ACDIS Symposium: Outpatient CDI

ACDIS Symposium: Outpatient CDI

Saturday, May 3 – Sunday, May 4, 2025 | Kissimmee, FL

Discover your CDI program’s potential at the ACDIS Symposium: Outpatient CDI, a two-day event dedicated exclusively to clinical documentation integrity (CDI) efforts in the outpatient and ambulatory settings.

The ACDIS Symposium: Outpatient CDI offers comprehensive sessions for both managers/leaders and clinical chart reviewers, including how to get started in the ambulatory setting, crafting compliant queries, collecting and analyzing metrics, and demonstrating return on investment. With two tracks on Day 2, there are options for attendees of all experience levels. Plus, take advantage of the many networking opportunities to connect with and learn from your peers!

Smaller and more intimate than the annual ACDIS conference, the ACDIS Symposium: Outpatient CDI provides an unmatched opportunity to listen to case studies from organizations with successful programs and equip yourself with practical resources and information that you can implement immediately.

Special Features:

• Networking Reception: Get to know your peers and chat with our exhibitors during a social hour at the end of the first day.
• Exhibitors: Visit the exhibit hall dedicated exclusively to outpatient CDI and learn more about the innovative solutions available to you.
• Keynote Speaker: Kick off two days of learning with an invigorating and empowering keynote session.

Attending both ACDIS Symposium: Outpatient CDI and the 2025 ACDIS National Conference? Kick off a week of learning and save 15% on this event with your ACDIS conference registration.

Join us for a FREE live information webinar on February 12 to hear about all the 2025 ACDIS Conference details. REGISTER HERE!

ACDIS Symposium: Outpatient CDI

Speakers

Charles Reginald Ahlfield, MBA-HA, BSHI, RN-BC, obtained a degree in clinical informatics and, after more than a dozen years in ICU and ED nursing, began his journey assisting clinicians with the transition to charting within an electronic medical record (EMR). He has worked with numerous EMRs, including Cerner, Allscripts, and Epic, and has worked on the configuration side of a Big Bang EMR install. His experience also includes meaningful use compliance as well as clinician training and day-to-day usage. In his current role, he leverages his MBA to assist with data capture and documentation, ensuring regulatory standards required to sustain CDI are met while keeping organizational financial goals in mind.

Nicole Barber, BSN, RN, CCDS-O, CPC-A, is an outpatient CDI supervisor at Baylor Scott & White. She has more than 13 years of nursing experience ranging from long-term care, rehab sub-acute care, and TBI to postpartum and OBSC. She has been in CDI since 2018 when she started as a production staff member of the inpatient CDI team. She then transitioned to a provider education role and is now an outpatient CDI supervisor. She has extensive knowledge of Current Procedural Terminology® codes, ICD-10 coding, and risk adjustment.

Kenzi Brooks, CCDS-O, CPC-A, COC-A, CRC, CCS, is an outpatient CDI educator at West Virginia University Health System in Morgantown, West Virginia, with over 10 years of experience in coding and clinical documentation, including eight years specializing in risk adjustment. She joined WVU Medicine in 2019 as an outpatient CDI specialist, where she played a key role in developing and expanding the outpatient CDI program. In 2024, she transitioned to her current role as outpatient CDI educator, leading the training of new team members and providing ongoing education to providers across the health system. She is an active member of the ACDIS Leadership Council and has contributed to the field through presentations and posters at events as well as articles for CDI Journal.

Susan Carrier, BSN, RN, MBA, CPC, CCDS, CCDS-O, serves as Harmony’s senior director of CDI and leads the company’s ambulatory CDI practice. In this role, she is responsible for overseeing active engagements, supporting new business pursuits, and developing innovative features and products to enhance customer return on investment and ensure future sustainability.

Kim Conner, BSN, CCDS, CCDS-O, is a senior CDI consultant and denials management specialist with over 11 years of CDI experience and 20 years of clinical experience as an ICU/burn trauma nurse. She drives improvements in clinical documentation accuracy, compliance, and revenue cycle management for healthcare organizations nationwide. Conner's expertise includes inpatient and outpatient CDI program development, physician education, compliance auditing, and data analytics. She has developed and delivered customized CDI education for hospital systems across the country, previously serving as a CDI education specialist for ACDIS. As a seasoned professional, Conner collaborates with multidisciplinary teams to enhance documentation practices, reducing documentation-related denials and improving financial performance for clients. She also develops robust denial management and appeal strategies, successfully recovering reimbursement in denied claims and safeguarding revenue streams.

