Note from the ACDIS Editor: A 2024 ACDIS round-up on sepsis!
by Jess Fluegel
Year after year, sepsis is a common problem diagnosis for the CDI profession when it comes to missed opportunities and common denials, not to mention a deadly diagnosis for patients. This year, more than 85% of respondents in the 2024 CDI Week Industry Overview Survey reported that sepsis is one of their top five denied diagnoses. With the year coming to a close, I thought it’d be interesting to highlight the major news, advice, and member education we covered here at ACDIS this year!
Major news that included sepsis:
- New pediatric sepsis criteria created through cohort study
- First quarter 2024 Coding Clinic update (Section C.1.d.5.b, which speaks to the reporting of sepsis due to a post-procedural infection)
- OIG to review Medicare inpatient hospital billing for sepsis
- Antibiotic for treating sepsis linked to increased mortality, study shows
- AI-powered diagnostic test reduces sepsis deaths by 20% at Louisiana hospital
- OIG to publish report on costs associated with current CMS, CDC sepsis definition
Free Q&As, webinars, tips posted:
- Q&A: Sequencing sepsis complications in ICD-10-CM
- Q&A: Using phoenix criteria
- ACDIS tip: Defend against sepsis denials
- Q&A: Clinical criteria guidelines for sepsis
- 2024 ACDIS/NAHRI Denials Management Mastermind Recap (free webinar featuring an in-depth discussion of the priorities and challenges leaders face with denials management, including sepsis denials)
ACDIS member-exclusive education:
- CDI documentation standards: A 2024 health system update (developed a template for a sepsis-specific query)
- ‘Are you sure this meets criteria?’ Sepsis denials on the rise
- 2024 ACDIS conference session: Suspect Sepsis, Say Sepsis!
Sepsis may have been a CDI hot topic for many years, but clearly, it’s here to stay. And if you happen to have done work on this diagnosis at your organization, we’d love for you to submit a poster for the 2025 ACDIS conference by December 31, 2024!
Editor’s note: Fluegel is an editor for ACDIS. Contact her at jess.fluegel@hcpro.com.