The Impact of Case Managers

Case Managers Guide Injured Workers to Recovery

When an employee suffers an injury at work, they often experience an overwhelming myriad of feelings ranging from pain and frustration in adapting to and recovering from their injury to financial stressors and concern for job security and future safety. Lack of familiarity with the workers’ compensation system leads to feelings of fear and vulnerability.

What does a case manager do?

Beacon Mutual's case managers play unique roles as advocates, problem-solvers and active listeners. A case manager is responsible for helping an injured worker obtain the medical care that he or she needs by bridging gaps in communication amongst all parties involved in their care, including the employer, doctors, and the therapists. They partner with the injured workers to guide them through the recovery process. Our case managers display empathy and anticipate the injured worker’s individual needs to ensure that their medical treatment is of the highest quality, appropriate and customized for their recovery.

It is the case manager’s role to assess, plan, implement, coordinate, and evaluate workers' compensation-related medical services to assist the injured worker back to his/her pre-injury level of function. Educating the injured worker empowers them to become independent decision-makers and promote autonomy.

Our case managers understand the injured workers’ unique predicaments and partner with them to navigate them back to a safe and sustainable return to work.

How do Beacon Mutual's case managers help injured workers?

Beacon's case managers interact daily with the injured workers, families, medical providers, claims adjusters, legal representatives, employers, ergonomic consultants and vocational counselors, to ensure that everyone is aware of the injured workers' progress in recovery. They help facilitate an optimal functional outcome while ensuring appropriate utilization of resources within the community.

Our case managers actively engage with patients and their families to develop and review treatment plans along with realistic expectations and timelines for recovery. They coordinate referrals and medical treatment and play an active role in educating the injured workers about available resources. They are instrumental in identifying gaps in treatment, evaluating for ancillary services/adaptive equipment needs, arranging for transportation and language services when indicated and implementing cost effective strategies in care coordination. They engage injured workers to adapt to their physical capabilities and to focus on returning to the workforce. They assist the injured worker in navigating through any barriers to recovery while maintaining ethical and professional standards of case management, which results in a positive outcome for both the injured workers, the employers, the medical community, and the case manager.