A strong health care team that collaborates well can drive safer care delivery and improve client outcomes. The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes interprofessional collaboration as an evidence-based strategy to enable stronger collaborative practice. Interprofessional collaborative practice can improve quality of care, prevent medical errors, reduce length of stay, and lower costs. As key care coordinators and excellent communicators, case managers can be integral to effective interprofessional collaboration.
“The WHO has defined interprofessional collaboration as occurring when ‘multiple health workers from different professional backgrounds work together with patients, families, caregivers, and communities to deliver the highest quality of care,’” says Vivian Campagna, DNP, RN-BC, CCM, ICE-CCP, Chief Industry Relations Officer at the Commission for Case Manager Certification. “It is a partnership that starts with the patient and includes all healthcare providers working together to deliver patient- and family-centric care.”