Michael Dagenais, BSN, RN, CCDS, serves as the director of CDI (inpatient and outpatient) at the University of Wisconsin Health (UW Health). He has over 17 years of experience in acute care nursing, nursing leadership, and revenue cycle operations, including more than 10 years in CDI. His expertise includes CDI program expansion, development, and integration of CDI standard work systemwide; implementation of CDI career ladders; and working closely with hospital executives within academic medical centers. During his time at UW Health, he successfully launched a comprehensive CDI program covering every inpatient specialty. Additionally, he has spearheaded the implementation of CDI- and provider-facing technologies to improve workflows. He also has designed health system CDI workflows, including physician advisor programs, provider education teams, and a secondary review team, all of which have delivered significant advancements for documentation key performance indicators

Nichole Gaddis, RHIA, CCDS-O, COC, CRC, is the risk adjustment department auditor/educator for Baylor Scott & White. She has more than 10 years of coding and CDI experience in both the inpatient and outpatient areas as well as experience with NCQA/HEDIS and quality improvement. Her role involves identifying issues for provider education, data analytics, ensuring that HCC codes are captured on claims accurately, and reviewing auditor quality.

Tara Gagner, MS, APRN, ANP-BC, is a nurse practitioner with over two decades of experience driving innovation in ambulatory and post-acute care settings. For the past 17 years, she has spearheaded the development of leading-edge clinical programs at Advocate Health, the third largest nonprofit integrated health system in the United States. Her work has focused on closing care gaps, enhancing clinical documentation, and improving quality outcomes for adult and geriatric populations. Most recently, she worked with her team to create and implement the SNF at Home and Comprehensive Annual Visit programs, which support primary care clinicians and reengage patients traditionally lost to care with primary care practices. She serves on multiple systemwide councils, lending her expertise to drive value-based initiatives that promote medical group quality and shared savings. With her nursing degree and advanced practice credentials from Northern Illinois University, she is a board-certified adult nurse practitioner and holds CAP-C designation in critical areas like advance care planning, communication in serious illness, symptom management, and dementia care.

Colleen Gianatasio, MHS, CPC, CPCO, CRC, CDEO, CPC-P, CPMA, CPPM, CCS, CCDS-O, CHA, AHFI, has over 20 years of experience in the health insurance field, particularly in customer service, claims, quality, and coding. As director of CDI and coding compliance, her primary responsibilities are provider engagement and documentation improvement for accurate coding and reimbursement. Gianatasio specializes in developing innovative coding curricula and instructions to support compliance with federal guidelines and appropriate reimbursement processes. She is a certified AAPC instructor and enjoys teaching a variety of coding, documentation, and auditing classes. She previously served as president of the AAPC National Advisory Board.

Vivian Gonzalez, MS, is a product and program development consultant for Advocate Health, the third largest not-for-profit integrated health system in the United States. She supports the CAV program, a comprehensive home visit program that drives value-based care and risk adjustment, aiming to enhance patient outcomes by addressing healthcare needs at the point of care, improving engagement and health management. She has led initiatives leading to operational improvements, managing cross-functional teams to execute innovative projects (i.e., remote patient monitoring and natural language processing). In previous roles, she spearheaded initiatives focused on quality improvement, patient-centered care, and provider education, helping organizations improve their clinical and financial performance in a rapidly evolving healthcare landscape. She is passionate about leveraging data and innovative strategies to optimize healthcare delivery and outcomes that support risk adjustment, quality management, and process improvement. She holds a master’s degree in biology from the University of Puerto Rico–Mayaguez and is fluent in both English and Spanish.

