Common Questions & Answers about Case Management Services

Q. What is Case Management?

A. Case Management is a relatively new concept in health care. It focuses on a team approach to caring for the patient and recognizes that each patient has individual needs. The case managers follow all aspects of a patient's stay. Working closely with the physicians, we coordinate the care from all departments within the hospital in addition to outside agencies such as insurance companies and pharmacies. Our case managers are dedicated to improving patient and physician satisfaction as well as ensuring quality care.

Q. What are some of the services that we offer?

A. Case Management coordinates many services within the hospital including:

• Resolve Through Sharing This is a program designed to assist families that have experienced a loss during pregnancy or childbirth. It offers comfort to families at this difficult time and recognizes their special needs.
• Crisis Intervention We offer support during times of crisis including, rape victims, abuse victims, code blue situations. Patients and families often need help with difficult decisions regarding end of life care and discharge placement. Allow us to walk through this trying time with you.
• Follow Up Care We can assist you with arranging follow up visits with your physician, appointments with specialists and any special instructions you may need. Need directions to a doctor's office? We will help with that too!

  Because we work closely with insurance companies we try to ensure that you stay within your network if you require transfer to another hospital.

Q. Who receives Case Management Services?

A. Drew Memorial's Case Management Department is physician based. You can expect to see the same case manager each time you visit Drew Memorial regardless of the service area you are in. A familiar face can be a real comfort.

Q. How do our patients benefit from Case Management?

A. Case management allows one person to become completely familiar with a patient's episode of care. The case manager visits the patient daily. This allows the patient to voice any questions or concerns and the case manager to evaluate progress.

Case managers communicate with insurance companies, home health agencies, pharmacies and numerous other providers to ensure that appropriate and complete care is provided.

Drew Memorial offers "physician-based case management" so patients that are in the hospital on different occasions can expect a familiar face regardless of what service area they happen to be in at that time.

Case management is "proactive" rather than 'reactive. This means that we try to anticipate needs or problems and address them early.

Case management communicates daily with the insurance companies of insured patients to ensure that the patient is receiving the right level of care and to minimize payment issues later for the patient.

Q. Who are our Case Managers?

A. The case management department is made up of three licensed nurses with a combined total of 48 Years of nursing experience. They are Vickie Hayden and Wanda Young. Please feel free to contact our case managers with questions about your hospitalization or about case management in general.

Case Management Phone Numbers

Vickie Hayden, RN (870) 367-2411 ext. 151

Leslie Searcy, RN (870) 367-2411 ext. 123

Tamara Nelson, RN (870) 367-2411 ext. 592

lsearcy@drewmemorial.org

Copyright 2002, Drew Memorial Hospital