The Enduring Relevance of Case Management

Abstract

This article summarizes the main results and policy implications of a Department of Health funded mental health case management research and development project. The project implemented case management services in four different sites, and worked with clients who were severely disabled with long-term mental illness. Higher levels of engagement (95 per cent) were achieved by case-managed as compared to control clients. They were also linked to a wider range of community services. However, costs of the experimental services were higher, and client outcome variable. In two sites, case-managed clients achieved significant improvements in psycho-social adjustment, whereas on the third site, there were no differences in outcome between the control andexperimental clients. The article concludes that case management continues to be a mode of service delivery which can achieve real benefits for clients in terms of preventing them from falling through the net, and in linking them in responsive ways to community services. However, the increased costs can make it an unattractive option for purchasers, and ways need to be found to retain the established benefits, whilst reducing the costs to service purchasers.