title: Informing the Content and Composition of the CCM Certification Examination: A National Study From the Commission for Case Manager Certification: Part 2.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this national role and function study was to identify the essential activities and necessary knowledge areas of case management practice, meaning the work performed by case managers in various care settings and across diverse professional disciplines.
  
  
  METHODS
  The national study covered case management practices and work settings across the full continuum of health care.
  
  
  METHODS
  This cross-sectional descriptive study used the practice analysis method and online survey research design. The study employed a purposive sample of case managers, in which 52,370 individuals received an invitation to volunteer to participate. Data collection completed over a 4-week period resulted in 7,668 useable survey responses (nearly a 15% response rate).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The study identified the common activities and knowledge areas necessary for competent and effective performance of case managers, as was highlighted in Part I of the two-part article series on the role and function study. The results of the study informed the needed update of the test specifications for the Certified Case Manager (CCM) certification examination. This work assures the CCM continues to be substantiated in current practice. Of special note are the emergence of specific activity and knowledge domains in the area of case management ethical, legal, and practice standards, and an increase in the number of employers requiring certified case managers to fill vacant positions and compensating them financially for such qualifications.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The role and function study keeps the CCM credentialing examination evidence-based and maintains its validity for evaluating competency of case managers. Findings can be used to develop programs and curricula for the training and education of case managers. The study instrument also can be used for further research of case management practice.
authors.affiliation: Hussein M. Tahan, PhD, RN, is the system VP of nursing professional development and workforce planning at MedStar Health, Columbia, Maryland. Hussein has more than 25 years of experience in health care and is an expert in case management. He is a past commissioner and chair of the CCMC, and a member of the editorial board of Professional Case Management. Hussein is widely published, including being a coauthor of four case management textbooks, one of which is Case Management: A Practical Guide for Education and Practice, 3rd Edition. Hussein is the knowledge editor for CCMC's Case Management Body of Knowledge online portal. Annette C. Watson, RN-BC, CCM, MBA, is a national expert and thought leader in case management and health and human services delivery systems. She also is a past-chair of the CCMC, a current member of its executive committee, and was the chair of the Program and Services at the time of this study. She is President of Watson International Consulting, LLC, the consulting firm she founded to assist organizations with innovation and transformation activities that focus on achieving the Triple Aim-better care, better health, and better costs. Patrice V. Sminkey, RN, is CEO of the CCMC, the first and largest nationally accredited organization that certifies case managers. Nearly 50,000 case managers have earned board certification with the CCM credential since 1992. There are more than 35,000 board-certified case managers in practice today.
authors.forename: Hussein M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Tahan
authors.forename: Annette C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Watson
authors.forename: Patrice V
authors.initials: PV
authors.lastname: Sminkey
mesh_terms: D019090:Case Management; D002568:Certification; D004496:Education, Continuing