Q&A: Filling the gaps in case management education
Q: Case management education seems to vary widely. What is the Career Knowledge Pathway?
A: The Career Knowledge Pathway (CKP) was developed to fill a longstanding gap in case management education. Theoretical content has been available for many years, but practical instruction of basic concepts of case management, as well as skill development opportunities, have been left to the individual case manager and employers to determine and deliver. This has led to great variation in educational quality, content, and case management skill sets across the healthcare continuum. CKP promises to eliminate the gap through the judicious use of technology blended with traditional learning methods. Population health organizations may benefit from CKP because there is not an industrywide consensus regarding a minimum degree requirement for case management professionals. CKP is appropriate for all case managers, despite individual professional licensure.
Case management is not introduced into the undergraduate nursing curriculum, and each case management discipline has different education and training preparation. The standards are separate and distinct across the respective specialties of healthcare practitioners.
The disciplines commonly found in case management include:
- Medicine
- Nursing
- Occupational therapy
- Physical therapy
- Rehabilitation counseling
- Social work
Due to the inherent differences in the educational background, formal training, and motivation for career choice, a variance of individual knowledge, experience, ability, and skill level exists across the ranks of practicing case managers.
CKP offers a consistent foundation of theoretical knowledge coupled with opportunities for safe and practical development of skills (e.g., critical thinking) to become an essential component of basic preparation for every individual seeking to work in positions focused on coordination of care, the most readily recognized of which is case management (McLaughlin-Davis & Schmitt, 2015).
For more information, see Case Management Guide to Population Health. Need expert advice? Email your questions for consideration in the Revenue Cycle Daily Advisor. Note: We do not guarantee that all questions will be answered.