In every job in every industry, integrity is an essential part of any company culture. The same can be said in healthcare because professionals deal with the sick from curing them to using their information for billing purposes. This is where Clinical Documentation Integrity (CDI) comes in.

What is Clinical Documentation Integrity (CDI)?

According to the Nursing Management Journal, CDI is a “process by which clinical indicators, diagnoses, and procedures documented in the medical record are supported by the appropriate ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS codes.”

Simply put, CDI is a set of best practices that accurately represents a patient’s data into codes. CDI must be accurate and timely, and must have a direct impact on patient care. Incorrect data means incorrect billing, and eventually leads to claims denials and rejections.

Let’s say your healthcare business is encountering an issue of incomplete or inaccurate documentation, and you don’t have enough manpower to right these wrongs. CDI helps you improve your practice by adding more to make documentation more complete and make it easier to code. With more accurate documentation and coding, you also improve your relationships with your patients and other healthcare providers, as well as insurance companies.

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How to Optimize CDI for Your Healthcare Business

At the core of an excellent CDI program are the right people, processes, and technology.

Most of the time, CDI can turn sour if your hired specialist is not adept at ICD-10, not updated with the latest healthcare trends & HIPAA updates, or not flexible enough with various EHR software. That’s why it’s important to look for the right CDI specialist.

When looking for a CDI specialist, look for a registered nurse, a medical coder or a case manager, especially individuals who have a good working relationship with doctors. This is because CDI specialists ensure that a doctor’s patient documentation is complete and free of errors. If you plan to hire within your company, choose the right individual who has a good eye for detail and is flexible enough to work with different EHR software.

However, with the rising cost of salaries and resources, hiring an in-house team of CDI specialists can burn a hole in your budget. More often than not, you’d have to train them and consistently update their skills through training. You’ll have to provide the resources and technology to do their job right.

Read More: Improving EHR Services with a Healthcare Solutions Partner

So instead of hiring your own team, why not join forces with a healthcare solutions partner? Your partner will already have a pool of highly-trained registered nurses and CDI specialists who have in-depth knowledge of health information management and revenue cycle management. Simply build a team of specialists—start small, if you want, then grow from there—and get the results you need while you focus on patient care and other core competencies. Instantly get more bang for your buck when you partner with a trusted healthcare solutions company.

To complement your healthcare solutions partner’s team of CDI specialists are a secure technology infrastructure and efficient processes. Given that you’re dealing with sensitive and private information, it’s important for your partner to be compliant with HIPAA and GDPR regulations that protect you and your patients’ data at all times.

Expect top-quality solutions for top-quality results for your business when you build your CDI team with your healthcare solutions partner.

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