McGonigle, Mastrian, and Pavlekovsky shine the light on the many gray areas of Ethical Decision-Making Dilemmas. They investigate in detail some of the conflicts faced by case managers. Next, they develop a workable solution by explaining how to use Dr. McGonigle's Ethical Model for Ethical Decisions. This model is a means for arriving at the quality of care that supports, maintains, and enhances our clients, thus reducing sequelae and further deficits. This is a useful tool to help case managers frame strong, coherent, and convincing rationale for making decisions.

Darlene Commons develops for us the nonoccupational medical factors that can slow down the process of an early return to work. An increasing number of successful case management outcomes in the workers' compensation arena rely on the case managers' ability to assess, analyze, and facilitate optimum care for the patient by understanding that non-work-related aspects can be critical.

Kathryn Bennett brings into focus how to bridge the gap between the patient's clinical treatment needs and conform to reimbursement rules and regulations. Kathryn further explains the intervention techniques that can be used to ensure that the bridge is gapped to everyone's satisfaction. Her summary comment is: "All of the discussed interventions will improve your facility's reimbursement, decrease your denial rate and, most importantly prove the value of you Case Management Department to your facility."

Frances Snowden, BS, RN, CCM

Contributing Editor