Jean Anne Jones, CPC, CCS-P, CCDS-O, has been a pivotal member of Solventum, formerly 3M Health Information Systems, since 2011. Currently, she serves as a clinical development analyst for the natural language understanding content team and is involved in the 3M’s Women’s Forum. With over 25 years of expertise in coding and billing, she has contributed to renowned institutions such as Massachusetts General Hospital and Atrius Health. Her extensive experience includes developing and implementing coding curricula for community colleges, career schools, and large physician organizations. She has presented on various coding topics nationwide, including her notable presentation on supportive documentation for quality measures in radiology at the 2019 AAPC Conference. She has been deeply engaged in Lean initiatives and has a strong interest in process improvement and efficiency. Her leadership roles within the AAPC as well as her certifications underscore her commitment to excellence. Having trained and audited professionals for over a decade, her proficiency in evaluation and management guidelines is well recognized.

Melissa Jones, BSN, RN, CCDS-O, is an outpatient CDI supervisor at Baylor Scott & White Health. She has more than five years of nursing experience across long-term acute care, medical intensive care, and cardiothoracic intensive care. She has worked in CDI since 2020, including experience with inpatient/DRG denials and outpatient CDI. She moved into an outpatient CDI supervisor role in 2024.

Tanna Lambert, RHIA, CCS, CCDS-O, is the enterprise outpatient CDI manager at WVU Medicine Health System, bringing over 17 years of experience in HIM, including 13 years in coding and CDI. She has played a key role in the growth and success of WVU Medicine's outpatient CDI program, driving innovation and best practices within the organization. As a recognized leader in the CDI field, she serves on the ACDIS Leadership Council, contributes as a member of AHIMA, and is an active board member for the West Virginia Health Information Management Association. She is dedicated to advancing the CDI profession and supporting healthcare initiatives that improve documentation accuracy, compliance, and patient outcomes.

Adriane Martin, DO, ACPA-C, CCDS, graduated from the University of North Texas Health Science Center with a Doctorate of Osteopathy. She completed her general surgery residency at Osteopathic Medical Center of Texas/Fort Worth in 2004. Martin is a Fellow of the American College of Osteopathic Surgeons. She has been practicing general surgery for 15 years and has been a part of the Enjoin team since 2014. As vice president of physician services, Martin directs many initiatives within the company to support operations and ongoing company growth. She leads all internal and external efforts for the physician team to support clients with actionable data and educational content. Her commitment and passion to documentation integrity are demonstrated by her involvement in industry organizations such as chairing the CDI Committee for the American College of Physician Advisors, as well as thought leadership and involvement in many other industry meetings and events.

Sarah Matacale, BSN, RN, CCS, CCDS, is a CDI practitioner for HCPro, where she manages the Query Template Library services, serves as an educator for HCPro’s PROPELCDI services, and is a subject matter expert for ACDIS. She has been a nurse for more than 27 years, specializing in a variety of inpatient and outpatient roles. She began her career in CDI in 2017 and has been a member of ACDIS and AHIMA ever since. Prior to joining HCPro, she was the mortality review nurse and CDI professional for a large health system, working closely with—and educating—members of the quality, coding, and CDI departments. She provided education to service line providers to improve documentation and coding capture related to mortality, length of stay, and complication rates as well as other quality measures. Matacale was president of the North Carolina local ACDIS chapter for more than three years and is a member of the ACDIS Events Committee.

Shannon McCall, RHIA, CCS, CCS-P, CPC, CEMC, CRC, CCDS, CCDS-O, is the director of HIM and coding for HCPro. She oversees all the Certified Coder Boot Camp programs and specializes in creating custom educational programs for PROPELCoding membership clients. McCall was one of the original ACDIS Advisory Board members and one of the contributors to the development of the CCDS-O certification examination.

Nina Meehan is an internationally recognized director, playwright, and producer and an innovation, creativity, and communication expert. She began her career as the CEO and founder of an award-winning, multimillion-dollar children’s entertainment company. An "explosion of positive energy," today she works with leaders, teams, and organizations as a speaker, consultant, and facilitator to unleash their brilliance so they can move beyond ANY limit.

Meehan learned about breakthrough thinking through her work as a creative leader, developing immersive, interactive programming for a million people worldwide. Her work in musical theater includes a trailblazing musical based on Chelsea Clinton’s bestselling book, She Persisted; a zany adaptation of Press Here, the longest-running picture book on The New York Times bestseller list; and an adaption of Grumpy Monkey for the Tony award–winning Pasadena Playhouse.

