The Contribution of Practice Skills in a Care Management Process for Family Caregivers

Abstract

Practice skills are believed to improve practice, yet, little is known about the extent to which skills affect outcomes. This exploratory study examined the extent to which 3 practice skills specific to a care management context for family caregivers, including communication skills, supportive skills, and linking skills, were associated with fidelity of a care management process. Twenty-one care managers who used a single process to serve 113 family caregivers were included in the study. Bivariate correlation analysis revealed the 3 practice skills are positively associated with process fidelity. Implications for social work practice, education, and research are discussed.

Keywords:

• practice skills
• process fidelity
• care management
• family caregivers
• social work practice

Acknowledgments

This research was supported by a grant to the primary author from the Hartford Foundation's Doctoral Fellows Program in Geriatric Social Work. We thank Rhonda J. V. Montgomery, Professor and Endowed Chair in Applied Gerontology at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, for allowing us to link our project with her TCARE^® evaluation study.