We follow a clinical model of Case Management in which the relationship with the client is paramount. All Case Managers have a professional duty of care towards their client, and practice ethically, and are committed to sharing expertise.
We follow a model of clinical case management in which the relationship between the Case Manager and the brain-injured client (and their family) is paramount. Therefore, in order to develop a therapeutic alliance and good rapport, contact always includes visits to the client's home and frequent telephone contact. We aim to enable people with acquired brain injuries to progress towards their rehabilitation goals, and support them and their families in adjusting to their altered circumstances, while also acknowledging that this is a dynamic process and that the needs of each individual will change over their life time.
All our Case Managers are registered healthcare professionals and as such their primary duty of care is towards the client (the brain injured person). Whilst practising as case managers they are each bound by their regulated profession's codes of conduct and ethics, as well as competency and proficiency standards, promoting safe and effective professional practice.
Our Case Managers are also all members of the British Association of Brain Injury Case Managers (BABICM) and therefore adhere to the protocols, guidelines, standards and competencies drawn up by the association.
As members of the British Association of Brain Injury Case Managers (BABICM), we are bound by the Code of Ethics, drawn up in association with the Case Management Society UK (CMSUK), which is as follows:
You owe a legal and moral duty of care to the client. Decisions should be made irrespective of how the service is resourced and funded. This relates not only to the standard of care and supervision you provide for them, but also their property and other interests, and also the practical nature of how you take instruction, manage your time, balance multiple clients and tasks, and resolve any conflicts.
You must practise within the law. If you identify a breach of the law you should report it to the appropriate authorities. If you identify any inconsistency, incompatibility, or unintended consequence of the law that needs addressing or reform, you should report it to those responsible.
You must respect the client's autonomy, including their right to live with risk. Being autonomous means having the capacity to:
If the client does not have decision-making capacity (competence) over a particular matter, you must act (collaboratively if appropriate) according to what is necessary and in their best interests. You have a responsibility to act as an advocate for them where appropriate, or to ensure that someone suitable does so. In deciding what is in their best interests, their previous competent decisions as well as their wishes and feelings now, should be taken into account.
You must not cause harm to the client. This includes duties around the protection of children or adults at risk, but is not limited to these. You must not abuse your position of trust in respect of the client, their family or others significant in their life.
You must uphold the principles of non-discrimination, cultural sensitivity and human rights in applying each component of this Code. At a minimum this means the six strands of diversity (gender, age, disability, ethnicity, sexual orientation, belief), and related rights (language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth or other status).
You must endeavour to tell the client the truth known to you at all times. This includes taking positive steps to correct any misunderstandings or misperceptions they or those significant in their life may have.
You must respect the client's privacy, confidentiality and data protection, and their physical and emotional dignity.
You must ensure that the client and others understand the nature and limits of your employment or practice status, how you handle referrals, instruction and case loads, and that these and other business and financial practices or considerations are honest, accountable and of good repute.
You have an obligation of professional integrity. This includes an obligation to maintain any relevant registration, accreditation and supervision, professional indemnity and public liability insurance. It also includes your dealings with other professionals or in other capacities (such as expert or medico-legal work), insofar as they may relate to your case management practice. It also includes continuing education and training, dealings with the media, any withdrawal from a case for professional reasons, and having resources for addressing ethical dilemmas. You should take on work and practice at a level commensurate with your skills and experience.
We are committed to raising awareness about the particular problems encountered by brain-injured people and their families. The issues, which are often unseen, give rise to a wide range of difficulties for the clients and their families, yet are very often not understood or taken into account by the public or even by general disability services. We therefore always seek to share specialist knowledge and communicate expertise at every opportunity, whether this be within everyday communication or via the provision of formal training or through publishing research. Many of our case managers are active members of national working parties and steering groups aimed at improving the lives of people with acquired brain injury.
In all aspects of its business Head First supports the right of individuals with acquired brain injuries to lead as normal and fulfilling a life as possible within the limitations of their injuries. Head First therefore advocates and encourages opportunities for clients to do as much as they can independently, yet recognises and recommends (and, in the case of Case Management clients, provides) appropriate assistance when it is needed.
Head First follows a model of clinical case management in which the relationship between the Case Manager and the brain-injured client (and their family) is paramount.
Visits to the client's home and frequent telephone contact carried out in a non-judgmental, objective and compassionate manner facilitates rapport and enables collaborative planning, leading in turn to more effective and sustainable intervention.
As a result of joint planning with the client, Head First accepts the need for, and consequently implements, an extremely broad range of support which takes account of the individual needs and preferences, and is provided at a pace and level that each client can accept and cope with.
Head First enables people with acquired brain injuries to progress towards their rehabilitation goals, and supports them and their families in adjusting to their altered circumstances, while also acknowledging that this is a dynamic process and that the needs of each individual will change over time. It is also understood that many of Head First's clients will have long-term or permanent needs as a consequence of their brain injury.
All Case Managers at Head First have professional backgrounds and are bound by their own professional codes of conduct and ethics. They are also guided by the Protocol and Guidelines of Practice drawn up by the British Association of Brain Injury Case Managers (BABICM), as well as the BABICM standards and competencies.
Assessments used by Case Managers have been developed as a result of extensive experience of working with people with severe brain injuries. The model of intervention is generally based on the neuro-functional approach to rehabilitation and community re-integration.
All intervention is carried out against a background of evidence and expertise based on research. All Head First employees undertake data collection on Case Management as part of an in-house research project and some have contributed towards international research and other professional publications on the subject of brain injury.