A two-time TEDx speaker, she has spoken at places like Chicago Women in Tech, Wonder Women in Tech, the University of Utah, Northwestern University, the Entrepreneur’s Organization, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Visioni in Bologna, an international performing arts festival. Her work has been spotlighted in numerous publications including The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, and on ABC, NBC, and CBS News. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Theatre from Northwestern University and a Master of Nonprofit Administration from the University of San Francisco, and is currently working toward her PhD in Creativity, Innovation, and Leadership.

Nicole Nodal-Rodriguez, MSN, RN, CCDS, is a CDI education specialist with HCPro. She serves as a full-time instructor for HCPro’s Boot Camps and PROPELCDI services and is a subject matter expert for ACDIS. As a registered nurse with nearly 16 years of experience in the healthcare setting, she has a diverse background, having worked in the areas of emergency/trauma nursing, labor and delivery, interventional radiology, vascular access, infusion, and wound care. She holds a Master of Science in Nursing with a focus in leadership and management, as well as a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Grand Canyon University. Prior to becoming an education specialist with HCPro, she was a CDI educator and physician liaison for a large healthcare system. In this role, she assisted with concurrent medical record reviews, educated the frontline CDI team, served on the organization’s educator council, and collaborated with providers to ensure accurate, compliant, and quality documentation.

Jenny Peters, BSN, RN, ONC, is an ambulatory clinical documentation specialist with Emplify by Bellin Health in Green Bay, Wisconsin. In May 2023, she was chosen as one of two RNs tasked with the development of the ambulatory CDI department. Since that time, she has committed herself to learning as much as possible about the CMS-HCC risk adjustment model and HEDIS quality measures. The team has since grown to eight RNs. Peters has been an RN for 25 years. Prior to her current role, her career focused on sports medicine, orthopedics, and rheumatology. In this specialty, she served in many roles, including inpatient floor nurse, surgical RN, ambulatory care specialty nurse, leader, and nurse educator.

Diane Pittman, CPC, CRC, CPMA, CCDS-O, is a senior clinical analyst at Solventum and brings a wealth of expertise to her role. Her career spans over a decade, during which she has contributed significantly to various projects related to computer-assisted coding, Hierarchical Condition Categories, and social determinants of health. She is an alumna of Pittsburgh Technical College.

Eleazar Rada, MBA, BHM, CCS, CDIP, CRC, is an outpatient clinical documentation specialist at the University of California—Davis Health System. He has over 13 years of experience as a HIM professional. Rada was a contract medical records clerk at a county health facility before joining Kaiser Permanente, where he performed various roles including coder, compliance auditor, physician educator, CDI specialist, and other project-lead roles. Since 2019, he has been part of UC Davis CDI team as lead CDI specialist for the emergency and observation departments. Rada is also an active instructor in his own coding training company.

April D. L. Russell, MBA, CCDS-O, COC, CPC, CPC-P, CRC, serves as a natural language understanding (NLU) content manager at Solventum, bringing with her two decades of extensive experience in medical coding. Her career began with coding in anesthesia and pain management specialties before she transitioned to claim reviews for a healthcare cost-containment organization. She later joined M*Modal, where she focused on computer-assisted coding. Most of her professional journey has been dedicated to her role as a content specialist, collaborating with NLU teams to develop and refine rules for AI-driven engines.

Heather R. Smith, CPC, CPMA, is the vice president of revenue cycle at University of Toledo. She has over 25 years of healthcare operations and leadership experience, and has worked for multiple large, accredited residency programs, including Western Michigan University and Trinity Saint Joseph Health Systems in Indiana. She manages all aspects of billing, coding, and collections and performs medical record documentation analysis and coding audits to ensure regulatory compliance. She earned both a Bachelor of Business Administration and a master’s degree in healthcare leadership from Siena Heights University.

Linda Speer, MD, FAAFP, is a family physician with an academic career focused on clinical administration. Her clinical administrative roles have included ambulatory clinic manager, associate chair for clinical services (Michigan State University), and interim chief medical officer (University of Toledo Medical Center). She completed an Executive Leadership in Academy Medicine fellowship in 2007. She is currently the medical director for value-based care for University of Toledo Physicians, LLC, in addition to her role as chair of the department of family medicine.

