Consultants

Kathleen A. Bower, DNSc, RN, FAAN, CMAC, is Principal Emeritus of The Center for Case Management She was a member of the team that invented Clinical Paths and provider-based Case Management at New England Medical Center in 1985. She has provided education and consultation regarding patient care management strategies, including Clinical Paths, Case Management, Disease Management, patient outcomes and critical indicators, patient education and compliance, management skills and documentation redesign, nationally and internationally. Dr. Bower has authored many articles and books on these subjects as well as providing workshops and presentations. She holds a BSN from Georgetown University, an MSN from Boston College and a doctoral degree in nursing (DNSc) from Boston University. She is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing, which presented Kathy with their Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015.

Sue Wilson Hall,

Sue is the  Executive Director of Operations and has over 30 years’ experience in the Healthcare field.  She started her career as an admitting clerk for a Massachusetts Hospital, by the end of her tenure she was an Admissions Coordinator and continues to consult on admitting processes.  She joined the team at The Center for Case Management in 2000. Has held various roles before becoming the Director of Operations in 2013.

Responsible for the day to day operations, her role also ensures that operational details of all client engagements are efficiently managed, while meeting on-boarding requirements to the client’s satisfaction.  Her expertise in organizational performance and attention to detail is exceptional and supports the Interim’s, Clients and Staff.   She has professional relationship building qualities that supports all relationships under her direction.

She served as the Executive Director of CMAC (The Case Management Administrator Certification) from 2001-2018.   Ms. Wilson Hall is actively involved with helping women in recovery, resides outside of Boston with her husband.

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Kathy Aldridge, MSN, ACM, CPHQ, CPC-A, is an associate consultant with over forty years of healthcare experience. Kathy has served as Director and Interim Director over Case Management, CDI, and Quality Improvement departments and has extensive experience in the development and redesign of effective case management programs. Ms. Aldridge served as Program Administrator for Clinical Documentation Compliance for a five-hospital system in northeast Tennessee and had oversight of the Case Management departments in those hospitals. Her experience ranges across all areas of case management, transitional care programs, reimbursement strategies, clinical documentation improvement, compliance, risk management, revenue integrity, quality and outcomes management strategies, and effective medical management services.

Kathy holds a Master of Science in Nursing degree from Bellarmine University and currently holds certifications in Case Management, Clinical Documentation Improvement, Quality and Performance Improvement, and Coding.

Jeffrey Echternach, BBA, AS, NRP Jeff’s career in healthcare began as a paramedic and business development coordinator for the hospital ambulance and critical care transport division. Interest in Data and Process improvement lead Jeff to pursue his Bachelors in Business from Averett University, Six Sigma, LEAN, & Agile Training, and develop a core competency around Healthcare and Business analytics. Supporting Carilion Clinic as a Senior Project Analyst, Jeff has several primary departments that he and his team are responsible for supporting including a busy 78 bed Emergency Room, an Emergency Medicine Program, a Large and Nationally known Transfer and Communications center, The Care Management Division, and Nursing Services.

Jeff is passionate about gaining insight from data, providing analysis that informs, and translating data into meaningful, actionable information.

Jeff has had primary or supportive responsibility over several large and complex projects including the maturity of the Pay for Performance and Value-based purchasing initiatives, Transfer Center Process Design and Data mining, optimization of the Care Management Division and the implementation of several EPIC Modules. Jeff maintains experience in EPIC and TeleTracking Technologies and has worked with several EMRs and Data systems.

Cheryl Kanallakan, RN, BSN, MSN, CCM, ACM, is a consulting associate whose professional and leadership experience spans over 30 years, with 20 years of Case Management leadership.  Her vast experience in Care Coordination includes ED & Acute Care Case Management, Utilization Review/Management, Discharge Planning, Transitions of Care and Revenue Cycle. Ms. Kanallakan has developed and implemented Case Management programs and provided exceptional directorship in staff and department development. She has recently retired from the University of Colorado Health System where she held varies Case Management leadership roles including Sr. Director of Care Coordination for a multi-hospital system.  Currently, Ms. Kanallakan provides in department and organizational assessments and onsite assistance with development and implementation of new programs and processes for clients.

Shawna G. Kates, MSW, MBA, CMAC is a Consulting Associate. Ms. Kates brings her deep knowledge of case management processes and social work from her former positions including Corporate Director of Case Management, Social Work and Discharge Planning for several multi-hospital systems in New Jersey and Philadelphia. As an Interim Director of Case Management, Ms. Kates’ skills in Rapid Re-design has been successfully employed by health systems in Michigan, Tennessee, and Maine. Ms. Kates’ expertise lies in the development of patient care delivery models, financial recovery, and case management programs, with a focus on enhancing and distinguishing the role of Social Work.

Kathryn Kay is a licensed clinical social worker with over 25 years of experience in mental health and health care settings.   She attended Boston University, where she received her Masters in Social Work in 1989.  While she has had many years of direct-practice and management experience, including oversight of an adolescent psychiatric unit; she has most recently worked as the Manager of Social Work and Transitional Care in the hospital setting.  There she worked with the Director of Case Management to develop an effective model for transitional care in the hospital and community setting, highlighting the role of MSW’s.  She was responsible for the supervision and oversight of employees and students who were working in the Emergency Department, on the medical floors, and in the psychiatric unit.  Kathryn is also an adjunct instructor for the University of Southern California’s Master of Social Work Program Virtual Academic Center.

Kathryn thoroughly enjoys training, teaching and promoting the discipline of Social Work, and is a supportive leader.  She is a strong listener and relationship builder.  With a critical eye to systems improvement, she works to create consensus and strong connections among key stakeholders.

Arinda F. Kennedy, RN, CCDS is a consulting associate for The Center for Case Management, Inc., since 2003.  She has over 20 years experience in ED and ICU nursing, 10 years experience in Performance Improvement based in a HIM department where she was cross-trained to inpatient coding. In 2002 she researched, designed and established a Clinical Documentation Improvement program for a large health system in Alabama. She has extensive experience in coding and documentation audits, providing education and training in both Clinical Documentation Improvement and Case Management redesign on a national level.

Jean Lefebvre, RN, CCM has over 34 years of combined nursing and case management experience. Throughout her career she has led teams and projects in Acute Care Case Management, Utilization Review/Management, Discharge Planning, Managed Care, Clinical Documentation Improvement, Transitions of Care and Population Health Coordination. She is process-oriented and strives to improve efficiencies and develop appropriate solutions for health systems. She has led many process improvement projects, including Emergency Room Utilization and Multidisciplinary Rounds, and has developed and implemented new programs, such as Care Management infrastructure and Outpatient Care Management staffing models.

Jean’s coaching approach is central to her leadership style, while she collaborates with health systems to advance visionary change and meet their challenging and exciting goals.

Jean Maslan, RN, MHA, ACM, CCTM has over 20 years’ experience leading Case Management and Clinical Services at various healthcare entities. She is well versed in training, implementation, fiscal responsibility and vision. Jean has an uncompromising conduct of service excellence, which relates to patient safety, satisfaction and outcomes. She is a promoter of performance, education, satisfaction and retention. Jean is a persuasive motivator who can align department strategies with business goals. She is adept at ensuring team inclusion and engagement while effectively partnering with department leaders and clinicians to achieve common objectives.
Jean has a Master’s in Health Administration and has certifications in Case Management (ACM) and Care Coordination Transition Management (CCTM).
In addition to consulting over the past 7 years, she has also held positions as Director of Care Management for an acute care not-for- profit community hospital system as well as a tertiary medical center.