The DRG Senior Coding Educator acts as a subject matter expert to educate, train, and develop/revise processes in coordination with leadership to assist in achieving CDI's goal of facilitating accurate and complete documentation for coding and the capture of severity, acuity, and risk of mortality and most accurate Diagnosis Related Group (DRG) assignments.
This position pays between $69,400 to $119,700 annually based on experience
Job Responsibilities
- Implements and continuously develops onboarding for all new Clinical Documentation Specialists (CDSs) for mentoring and education needs. Leads and coordinates training of new CDI staff. Collaborate with CDI leadership and other clinicians to facilitate the ongoing relevance of department specific orientation content, educational materials, and training programs/resources.
- Formulates customized education to other healthcare professionals based on audience and areas of opportunity. Audiences include, but are not limited to CDS/Coders, providers, mid-levels, nursing, dietary, Quality, etc. Education provided includes 1:1 education and/or group education. Interacts with medical staff members, directors, and senior hospital leadership staff as needed.
- Makes recommendations for documentation improvement and queries to capture care and intensity of services as supported within the medical record documentation.
- Demonstrates understanding of complications, co-morbidities, severity of illness, risk of mortality, case mix index, secondary diagnoses, and the impact of procedures on the final Diagnosis Related Group (DRG).
- Educate members of the CDI team and providers on the review functions within the CDI program to meet and maintain enterprise goals and objectives, regulatory compliance, policies and procedures and standard operating procedures. Assist with the development and maintenance of system CDI policies and procedures. Remain current on CDI guidelines and practices.
- Ensures program compliance by following coding guidelines and coding clinics. Remains current with coding information to ensure accuracy of codes assigned based on documentation.
- Serve as a key resource for accurate and ethical documentation standards and regulatory requirements.
- Demonstrates the ability to draft compliant queries as endorsed by AHIMA and ACDIS.
- Performs medical record reviews for completeness and accuracy in capturing severity of illness, risk of mortality and clinical validation.
- Determines if professionally recognized standards of quality care are met.
- Audits CDSs as needed to ensure that system objectives are met. Develops educational plan for individual CDS based on Quality Audit (QA) outcomes. Provides 1:1 mentoring as needed.
- Oversees and coordinates SMART related education, meetings, and requirements for the department and as instructed by the SMART department.
Experience We Love
- 3+ years related experience with clinical documentation and/or coding
- Experience with multiple EMRs (Epic, Meditech and Cerner)
- Detail oriented and self-motivated
- Strong organizational skills
- Excellent speaking and presentation skills
- Working knowledge of Microsoft applications, including creation of Power Point presentations.
- Could require minimal travel
- Must be inquisitive and demonstrate openness to innovation including AI to explore better processes and ways to alleviate friction and improve patient and client experiences
- This is a remote position; however, candidates must be willing and able to travel to and work onsite at client, temporary, or corporate office locations as business needs require.
Minimum Education
- Bachelors Degree or Equivalent Experience
Licensure Required
OR
Certification Required
Candidates must have and keep current at least one of the following professional certifications (CPC, CPMA or CCS Preferred):
- CCS (Certified Coding Specialist)
- CPC (Certified Professional Coder)
- CPMA (Certified Professional Medical Auditor)
- RHIA (Registered Health Information Administrator)
- RHIT (Registered Health Information Technician)
AND
- Certified Revenue Cycle Representative (CRCR) completion within 9 months of hire