John Stoebe, JD, MHA, has worked for Northwestern Medicine since 2018, beginning in organ transplant with oversight for the finance, procurement, and quality ratings within the various organ service lines. After review of scoring and outcomes that did not accurately represent the acuity of patients cared for or the quality of care given, Stoebe embarked on an educational investigation to enhance and represent the work being done. Eventually, he came to understand the importance of clinical documentation and coding as it relates to key metrics, such as observed and expected graft failure and mortalities. After working to enhance the outcomes in organ transplant, he eventually moved on to Northwestern’s ambulatory CDI program, overseeing the scaling, implementation, and support of over 100,000 Medicare Shared Savings Program and Medicare Advantage lives and continued growth.

Jessica Vaughn, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, CCDS, CCDS-O, CRC, has been a nurse for 28 years and has 14 years of CDI experience with over 10 years dedicated to risk adjustment operations. She spearheaded some of the nation’s first ambulatory CDI programs focused on value-based care initiatives. In 2022, she joined Advocate Health, the nation’s third largest nonprofit health system, where she leads a large multidisciplinary team focused on population health initiatives including ambulatory documentation, care gap closure, comprehensive care, and revenue cycle management. A leader in the industry, she has spoken at multiple conferences, authored articles, received ACDIS’ Professional Achievement Award, helped write the original CCDS-O study guide and initial certification exam, and most recently reviewed the 2025 ACDIS Outpatient Pocket Guide. She has held clinical certifications in pediatrics, oncology, and chemo- and biotherapy, as well as AHIMA’s approved ICD-10-CM/PCS trainer certificate. She completed her Doctorate in Nursing Executive Leadership at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, and advocates for empowering interprofessional healthcare teams to improve patient care

Drew Walker, MA, CCDS-O, CPC, CRC, is an outpatient CDI supervisor at Baylor Scott and White. He has more than 14 years of experience in HIM, ICD-10 coding, and NCQA/HEDIS. He has been in outpatient CDI since 2016, when he started as a risk adjustment auditor, and has been an outpatient CDI supervisor since July 2022.

Joanne Wilson, RN, CCDS, is Norwood's senior director of solutions, bringing over 25 years of experience in critical care nursing, consulting, project management, and healthcare operations to the role. Her extensive expertise includes implementing CDI programs, developing physician advisor programs, and working across coding, professional fee billing, and revenue cycle management. She is also highly skilled in educating multidisciplinary healthcare teams. During her tenure at Norwood, Wilson has successfully launched multiple outpatient CDI programs, contributed to educational content development, and presented at industry conferences. By leveraging data-driven insights and key performance indicators, she has designed strategies that deliver measurable improvements for health systems, all while ensuring strict adherence to regulatory compliance.

Danielle Wirth, BSN, RN, CCDS, CCDS-O, is the outpatient CDI manager at Baylor Scott & White. She has over 10 years of nursing experience in pediatric intensive care, pediatric cardiovascular surgery, and neonatal intensive care. She has worked in CDI since 2014. Her experience ranges from inpatient CDI specialist to educator to supervisor and includes work with DRG denials. In addition, she helped stand up outpatient CDI and provider outpatient CDI programs in 2017 and has over four years of outpatient CDI management experience.

Kayte Wuelling, RN, BSN, has been a nurse at Bellin Health for the past 10 years and has experience in cardiac surgery, urgent care, and multiple levels of leadership. Her current role is supervisor of the ambulatory CDI team, a department new to the healthcare system as of 2023. She has previously implemented new departments for the system, including multiple urgent care locations. She was also responsible for transitioning more than 20 providers and 50 staff members from their regular duties to caring for the system's respiratory outpatients during COVID-19, a professional achievement she is very proud of.

ACDIS Symposium: Outpatient CDI

Agenda

Saturday, May 3, 2025

7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.
Registration and Networking Breakfast

8:00 a.m. – 8:15 a.m.
Opening Remarks From ACDIS

8:15 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.
Keynote: Free Your Brilliance™: Move Beyond Any Limits
Nina Meehan

In this inspirational keynote, Nina helps audiences uncover and overcome the barriers blocking team collaboration, innovation, and growth. By addressing feelings of defeat, uncertainty, lack of focus, and fear of change or failure, Nina provides a road map to identify and move past obstacles, offering a formula to clarify goals, motivations, and strategies. Audiences will leave equipped with tools to tackle modern challenges through enhanced creativity, communication, and connection, empowering their organizations to solve big problems and achieve unprecedented success.

