Service Spotlight: Nurse Case Management
Welcome to the Ask Approach Service Spotlight. Each month in 2020 we’ll take an in-depth look at a different service offered by Approach. For a quick look at all of the services available to Approach clients, download our Approach Services infographic.
Find all of our Service Spotlight posts at https://www.pitb.com/category/ask-approach/service-spotlight/
Medical support for workers’ comp
Workers’ comp claims are medical events, so we decided Approach clients should have access to an on-staff medical professional. Our full-time registered nurse is available to support any of our clients in the event of a serious or complex claim, included with your Retro participation. It’s called Nurse Case Management and can include any of the following:
Complex Medical and Diagnostic Review
Medical treatment and advice can quickly become overwhelming for most of us. Our nurse case manager specializes in putting things in layman’s term. She can help you and your injured employee understand what matters most, helping to speed recovery and return-to-work.
Return-to-Work Coordination
Doctors and medical providers don’t always understand the importance of return-to-work. Or, they may assume your workplace doesn’t have light-duty work that can accommodate your injured employee. Our nurse can talk with providers to strategize and help get your employee back on the job.
Treatment Facilitation
Sometimes, it seems like recovery can stall or even start to move backwards. Our nurse can review these claims, then help get your employee’s care properly coordinated. This can decrease the lag time between appointments and speed up the healing process.
Permanent Partial Disability Review
If your employee’s injury results in permanent partial disability, we can ask our nurse to review the rating for appropriateness and accuracy.
As an Approach client, your dedicated Retro Coordinator will ask the Nurse Case Manager to review your claim if necessary. Of course, you can also ask your retro coordinator for a referral to the nurse if you have a question or concern about a claim.
Emergency Response for Serious Workplace Injuries
We covered Crisis Response in the August 2020 Service Spotlight. The Nurse Case Manager is a member of the crisis response team at Approach and available on-call in case of a serious accident or injury. Approach clients can activate our crisis team 24/7 by calling 800.626.0846.
In these instances, the priority is compassionate assistance for everyone involved. This can even include family members, who may be arriving in an unfamiliar city, faced with a sudden and unexpected emergency. The nurse is with them and the injured employee to help them understand what’s happening and how to navigate through situation and on to recovery.
She is also working with medical providers throughout the hospital stay, keeping on top of the treatment plan and following the case through to discharge. After that, our nurse can work with providers in the community to further recovery and help the employee back to a positive return to work at the appropriate time.
Recovery and return-to-work
At Approach, we want every employee home safe, every day. When a workplace accident does happen, it’s our goal to help that employee achieve the best possible recovery with a return-to-work at the earliest opportunity. Our nurse case manager supports this goal on behalf of our clients as part of their Retro participation. There’s no bill or extra cost – just the support you and your employee need to get the claim resolved as quickly as possible.
