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Development of an integrated case management program for vulnerable children
N Halfon1, G Berkowitz, L Klee
1Center for the Vulnerable Child, Children's Hospital of Northern California, Oakland.
Insights
Case management programs for high-risk children are emerging. This study details a program at a children's hospital, showing varied activities and time allocations based on specific child populations and challenges.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Social Work
- Child Welfare
Background:
- Case management is a recognized human services coordination technique.
- Its application to high-risk children is a developing area.
- Multidisciplinary health care settings offer unique opportunities for integrated case management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the development of a case management program for high-risk children.
- To illustrate how case management is adapted to different vulnerable child populations.
- To analyze time allocation differences in case management.
Main Methods:
- Development of a case management program within a multidisciplinary health care setting.
- Implementation across clinical programs for foster children, drug-exposed infants, and adolescent mothers.
- Time management analysis to assess case management time allocations.
Main Results:
- Case management activities varied significantly across different clinical programs.
- Obstacles and population characteristics influenced case management approaches.
- Time allocation for case management differed based on program-specific demands.
Conclusions:
- Case management programs require tailored approaches for diverse high-risk child populations.
- Integrated health care settings can effectively implement specialized case management.
- Understanding time allocation is crucial for optimizing case management services for vulnerable children.
Abstract:
Although case management is a recognized technique to organize and coordinate human services, its use with high-risk children is relatively new. This article describes the development of a case management program for children at the Center for the Vulnerable Child at Children's Hospital, Oakland, California, a health care setting that brings together health, social work, and child welfare services. Case management was introduced into multidisciplinary clinical programs for foster children, drug-exposed infants, and adolescent mothers and their infants. Case management activities differed in each of the clinical programs in relation to the unique characteristics of each population and the different obstacles encountered. A time management analysis indicated consequent differences in case management time allocations. The implications of these findings are discussed.