Director - Health Information Management

Position Objective

Plans and directs services related to Health Information Management (HIM) in accordance with applicable legal, professional, and accreditation standards. Services include identity management, document management, dictation and transcription, analysis, record completion, release of information, coding and DRG assignment, data quality and reporting, and patient portal.

Activities include developing and implementing policies and procedures at both the hospital and department level and leading a staff of managers/supervisors, technical, and clerical employees.

As a member of the Revenue Cycle team within the Finance Division, responsibilities will include preparing and implementing a $3 million budget to include operational improvements, operating and capital budget, optimal use of IT resources, vendor/contract management, space planning and design, staff development, training and evaluation, support for hospital committees, record retention, contracts and purchasing. Ensures health information services are provided in a way that consistently exceeds customer expectations, effectively represents the HIM department throughout the Health System and serves as the liaison to governmental, educational, and accrediting organizations for HIM related matters.

Works collaboratively with the Clinical Document Improvement (CDI) function/department/staff to ensure an appropriate level of synergy and oversight.

Essential Job Duties

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Provides leadership and management expertise for all management and staff in Luminis Health HIM (combination of HIM, CDI, and other related functions).
• Develops, organizes, manages, and directs departmental activities, establishes work priorities, and develops goals and objectives in relation to health system and department goals. Provides for adequate staffing, develops and delivers ongoing in-service education for staff to maintain and improve skills and performance levels. Directs departmental quality assurance and risk management programs and ensures correction of any deficiencies. Drives work effort to meet/exceed targets, delegates projects and requests where possible and retains Director level work. Develops and revises policies, procedures, and job descriptions according to Luminis Health guidelines.
• Serves as an internal advisor on health information management issues including release of information, confidentiality, information storage and retrieval, and record retention as well as authorship and authentication of health record documentation, standardization of medical vocabularies, and use of classification systems.
• Ensures that patient medical records are maintained in compliance with all laws, government regulations and accreditation standards. Ensures that medical records forms, systems, policies and principles are applied uniformly and consistently throughout the Health System.
• Maintains the integrity of the master patient index at a level that exceeds national and state benchmarks. Identifies areas of improvement and collaborates with other departments/teams to improve compliance with patient identification/identity functions.
• Designs, implements, and manages programs to provide accurate, timely, and compliant coding and abstracting services. Oversees management of accounts receivables and manages staffing resources to accommodate daily patient volume within expected turn-around time and financial targets. Provides resources to research and correct coding/billing issues as needed. Reports daily metrics and trended data according to guidelines established by AAHS. Proactively monitors query process, case mix data, PPC/MHAC’s, and other areas of focus within AAHS or external organizations.
• Ensures compliance with all federal and state laws regarding privacy and security as applied to record management activities. Develops procedures and standards to ensure confidentiality of patient health information; provides for timely and appropriate release of medical information in accordance with federal and state laws. Works collaboratively with leadership, risk management, privacy/security, compliance, IS/IT, and HR to minimize the potential risk of privacy and security breaches, to mitigate damages if any, and to resolve related issues. Additionally, Implements and monitors compliance with all aspects of the Medical Staff Bylaws/Rules and educates staff as new requirements are approved. Provides for an effective and timely medical records dictation, transcription, and completion process which meets medical staff, administrative and accreditation requirements in a customer-oriented manner.
• Leads and participates in administrative and medical staff committees, task forces, and work groups. Applies performance improvement methodologies (LEAN) to health information management and other processes throughout the health system.
• Prepares and utilizes the annual operating budget for the Health Information Management department and capital expense requests. Submits all annual budgets and in a timely fashion. Monitors spending: routinely evaluates monthly productivity levels against target staffing levels and makes necessary operational adjustments to meet goals. Ensures resources are appropriate for departmental staff to meet job demands; considers future services and projects the budget accordingly. Educates employees about financial goals and objectives to encourage ownership and personal accountability.
• Establishes and maintains professional relationships with national and local HIM associations and educational institutions to gain insight on future trends in the management of health information. Serves as the clinical site coordinator for all student affiliations.
  
  

Educational/Experience Requirements

Required Minimum Education. The minimum level of education for this position includes:

Bachelor's degree in health information management, business administration or related field. Master's degree preferred.

Required Minimum Experience

5 to 7 years progressive Director level experience in an acute care setting is required.

Required License/Certifications

Certification as a Registered Health Information Administrator (RHIA) is required at the time of hire.

Knowledge, Skills, Abilities

• Demonstrated knowledge and application of American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), American Association of Medical Transcription (AAMT) Practice Standards, legal regulatory and policy requirements including Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Joint Commission, State of Maryland (COMAR), Office of Civil Rights (OCR), Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), Health Information for Technical and Economic Health (HITECH), Luminis Health Bylaws and Rules, AHA coding guidelines, and HSCRC reporting requirements.
• Significant technical knowledge of the build, implementation, and maintenance of a comprehensive electronic health record in an inpatient and ambulatory setting. Hands-on experience with Epic preferred. Advanced knowledge of Windows, Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Visio, Access, and OneNote), communication tools, HL7 interface message structure, integration, and reporting is required. Ability to utilize software tools for presentations, data analysis, trending, and communication to all levels within the organization.
• Strong analytical skills to resolve problems and to improve, enhance, or upgrade complex clinical, financial, and patient centric systems and applications with the goal of improving data flow and availability. Work requires a high level of problem-solving due to the complexity of the situations encountered. Able to evaluate existing systems/set up as new applications or upgrades are implemented, providing optimum performance and workflow for areas of responsibility. Formal training in process improvement methodologies such as LEAN or Six Sigma is preferred.
• Expert communication skills to effectively engage employees, direct reports, peers within the leadership team, members of the medical staff, the executive team, customers, and vendors. Work requires dealing effectively with conflicting views and mediating fair and workable solutions.
  
  

Working Conditions, Equipment, Physical Demands

Light work. Exerting up to 20 pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 10 pounds of force frequently, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to move objects. If the use of arm and/or leg controls requires exertion of forces greater than that for sedentary work and the worker sits most of the time, the job is rated for light work.

There is reasonable expectation that employees in this position will not be exposed to blood-borne pathogens.

The above is intended to describe the general content of and requirements for the performance of this job. It is not to be construed as an exhaustive statement of duties, responsibilities or requirements.