Associate Director of Inpatient Coding

Discover Vanderbilt University Medical Center:  Located in Nashville, Tennessee, and operating at a global crossroads of teaching, discovery, and patient care, VUMC is a community of individuals who come to work each day with the simple aim of changing the world. It is a place where your expertise will be valued, your knowledge expanded, and your abilities challenged. Vanderbilt Health is committed to an environment where everyone has the chance to thrive and where your uniqueness is sought and celebrated. It is a place where employees know they are part of something that is bigger than themselves, take exceptional pride in their work and never settle for what was good enough yesterday. Vanderbilt’s mission is to advance health and wellness through preeminent programs in patient care, education, and research.

Organization:

HIM - Coding

Job Summary:

JOB SUMMARY
The Associate Director is responsible for managing multiple specialties within the coding department, covering both Professional and Outpatient facility coding. The role involves analyzing and evaluating departmental policies and procedures, developing program goals and objectives, and maintaining quality performance through monitoring and feedback to multiple departments. The Associate Director also analyzes data to identify patterns of denials/errors, provides guidance to resolve coding issues, and effectively manages and resolves problems/issues within established time frames. Additionally, the role includes coordinating and monitoring the work activity of a unit or department, preparing annual operating budgets, and recommending, evaluating, and interpreting personnel actions and policies.

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KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Supervise multiple specialties in inpatient facility coding with full responsibility for planning, coordinating, and controlling work procedures; analyze and evaluate departmental programs, providing guidance to coding managers.
• Define qualifications and performance expectations for all staff positions, assure a qualified and competent staff through regular assessment and feedback; recommend personnel actions, counsel employees, and ensure appropriate compensation.
• Develop goals and objectives for the department based on interpretation of institutional policy and goals; establish department work goals and objectives aligned with organizational plans and forecasts.
• Coordinate and integrate processes with other departments for effective operations, plan to achieve goals or establish priorities, and initiate changes in policies, procedures, and methods.
• Prepare an annual operating budget for a department; define and achieve financial targets in support of institutional goals; analyze budget variance to determine causes and develop cost-reduction projects.
• Create and exceed service standards for the department; utilize customer satisfaction, best practices, and market information to improve service and satisfaction; monitor performance against service standards and use feedback to improve service and satisfaction.
• Communicate within and across departments to maximize effectiveness, efficiency, and information sharing.
• Identify, establish, and evaluate quality assurance standards, programs, and procedures; ensure these standards are met within the area of responsibility to assure clinical enterprise accreditation/licensure.

TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES

• Leadership (Intermediate): Formulates a vision while motivating & guiding employees promoting engagement. Leaders state precise goals, ensures the commitment of individuals to those goals, defines the methods of measurement, and provides the incentive to accomplish measurable outcomes.
• Quality Management (Intermediate): Developing a systematic process of checking to see whether a process or service is meeting specific requirements.
• Business Results (Intermediate): Ability to achieve business results while focusing on quality, customer satisfaction, and stewardship.
• People Management (Advanced): Interacting, communicating, building relationships and developing employees.
• Operations Planning (Intermediate): Anticipates resource needs to meet objectives and implements appropriate processes.
• Compliance (Advanced): Understanding the rules, regulations, sanctions and other statutory requirements, guidelines and instructions relating to governing bodies and organizations, both internally and externally.
• Medical Coding (Expert): The transformation of healthcare diagnosis, procedures, medical services, and equipment into universal medical alphanumeric codes

Our professional administrative functions include critical supporting roles in information technology and informatics, finance, administration, legal and community affairs, human resources, communications and marketing, development, facilities, and many more.

At our growing health system, we support each other and encourage excellence among all who are part of our workforce. High-achieving employees stay at Vanderbilt Health for professional growth, appreciation of benefits, and a sense of community and purpose.

Core Accountabilities:

* Organizational Impact: Establishes key tactical and operational plans of a sub-function or multiple departments that has longer-term effect on results of the sub-function. * Problem Solving/ Complexity of work: Integrate knowledge and in-depth analysis from several areas to resolve complex problems that are both technical and operational. * Breadth of Knowledge: Applies comprehensive knowledge of professional/technical area and broad management knowledge of other professional areas to carry out objectives. * Team Interaction: Leads multiple departments with a function.

Core Capabilities :

Supporting Colleagues: - Develops Self and Others: Acts upon constructive feedback from all levels of the organization and initiates strategies to develop talent in others. - Builds and Maintains Relationships: Leverages relationships and insight to forecast potential future needs and influence delivery of work to exceed expectations. - Communicates Effectively: Anticipates difference audience concerns, styles and finds mutually beneficial solutions across conflicting and sensitive issues. Delivering Excellent Services: - Serves Others with Compassion: Demonstrates in-depth knowledge of broad-based issues and considers the interests of others to improve satisfaction of services. - Solves Complex Problems: Critically evaluates complex information and identifies trends/risks to make recommendations to improve processes across areas. - Offers Meaningful Advice and Support: Provides ongoing feedback and development discussions to motivate and support team members to maximize performance.Ensuring High Quality: - Performs Excellent Work: Anticipates problems or obstacles which may interfere with quality standards and develops plants to ensure area's quality standards are met. - Ensures Continuous Improvement: Routinely draws upon valuable learning from others, past experiences, and new information to determine key opportunities. - Fulfills Safety and Regulatory Requirements: Develops appropriate corrective actions for unsafe environments in order to ensure operational and safety compliance. Managing Resources Effectively: - Demonstrates Accountability: Identifies potential obstacles to goal achievement and develops solutions to address those obstacles. - Stewards Organizational Resources: Creates the appropriate systems and processes to effectively manage resources. - Makes Data Driven Decisions: Applies in-depth knowledge of data to recommend and implement new approaches to improve decision making capabilities. Fostering Innovation: - Generates New Ideas: Identifies opportunities and leads development of new initiatives that create value across areas. - Applies Technology: Creates the energy and drive for self/others to identify and leverage technology in new, innovative ways to drive greater efficiencies. - Adapts to Change: Anticipates the change process and clearly communicates impact on others/own team(s), assisting them in embracing the change.

Position Qualifications:

Responsibilities:

Certifications:

Certified Professional Coder - Outpatient - American Academy of Professional Coders

Work Experience:

Relevant Work Experience

Experience Level:

5 years

Education:

Bachelor's

This role offers the opportunity to make a meaningful impact within Vanderbilt Health, supported by a comprehensive benefits package which may include health, disability, retirement and/or wellness offerings to enhance your well-being and professional growth.

Vanderbilt Health is committed to fostering an environment where everyone has the chance to thrive and is committed to the principles of equal opportunity.  EOE/Vets/Disabled.