This position is in the Health Information Management (HIM) section of Patient Business Services (PBS) at the Columbus VA Ambulatory Care Center. MRTs (Coder) are 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.

Duties

Coding practitioners analyze and abstract patients' health records and assign alpha-numeric codes for each diagnosis and procedure. Outpatient Medical Record Technicians (Coder) select and assign codes to outpatient episodes of care, and/or inpatient professional services from current versions of ICD-10-CM, CPT, and HCPCS classification systems. Duties include but are not limited to: Reviews record documentation to abstract all required medical, surgical, ancillary, demographic, social, and administrative data with guidance and instruction from supervisor or senior coder to develop knowledge of the organization and structure of an electronic or paper patient record. Utilizes the facility computer system and software applications to code, abstract, record, and transmit data. Corrects any identified data errors or inconsistencies in a timely manner to ensure acceptance in the national VA database within established timelines. Research references to resolve any questionable code errors; contacts a senior coder or supervisor when needed. Works within a team environment; supports peers in meeting goals and deadlines; flexible and handles multiple tasks; works under pressure; and copes with frequently changing projects and deadlines. Adheres to accepted coding practices, guidelines and conventions when choosing the most appropriate diagnosis, operation, procedure, ancillary, or evaluation and management (E/M) code to ensure ethical, accurate, and complete coding. Also adheres to the coding guidelines specific to the Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation (VERA) program that categorizes all VA patients into specific classes representing their clinical conditions and resource needs. Monitors ever-changing regulatory and policy requirements affecting coded information for the full spectrum of services provided by the VMCC. Timely compliance with coding changes is crucial to the accuracy of the facility database as well as all cost recovery programs. Performs a comprehensive review of the patient health record to abstract medical, surgical, ancillary, demographic, social, and administrative data to ensure complete data capture. Assigns codes to documented patient care encounters (outpatient and/or inpatient professional services) covering the full range of health care services provided by the VAACC. Assists facility staff with documentation requirements to completely and accurately reflect the patient care provided; provides technical support in the areas of regulations and policy, coding requirements, resident supervision, reimbursement, workload, accepted nomenclature, and proper sequencing. Ensures provider documentation is complete and supports the diagnoses and procedures coded. Directly consults with the professional staff for clarification of conflicting or ambiguous clinical data. Reports incorrect documentation or codes in the electronic patient health record. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00 am -4:30 pm Telework: Available. Expected to come in for trainings, IT issues or when needed Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Work will be performed via Telework. (Telework agreement based on coding satisfactory performance) Functional Statement # 917230 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. Experience and Education Experience. One 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)Six (6) months of creditable experience that indicates knowledge of medical terminology, general understanding of medical coding and the health record, and one (1) year above high school, with a minimum of six (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 six months 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. Persons hired or reassigned to MRT (Coder) positions in the GS-0675 series in VHA 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. English Language Proficiency. MRTs (Coder) must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). 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: GS-8 Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Ability to analyze the health record to identify all pertinent diagnoses and procedures for coding and to evaluate the adequacy of the documentation. This includes the ability to read and understand the content of the health record, the terminology, the significance of the findings, and the disease process/pathophysiology of the patient. Ability to accurately perform the full scope of outpatient coding, including ambulatory surgical cases, diagnostic studies and procedures, and outpatient encounters, and/or inpatient professional fee services coding. Skill in interpreting and adapting health information guidelines that are not completely applicable to the work or have gaps in specificity, and the ability to use judgment in completing assignments using incomplete or inadequate guidelines. References: VA Handbook 5005/122 PART II APPENDIX G57 The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-08. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service.

Education

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.

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address Chalmers P Wylie Veterans Outpatient Clinic 420 North James Road Columbus, OH 43219 US
• Name: Laura Lange
• Phone: 614-257-5725
• Email: [email protected]