2026 Professional Reading List
Welcome to the 2026 Professional Reading List. I have produced this list since 2016 to provide resources for professionals Involved in Case Management, Care Coordination, Patient Advocacy, Nurse Navigation and other healthcare professionals to keep up on news, and learnings they need to be effective in their roles.
Each year, the list is made up of resources I have developed as well as contributions from readers and colleagues. I hope you will review the list, choose a few new resources to add to your continuous learning regime.
Last, but most importantly, the public (patients, caregivers) depend on us to be up to date on our area of practice so we can guide them to credible information, educate, empower and support them in our various roles so they become their own best advocate!
Let’s look at this year’s list:
Resources: I have developed a number of resources over the years that are as relevant today as they were when I wrote them. You can find them on my website Nurses Advocates. Here is the link. https://nursesadvocates.com/resources New resources are added regularly so check back often!
My Blog, Nurses Advocates, is another resource I hope you will consider. It comes out on most Tuesday’s at 8am EST. Here is the link to subscribe so you get each post directly to your inbox. https://nursesadvocates.com/blog
The Workers Comp Nurse Case Manager: For the past three years, I have write a column each week for Workerscompenstion.com I am the voice for case management for the e-newsletter. I hope you will check it out and sign up so you get a new post each week. Check it out at https://www.workerscompensation.com/author/anne-10
Podcast: I have a new podcast that I hope you will listen to wherever you get your podcasts. Robin Shapiro started Well Said Health to help people (patients and families) find their voice in navigating the broad healthcare system. As an author, speaker, and advocate, Robin empowers people with the language and confidence they need to navigate healthcare more successfully through insights and other people’s stories. I was honored to be her first guest on her newest venture – Well Said Health. Check out Why EVERYONE Needs a Health Advocate wherever you get your podcasts.
Some books to check out:
The Secret Language of Health Care by Robin Shapario is your practical guide to navigating common health conditions with confidence. Learn the exact words to say when you need them most. Click here to learn more: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07YNXW22J?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback
Coaching Approaches Compared: A Practical Guide to Four Major Methodologies by Dr Tony Fusco: Rather than giving us yet another coaching model, Fusco does something more interesting. He takes four established approaches to coaching: Cognitive, Existential, Gestalt and Systems Psychodynamic, and asks what actually changes when we look at the same human problem through each of these different lenses. Click here to view: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FWCVBVQX?lv=shuf&language=he&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback
Scaling Leadership: Building Organizational Capability and Capacity to Create Outcomes that Matter Most: by Robert J Anderson, William A. Adams and Ed Calmut who wrote the forward. Scaling Leadership provides a proven framework for magnifying agile and scalable leadership in your organization. Scalable leadership drives forward-momentum by multiplying high-achieving leaders at scale so that growth, productivity and innovation increase exponentially. Creative leaders multiply their strengths beyond technical competence by leading in deep relationship, with radical humanity, passion and integrity. Click here to learn more: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1119538254?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback
Recommendations from the Case Management Society of America
CMSA Case Study – UCI Health Discharge Standardization: A Multidisciplinary Approach. This case study offers a deep look into improving discharge coordination and communication through a multidisciplinary approach and team collaboration. https://cmsa.org/cmsa-case-study-discharge-standardization/
CMSA Fact Sheet: The Impact of Case Management on the Healthcare System. This comprehensive fact sheet was written for healthcare professionals highlighting the role and value of case management practice throughout the healthcare system demonstrating outcomes. https://cmsa.org/the-impact-of-case-management-on-the-healthcare-system-3/
CMSA Fact Sheet: Case Management At-A Glance. This one page fact sheet was written for patients and their caregivers to understand how case managers can guide you to better health. https://cmsa.org/case-management-at-a-glance/
CMSA Position Papers:
The Case Management Society of America (CMSA), is dedicated to advancing the practice of case management through evidence-based guidance, thought leadership, and advocacy. The resources below serve as essential resources for case managers, healthcare professionals, and organizations striving to improve patient care and outcomes. https://cmsa.org/position-papers-statements/