9:25 a.m. – 10:25 a.m.
Clinical Validation: A Comparison of Inpatient and Ambulatory Arenas
Joanne Wilson RN, CCDS, and Michael Dagenais, BSN, RN, CCDS

In this session, the speakers will compare the inpatient and outpatient settings and identify the key differences and nuances of shoring up your claims in the ambulatory arena to prevent denials. Additionally, they will review existing industry guidance and offer concrete clinical examples, including how to use MEAT criteria to ensure the documentation supports the diagnoses.

10:25 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.
Networking Break

10:45 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.
Building an Emergency Department (ED) Program
Eleazar Rada, MBA, BHM, CCS, CDIP, CRC, and Charles Reginald Ahlfield, MBA-HA, BSHI, RN-BC

Join this session to understand the effects of building an outpatient emergency department (ED) CDI program. The speakers will discuss how they identified key stakeholders and assembled the CDI team, the systems and tools used in building the program, and the HCCs that are most overlooked in the ED setting. Attendees will also learn how to create an effective and meaningful ED CDI query process.

11:45 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Networking Lunch

1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Advocate Health's Comprehensive Annual Visit Program: Leveraging CDI to Inspire Measurable Change in Patient Care
Jessica Vaughn, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, CCDS, CCDS-O, CRC; Vivian Gonzalez, MS; and Tara Gagner, MS, APRN, ANP-BC

Advocate Health’s Condition Management and Documentation department uses creative thinking in its initiatives to improve patient outcomes by focusing on coded data and documentation validation to drive clinical interventions. Its Comprehensive Annual Visit program, an in-home program that delivers care at the convenience of the patient, closes healthcare gaps while reducing costs and positively impacting value-based funding. This session will demonstrate how the team used actionable hospital data to fund an ambulatory care program, created algorithms to ensure appropriate patient outreach, and leveraged CDI specialists to review charts and nurse practitioners to drive care models.

2:10 p.m. – 3:10 p.m.
Po-TAY-toe/Po-TAH-toe, Does the Wording Really Matter (or Should I Say Matta?): Documentation for ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Coding
Shannon McCall, RHIA, CCS, CCS-P, CPC, CEMC, CRC, CCDS, CCDS-O

Specific words used in provider documentation are vital for supporting ICD-10-CM diagnosis code assignment. The role of the CDI specialist is to filter what verbiage is used and identify possible impacts on code assignment and reimbursement. This session will cover documentation strategies to assist CDI specialists in their pursuit to capture the most accurate and complete diagnosis codes for an outpatient encounter.

3:10 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Networking Break

3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Writing a Compliant CDI Query
Sarah Matacale, BSN, RN, CCS, CCDS, and Nicole Nodal-Rodriguez, MSN, RN, CCDS

This presentation will walk through the compliant components of a CDI query and explain the elements discussed in the ACDIS/AHIMA practice brief Guidelines for Achieving a Compliant Query Practice. Attendees will also work through realistic case scenarios to create compliant CDI queries.

4:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Welcome Reception

Sunday, May 4, 2025

7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.
Networking Breakfast

8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.

Track 1: Building the Foundation for an Outpatient CDI Program
Heather R. Smith, MA, CPC, CPMA; Linda Speer, MD, FAAP; and Susan Carrier, RN, BSN, MBA, CPC, CCDS, CCDS-O

This session will detail the University of Toledo’s journey to develop an outpatient CDI program. The panel of speakers will discuss the steps required for implementation of a CDI program, make policy recommendations, and provide key performance indicators and other metrics for measuring program success.

Track 2: Inspiring Your Outpatient CDI Program to Expand Past Basic Reviews
Danielle Wirth, BSN, RN, CCDS, CCDS-O, and Melissa Jones, BSN, RN, CCDS-O

Learn how to expand an outpatient CDI program beyond primary care providers by revisiting priorities to allow for specialty reviews. The speakers will explain how to determine which specialties CDI should expand into, what queries or diagnoses to focus on, and the top areas of opportunity. Plus, they'll propose various options for educating providers and CDI staff.

