20 results.
The State of CDI
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: Journal of AHIMA
Publication Date: April 2019
Analysis of AHIMA’s New Clinical Documentation Improvement Industry Survey
By Tammy Combs, RN, MSN, CCS, CDIP, CCDS
The AHIMA Clinical Documentation Improvement Practice Council (CDIPC) is a group of clinical documentation improvement (CDI) experts that meet once a....
A Dive into Section I.A.19: Code Assignment and Clinical Criteria
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: Journal of AHIMA - Coding Notes
Publication Date: July 2018
By Tammy Combs, RN, MSN, CDIP, CCS, CCDS
Have you ever wondered what it means to be an effective communicator? In his article “Why Communication Is Today’s Most Important Skill,” Greg Satell discusses Michael Faraday, who helped tr....
Practice Brief: A Summary of the AHIMA CDI and Coding Collaboration in Denials Management Toolkit
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA practice brief attachment
Publication Date: March 2018
Untitled Document
A Summary of the AHIMA CDI and Coding Collaboration in Denials Management Toolkit
Healthcare insurance payment structures in the United States have processes in place to monitor for appropriate payments to submitted insurance cla....
Impact of Physician Engagement on Clinical Documentation Improvement Programs (AHIMA Practice Brief)
Author: Combs, Tammy; Endicott, Melanie
Source: AHIMA practice brief | Journal of AHIMA
Publication Date: July 2017
Physician engagement seems to be the buzzword in healthcare these days. Hospital administrators charged with various clinical improvement initiatives have come to realize that physician engagement is an essential element of success. While physician engagement in clinical documentation improveme....
Importance of Interdisciplinary Teams
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA blog post | Journal of AHIMA - website
Publication Date: November 23, 2016
Have you ever spent hours working on a project, only to find out at a random meeting that another team has been working on the same project? This type of scenario can be frustrating to both teams and lead to distrust in the work process—not to mention wasted time that could have been spent....
Developing a Plan to Master Physician Engagement
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA blog post | Journal of AHIMA - website
Publication Date: October 27, 2016
Mastering physician engagement can be a challenging process, but it is within reach when you develop a plan of action and have a little patience. During AHIMA’s 2016 CDI Summit: Advancing the Documentation Journey, held August 1-2 in Washington, DC, Dr. John Showalter, MD, MSIS, University....
How to Help Physicians Accept CDI Programs
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA blog post | Journal of AHIMA - website
Publication Date: September 28, 2016
Have you ever gone to a staff meeting only to hear the news that a process you’ve been following for years is about to change? How does that make you feel? Maybe you love change and welcome any opportunity to improve a process. But maybe you are a creature of habit and the thought of a cha....
Reviewing for Inpatient Quality
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA blog post | Journal of AHIMA - website
Publication Date: August 25, 2016
The Hospital Value-Based Purchasing (HVBP) Program has heightened hospital awareness of quality outcomes. Under this program, payments made under the Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) are based on the quality of care that was provided. Quality of care is recognized through the cl....
How Do CDI Programs Impact the Patient
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA blog post | Journal of AHIMA - website
Publication Date: July 27, 2016
We talk a lot about the impact of clinical documentation improvement (CDI) on healthcare organizations and physicians. We look at ways to reflect appropriate reimbursement and accurate quality scores, both of which are very important. But do we take the time to look at the true extent of t....
Clinical Documentation Improvement Toolkit (2016 version)
Author: Arrowood, Danita; Bailey-Woods, Linda; Barnette, Erin; Combs, Tammy; Endicott, Melanie; Miller, Jennifer
Source: AHIMA toolkit
Publication Date: July 2016
This toolkit provides many of the necessary tools and documents needed for implementing and/or maintaining a robust CDI program.
Impact of Clinical Documentation Improvement on the International Stage
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: Journal of AHIMA - Coding Notes | Journal of AHIMA
Publication Date: July 2016
Illness doesn’t care what country or region a person lives in, and it doesn’t care the race or origin of a person. Since illness is found everywhere around the globe it only stands to reason that providers should also look beyond the boundaries of one country or patient population when re....
CDI is Expanding as Need for Quality Documentation Grows
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA blog post | Journal of AHIMA - website
Publication Date: June 23, 2016
Clinical documentation improvement (CDI) programs are quickly emerging in various areas of the healthcare arena. We now see these programs specializing both prior to and beyond the acute hospital admission. Just as healthcare doesn’t stop when a patient is discharged, health problems begin....
Guidelines for Achieving a Compliant ICD-10-PCS Query
Author: Combs, Tammy; DeVault, Kathryn; Easterling, Sharon; Endicott, Melanie; Isom, Crystal; Lojewski, Tedi; Simmons, Cortnie R.; Wolf, Beth
Source: AHIMA practice brief | Journal of AHIMA
Publication Date: June 2016
Editor’s Note. This Practice Brief has been updated. See the latest version at Guidelines for Achieving a Compliant ICD-10-PCS Query
. This version is made available for historical purposes only.
The complex and highly specific nature of ICD-10-PCS has changed....
Benefits and Barriers for Outpatient CDI Programs
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA blog post | Journal of AHIMA - website
Publication Date: May 27, 2016
Many hospitals that have implemented clinical documentation improvement (CDI) programs have seen a reduction of claim denials and an improvement in appropriate reimbursement payments and accurate quality scores. For these reasons, CDI programs have become very....
Recognizing the Characteristics of Quality Documentation
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: Journal of AHIMA
Publication Date: May 2016
When we take a bite of our favorite food we can easily determine the quality by relying on what our senses tell us. The look, smell, and taste are all clues to the quality that was put into preparing the meal. If it looks undercooked or has mold on it, smells foul or tastes bitter, we kno....
Resolving Conflict in the CDI-Coding Professional Relationship
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA blog post | Journal of AHIMA - website
Publication Date: April 27, 2016
If a couple were to decide they wanted to build a house, they would need to communicate regularly to complete the home and make sure it fit the needs of both of them. If one of them were to say, “We need three bedrooms,” and the other one instead said, “No, we must have four bedrooms,” the....
Measuring CDI Productivity
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA blog post | Journal of AHIMA - website
Publication Date: March 23, 2016
When calculating the productivity guidelines for a clinical documentation improvement (CDI) program it is important to remember both quantitative and qualitative perspectives. Sometimes it is very easy to focus solely on the quantity of reviews that are performed. If the quality of those r....
Understanding CDI Metrics
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA blog post | Journal of AHIMA - website
Publication Date: February 24, 2016
Understanding clinical documentation improvement (CDI) metrics can be confusing, especially when you first start reviewing them.
Let’s dive a little deeper into the topic and take a closer look at some frequently reported CDI metrics and evaluate how these measures can reflect the....
Documentation Detective: Seven Steps to CDI Foundational Success
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA blog post | Journal of AHIMA - website
Publication Date: January 27, 2016
When an architect draws up plans for a building, they pay close attention to the details of the foundation. This provides the support to the building and prevents it from crashing down at any moment. If the building later has structural damage it is easy to fix when the foundation is not i....
Using CDI Programs to Improve Acute Care Clinical Documentation to Support ICD-10-CM/PCS - Retired
Author: Combs, Tammy
Source: AHIMA practice brief
Publication Date: January 2016
Editor's note: This brief replaces the 2001 practice brief "Documentation Requirements for the Acute Care Inpatient Record, and the 2013 and 2014 versions of the practice brief "Using CDI Programs to Improve Acute Care Clinical Documentation in Preparation for ICD-10-CM/PCS."