Overview
InstructionsASSIGNMENT 3
Policy Statement -A policy statement provides the rationale for the policy. The policy statement includes the reason behind the policy and what the policy hopes to accomplish. Policy statements can also encompass and relate to an institutions core mission and values. The statement can be between 1-2 sentences to a paragraph in length, depending upon the subject matter. Policy statements need to be clear, concise, and convey the "why" the policy is needed. Policy statements are written in third-person and avoid using words that imply choice (i.e. should, may). When using acronyms, spell out the words the first time, then indicate the acronym in parenthesis (e.g. Health Information Management (HIM)).
Assignment Scenario
Portland Community Hospital's Compliance Officer states that the Health Information Management Compliance Plan is in serious need of updating.
Five specific areas have been identified as potential problems to address in the revised plan/policies.
Policies statements should be written for each area for a total of 5 policy statements:
- Policy Statement #1 HIM Education - There has been no formal training of the HIM employees in the last five years. You will need to determine a regular schedule of education for all HIM and clinical front end personnel (Admissions) for compliance of: HIPAA regulations, regulatory changes regarding compliance, risk areas for fraud, methods to ensure accurate documentation of medical records, etc. Also include proposed training on the importance of following Ethics of Coding . Also, how will the training be conducted (in person in-service attendance, online training, etc.)?
- Policy Statement #2 Coding audits - an HIM coding audit plan should include an audit schedule, guidelines, and penalty recommendations for consequences of habitual inaccurate coding results.
- Policy Statement #3 Provider education - HIM department is responsible for providing ongoing education to physicians regarding coding and documentation improvement guidelines. Education should include information regarding importance of documentation of all of the patient diagnosis for POA (Present On Admission) and HAC (Hospital Acquired Conditions) and medical necessity.
- Policy Statement #4 HIM employee certification updates - There has been no updating of the HIM employee qualifications manual. Make suggestions that would require proof of competency of HIM employees; for instance, description of skills sets, and/or employee certifications required for each specialty position to be obtained by a specific length of time following hiring.
- Policy Statement #5 Compliance Response - It has been identified by the Compliance Officer that the HIM Compliance Plan does not show steps of action to be taken in the case of non-compliance. For instance, if a breach of patient confidentiality has occurred, what are the steps taken? You should include guidelines of investigating allegations (keeping HIPAA in mind) that includes who would be interviewed and by whom, and which organizations might be needed to be contacted to respond to certain illegal activities. Then, you will need to make recommendations of safeguards to prevent future problems.
Requirements for this Assignment
Write out separate policy statements for each bullet topic heading as indicated above. Suggestions and considerations on what to include within your policy statements have also been provided next to each area.
Make sure to review the article titled "HIM Role in Compliance" article, as well as, conduct further research, on what you think should be included in these potential problem areas within your policy statements.
Each policy statement needs to be in a professional format with formal policy statements. I have provided information above on what is a policy statement. If you need more information, there are examples in your textbook in Chapter 18.
A template has been provided and includes grading criteria. Points will be deducted if the template is not used for this assignment. Grading will be based on understanding of content, grammar/spelling, presentation/format of policy. Please make sure to not be vague with your policy statements. Policy statements that lack content and do not address the potential problems will be graded down.