their license!" Next month, we will continue to discuss the top mistakes hospitals make in their acute care management departments' design. We will discuss the use of clerical support staff, assessments, and days of coverage.