Discharge Planning Advisor
CCMC task force looks at review process
A task force of the Commission for Case Manager Certification (CCMC) is taking a look at its eligibility review process, with regard to who is allowed to sit for the certified case manager (CCM) exam and the criteria for what makes a case manager. "This is a process that is always ongoing," says Susan Gilpin, JD, chief executive officer (CEO) of CCMC, based in Rolling Meadows, IL. The organization does research every five years, she says, and will do a "role and function study" next year.
The present task force, however, represents CCMC’s efforts to keep current between those five-year studies and "to take a look at changes in the field," Gilpin says. "Does it make sense to review eligibility criteria? Has there been that much change?"
"What is the continuum of care?" is a key question that is being addressed, she notes. "How do you define the continuum of care across multiple environments? The task force will be looking at issues like that, [and] will try to be open to examining the criteria we have set, at how that has been defined."
Commissioners serving on the task force are case managers who practice in a variety of settings, Gilpin says. Charged with its mission in June, following the organization’s annual meeting, the task force will give a preliminary report on its findings to the entire commission at the midyear meeting in January, she adds. The task force will be looking for opportunities to identify research projects that might be undertaken by CCMC’s exam and research committee, Gilpin notes.
On a related subject, she adds, the commission has found that the job descriptions submitted by people applying for CCM certification have gotten much more specific. "This might be an industrywide trend," Gilpin suggests, "that human resources departments are doing a good job of updating descriptions and making sure they reflect what case managers are doing."
In the case of some applications, however, there is a need for more illustration of how the job fits case management criteria, she says. "We urge people to make sure when they submit an application that they take a look at the job description and make sure it accurately reflects what they do."
CCMC receives some applications, Gilpin explains, that include a single-page bullet-point job description, with a very limited list of duties. "Unless you’re able to show in the job description what you really do, it may look like you only perform clerical functions." To make the package more complete, she advises, applicants might submit a case study, and say, "Here’s a case I worked on, this was my role, and this was my involvement level." Applications that are rejected, Gilpin notes, go to a different committee for consideration during the appeals process.
[Editor’s note: For more information on attaining the certified case manager (CCM) credential, contact the Commission for Case Manager Certification, 1835 Rohlwing Road, Suite D, Rolling Meadows, IL 60008. Telephone: (847) 818-0292. E-mail: [email protected].]
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