title: Case management: developing practice through action research.
abstract: This article is a report of an action research study carried out with community nurses to help develop case management within their practice. Using action research principles, nurses reviewed and analysed their current practice and developed recommendations for further embedding case management as a means of supporting patients with complex care needs in their own homes. Findings indicate that a number of factors can influence the community nurse's ability to implement case management. These factors include approaches to case finding, availability of resources and interprofessional working. Important considerations for nurses were the influence of the context of care, the geographical location and the health needs of the local patient population, which meant that case management may need to be adapted to meet local circumstances.
authors.affiliation: Associate Head of School, School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health, University of Stirling.
authors.forename: Annetta
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: Seonaid
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mackay
authors.forename: Kathleen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: McCulloch
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D019090:Case Management / Q000458:organization & administration*; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000451:nursing*; D003152:Community Health Nursing / Q000458:organization & administration*; D003256:Community Participation; D032921:Consensus; D006284:Health Plan Implementation; D006302:Health Services Research / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D006113:United Kingdom