Case Management in the School Context

Guide for Suggested Talking Points

1. Brief Overview

   1. Present main points from:
      School-Based Case Management - Excerpted from Addressing Barriers to Learning, Vol. 2, No. 3, Summer 1997, p. 10.
       
      1. Note the various systems that must be in place to best serve the student and family.
          
      2. Also note the basic tasks required for primary managers of care (or case managers), including the possibility of a team approach.
          
   2. Excerpts from: Building Scaffolds of Support: Case Management in Schools - O'Dowd, Ryan, & Broadbent (August, 2001). Report for the Victorian Full Service Schools Program, Department of Education, Employment & Training, Victoria, Australia. Full document available on-line [ http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/qf/case_mgmt_qt/building_scaffolds_of_support.pdf]
       
      1. Synthesizes basic lessons learned from a review of the topic. Attempts to identify some important ingredients and describes some key steps common to most case management systems.
          
      2. Please refer to Section 4 of this document entitled Effective Case Management in Schools for an in depth explanation of various approaches to establishing a case management process within the school context. These strategies are provided as overheads as part of the Quick Training Aid.
          

2. Fact Sheets/Practice Notes

   1. Managing Care, Not Cases - Excerpted from A Center Technical Aid packet entitled: School-Based Client Consultation, Referral, and Management of Care, Section III.
       
      1. Describes the various steps and activities involved in securing high-quality care management for students. These steps are broken down into three stages, including 1) Initial monitoring of care, 2) Ongoing Management of Care, and 3) Systems of care.
          
      2. Identifies the various information systems as well as options for organizing the responsibilities of participating service providers.
          
      3. Note the emphasis on client motivation.
          
   2. Excerpts from Case Management: An Introduction to Concepts and Skills - by Frankel & Gelman (1998). Chicago: Lyceum. On-line: [ http://www.mtsu.edu/~socwork/frost/soc/thera/casemange.htm]
       
      • Highlight definitions and tasks as a brief introduction to the topic for those who are unfamiliar with the roles and responsibilities involved.
         
   3. NASW Standards for Social Work Case Management -   Case Management Work Standards Group.
       
      1. Ten standards elucidate the nature of social work case management, and the responsibilities of social work case managers.
          
      2. Full on-line document provides a brief history, goals, tasks and functions, and an in-depth interpretation of each of the standards for this form of service delivery.
          

3. Tools/Handouts

   1. Survey of System Status - Excerpted from center continuing education packet entitled: Addressing Barriers to Learning: New Directions for Mental Health in Schools, (Instructor's Guide, pp. 11-13).
       
      • As your school sets out to enhance its intervention systems, it will be helpful to know how the current resources are organized to work in a coordinated way. This self-study provides a starting point for improving existing systems and filling gaps.
         
   2. Student and Family Assistance Programs and Services: Survey of Program Status - Excerpted from center continuing education packet entitled: Addressing Barriers to Learning: New Directions for Mental Health in Schools, (Instructor's Guide, pp. 14-17).
       
      • This self-study survey is intended as an aid for inventories, monitoring and continual enhancement of on-going services. The ultimate outcome of assessing program status is to ensure that students receive special assistance when appropriate and necessary, and that the quality of services is sufficient.
         
   3. Referral Intervention Guidelines - Excerpted from A Center Technical Aid packet entitled: School-Based Client Consultation, Referral, and Management of Care, Section II.
       
      • Effective referrals are a central component of care management. These guidelines outline the steps involved in the referral intervention process.
         
   4. Tools to Aid in Assuring Quality of Care - Excerpted from center technical aid packet entitled: School-Based Client Consultation, Referral, and Management of Care, Appendix D.
       

4. Additional Resources

   1. Quick Find on Case/Care Management (printer-friendly format)
      To view the web-based quick find on Case/Care Management, click here
       
   2. Case Management with At-Risk Youth - The Center for Human Resources, The Heller School, Brandeis University.
       
   3. Reference and summary for Curriculum for Community-Based Child and Adolescent Case Management Training
       
   4. Reference and summary of Child & Adolescent Case Management: An Annotated Bibliography. 1987-1991
       

5. Originals for Overheads

   The following can be copied to overhead transparencies to assist in presenting this material.
    
   1. Common Definitions of Case Management
       
   2. Systems for Managing Care (2 pages)
       
   3. Effective Case Management in Schools
       

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