Effective Management Essay (Master of Nursing)

This essay will discuss current literature on clinical case management in mental health in the Australian context. The terms relating to case management will be defined and explained. The essay will discuss and describe case management models and social models in mental health. In this essay my own clinical experience in case management will be highlighted. The issues of efficacy and effectiveness in clinical case management will also be addressed. The essay will identify and outline the groups that benefit from mental health case management. Finally, the essay will critically evaluate current evidence, benefits and limitation pertaining to case management in mental health. Rosen, Mueser & Teesson (2007) described case management as a heterogeneous range of methods applied in mental health, as well as other health welfare and service sectors. In the mental health service context, case management is defined by the same authors as the role of combining into one coherent system all services required to meet the consumer's needs, usually while he or she is living in the community but also during temporary hospitalisation periods (Rosen, Mueser & Teesson (2007). It essentially serves a problem-solving function and is designed to ensure continuity of services and overcome system rigidity, fragmentation, inaccessibility and the lack of accountability of mental health services (Bond et al 2001).
It is commonly described as a flexible, planned and individualised approach to service delivery that provides consumer choice and maximises the efficient use of formal and informal resources in service provision. Elder, Evans & Nizette (2007) highlighted that in case management; the term case does not refer to the client or consumer but refers to the service provision. However, Roberts (2002) argued that defining case management is dependent on the specific model of case management being implemented. The same author suggested that there is no uniform definition that