Meet a Member: CDI gave her an exciting challenge

Kati Beisel, RHIA, CCS, is the HIM administrative director at INTEGRIS Health in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and she is a member of her local ACDIS chapter. She has been in the CDI field for more than 12 years.

ACDIS: What did you do before entering CDI? Why did you get into this line of work?
Beisel: I began my career as a coder and have since occupied various leadership roles within the HIM department including coding manager, director coding and CDI, and most recently administrative director of HIM.

CDI appealed to me because pathophysiology was my favorite college course! Being offered the opportunity to review patient records from a more clinical aspect and tie it to coding and reporting education for our care providers was a challenge I was excited for and still am excited about today. Interacting with our medical staff and providing them support where I competently am able is my passion.

ACDIS: What has been your biggest challenge?
Beisel: My biggest challenge to date has been garnering steadfast support of the organization to drive forward documentation integrity concepts on a larger scale past financial and reporting outcomes. I wish to see our CDI programs evolving outside of traditional query-based metrics and providing more face-to-face education through focusing on solid documentation practices such as teaching problem-oriented charting and documentation congruence and consistency (avoiding normal templates, copy/paste, and note bloat).

ACDIS: What has been your biggest reward?
Beisel: My biggest reward has been achieving widespread credibility with our program, obtaining tremendous physician engagement in CDI and growing an amazingly talented team of CDI specialists.

ACDIS: How has the field changed since you began working in CDI?
Beisel: So much has changed! When I began this journey, it was called “concurrent coding” and was strictly focused on coding guidelines and using the “right” words to assign the right DRG. The scope has broadened into an incredibly clinical review focused on so much more than DRG accuracy.

ACDIS: Can you mention a few of the “gold nuggets” of information you’ve received from colleagues on The Forum or through ACDIS?
Beisel: Whenever I receive notification of a new ACDIS white paper published, I put aside everything and read it right away. “CDI and the evolution from finance to quality” laid out a roadmap for me to take to our C-suite in the form of an SBAR (situation, background, assessment, recommendation) and move the dial toward a quality and integrity driven program. ACDIS is the industry go-to for staying innovative and forward-thinking in your CDI program.

ACDIS: If you have attended, how many ACDIS conferences have you been to? What are your favorite memories?
Beisel: Last year was my first year to attend and I am excited to be attending again this year! It is on my annual agenda moving forward. The most memorable things for me were being able to attend the conference with one of my favorite colleagues and listening to the leadership panel discuss the transformation from “improvement” to “integrity.” Having the opportunity to validate the great things we are doing in my organization and learning about new stretch opportunities we should be considering was a real motivator.

ACDIS: What piece of advice would you offer to a new CDI specialist?
Beisel: Pace yourself, ask questions of your peers, don’t expect to be an expert in CDI overnight, and learn from your trusted providers—dialogue is a blessing.

ACDIS: If you could have any other job, what would it be?
Beisel: I can’t think of any other job I’d rather have right now!

ACDIS: What was your first job?
Beisel: I worked for the farmer’s cooperative in my hometown, weighing and testing grain during wheat harvest.

ACDIS: Can you tell us about a few of your favorite things?

• Vacation spots: Kauai, anywhere on the beach.
• Hobby: Reading.
• Non-alcoholic beverage: Coke Zero.
• Foods: I can’t pass up fresh-made chips and salsa.
• Activity: Working in the flower garden.

ACDIS: Tell us about your family and how you like to spend your time away from CDI.
Beisel: I have two girls—one is sixteen and the other is three—which keeps life interesting. I can sing along with most Panic! at the Disco records as well as recite most scenes from the movie Frozen.