How Hospital Leaders Can Increase Survey Returns and Encourage Patient Testimonials by Susan Keane Baker: This book helps hospital leaders solve two persistent challenges: getting more patients to complete experience surveys and encouraging satisfied patients to share positive recommendations. With practical, immediately usable strategies, Susan Keane Baker shows how everyday communication can increase feedback, strengthen patient loyalty, amplify positive experiences, and enhance an organization’s reputation. Click here to learn more: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H7LFW8VZ?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback
We the Patients: Understanding, Navigating, and Surviving America’s Healthcare Nightmare Matthew Zachary. We the Patients is an unfiltered look at what happens when the healthcare system fails real people, and a blueprint for fighting back. Required reading for anyone navigating illness, caregiving, working in healthcare, or simply trying to stay human in a system that makes that harder every year. Click here to learn more https://shorturl.at/kEUW5
The Case Manager’s Handbook 6th edition by Catherine M. Mullahy: Widely considered the “bible” for the profession. It covers care coordination strategies, value-based healthcare, managing high-risk or high-cost patients, and foundational preparation for the case management certification examinations.
An American Sickness: How Healthcare Became Big Business and How You Can Take It Back by Elisabeth Rosenthal: This book breaks down how hospitals, insurance companies, and drug makers turned health care into a profit-driven machine. Click here to learn more: https://shorturl.at/eaG3d
The Healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper, and Fairer Health Care by T.R. Reid: The author travels to other rich countries to see how they run universal health systems that cost less and cover everyone. To learn more click here: https://shorturl.at/qPPGu
Building Connected Communities of Care edited by Keith Kosel and Steve Miff: A practical playbook outlining how medical entities can seamlessly coordinate with Community-Based Organizations (CBOs). It is ideal for case managers looking to bridge the gap between traditional medicine and social services (like housing, food security, and utility assistance). To learn more click here: https://shorturl.at/XjZhJ
Care Coordination: A Blueprint for Action for RNs by Gerri Lamb and Robin Newhouse: Published by the American Nurses Association (ANA), this blueprint focuses specifically on the role of the nurse care coordinator, providing strategic actions to overcome systemic barriers in everyday practice. Click here to learn more: https://www.nursingworld.org/nurses-books/care-coordination-blueprint-for-action-for-rns/?srsltid=AU7gw4Unc_2OoL4OnPQFjLxSU0t4SppfMzFzuKPK585FzNjkGI3fLxBu
The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt. A must-read for all parents: the generation-defining investigation into the collapse of youth mental health in the era of smartphones, social media, and big tech—and a plan for a healthier, freer childhood. To learn more cick here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0593655036?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback
Ethical Leadership by Robert Starratt—one of the leading thinkers on the topic of ethics and education—shows educational leaders how to move beyond mere technical efficiency in the delivery and performance of learning. He challenges educators to become ethical leaders who understand the learning process as a profoundly moral activity that engages the full humanity of the school community. Click here to learn more: https://www.wiley.com/en-us/shop/general-introductory-education/ethical-leadership-p-9780787965648
The IPFCC Resource Library on Patient and Family Advisiors by the Institute for Patient- and Family-Centered Care: This is the industry gold standard for creating patient and family advisory programs. It includes specific manuals such as Essential Allies: A Guide for Staff Liaisons and A Checklist for Attitudes About Patients and Families as Advisors. They also offer an updated Toolkit for Equity and Diversity to help councils recruit advisors that represent the actual demographic makeup of the patient community. If you are part of a patient and family council or starting one, this is a good site to find tools to help you. Click here to learn more https://www.ipfcc.org/bestpractices/patient-and-family-advisory-programs/pfa-resources-and-tools.html
Working with Patients and Families as Advisors: Implementation Handbook by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ): A highly structured, step-by-step guidebook used by healthcare administrators and clinicians to design, build, and sustain effective advisory councils from scratch. To learn more click here: https://www.ahrq.gov/patient-safety/patients-families/engagingfamilies/strategy1/index.html
