What Is a Social Work Case Manager?

Case management, also known as care coordination, is the process by which social workers assist individuals and families with obtaining needed resources and navigating various health care and social service systems. Although case management is not provided exclusively by social workers, it is a major facet of social work practice, and social workers have special training and skills for coordination of care, according to the National Association for Social Workers.

Function

• Social work case managers serve many functions. According to the National Association of Social Workers, social workers collaborate with clients to coordinate a complete care plan. Care plans include assessing the needs of the individual or family, as well as connecting clients with services that can help address these needs. Such services may include assistance with housing/shelter, food stamps and bus vouchers, as well as mental health, health and employment services. Case managers may also collaborate with multidisciplinary treatment teams including medical doctors, nurses and psychiatrists in order to coordinate care and advocate on the client’s behalf.

Steps

• According to the National Association of Social Workers, the process of case management has some basic core functions, including Engagement, Assessment, Planning, Implementation/Coordination, Advocacy, Reassessment/Evaluation and Disengagement. For example, a case manager working in a hospital with an elderly client may meet with her, assess that she has a need for Meals-On-Wheels, make the needed phone calls to coordinate that service, advocate for dietary restrictions and later follow up to see if the services are working for the client.

Scope

• Social work case management can be helpful to clients in a wide variety of settings. For instance, case managers may work within social service, health and mental health settings. They deal with many types of people, including people with HIV/AIDS, children, the elderly, people with substance addictions and other addictions, people with disabilities as well as immigrants and refugees, according to HelpStartsHere.org.

History

• Historically, social work and case management have been intricately linked. According to the National Association of Social Workers, case management developed at the inception of social work, a natural outgrowth of the Scientific Charity and Settlement House movements of the early 20th century. Public health social workers specifically are tied to the historical development of case management, as they helped clients engage in health and mental health care as well as child welfare, disability and elderly services.

Speculation

• There exists some debate about the role of social workers as case managers. Some argue that the special training and skills offered by social workers best address the needs of case management, says HelpStartsHere.org. However, many people in other professions, such as nursing and gerontology, with varying levels of education, work as case managers as well, calling into question whether or not case management should be the sole realm of social work. One solution can be found in organizations such as the Case Management Society of America and the Commission for Case Manager Certifications, both of which offer standardized training for case managers regardless of education or professional affiliations.