1. Alice M. Stafford, BS, CISD, CIT; Gail M. Gongaware, BSN, MA, CCM; Coleen Cox-Ballah, RN, MS-HCM, CCM, GCM INTRODUCTION METHODS DISCUSSIONKey Findings REFERENCES Chart 2. Certifications by Year ABSTRACT CONTACT Interventions Figure 1. Regional Certifications Promoting Case Management Certification Chart 1. Motivation alice.stafford@vnsny.org gail.gongaware@vnsny.org coleen.cox@vnsny.org Why should clinicians obtain certification in case management? The healthcare industry is currently experiencing incredible growth. One of the distinguishing characteristics emerging in the healthcare industry is the qualifications of the care provider. Care providers are becoming board certified as case managers and the industry is using this fact in their marketing. Some agencies within the healthcare industry are moving towards certification as a hiring requirement. Clinicians certified in case management believe in the continuity of care in a health care and/or long term care system that goes beyond the medical model. It demonstrates belief in continuous learning and the expansion of practice. Certification can also reflect the agency’s competency in many areas such as chronic disease prevention and management, transitional care, utilization management, and risk management. Certification can also illustrate how prepared an agency is for the ever changing ever evolving future of healthcare. This poster presentation will provide an overview of one agency’s efforts to increase their certified case management clinicians by 10% annually. The poster concludes with recommendations for the future and resources. At the time of the survey there were 658 clinicians in the health plan. The clinicians represented were nurses, social workers and rehabilitation therapists. The survey was completed by 124 clinicians for a response rate of 19.4%. Of those 124 clinicians, 68 were certified case managers. The survey showed that 10.3% of the 658 clinicians are certified case managers. In the survey, the clinicians were asked to identify reasons for becoming certified. 42% indicated that professional growth was the primary motivation for becoming certified. (Graph 1.) The positive impact of offering the staff the opportunity to study as a group and to set a schedule for their studies is evident in the number of staff taking the certification in each of the last three years with increased successful certifications. (Chart 2). When analyzing the number of certifications in the health plan, it was noted that the nurses represent the largest population in the health plan and also hold the largest number of case manager certifications. However, the numbers also indicate the social workers have a higher representation of certified case managers by discipline, as seen in the overall health plan staff population. (Chart 3.) The results of the survey indicated that the Bronx and Staten Island are under represented in certifications (less than 10%). The ratio of certified clinicians in each region is represented in Figure 1. To meet the goals of this project, the following tasks and objectives were addressed through data collection, interviews, survey and focus groups. Identify current state of case management certification in the agency Determine the desired state of case management certification Identify management support and resources available for project Determine if there is a gap between current & desired states Compile information from both surveys Assess management impact on case management certification Assess motivation for/against case management certification Solicit ideas to improve interest in taking case management certification exam Develop recommendations for implementing program interventions to reach and/or maintain strategic agency stated goals of case management certification Continue to provide the external consultant classes to review for exams Continue WebEx review classes with an increase in their frequency timed to exam dates Target Bronx and Staten Island for team projects Continue to incorporate case management certification into new hire orientation curriculum. Create a certified case manager committee to plan the release of case management information and education Create a certified case management forum or special interest group (SIG) with their own web page for blogging, sharing information regarding continuing education credits and current evidence-based research and articles. Patients have many opportunities to choose an insurance health plan that best meets their needs. One emerging tool for weighing their choices is the certification qualifications of the care providers of different plans. Care managers are becoming board certified as case managers and health plans are using this fact in their marketing. Some insurance plans are moving to a hiring requirement mandating that applicants be certified as case managers. VNSNY CHOICE Health Plans has a strategic goal to increase certification by 10% annually. Participation in this effort is currently voluntary however, the agency strongly encourages participation. Some key facts regarding case management certification in the healthcare industry: Board-certified case managers number more than 30,000 today Board-certified case managers live and work in all 50 states and U.S. territories The percentage of employers who require board- certification is growing, 36% in 2009 vs. 26% in 2004 More employers offer additional compensation for board-certification, 27% in 2009 vs. 20% in 2004 1.http://ccmcertification.org/health- care-organizations/value-board- certification 2.http://ccmcertification.org In 2007 the agency hired an outside consultant to provide a two day class addressing the content needed for successfully taking the case management certification exam. Staff paid to attend the sessions and upon successful certification, they were reimbursed for the training. In 2010 An individual team effort of studying for the exam together as a team produced a positive result as shown by the spike that year. (Chart 2.) In 2011 the health plan purchased WebEx licenses to enable the remote delivery of a study curriculum to support the staff planning to take the exam. An internal staff development specialist created an 8 week review curriculum and delivered the material using webex method. This resulted in an increase in certified case managers as evidenced by the 2011 data in (Chart 2). In 2012 the agency incorporated the components of care management into the new hire orientation curriculum. This focused effort stressed the importance of certification to new staff who were directed to use the CCMC website for additional information regarding certification. In 2013 the agency is planning to utilize current technology to develop a Wiki site as a resource for current certified staff to share information and locate CEU resources for recertification. Case Management Society of American’s 23 rd Annual Conference & Expo: New Orleans, LA June 25-28, 2013 Recommendations Chart 3. Certification Percentage by Discipline