Healthcare Technology: Law and Compliance: The User-Friendly Guide to Healthtech Law by Susan Lee Walberg (Author). Whether you are the CEO of a HealthTech start-up, a physician building a new telehealth practice, or a developer working on the next great Artificial Intelligence tool, this book is a necessity. If you’re a compliance officer, a MedTech investor, or even a consumer who wants a better understanding of who can use your data and how-you will benefit from reading Healthcare Technology: Law and Compliance. To learn more, click here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0999860550?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback
Enough! Eradicate Bullying & Incivility in Healthcare – 2nd Edition by Renee Thompson: A guide for healthcare leaders who are sick of bad behavior disrupting their workplace! Dr. Renee Thompson, an internationally recognized expert in eradicating bullying and incivility in healthcare, provides leaders with the essential skills they need to establish and maintain a professional workplace. To learn more: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1732251061?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback
Communication in Healthcare: Charting the Course to Better Outcomes with Trust, Respect, and Teamwork by Anne Marie Morse. Communication in Healthcare: Charting the Course to Better Outcomes with Trust, Respect, and Teamwork, Dr. Anne-Marie Morse seeks to eliminate those “say, what?!” moments and improve clarity in communication between healthcare partners and patients. Click here to learn more: https://shorturl.at/06mlC
Discharge Is Not a Moment: Operational Judgment in Post-Acute Care by Michelle Davis, MSN, BSN, RN, CCM. Discharge Is Not a Moment is a practical guide for healthcare professionals navigating complex transitions across acute, post-acute, and community settings. Through the L.E.M.O.N.S.™ Framework, Michelle Davis connects communication, ethical judgment, patient and family engagement, and operational decision-making to help teams strengthen continuity, reduce avoidable gaps, and approach discharge as a shared process rather than a single event. Click here to learn more: https://www.amazon.com.br/Discharge-Not-Moment-M-N-S/dp/B0H1G11S7C
Surviving the Hospital: Six Secrets Every Patient Should Know by Val Barschaw. This book is your essential guide to navigating the complex world of healthcare with confidence and empowerment. To learn more click here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1646458885?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback
CMSA Core Curriculum for Professional Case Management 4th Edition by Hussein M. Tahan PHD RN FAAN FCM and Teresa M. Treiger RN MA. Developed by industry experts in collaboration with the Case Management Society of America (CMSA), this authoritative curriculum provides the foundational knowledge and practical strategies needed for effective case management practice across the healthcare continuum. Covering key roles and functions, care coordination, transitional care, utilization management, ethics, legal and quality considerations, leadership, technology, and specialty practice areas, it prepares professionals to navigate complex healthcare systems and improve outcomes, making this an indispensable resource for practicing case managers, program leaders, providers, academicians, and advanced learners. Click here to learn more: https://shorturl.at/3i8gv
A Guide to Successful Workers Compensation Case Management, Second Edition by Dorothy Consonery Fairnot, MSHA, BS, RN, CM, LNC. Workers’ compensation case management demands clinical precision, legal fluency, and genuine advocacy — all at once. Whether you are managing your first complex claim or your thousandth, this book gives you exactly what you need, exactly when you need it. Written by Dorothy Consonery Fairnot, MSHA, BS, RN, CM, LNC — a nationally recognized authority in workers’ compensation case management and former Board Chair of the Commission for Case Manager Certification (CCMC) — this definitive second edition delivers the most thorough, jurisdiction-specific regulatory reference in the field. Click here to learn more: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HDKJ1K46?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback
Hospital Utilization Management: Guide for Physician Advisors and Case Managers (2025) by Dr. Ronald Hirsch, MD, FACP, ACPA-C, CHRI, CHCQM-PHYADV. This book is intended for hospital physician advisors, utilization review professionals and case managers and encompasses the myriad of regulations and rules that are faced every day in hospitals. This includes admission status determinations, patient notifications, the conditions of participation, payment basics and much, much more. Click here to learn more: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GXWYCNNX?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback
Books by Dr. Collen Morely: Dr. Morley DNP RN CCM CMAC CMCN CMGT-BC ACM RN IQCI FCM FAACM. Dr. Morely is Associate Chief Clinical Operations Officer-Continuum of Care; UI Health System. She is a past president of the Case Management Society of America, the current President of the CMSA Foundation and President of CMSA MidAmerica and a Published Author, Experienced CM Leader, Passionate Educator.
