Case Matters | Practice Up! for Advocates and Care Managers

Aha! I am guessing that you, as a health or patient advocate or care or even CASE manager, think this tip will address just that – case management – how you plan, handle, and track the work you do throughout a single patient’s case.

True?

Aha again! No! That’s not it.

Not that those things aren’t important – they most certainly are. In fact, all that planning, handling, and tracking is vitally important to the success of your work, and the improved outcomes of your client, and should be documented very carefully.

But that’s not today’s topic… today’s topic is just what the title says – it’s about case. In CASE you are confused…

What I’m talking about today is the use of CAPITAL LETTERS and lowercase letters. Yes, letter case management!

You may not realize there are at least three instances where using the wrong letter case can get in your way, make business more confusing, or even give others the wrong impression about your intent. Let’s take a look at all three:

1. PAY ATTENTION!!

Many people don’t realize how they come across when they type in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS.

See that “PAY ATTENTION” above? When it comes to internet / web / email / social media related things… when you type something in all caps it indicates that you are SHOUTING or YELLING. That, according to “netiquette” – the manners of the typed word on the web.

Did you realize that? If you are one of those folks who is guilty of typing in all caps – you need to know that much of your audience thinks you are shouting or yelling at them – and that may come across as obnoxious and rude, especially when not intended.

If it has been your habit to type in all caps – STOP! (And yes, I meant to shout that.)

2. Ever have trouble logging in or signing in to a website or app?

Say you set up a username using your first name, but you type it all in lowercase letters, like: harriet

The next day you attempt to sign in again – but the login won’t work. You retrieve the password; still nothing. You type everything carefully – nuttin. You can’t get logged in. How every frustrating!

It’s possible that the reason you can’t get logged in is because your device – your computer, phone, or tablet – is autocorrecting with a capital as the first letter. But – of course – what you set up originally was your username with only lowercase letters.

Yes – case matters – so if you are having trouble logging in to a website or app – just double check that all your letters are input with the right case and that your device has not autocorrected those letters to the wrong case.

If you still struggle, you may find a setting on your device that overrides autocorrect – maybe stops your device from autocorrecting – which may, in the long run, make your life easier. (See at left, a screenshot from Word.)

And in the future, if you know your device autocorrects to create a login problem, then start your username with a capital letter.

3. readingwebadresses.com – vs – ReadingWebAddresses.com

When it comes to typing a web address (also called a URL = Uniform Resource Locator) into the browser address bar, it doesn’t make a bit of difference whether you use capital letters or lowercase letters. That’s how the internet was developed to work.

That also means you can change the case of the letters in your web address to make them easier to read. It’s the reason we use caps in PracticeUPonline.com both in typed use and in its logo. It’s a bit easier to read, and when it comes to business, you want to be sure people can easily read your web address – and remember it! Any advantage is a good thing.

This can be particularly helpful if you have two of the same letter, side by side, in your URL. IowaAdvocates.com is easier to read than iowaadvocates – which looks a bit odd because of those two As in the middle.

Try writing your web address using appropriate capitals and see if you don’t think it’s easier to read, and therefore, clearer to others. Then type it that way in email, or be sure that’s how it’s posed in your marketing materials.

By the way – I learned this years ago as it involved a website for a writer who named her company The Pen is Mightier, then, of course, dot-com. When I write that this way, you can see how easy it is to read: ThePenIsMightier.com but if I write it in all lowercase letters it, um… well… err… comes across quite um… err… differently. Try it! (Then go see what your web address looks like to others!)

So – that’s today’s tip… CASE MATTERS! (she yelled!)