Split in patient access job brings new training focus
Regulatory issues get more attention
When officials at Centegra Health System in McHenry, IL, decided to distribute the patient access workload, they created a new position — system administrator — that former access manager Liz Kehrer, CHAM, says is tailor-made for her.
While the new patient access manager oversees daily operations, Kehrer says, she is now able to explore the parts of the job she for which she never had time before.
As system administrator for patient access, she provides technical support for the department, including overseeing a recent computer upgrade, and keeps up with and disseminates information on regulatory changes, Kehrer adds. This includes keeping her staff updated on developments regarding the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), the Medicare Secondary Payer rule, the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), advance beneficiary notices, and advance medical directives, among other regulations.
Membership in professional orgs help
To keep abreast of the regulatory field, Kehrer says, she keeps memberships in professional organizations such as the National Association of Healthcare Access Management in Washington, DC, and the American Association of Healthcare Administrative Management in Fairfax, VA. She also monitors listservs such as those provided by Phoenix Health Systems in Montgomery Village, MD.
Kehrer belongs to two Centegra teams addressing HIPAA concerns — one on the transaction code set and another on the legislation’s privacy rule.
In addition, Kehrer developed and oversees the new patient access-training program, doing the "training of the trainer."
Having a full-time trainer — who works under Kehrer’s direction — has given consistency to the process, she says. Before, "training was somewhat hit or miss," Kehrer notes. "I had put together a training manual and a series of videotapes. I would get [employees] started, playing the tapes and reading a series of quizzes on their own."
Kehrer, the access employee who now is the full-time trainer, or another registrar formerly did the hands-on computer training, she adds. Because some registrars used shortcuts or left out certain pieces of the process, Kehrer says, the training was inconsistent.
"The trainees would get frustrated," she adds, "and [the material] is hard to learn to begin with."
Now Centegra has a formal two-week training period for all registrars, conducted by the new trainer, Kehrer says. The curriculum includes instruction in Medicare, EMTALA, and Medicare Secondary Payer rules, she notes, as well as in the provisions of HIPAA.
The trainer also covers such topics as confidentiality, departmental policies and procedures, advance directives, advance beneficiary notices, and customer service, among others, Kehrer adds.
In the second week, employees receive hands-on training on the McKesson-HBOC Star system, which is done on a "fake" computer environment created specifically for testing and training, she notes. The information systems department uses a second copy of Centegra’s computer system to receive vendor updates, Kehrer explains. These changes or "patches," which come on a biweekly basis, are then transferred to the testing and training system.
Before, Kehrer notes, she was always frustrated, struggling to perform all the tasks involved in managing a large access services department with little support. "Now I have time to do the part of the job I enjoyed the most and I love it."
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