Supervisory Medical Records Technician - Coder

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship. English Language Proficiency. Proficient in spoken and written English. Experience and Education. Experience. 1 year of creditable experience that indicates knowledge of medical terminology, anatomy, physiology, pathophysiology, medical coding, and the structure and format of a health records; OR Education. An associate's degree from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education with a major field of study in health information technology/health information management, or a related degree with a minimum of 12 semester hours in health information technology/health information management (e.g., courses in medical terminology, anatomy and physiology, medical coding, and introduction to health records); OR Completion of an AHIMA approved coding program, or other intense coding training program of approximately one year or more that included courses in anatomy and physiology, medical terminology, basic ICD diagnostic/procedural, and basic CPT coding. The training program must have led to eligibility for coding certification/certification examination, and the sponsoring academic institution must have been accredited by a national U.S. Department of Education accreditor, or comparable international accrediting authority at the time the program was completed; OR Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combinations of creditable experience and education are qualifying for meeting the basic requirements. The following educational/training substitutions are appropriate for combining education and creditable experience. a.) 6 months of creditable experience that indicates knowledge of medical terminology, general understanding of medical coding and the health record, and 1 year above high school, with a minimum of 6 semester hours of health information technology courses. b.) Successful completion of a course for medical technicians, hospital corpsmen, medical service specialists, or hospital training obtained in a training program given by the Armed Forces or the U.S. Maritime Service, under close medical and professional supervision, may be substituted on a month-for-month basis for up to 6months of experience provided the training program included courses in anatomy, physiology, and health record techniques and procedures. Also, requires six additional months of creditable experience that is paid or non-paid employment equivalent to a MRT (Coder). Certification. Candidates must have either (1), (2), or (3) below: 1) Apprentice/Associate Level Certification through AHIMA or AAPC, 2) Mastery Level Certification through AHIMA or AAPC, 3)Clinical Documentation Improvement Certification through AHIMA or ACDIS. May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria). Grade Determinations: Supervisory Medical Records Technician (Coder), GS-10 Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-9*); *Examples of duties at the GS-9 include, but are not limited to: work with a team to provide technical guidance, plan, organize, and coordinate activities in order to effectively complete job duties of assignment, such as distributing workload, monitoring the status and progress of work, monitoring accuracy of work, etc; Knowledge of current coding classification systems for the subspecialty being assigned (outpatient, inpatient, outpatient and inpatient combined) and the ability to research and solve complex questions related to coding conventions and guidelines in an accurate and timely manner; effectively communicate, both orally and in writing, in order to meet program objectives; Training methods and the ability to provide training to new coding staff; collect and analyze data and present results in various formats, which may include presenting reports to various organizational levels; Leadership skills, including interpersonal relations and conflict resolution between employees, managers, and clinical staff. Certification. Employees at this level must have a mastery level certification. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Ability to perform a full range of supervisory duties, to include recommending awards, approving leave, evaluating work, resolving staff issues, and assigning, planning, and coordinating work to ensure duties are completed in an accurate and timely fashion. Advanced knowledge of current coding classification systems such as ICD, CPT, and HCPCS for the subspecialty being assigned (outpatient, inpatient, outpatient and inpatient combined). Ability to provide or coordinate staff development and training. Leadership and managerial skills, including skill in interpersonal relations and conflict resolution to deal with employees, team leaders, and managers. Ability to collect and analyze data, identify trends, and present results in various formats. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is a GS-10. Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary, although some slight physical effort may be required. Typically, the employee may sit comfortably to complete assigned work. However, there may be some walking, standing, bending, and carrying of light items such as papers, books, folders, etc. No special physical demands are required to perform this work. This position is in the Health Information Management (HIM) section of the Business Office Service Line at the Washington DC VA Medical Center. The Supervisory Medical Records Technician is skilled in classifying medical data from patient health records in the hospital setting, and/or physician-based settings, such as physician offices, group practices, multi-specialty clinics, and specialty centers.

• Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional The Supervisory Medical Records Technician - Coder is directly responsible to the Assistant Chief of Health Information Management, who gives general guidance. The incumbent exercises independent judgment in carrying out duties and responsibilities and has complete limited authority to plan, design and direct. Major duties include, but are not limited to: Responsible for the supervision, administrative management, and direction of coding staff. Responsible for program management of a coding section/unit to ensure performance monitors are established and met. Evaluate the performance of subordinate staff, approve sick and annual leave requests, identify educational or training needs, resolve employee complaints, and take disciplinary action(s), when necessary. Inform higher level management of anticipated vacancies or increases in workload. Recommend employees for promotions, reassignments, recognitions, retention or release of probationary employees, or other changes of assigned personnel. Make decisions on the selection of employees for vacant or new positions. Serve as an expert coding resource to ensure accuracy and integrity of all coding. Collaborate with revenue, compliance, and other departments to support coding accuracy that is consistent with the official guidelines for coding and reporting. Resolve claim edits referred to coding management and monitor reports for outstanding services, rejects, or uncoded episodes of care for inpatients and/or outpatients. Ensures claim denials related to coding errors are resolved, and/or daily coding rejects are corrected for accurate billing and data collection. Provide education to clinical and coding staff. Assess current audit findings and evaluate impact to coding and documentation practices. Oversee the reporting of coding and 28 documentation audit results to leadership. Collect and prepare data for studies involving inpatient stays and outpatient encounters for clinical evaluation purposes, prepare and maintain a variety of complex records and daily, monthly, or "on demand" reports, as requested. Creates and monitors outpatient reports, inpatient case mix reports, top DRGs, and key performance indicators to identify patterns, trends, and variations. Investigate and evaluate potential causes for changes or problems and collaborate with the appropriate staff to effect resolution or explain variances. Participate in the formulation of objectives and strategies utilizing coded data to support goals for patient care, teaching, research, and optimizing management of resources. Analyze and abstract patients' health records and assign alpha-numeric codes for each diagnosis and procedure. Expert in International Classification of Diseases (ICD), Current Procedural Terminology (CPT), and the Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS). MRT (Coder) may also provide education related to coding and documentation. Work Schedule: Monday thru Friday; 7:30am-4:00pm Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade). Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience. Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child. Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66. Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Telework: Not applicable, this is a remote position. Remote: Temporarily eligible for Remote work within 50 miles of a VA Medical Center. Position is remote work eligible and is currently on an extension for the return-to-office mandate. Remote positions are reviewed annually and do not imply permanent remote work status and may be required to comply with the return-to-office mandate in the future. Functional Statement #: 688-260488-F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized