Care Management
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At Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA), we are committed to you and your needs. We want you to feel acknowledged, empowered and supported in your journey towards healing. We understand this support needs to come from multiple sources.
The Care Management Department at CTCA at Southwestern Regional Medical Center (Southwestern) provides an important level of support. The goal of our care managers is to restore your hope and help you fight cancer by guiding you throughout your entire continuum of care.
Your Medical Advocate
Southwestern’s care managers are registered nurses with oncology expertise who help you coordinate the many different aspects of your care. Their goal is to facilitate wellness and autonomy through a collaborative process of assessment, planning, communication, education and advocacy for options and services to meet your health needs. Southwestern’s care managers include outpatient, inpatient and survivorship nurses.
Unlike many other cancer treatment facilities, Southwestern provides care management to every patient—regardless of whether you are in or out of the hospital. Therefore, your care manager is able to establish a long-term relationship with you while guiding you through the entire care process.
Streamlining Your Care
During your initial visit to Southwestern, you'll meet with a nurse navigator who will help coordinate your care throughout your intake process. After you have met with your medical oncologist and received your treatment plan, your nurse navigator will transition your care to one of the Southwestern care management teams, which will be assigned specifically to you.
Your care management team will serve as your advisors and advocates during and after your treatment. If you have medical questions or concerns, you'll contact your care managers first, as they can promptly address your needs. This process streamlines your care so you get the attention you deserve.
As a member of your overall care team, your care managers communicate with your doctors, caregivers and health insurance company on your behalf to make sure your treatment plan runs smoothly. In addition, a registered nurse is also on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
We also have a Care Management Concierge program, in which a care manager (who is a registered nurse) is available from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. every day of the week, including weekends. Patients can stop by their office anytime without an appointment to ask the nurse questions or talk about concerns. This helps to ensure that your needs will always be promptly addressed by a member of the clinical team.
Care Management Services
Your care management team will assist in coordinating your care throughout your treatment, during recovery and after your treatment is finished through our Survivorship Support Program.
Your care manager can help you manage a variety of details, including the following:
- Review your medical history
- Assist with making referrals to specific departments
- Work with your insurance company
- Consult daily with your care team to review and discuss your treatment plan
- Help you understand your treatment plan and provide the information you need to make informed decisions about your care
- Help you keep track of your lab tests and identify questions/concerns for your oncologist
- Provide you with information about your cancer type and managing side effects of cancer treatment
- Coordinate discharge planning when you leave the hospital (i.e., equipment to transition to outpatient/home care services)
- Conduct regular follow-up interviews with you to help manage your symptoms (i.e., after chemotherapy) and answer your questions
- Serve as a link to you if you are at home (i.e., help with symptom assessment, ongoing disease management, etc.)
- Help coordinate medications through consultation with your doctors
Social Work Assistance
Social work assistance is also available at Southwestern. A social worker will collaborate with your care manager to handle various issues, such as crisis management, applying for disability, help with paying for medication, and linking you to appropriate community resources.
