Case Management: Challenges for the Rural Panhandle of Texas

Abstract

This paper addresses certain challenges case managers face in the rural Texas Panhandle, but is applicable to a variety of human service workers with different backgrounds who practice in other nonmetropolitan areas. A brief history of case management is discussed in the context of early mental health treatment and deinstitutionalization. The Upper Peninsula of Michigan is a secondary geographical region that is mentioned, based on the author's personal background. Four specific barriers to providing effective case management in the Texas Panhandle are highlighted. In conclusion, questions are posed in dichotomous formats in order to broaden the scope in the traditional perceptions of case management.