From the Heart
Meet the Heart of Case Management
You want the best, most experienced case manager working your claims. But case management isn’t one-size-fits-all—it’s a big-picture approach involving experienced professionals with strong clinical backgrounds, who utilize tools such as evidence-based guidelines, but also employ empathy and compassion to help injured employees achieve maximum medical improvement or return-to-work.
From the Heart highlights stories where the case manager not only resolved the claim, but actively worked to improve the life of the injured worker. The stories featured here are our Heart of Case Management Award winners and nominees, which is Genex’s highest award for case management excellence. These cases are truly inspirational and demonstrate how our case managers change lives every day by helping injured workers return to their jobs safely and efficiently.
Field Case Management
Field Case Management
2022 Field Heart of Case Management Award Winner
Meet Mary Campbell-Pittman, RN, MSN, CCM. A police officer was hospitalized in the ICU with shortness of breath secondary to a COVID diagnosis.
Field Case Management
2021 Field Heart of Case Management Award Winners
Meet Marisela Chavero, RN. A 25-year-old Spanish-speaking woman was walking across a warehouse floor when a forklift operator accidentally ran into her, knocking her down and crushing her right foot and ankle.
Field Case Management
Off the Streets and Safe from COVID
Rebecca Almskog is a field case manager with 25 years of nursing experience in the Denver-area. She put her critical thinking skills and knowledge of local resources to work when assigned to a case involving a homeless injured employee with several comorbidities who was on the streets during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Telephonic Case Management
Telephonic Case Management
2022 Telephonic Heart of Case Management Award Winner
Meet Christine Heil, RN, CCM. A 45-year-old manager of an auto repair company was assisting an employee when a vehicle he was standing near fell off a lift and onto his foot, creating an open fracture of his large right toe with bone puncturing skin.
Telephonic Case Management
2021 Telephonic Heart of Case Management Award Winners
Meet Tammy Zivic, RN, CCM. A 63-year-old hardware store employee approached two men who had left the building without purchasing items. After requesting to see a receipt, the employee was struck several times by the men with a crowbar.
Telephonic Case Management
Getting It Right Makes All the Difference
As a telephonic case manager for Genex the past five years, Dianna Zellerman has mastered the ability to overcome one of the biggest challenges a non-field case manager faces in working with injured employees: establishing trust. This critical skill made all the difference in ensuring this injured woman received the right medical treatment to return to work.
More Telephonic Case Management Stories
Catastrophic Case Management
Catastrophic Case Management
2022 Catastrophic Heart of Case Management Award Winner
Meet Kellie Harrell, RN, BSN, CCM. Unlike her predecessors, Kellie Harrell’s award-winning case did not center around one injured employee, but several in responding to a mass casualty incident.
Catastrophic Case Management
2021 Catastrophic Heart of Case Management Award Winners
Meet Debbi Gillespie RN, CCM. A 51-year-old police officer was shot in the thoracoabdominal region while trying to apprehend a suspect on felony warrants. The officer was quickly transported to a trauma center for emergency treatment with significant injuries including lung, liver and kidney lacerations.
Catastrophic Case Management
Experience Matters in Restoring Lives
Prior to becoming a case manager, Kayla Payne had worked as an emergency department (ED) nurse in one of the busiest EDs in her state. As a catastrophic care case manager, she regularly is assigned to injured employees who are transferred to the same ED. Her experiences dealing with traumatic injuries there have prepared her to manage the most critical workplace injuries, while Payne’s relationships with former ED medical colleagues allow her to quickly gather and report necessary information to adjusters to initiate treatment plans.
More Catastrophic Case Management Stories
Disability Case Management
Disability Case Management
2022 Disability Heart of Case Management Award Winner
Meet Nicole Kunde, CPDM. A 54-year-old mechanic experienced respiratory distress due to worsening COVID symptoms. The man was admitted to his local hospital for supplemental oxygen therapy
Disability Case Management
2021 Disability Heart of Case Management Award Winner
Meet Nancy LeBlanc, RN, CCM, CPDM, WES. A 49-year-old plant operator tripped and fell into asphalt resulting in substantial bilateral arm burns, including extensive burns to both hands, right forearm and his abdomen. The man was rushed to a nearby facility where it was determined he would need skin grafts. Genex’s Nancy LeBlanc was assigned to the case and began coordinating the injured employee’s care plan.
Disability Case Management
Breaking Down Barriers
Mariana Diaz, BA, CPDM, is a bilingual Integrated Disability Case Manager (IDCM) assigned to a major manufacturer of building and remodeling supplies. She employs her cultural expertise in managing her cases and often assists other case managers with communication with Spanish-only speaking employees and families.
More Disability Case Management Stories