As StanleySmith Case Management continues to grow, it is adding vital new aspects of expertise to its team, to deliver the best and most comprehensive possible service to clients. NR Times finds out more
Dealing with clients with highly complex needs can be hugely challenging for case managers in assembling a team to deliver the best and most bespoke service possible – but by having a wide range of in-house expertise, case management companies have the vital resources to maximise client outcomes.
By having team members with backgrounds in all aspects of healthcare, case management companies can bring additional insight into the multi-disciplinary team (MDT) and in understanding the needs of the client.
The expansion of StanleySmith Case Management is geared around just that – growing the team to help support its growing number of clients across the South of England, while bringing in the expertise to help it deliver the best and most tailored service possible.
The growing business – named best small case management company at the CMSUK Awards 2022 – has case managers with backgrounds in a range of therapies, and its two latest appointments bring nursing experience into the team.
And by widening its range of in-house expertise, StanleySmith believes this is of great advantage to its clients.
“Through all of our different backgrounds combining, this means we can give the best possible service. We’ve got a range of expertise here in our team,” says Nikki Smith, co-founder and director of StanleySmith, whose background is in physiotherapy.
“With the wide range of knowledge we have – whether we’re OTs, physios, speech and language therapists, – we can deal with things in a speedy fashion because we have the skill mix and experience in house.
“It’s a real team approach and it’s very exciting that we have also recently brought nursing experience into the team, which can offer a different perspective.
“We are very focused on our team and promote collaborative working. By having a case managers who have clinical backgrounds in OT, physio, speech and language therapy and nursing, we can offer even more to our clients.
“We now also have an experienced team leader working with us within out team of case managers. He works in a case management assistant role and his knowledge of care teams from the perspective of a team leader is also invaluable.”
The award-winning StanleySmith team brings together a breadth of expertise
Working collaboratively with a wide mix of clinical expertise is highly beneficial when working with clients who have had a catastrophic brain injury or complex neurological presentation, says Heidi Stanley, co-founder and director of StanleySmith.
“As a company we have become specialists in working with very complex clients. We are able to do this because of our collaborative working and structure,” says Heidi, whose background is in occupational therapy.
“We look at the skillset of all our team and look at the needs of the client and match them up with the person that has the expertise needed to work with them – and by widening our expertise, we have even more to offer.
“Recently, I’ve been working on a case with a large team, with a client who has a high level of medical needs. One of our nurses is going to take over managing the case because her clinical knowledge enables her to have insight into indicators of deteriorating health and this enable us to work preventatively with him, avoiding hospital admissions.
“It’s very important that we can seek advice from each other within the team. We have different skills, knowledge and experience from both our case management practice and clinical backgrounds.
“With our nurses, we can seek their advice on complex care such as skin pressure care. If there was something of concern impacting upon mobility, Nikki or one of our other physios can provide advice to the case manager. It’s the same with communication, we are able to discuss issues with our speech therapist.
“We can get that advice and make decisions quickly, promoting early intervention and reducing risks and crisis intervention.”
Within StanleySmith, there is also an occupational therapist who is EDGE trained in relation to moving and handling, who can carry out training with carers and be available promptly for any queries.
“This is supportive to carers working with clients, particularly those with complex moving and handling needs. Our registered nurse is also delivering training and checking competencies for carers. This ensures safety and support for carers. If they have any queries they are able to have a speedy response,” says Heidi.
Nikki adds: “We are going from strength to strength and the development of our team and the expertise we have is very exciting. We work very closely together, it’s all about teamwork and working to do the very best we can for our clients.”
