Use of the Case Management Approach to Improve Social Services for the Elderly

1. Use of the Case Management Approach to Improve Social Services for the Elderly Prof. Jun Woo Lee (Dean of College and Graduate School of Social Welfare in KangnamUniv.) Prof. Ji Young Won (Kangnam Univ.)

2. CONTENTS 1. Introduction 2. Methods 3. Results 4. Conclusion 5. Future Proposals

3. 1. INTRODUCTION

4. 1. INTRODUCTION: Rise in the Elderly Population Korea is in the midst of a great change caused by an ‘aging society’ 20.8 SUPER-AGED SOCIETY % of elderly population 14.3 9.5 7.2 Year

5. 1. INTRODUCTION: Current Social Services NATIONAL LONG-TERM CARE INSURANCE POLICY(NLCI; 2008) Care services for those with difficulties with activities of daily living. i.e. nursing homes, in-home care facilities Diverse services that meet the non-medical needs for those who are able to perform most activities of daily living. i.e. senior welfare center

6. 1. INTRODUCTION: Problems with Current Social Services The policy does not address the need for psychological, social and educational services 1 Imbalance between health and non-health care services 4 Issues Produced by NLCI Policy The costs approved by NLCI are limited to physical care 2 NLCI does not pay for the development and management of specific programs for psychological, social and educational needs 3

7. 1. INTRODUCTION In summary, social work practices for elderly people have experienced problems such as limited resources for programs that address non-medical needs of people and lack of cooperation among related institutions. CASE MANAGEMENT

8. 1. INTRODUCTION: What is Case Management? A process that contributes to the autonomy of services users in every practice process by building partnerships between case managers and services users and encouraging the participation of the services user Based on the eco-systematic perspective Various professionals participate simultaneously in the case management process as a multi-domain team Case management services depend on the individual efforts and personal abilities of social workers because of the absence of clear case management guidelines

9. 1. INTRODUCTION: What is Case Management? Case management practices are interpreted in variety of ways according to the social worker’s personal level of understanding.

10. 2. METHODS

11. 3. RESULTS

12. 3. RESULTS: Service Users All participants stated that they felt lonely and powerless Most participants mentioned that they had met friends in agencies that provides supportive social network All participants expressed the need for non-health care services Participants thought that the quality of health care and non-health care services depended on the professional capacities of service providers Participants stated that preventive programs must be provided prior to care services

13. 3. RESULTS: Service Providers • Opinions about the necessity and value of case management • Generally positive responses on case management but the numbers and • ability of social workers who could practice case management were low • The absence of standardized methods and guidelines for case management • were noted • Opinions about difficulties faced in the service field • Professionals and field workers have not reached an agreement on the • definition of case management • No standardized practice guidelines or process manuals for case • management that describe the process and methods • Scarce resources for service • Absence of systematic collaboration among professionals fields • Heavy workload • Limitations of NLCI fund

14. 4. CONCLUSION

15. 4. CONCLUSION Most elderly people experience the loss of their social roles and intimate relationships thus, all of the research participants expressed social, psychological and educational needs Case management approach would be a useful method to improve the quality of life Policies tend to focus only on physical needs and overlook the emotional and social needs resulting imbalance between health care and non-health care services

16. 4. CONCLUSION For social workers, environment inside and outside the organizations are hostile to the use of case management approach to provide services Most social workers recognize case management as an effective and efficient tool to improve the quality of services Most agencies utilize case management approach but it’s far from ideal

17. 5. FUTURE PROPOSALS

18. 5. Future Proposals Development of case management support system that comprehensively manages and regulates services This system will reduce the burden of social workers in connecting the needs to resources Related professionals should reach consensus on the definition of case management and develop standardized practice guidelines and process manuals Ongoing education and training in case management should be offered to service providers

19. Thank You