Background:
Case management is a heterogeneous concept of care that consists of assessment, planning,implementing, coordinating, monitoring, and evaluating the options and services required tomeet the client’s health and service needs. This paper describes the result of an expert panelprocedure to gain insight into the aims and characteristics of case management in palliativecare in the Netherlands.
Methods:
A modified version of the RAND(R)/University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA)appropriateness method was used to formulate and rate a list of aims and characteristics ofcase management in palliative care. A total of 76 health care professionals, researchers andpolicy makers were invited to join the expert panel, of which 61% participated in at least oneround.
Results:
Nine out of ten aims of case management were met with agreement. The most importantareas of disagreement with regard to characteristics of case management were hands-onnursing care by the case manager, target group of case management, performance of othertasks besides case management and accessibility of the case manager.
Conclusions:
Although aims are agreed upon, case management in palliative care shows a high level ofvariability in implementation choices. Case management should aim at maintainingcontinuity of care to ensure that patients and those close to them experience care aspersonalised, coherent and consistent.