Building Operational Success and Positive Clinical Outcomes Through Collaboration

Launch date: September 1, 2024

Presented by:
Jennifer Mitchell MBA, RN, CCDS, CCS
Laura Roberts BSN, RN, CCDS

This presentation features a brief history of CDI at the Carilion Clinic and examines how we’ve improved our reported quality outcomes through continuous interdepartmental collaboration. In this presentation, we will discuss the implementation of our multidisciplinary validation team while also providing a general overview of our processes. Lastly, we will suggest some institutional and departmental 'lessons learned,' and show how our experiment with collaboration has led to other opportunities for improvement. 

At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:

• Describe the benefits of interdepartmental collaboration
• Understand some of the practical difficulties in CDI collaboration
• Identify key stakeholders in PSI and HAC outcomes
• Understanding positive quality outcomes are a team sport

Agenda

• History of CDI at Carilion
• Validation team (structure)
• Review expansion
• Identifying opportunities
• Improving clinical care/outcomes
• Financial impact (PSI/HAC)

Who Should Listen?

• CDI directors and managers
• CDI staff
• HIM/coding directors and managers
• Coding staff
• Revenue integrity directors and managers
• Revenue integrity staff, denials and appeals staff
• Quality professionals

Meet the Speaker

Jennifer Mitchell MBA, RN, CCDS, CCS, was born in southwest Virginia and started her nursing career with Carilion Clinic in 2003. After receiving her RN, Mitchell continued as a staff nurse with the cardiac progressive care unit at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital until 2009, when she became part of the group that established the clinical documentation department at Carilion. In late 2019, Mitchell took on a new challenge as operations manager for Carilion’s hospital facility coding; then, in 2021, Mitchell was promoted to the director of facility coding, coding support/education, and professional billing. With a strong clinical, CDI, and coding background, Mitchell works to identify inefficiencies, improve workflows, and implement quality solutions to fulfill operational goals. She passionately believes that CDI is better played as a team and continues to seek out opportunities for productive collaboration throughout her health system.

Laura Roberts MBA, RN, CCDS, CCS, is a native of Blacksburg, VA, and graduated from Radford University in 2004 with a BSN. She started her nursing career with Carilion Clinic in the same year. Roberts has a clinical background in cardiac nursing (specifically, the progressive care unit), as well as in employee health nursing. In 2010, Roberts transitioned to a clinical documentation specialist role in the CDI department, a role which, (at the time) was a leap of faith but is now (13 years later) a new career path. In 2016, Roberts was promoted to second-level quality reviewer role. In 2023, Roberts stepped into the CDI manager role, growing and expanding her department to meet Carilion’s needs and mirror industry standards. Roberts maintains a robust passion for quality, education, helping others grow, and is committed to the continuous and positive development of her CDI department.

Continuing Education

Coming Soon!