News: New ACDIS white paper says set CDI productivity expectations, but don’t look for a national standard

Determining acceptable levels of productivity for CDI staff can be an overwhelming task. Although many organizations prefer a single national standard for calculating CDI productivity (e.g., a set number of new reviews and  re-reviews per CDI specialist (CDS) per day), frequent regulatory changes and broad diversity within the industry prohibit a one-size-fits-all approach. CDI productivity is influenced by a number of intrinsic and extrinsic variables,  which will be discussed within this white paper.

Examples of intrinsic variables include the review focus or mission of the CDI department, the defined role of the CDI staff within the organization and their experience with the tasks, and how much data each CDS must track and enter during chart reviews. Extrinsic factors include the complexity of the assigned patient population, availability of supplemental resources (i.e., technology), and the format of the health record (i.e., electronic or hybrid).

As industry demands evolve and responsibilities change, CDI managers will need to adjust their productivity expectations and will be challenged in setting both qualitative and  quantitative productivity goals. To establish fair and productive goals without compromising the quality of work for quantity’s sake, CDI managers must consider the many variables that go into productivity determinations.

ACDIS members have access to the white paper in the Resource section of the website here. http://www.acdis.org/resources/set-cdi-productivity-expectations-don%E2%80%99t-look-national-standard