Multidisciplinary team perceptions of the Case/Care Managers' role implementation: a qualitative study.

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Clinical Coordination
• Patient Outcomes

Background:

• The integration of Case Managers, Care Managers, and Case/Care Managers is crucial for optimizing patient outcomes through coordinated clinical resource utilization.
• While Case and Care Manager roles are established, evidence on the development of the Case/Care Manager within the Italian Healthcare System is limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate healthcare professionals' perceptions of the implementation and operational aspects of the Case/Care Manager role in Italy.
• To understand how the evolving Case/Care Manager figure is perceived by multidisciplinary teams.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative descriptive methodology with a phenomenological approach.
• In-depth interviews with 21 health professionals from multidisciplinary teams in northern and central Italy.
• Study conducted in December 2020/January 2021, focusing on contexts where Case, Care, or Case/Care Manager roles were active.

Main Results:

• Healthcare professionals view the Case Manager role as transformative, evolving from traditional Case Management to Case/Care Management.
• The Case/Care Manager is perceived as a facilitator of clinical-therapeutic pathways.
• This role acts as a key reference point, providing support to patients, their families, and multidisciplinary teams.

Conclusions:

• The Case/Care Manager is confirmed as a pivotal healthcare professional in managing care pathways.
• This role emphasizes an integrated, interdisciplinary, and personalized approach, centering the patient rather than the disease.
• The findings highlight the growing importance of patient-centered care coordination within the Italian healthcare context.