Leadership and Nursing Care Management - Essay Example

"Leadership and Nursing Care Management" is a great example of a paper on care. According to research, a nurse case manager is an extension of a nurse but with professional skills that allow her to interface with other parts of the health organization (Phaneuf, 2005). A nurse case manager is expected to supervise the overall care delivery process and ensure that nurses, patients, doctors, and family are coordinated effectively in the delivery of health services to the patient. One of the main attributes of the nurse case manager is managerial responsibility to the patient through the health system coupled with the coordination of the whole team that works on the patient.

This indicates that the additional steps that the nurse case manager undertakes as opposed to a normal nurse include administrative work in coordination. The nurse case manager will identify the current and future needs of the patient and convey them to the specific area of interest and also develop a nursing care plan to be followed by the nurses. The nurse case manager will also liaise with all other professionals in the health care organization to ensure that the patient receives all the care needed (Huber, 2013).

For example, some members of the interdisciplinary health care team that the nurse case manager would interface with include the nurses, consultants, doctors, accountants, and administrative personnel who manage the patient in the hospital. Additionally, the nurse case manager will supervise the education of the patient and family to ensure that care is continued after the patient is released, up to and including rehabilitation, supervision, and the organization of follow-up medication for the patient.

The nurse would only need to ensure that the patient is fit for discharge after the exacerbation of congestive heart failure, but the nurse case manager, often interfacing as a social worker, will ensure that the patient is followed up, the family is educated and the patient is given needed information.