Note from the Editorial Manager: Seek inspiration from our 2025 ACDIS Achievement Award recipients!

by Karla Kozak

It’s hard to believe that another ACDIS conference has come and gone this week! I know I say this every year, but we really appreciate all of you who came out to sunny Florida for three days of learning and networking. There’s truly no experience like the ACDIS conference, and I want to thank every member of this community for making it so special.

I’d also be remiss if I didn’t offer my gratitude to my incredible colleagues who work tirelessly on this event each year. While many of you know Rebecca Hendren, Jess Fluegel, or Deanne Wilk, for example, there’s so many faces behind the scenes that you don’t get to meet, and I count myself lucky to be on their team. They are the reason for the magic you experience at the ACDIS conference.

After this week, I can say confidently that many of you also work with rockstars like these, and we were thrilled to present four extremely deserving individuals and one organization with ACDIS Achievement Awards in a special ceremony this past Tuesday. You can read more about them below.

• ACDIS presented the 2025 CDI Professional of the Year award to Edna I. Betances-Harold, CDIP, CCDS, CCS, supervisor of clinical documentation improvement at Broward Health. Betances-Harold has 15 years of healthcare experience and is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Applied Science in healthcare management. She is president of the Florida ACDIS local chapter, a member of the ACDIS Leadership Council, and an AHIMA-Approved ICD-10-CM/PCS trainer. Her peers praised her passion for CDI, dedication to the ACDIS community, and willingness to mentor others.
• Jessica Risner, BSN, RN, CCDS, CRCR, senior director of clinical documentation improvement and clinical denials management at Banner Health, received the Accomplishment in CDI award, which is now in its second year. Risner has 20 years of nursing experience and has been awarded Banner Health’s top leadership award three times. Her team spoke highly of her skills as a leader and advocate, especially her efforts to encourage others to pursue professional development opportunities. She has presented at the ACDIS conference and other industry events and is a member of the ACDIS Arizona local chapter, the ACDIS Leadership Council, AHIMA, and other professional associations.
• Allison Van Doren, JM, RN, CCDS, enterprise senior director of revenue cycle, clinical documentation improvement, at Jefferson Health, was honored with the Excellence in Provider Engagement award. In her role, Van Doren oversees five regions with a total of 12 hospitals. Colleagues praised the relationships she has built with providers through “open communication and mutual understanding,” which has encouraged provider-CDI collaboration across the organization. She is a member of ACDIS, the ACDIS Leadership Council, and AHIMA, and has presented at multiple industry events.
• The Melissa Varnavas Spirit of Service award was presented to Terry Ann Simmons, MSN, RN, CCRN-K, CCDS, CDI specialist at Hartford Healthcare. Now in its third year, this award honors the legacy of ACDIS’ Melissa Varnavas, who passed away in 2022. Simmons has 33 years of bedside clinical practice experience, is a past ACDIS CDI Week committee volunteer and CDI Week webinar panelist, and previously coordinated ACDIS local chapter meetings. Simmons’ peers highlighted her willingness to volunteer, dedication to the profession, and kindness and patience.
• Lastly, ACDIS presented the Diversity in CDI award to Sutter Health, a not-for-profit health system with 24 acute care hospitals and more than 200 clinics, primarily serving northern California. Sutter Health was celebrated for its efforts to create a diverse CDI team, which includes members of varying ethnicities, races, ages, and educational and professional backgrounds. The team is comprised of 40 employees from 18 countries across the world, speaking 18 different languages and dialects. The team applauded its CDI leadership for providing ways to accommodate, evaluate, and include all voices when setting department goals and focuses for the coming year. Neha Upadhyay, MBBS, MPH, system director, clinical documentation integrity, accepted the award on behalf of Sutter Health.

If you know or work with any of our award recipients, please take a moment to congratulate them on their achievements.

The ACDIS team would like to thank everyone who joined us in Indianapolis this week. We hope you took this opportunity to get inspired by your peers—and maybe even inspired someone yourself!

We can’t wait to see you next year in Chicago!

Editor’s note: Kozak is the editorial manager, products and events, at ACDIS. Contact her at karla.kozak@hcpro.com.