Q&A: Receiving query responses from providers

Q: Our hospital is having a hard time getting our physicians to respond to queries, do you have any suggestions on how to get them to reply?

A: The most important thing is make sure the query is concise and contains clinical indicators from the record. You also want to use different methods of contacting the physician as well. Various points of contact include within the electronic health record, via e-mail, by phone, or by having your CDI team visit them on the floor. Provider education will also help the physicians understand the important link between robust documentation, coding, and reimbursement.

It’s also important to have an escalation policy in your facility so that coders will know what to do if a query isn’t responded to.

Editor’s Note: Valerie Fernandez, MBA, CCS, CPC, CIC, CPMA, and Laura Legg, RHIT, CCS, CDIP, AHIMA-approved ICD-10-CM/PCS trainer, answered this question in the recent HCPro webinar Cardiovascular Coding: Achieve Success with the Latest ICD-10-CM/PCS Codes. This answer was provided based on limited information. Be sure to review all documentation specific to your own individual scenario before determining appropriate code assignment. This article originally appeared in JustCoding.