Member Insight: Building a career ladder in CDI

by Tamara Hicks, RN, BSN, MHA, CCS, ACM-RN, CCDS-O

There are many reasons CDI leaders may create a career ladder for their department. First, career ladders provide mobility for staff members who have spent many years working in CDI and who have been tasked with additional responsibilities, such as educating physicians, mentoring new staff, and incorporating new review focus areas such as quality measures or risk adjustment. 

Second, career ladders help incentivize existing CDI specialists to stay in the field rather than feeling they need to leave CDI to advance professionally.

And finally, CDI leaders may implement a career ladder to answer the need for improved infrastructure in CDI; the number of strategic initiatives increases as the program matures, necessitating additional skills for CDI specialists.