9:10 a.m. – 10:10 a.m.

Track 1: Overcoming Barriers in Outpatient CDI
Colleen Gianatasio, MHS, CPC, CPCO, CRC, CDEO, CPC-P, CPMA, CPPM, CCS, CCDS-O, CHA, AHFI

There are many challenges to running a successful outpatient CDI program. Join this interactive session to discuss the barriers these programs face and learn how to overcome them. Specifically, the speaker will focus on provider engagement, electronic medical record issues, training a team, and managing vendor partners.

Track 2: Coding Intensity Differences: Why Does It Matter?
April D. L. Russell, MBA, CCDS-O, COC, CPC, CPC-P, CRC; Diane Pittman, CPC, CRC, CPMA, CCDS-O; and Jean Anne Jones, CPC, CCS-P, CCDS-O

The speakers will dive deeply into the disparities in coding intensity between fee-for-service and Medicare Advantage, as well as other risk adjustment coding methodologies. They will examine how both provider and payer organizations adhere to Medicare and ICD-10-CM coding standards to accurately assign codes to patient encounters. Additionally, the discussion will include case studies that highlight the differences in coding intensity between these systems.

10:10 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Networking Break

10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Track 1: Growing Your Outpatient CDI Team
Kenzi Brooks, CCDS-O, CCS, CPC-A, COC-A, CRC, and Tanna Lambert, RHIA, CCS, CCDS-O

Hear firsthand how WVU Medicine built their CDI team. Members of the team will discuss what skills and education they looked for in candidates in addition to other factors they considered. With a multidisciplinary team consisting of coders, a registered nurse, a licensed practical nurse, and a nurse practitioner, the speakers will also discuss how they trained employees with different backgrounds, as well as other challenges they faced while growing their outpatient CDI team.

Track 2: Catch That Claim: Ensuring Accurate Code and HCC Capture
Nichole Gaddis, RHIA, CCDS-O, COC, CRC, and Drew Walker, MA, CCDS-O, CPC, CRC

This session will explore the benefits of reviewing outpatient post-visit documentation and claims before they are submitted for reimbursement to validate accuracy, collect query data, and ensure documentation integrity. The speakers will discuss how they established work queues, processes, and rules for post-visit auditors/coders to review claims before submission. Plus, they’ll explain how they >trained staff to identify HCCs and documentation in need of a second-level review and to better understand the fundamentals of risk adjustment.

11:30 a.m. – 12:35 p.m.
Networking Lunch

12:35 p.m. – 1:35 p.m.

Track 1: Inspiring the Problem List to No Longer Be a Problem
Nicole Barber, BSN, RN, CCDS-O, CPC-A, and Melissa Jones, BSN, RN, CCDS-O

Navigating the problem list is a challenge that all organizations face. This presentation reviews the challenges associated with keeping the problem list up to date and explores how outpatient CDI staff members can alleviate this burden. Learn how policies and procedures can promote cohesive collaboration between providers and the CDI team.

Track 2: Awakening Excellence: CDI Rounding Model for Ambulatory Risk Adjustment
John Stoebe, JD, MHA

Learn how the Northwestern ambulatory CDI team uses a CDI rounding model to enhance documentation accuracy, improve provider education, foster collaboration, reduce audit risks, and ultimately lead to better patient outcomes. Using a popular fairytale as a metaphor, this presentation will illustrate the transformative effects of accurate clinical documentation and the importance of continuous provider engagement.

1:45 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.

Track 1: Sustained Impact of Targeted Diagnosis Focus in Ambulatory CDI
Jenny Peters, RN, BSN, ONC, and Kayte Wuelling, RN, BSN

Realize the impact that an ambulatory CDI team can have on a targeted diagnosis—morbid obesity—by identifying criteria for accurate capture. Through templates, provider education, and a status code policy, an ambulatory CDI team will explain how they were able to increase capture of this diagnosis. Plus, learn metrics that can be used to demonstrate this sustained impact at a system level.

