Reference no: EM133381635

Assignment:

Karen is the regional coding manager for a large healthcare organization. She is responsible for coding compliance and training for three hospitals. Karen creates a dashboard each week with the metrics from each hospital. The metrics are not only specific from each hospital, but also by patient type. This dashboard is shared weekly via e-mail with all coding staff and relevant leadership. Although there is some fluctuation from week to week, the metrics have remained relatively consistent for the past two years. Karen notices that the metrics for the past two weeks for Uptown Hospital, the large urban hospital in her region, have shown a significant change. There are large number of inpatient charts that have not been coded.

Karen also receives the results of a recent coding audit for that facility. The audit reveals a coding quality issue with the inpatient coding. Karen contact Sue, the coding manager at Uptown Hospital, to determine the cause of the resent changes. Sue informs Karen that one of the inpatient coders went on maternity leave three weeks ago and another had surgery two weeks ago and has not returned to work. In order to manage the inpatient coding backlog, Sue was having two outpatient coders fill in. These coders have much lower productivity when coding inpatient charts and are not properly trained to code this patient type.

These coders' charts were the primary problem in the recent coding audit for inpatient coding. Karen knows from her weekly metrics that the other two facilities are current (up-to-date) on inpatient coding. Karen and Sue brainstormed possible solutions. In an attempt to resolve the problem and formulate a better solution, Karen makes arrangements for inpatient coders at the two other facilities to code charts for Uptown Hospital until their inpatient staffing returns to previous levels. This is possible due to the organization's EHR. Karen monitors that dashboard and coding audits for performance and quality and is pleased with the problem's solution

1.) What possible brainstorming activities would Karen and Sue have engaged in to formulate their solution to the coding backlog? Provide a rationale as to why you would choose that technique.

2.) Although the current problem has resolved, what is one way that they could prevent this problem from occurring in the future?

3.) What tools can Karen use to create her weekly dashboard of hospital coding metrics?