Podcast
Mission-Driven Medicine: Dr. Pablo Buitron de la Vega’s SDOH crusade, from capture to care
Listen to the episode here. Social Determinants of Health, or SDOH, are a buzzword these days—but often little more. We acknowledge their importance, but actual progress on capture (and subsequent patient support) has been slow. To be fair real barriers including technological limitations and limited financial incentives stand in the way. But my current…
Read MoreCracking the Code: Victoria Vo’s Path to Entrepreneur, Social Media Stardom
Listen to the episode here. I’ve been in the coding and CDI worlds since 2004, and in that time watched the rise of Facebook, YouTube and other social media. And as early 2011 or so I began to wonder, will anyone pair these two together? When will see our first social media creator in…
Read MoreOne More Round: Sheila Duhon’s Unexpected Return to CDI Leadership
Listen to the episode here. Even if you’ve never seen The Godfather, you’ve probably heard its iconic line: “Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!” That certainly applies to Sheila Duhon, National Director of Clinical Documentation Integrity for Steward Health Care. A year ago Sheila was headed toward semi-retirement,…
Read MoreCodes, Coverage & Capitol Hill: Fighting for CAR-T and other cell and gene therapies with Jugna Shah
Listen to the episode here. We all get excited—and rightfully so—at the rapid advance of clinical medicine. New treatments, therapies, and drugs save lives. But when you work in the revenue cycle, you know that payment mechanisms can significantly lag new technologies. When codes don’t exist, or reimbursement is woefully inadequate, you have…
Read MoreQui Tam Confidential: An Insider’s Look at Whistleblowing with Mary Inman
Listen to the episode here. We hear about lawsuits and false claims acts regularly, but did you know that many of these begin with someone working from inside the organization? Calling out bad behavior or noncompliance, sometimes again and again without being heard—before deciding to call on a third party for help? You…
Read MoreLegal Limits: What Medicare Advantage must cover (and how it often doesn’t) with Richelle Marting
Listen to the episode here. Medicare Advantage. It’s everywhere you turn. From upcoding to denials, the huge and growing program—which now covers more lives than traditional Medicare, but is increasingly the target of local and federal scrutiny and a stream of endless OIG audit reports—seems to be in the news daily. In a…
Read MoreTop 5 lessons learned in a year of Off the Record
Listen to the complete episode here. Here we are, at the end of the year. And the end of another season of Off the Record. For reasons that will soon become clear, I wanted to wrap up 2024 by pushing myself out of my comfort zone. Because this episode is about personal growth.…
Read MoreAI-powered coding and CDI solutions augment human beings, but do not (and cannot) replace them
By Brian Murphy Machines are a human augmenter—not a human replacement. I love the way my recent Off the Record podcast guest Rhoda Chism frames technology in her CDI practice. As an amplifier, extending her reach and allowing her to touch more patients, but not a substitute for her unique skillset. Two…
Read MoreFall reflections: Nicole Fox on career evolution, saboteurs, and fulfillment
Listen to the episode here. Last month I wrote a post about the four stages of a career, using the analogy of seasons. I was inspired by the wonderful fall weather I was experiencing while on a walk here in New England, but also by changes I have been experiencing in my life and…
Read MoreUsing POA as the Guiding Star for CDI: Insights from Yale New Haven Health
Between MS-DRGs, HCCs, U.S. News and World Report rankings, Leapfrog, readmissions, mortalities, Vizient or Premier performance, and on and on, how does a CDI program know where to focus its record reviews? The choices seem bewildering. My current guest on Off the Record Leif Laframboise has settled on present on admission (POA) as the…
Read More