Radio Recap: CDI Taking the Leap to Leadership

As the CDI profession grows, more CDI specialists wish to transition to a leadership role. It’s difficult, though, to know how to advance in leadership roles or what roles and responsibilities a CDI specialist in a management position may be tasked with.

Adelaide M. La Rosa, RN, BSN, CCDS, assistant vice president of HIM and CDI for six acute care facilities part of Catholic Health Services of Long Island, and Robin Jones, RN, BSN, CCDS, MHA/Ed, assistant vice president for revenue integrity and clinical documentation excellence (CDE) for Mercy Health in Mason, Ohio, have firsthand experience. They both joined ACDIS Radio on March 8, to share their experiences and offer advice for CDI specialists looking to make the leap.

“Two days [in CDI management] are never the same,” Jones said. Not only does Jones oversee the CDE program for Mercy Health, but she is also responsible for revenue integrity, a new area of concentration for her. In the revenue integrity area, she oversees about 40 staff; for CDE, she oversees 97 staff. “It’s fun and definitely a challenge,” she said.

Some days La Rosa and Jones say they cannot fathom how everything gets done.

“Sometimes, I go to bed and wonder how I got all that done today and then I still don’t know where my car keys are,” said La Rosa.

There’s no doubt that leadership roles are daunting and often exhausting. A love of learning and passion toward the subject matter makes everything easier, however. “Regardless of what you’re doing in any of your positions, you need to be passionate. You need to love what you’re doing because that [attitude] will flow to your team,” La Rosa said.

Seeing the whole picture and how CDI fits into the health of a facility aids in leadership as well, Jones said. “It’s easy to remain in mono-vision, but there’s really a whole other world out there for CDEs to help the organization with,” she said.

For instance, at Mercy Health Jones expanded the CDE efforts to denial appeals. The CDE specialists help write those appeals which gives them valuable insight into the backend of their job. “Immerse yourself in what CDE can do for your organization,” said Jones.

When it boils down, expanded vision often comes down to listening. “You have to understand that you are not an island. You have to build a team,” La Rosa said.

When she first started in the CDE program, Jones made time to listen to healthcare leaders about upcoming focus areas and tried to listen to physicians as much as possible to understand their roles and difficulties. Hearing other perspectives helps expand what may be a limited scope of vision.

At the end of the day, CDI leaders’ goals should be building a better future for the facility and CDI program. When advancing to a leadership role, leaving behind a good process behind is crucial. “I hope one day, when I’m no longer in this position, that I leave behind a strong process. I want to see that this CDI program continues to succeed,” said La Rosa.

Choosing the next generation of leaders is part of leaving behind a good process. During the ACDIS Radio show, 33% of the poll respondents said they had no opportunities for advancement. Both La Rosa and Jones found this troubling. “It’s my job as a leader to create opportunities,” La Rosa said.

As parting advice, both leaders encouraged CDI specialists looking to move up the career ladder to be confident. Leaders need to handle change well, La Rosa said; confidence will aid that process.

“Have confidence in your ability. You are the subject matter expert […] Trust your knowledge base, but also be willing to expand that base,” said Jones.

Editor’s note: To read the ACDIS White Paper on the subject of CDI career ladders, click here. To read more about advancing your CDI career, read this article about advanced CDI programs and this article about successful CDI leadership.