Local Chapter Update: New York regions begin CDI outreach

Three different regions in New York started CDI networking outreach in the last month—Westchester (County), Central (regional near Syracuse), and Champlain Valley (connecting CDI professionals on both side of the great lake in Vermont and New York).

In the Champlain Valley their hope is to “start with quarterly telephonic (GoToMeetings) sessions as a means of getting acquainted, exploring CDI educational needs/desires, and networking,” says Kellie B. Halsted, MSN/MHA, RN, CCM, CDI specialist at the University of Vermont Medical Center. (Contact her at kellie.halsted@uvmhealth.org.)

In Central New York, the group’s first successful meeting took place in Syracuse with great attendance both on site and via conference call, according to Dawn Burr, RN, BSN, CCDS, CDI specialist at Crouse Hospital (contact her at DawnBurr@crouse.org). Burr says the open discussions were “both informative and timely considering the importance of CDI and coder collaboration,” and that they illustrated an opportunity for the group to continue to share tips and invite both team members to the subsequent meetings tentatively slated for April 2017.

In Westchester, more than two dozen CDI professionals joined at Northern Westchester Hospital in Mount Kisco, for a roundtable discussion of CDI productivity/metrics, types of reviews, types of units covered and staffing, use of query templates, and issues as pertaining to query response and varying escalation policies from site to site. The group plans to meet again in January/February. For more information, contact Kerry Seekircher at westchesteracdis@yahoo.com.  

The following events will be held around the country in December and January:

• The next Maine ACDIS Chapter meeting is scheduled for Thursday, December 8, from noon–4 p.m., at St. Mary’s in Lewiston. For information, email Valerie Parent, at vparent@emhs.org.
• Maryland ACDIS Chapter meets Friday, December 9, noon to 3 p.m., at the Maryland Hospital Association headquarters for it annual Holiday Pot Luck Luncheon and our traditional Good-n-Welfare Charity where attendees are encouraged to bring a gift for the U.S. Marines’ Project: Toys for Tots. For information, contact Olga Firstbrook at ofirstbrook@cua.md.
• The next St. Louis Missouri ACDIS Chapter meeting takes place Wednesday, January 18, 6:30–8 p.m., at DePaul Health Center. Kay Piper, inpatient coding educator and member of the AHA Coding Clinic for ICD-10-CM/PCS advisory board will present. For information, contact mariann.dinello@ssmhealth.com.
• The Tennessee Chapter of ACDIS, joins the Tennessee Health Information Management Association and the Tennessee Hospital Association for an educational event on Friday, January 27, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., including multiple tracks of education for coders, CDI professionals, and physicians. Cost is $125. For information, visit http://www.thima.org/portfolio/impact-icd-10/
• The Massachusetts ACDIS Chapter meets Wednesday, January 25, 11 a.m. –2 p.m., at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. The agenda includes Litsa Georgakilas, RD, LDN, CNSC Clinical Dietician II, who will discuss malnutrition risk and assessment tools and Maureen Lira, RN, BSN, CWCN, CHI, who will discuss pressure ulcer staging and progression. Pizza/soda will be provided, however, RSVPs required to Lara.Faustino@bmc.org as space is limited.