A Practical Guide to Acute Care Case Management: The Day to Day “How To Be An Acute Care Case Manager. A comprehensive reference and training manual designed to fill the gap in structured onboarding for hospital-based case managers.
A Practical Guide to Acute Care Case Management Leadership: The Resource Guide for New, Established or Emerging Leaders. A comprehensive handbook designed to help healthcare professionals navigate department management, utilization review, and team leadership in acute care settings
Navigating the System: Case Management Essentials for Every Healthcare Professional. A practical guide designed to help nurses, physicians, and allied health staff understand case management roles, coordinate patient-centered care, reduce readmissions, and improve clinical outcomes.
A Practical Guide to Hospital Readmission Reduction. This book delves into the intricacies of the Hospital Readmission Reduction Program (HRRP), reviews the seminal strategies, and uncovers new ideas needed to transform the healthcare experience. The book explores cutting-edge initiatives and innovative practices that revolutionize patient care, paving the way for improved outcomes and greater patient satisfaction. Click here to learn more: https://bluebayoupress.com/books/a-practical-guide-to-hospital-readmission-reduction
Centered Care: A Mindfulness Journal for Case Managers: This journal was created to support you—the case manager—as you support others. It is a space to pause, reflect, and realign. It is a tool to help you cultivate presence in your day-to-day work, rediscover purpose in your professional identity, and foster growth through mindful attention
Books by Dr. Ellen Fink-Samnick, DBH, MSW, LCSW, ACSW, CCM, CCTP, CRP, FCM.
Dr. Fink-Samnick is an award-winning industry entrepreneur who empowers healthcare’s interprofessional workforce. She is known as Professional Case Management’s Ethical Compass and for her work in health equity, integrated care, interprofessional workforce. Dr. Fink-Samnick has a doctorate in behavioral health with specialization in health equity, integrated care, quality, leadership, and trauma-informed practice. She is a licensed clinical social worker, board-certified case manager, and certified clinical trauma professional. Here are a few of her books.
Behavioral Health for Case Management: is written for nurse case managers, social work case managers, and other case management professionals across settings, this authoritative desk reference and academic-ready text provides the tools, language, and structure you need to feel confident when you’re working with clients who have behavioral health diagnoses, even if behavioral health is not your primary specialty. Click here to learn more: https://a.co/d/02FFjTQy
Integrated Behavioral Health: Applying the Biodyne Model in Healthcare Offers a fully modernized, post-pandemic reframing of integrated care. Tackling today’s most pressing realities – health disparities, trauma exposure among patients and providers, and the structural challenges that limit access, equity, and sustainability across global healthcare systems – this authoritative text blends evidence, strategy, and innovation across three focused sections. Click here to learn more: https://a.co/d/0fWbQJ0J
The Ethical Case Manager: Tools and Tactics. This book establishes itself as a leading resource for healthcare professionals seeking to master complex ethical and legal dimensions of case management. From students and novices to seasoned professionals, it offers indispensable knowledge to navigate ethical challenges confidently, while upholding the highest standards of integrity across the healthcare landscape. Click here to learn more: https://a.co/d/00eEu9FD
Thank you for reviewing the 2026 Professional Reading List. I hope you will print it off and review it often. Share it with your colleague and get a few of the books to improve your understanding of the topics covered. The resources will enhance your professionalism and improve the care you provide.
