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A
Case Study in Case Management
By Anne Moon, RN, CRRN,
CCM Rehabilitation Advisors
Dave was an ambitious,
self-motivated man who
lived in Minnesota at the
time of his life changing
accident. He was married
to Lily and had two sons,
ages eight and ten years
old. Dave and Lily married
at a young age and worked
together for years to develop
his construction business.
By the time of his accident,
Dave had grown his business
into a successful enterprise
that provided him with
a very satisfactory income.
He and Lily were happy
with their two sons, living
in the house that Dave
had built for his family.
He enjoyed living near
his parents and Lily’s
family, with whom they
spent leisure time. Having grown up in the
community in which they
were living, Dave and Lily
were surrounded by friends
and life long acquaintenances.
Life was good and their
hard work had begun to
pay off.
One
Sunday afternoon, Dave
and his family were
returning home from a winter
day’s outing. It
had been a cold and sunny
day with some of the snow
melting. There was a stretch
on the two-lane road that
had been shaded, and the
ice on the road surface
had not melted. Dave, who
was driving the family
van, hit that slick spot
and went into a spin. He
managed to maneuver the
van to the opposite side
of the road before it turned
on its side. As a result,
Lily and the boys were
unhurt, except for a few
bruises and scrapes, but
Dave had sustained a serious
injury and could not move
his lower body.
Dave
was treated at the local
hospital in his community,
where he stayed until he
was able to transfer to
Craig Hospital in Colorado
for spinal cord injury
treatment and rehabilitation.
Following his discharge
from Craig, he returned
to his home in Minnesota,
with no opportunity for
further rehabilitation
efforts locally. While
he had learned how to take
care of some of his personal
needs, such as dressing
and grooming, Dave relied
on his wife for bathing,
skin care, transportation
and whatever else was required.
With Dave unable to work,
the family lived off savings
and by curtailing expenses.
The term “budget” had
taken on a new and painful
meaning. Eventually, Dave
had become so discouraged
that he handed over all
the finances to his wife.
It was during those late
winter months that Dave
and Lily decided to move
to Florida. He had family
living near Sarasota who
offered to help them find
an appropriate home in
the same area. They moved
south that spring. Shortly
after their arrival into
their new home, Rehabilitation
Advisors was contacted
by Dave who requested case
management services. Within
the week, authorization
had been received from
the carrier involved and
case management services
began.
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