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Reconceptualizing the Case Management Relationship in Intensive Treatment: A Study of Staff Perceptions and Experiences

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Abstract

The helping relationship or alliance is theorized to be an important process variable in case management services for people with serious mental illness. Previous studies of the case management relationship borrow concepts and measures from psychotherapy research and therefore may overlook important differences in tasks, settings, and clinical roles across settings. A study of client–provider relationships as perceived by case managers, based on a qualitative study of two intensive case management (ICM) teams, is presented. The findings, which delineate positive and negative experiential elements, may be used to improve measurement of the case management relationship in future research.

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Acknowledgments

This study was funded by a Young Investigator Award from the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression (NARSAD). We thank the staff of both case management teams for spending the time to share their perspectives with us, and to the clients for permitting us to observe their meetings with the case managers. We also thank Irene Elkin, Ph.D. for serving as a sponsor of the NARSAD award and for providing consultation regarding the study design. We also thank Noriko Ishibashi Martinez for assistance with the data analysis.

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  1. School of Social Service Administration, University of Chicago, 969 E. 60th St., Chicago, IL, 60637, USA

    Beth Angell

  2. School of Social Work, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1350 University Avenue, Madison, WI, 53706, USA

    Colleen Mahoney

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  1. Beth Angell
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Correspondence to Beth Angell.

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Angell, B., Mahoney, C. Reconceptualizing the Case Management Relationship in Intensive Treatment: A Study of Staff Perceptions and Experiences. Adm Policy Ment Health 34, 172–188 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10488-006-0094-7

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