Track 2: Facility-Based Outpatient CDI: E/M and More!
Kim Conner, BSN, CCDS, CCDS-O, and Adriane Martin, DO, ACPA-C, CCDS

This session outlines the development of a unique CDI program tailored for facility-based billing in outpatient settings, including emergency department, same-day surgery, and observation units. Unlike traditional CDI programs that focus on professional billing, this approach emphasizes the critical nuances of facility-based billing, ensuring comprehensive capture of clinical documentation to optimize reimbursement, enhance compliance, and improve patient care. Attendees will gain practical strategies to implement and sustain a successful CDI program in their outpatient facilities, driving both clinical excellence and operational efficiency.

— Agenda subject to change —

ACDIS Symposium: Outpatient CDI

Learning Outcomes

After attending this event, learners will be able to:

• Identify best practices for reviewing outpatient documentation
• Describe strategies for starting or improving an outpatient CDI program
• Demonstrate how to construct a complaint query in the outpatient setting

ACDIS Symposium: Outpatient CDI

Location

Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center
6000 West Osceola Parkway
Kissimmee, FL, 34746

• Room rate: $234.00 + $38.00 resort fee*/night
• Hotel cut-off date: Thursday, April 10, 2025
• Hotel website: https://www.marriott.com/en-us/hotels/mcogp-gaylord-palms-resort-and-convention-center/overview/
• Hotel reservations: Online at https://book.passkey.com/go/ACDIS2025 or call 407-586-2000 and reference the ACDIS Conference

* The prevailing daily resort fee, will cover several in-room amenities which include: 

• Resort Wide Internet Access: 
  • Enhanced in-room wireless Internet Access for up to six (6) devices 
  • Basic Wireless Internet Access in Public Areas and Convention Center on a Shared Network. 
• Two (2) bottled waters replenished daily in your guest room 
• Scheduled shuttle service to Walt Disney World® Theme Parks & Disney Springs® 
• Two (2) pieces of Dry-Cleaning daily 
• Admittance for two (2) people to Yoga Classes – Offered twice a day, seven (7) days a week 
• Complimentary 24-hour access to fitness center 

HCPro/ACDIS has no affiliation with any third-party companies or travel assistance providers. Rooms should be booked directly with the event hotel using the official information provided on the website and in the brochure. 

Pricing

• Regular price: $955.00
• 15% discount when purchased with main conference: $811.75
• Early bird: $855.00 — Early Bird discount ends March 3, 2025!
• 15% discount when purchased with main conference: $726.75
• ACDIS member discount: $855.00
• 15% discount when purchased with main conference: $726.75
• Early bird plus ACDIS member: $755.00 — Early Bird discount ends March 3, 2025!
• 15% discount when purchased with main conference: $641.75

Want to talk to a member of our dedicated team? Contact Us via email at hcevents@hcpro.com or 855-225-5341 ext. 4005.

Additional Savings & Fun

To purchase specially priced Walt Disney World® Meeting/Convention Theme Park tickets, CLICK HERE or call 407-566-5600 and provide group code G0847476.

Tickets are valid 7 days before, during, and 7 days after the meeting dates. To enter a park, both a park reservation and valid ticket on the same day are required. To make park reservations, you will need to sign-in to an existing Disney® Account or create a new one and link each ticket. Park reservations are subject to availability – please check the Park Availability Calendar. For details on making a park reservation, please visit Disney Park Pass Experience Updates.

Whether it’s your first visit or your 100th, we recommend reviewing the Walt Disney World® Resort Experience Updates.

ACDIS Symposium: Outpatient CDI

Continuing Education

ACCME
HCPro is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

HCPro designates this educational activity for a maximum of 11 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™.

Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

ACDIS
This program has been approved for 11 continuing education units towards fulfilling the requirements of the Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist certification, offered as a service of the Association of Clinical Documentation Integrity Specialists (ACDIS).

AHIMA
This program has been approved for 11 continuing education unit(s) (CEUs) for use in fulfilling the continuing education requirements of the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). Granting of Approved CEUs from AHIMA does not constitute endorsement of the program content or its program provider.

NAHRI
This program has been approved for 11 continuing education units towards fulfilling the requirements of the Certification in Healthcare Revenue Integrity (CHRI), offered as a service of the National Association of Healthcare Revenue Integrity (NAHRI).

Continue to check for updates and additional CEU information!