Note from the Associate Editorial Director: Resources to fuel your quality reviews

by Linnea Archibald

One of the reasons I love looking at our ACDIS data is that it shines a spotlight on what our CDI community members are looking for. Though the annual ACDIS Membership Survey often helps us identify areas in our offerings for expansion (leading to long-term, years’ long projects), our everyday data highlights the in-the-moment topics and questions for your daily CDI practice. This information is frequently used in our articles, podcast episodes, and more.

Recently, I noticed an influx in searches and questions related to quality reviews, so I wanted to take a moment to bring to your attention some of our excellent resources published within the last year.

ACDIS members looking for a primer on all things quality should check out the November/December 2023 edition of the CDI Journal, which included articles on social determinants of health, tracking quality impact, reporting to the quality department, engaging providers with publicly reported quality data, connecting with providers over quality reviews, the Vizient risk adjustment model, and more. And if you’re still hankering for more Journal content, stay tuned—our winter edition will be focused on quality and risk adjustment this year!

For those of you who prefer listening instead of reading, there have been two excellent quality-focused episodes on the ACDIS Podcast in the last few months that you may want to check out. The first is our November 8, 2023, episode which featured a conversation about CDI coordinator roles, quality, and mortality reviews with Anne Espinoza, RN, MBA, CCDS, CDIP, the executive director of clinical documentation, denials management, utilization review and patient education at Froedtert & MCW in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

The second is our April 11, 2024, episode which featured a conversation about patient safety indicators and hospital-acquired conditions with Kathy Dorich, MSN, RN, CCDS, CPHQ, director of Illinois CDI operations for Advocate Health and the recipient of the 2024 CDI Professional of the Year ACDIS Achievement Award. Both episodes provide fantastic takeaways for anyone involved in quality reviews.

For those of you really looking to get down to the nitty gritty, we also have a few reports and webinars under the “Free Resources” tab of the website that lay out helpful quality review tips and advice:

• “ACDIS Council Report: CDI and Quality Improvement,” published in August 2023
• “Rising Stars: Physician Advisors Are Tackling Big Problems in Healthcare,” published in December 2023
• “2023 CDI Leadership Mastermind Hot Topic Guide: Part 2,” published in December 2023
• “2023 CDI Leadership Council Research Series Recap,” presented live on December 7, 2023

(If you’re looking for resources specifically focused on mortality reviews and how they intersect with quality and CDI efforts, I’d suggest taking a look at this article from the fall where I laid out a range of resources on the topic).

I hope that these resources give you helpful advice as you begin or deepen your quality review journey, but as always, if you have specific questions or concerns, feel free to email the ACDIS team at info@acdis.org.

Editor’s note: Archibald is the associate editorial director of ACDIS. Contact her at linnea.archibald@hcpro.com.