Recently I led a webinar with two Case Management Leaders. Melanie Price is the President of CMSA, and Colleen Morley is the incoming president of CMSA. Colleen will take office at the June 2022 Annual Conference, which will take place in Orlando, June 1-4. Both have held leadership positions, have led staff, and built teams of case managers as part of their various duties in hospitals and managed care organizations.

Prior to the webinar, the attendees sent in questions on issues related to case management practice for the speakers to answer. One set of questions was interesting to me as it is an area that I am very focused.  The topic was how can we (Helping Professionals) prove our value in our work with patients, caregivers, and all healthcare team members across the healthcare system. To view the webinar, click here. The date of the program was October 26, 2021.

I define “Helping Professionals” as professionals who are in place to assist patients/caregivers navigate the complex healthcare system. They have various names, case/care managers, health/patient advocates, patient experience professionals just to name a few.”Helping Professionals” are found in every setting of today’s healthcare system and are in place to assist people navigate the complex healthcare system.

As a “Helping Professional,” I know I make a difference, but how do I prove it? What data can I gather to show various stakeholders, the work I do, the value I bring, and that I am worth the money paid for the service I provide?.  I co-wrote an article with a colleague in a Special Report recently titled: Stepping Up to Certification. The article was titled: A Call to Action: Reporting Data to Amplify Your Voice, to address further the issue and explain the challenge “Helping Professionals have in defining their value. You can find the article on page 73. I am also working with two professionals to develop metrics that will help “Helping Professionals” utilize metrics that will give them the data they need to showcase their value. If you are interested in helping, email me and I will keep you posted on our next meeting date.

Today with Value-Based Payment Models coming into healthcare, all healthcare team members are being asked to show their value – to meet new reimbursement guidelines. “Helping Professionals” need to do the same!

Melanie Prince gave an example of how she helped her staff to articulate their value in their work. She had them write affirmations each week on the work they did and how they made a difference. She collected them and used them as part of the teams annual evaluation. She used their affirmations at meetings to show the work she and her team were doing. She used them when she explained what her team did for the healthcare system for leadership. In other words, she was able to use their affirmations to amplify their voices every chance she got.

I was curious about what affirmations were and how professionals use them in defining their value.  In reading several articles, I learned Affirmations are positive words we say to ourselves that build our confidence and self-image. They are used to validate who we are and the vital work we do. Here is a good article that helped me understand what affirmations were and how to use them to grow personally and as professionals.

I am going to do more research on affirmations and implement them into my daily work. I will keep you posted on how it is working!

Thanks for reading this week’s post. I hope it gave you an idea that will help you be your better self!

Have a good week!