.jpg)
Coding
HIM workers are conditioned to “do more with less,” as they are equipped with inefficient technology to carry out their overwhelming workload in this era of new digital health. Learn how capacity issues can be resolved with widespread implementation of AI-assisted medical coding and auditing technology, which has the ability to increase efficiency and future-proof HIM teams.
More with less — this concept has been the burdensome reality for Canadian HIM workers over the last few decades, especially as digitization has increased. Capacity issues serve as a looming threat over HIM departments, with a plethora of factors fuelling this root concern: coder and auditor shortages, the overwhelming workloads, the tasks themselves consisting of time-consuming processes, and the inefficiency that comes with using outdated technology or manual approaches. These breaches to worker productivity result in further consequences (both to the quality of data and working conditions) embodied in worker burnout, inefficient coding and auditing, delays, limitations in data, and more. Because of this, it is important to support our HIM workers by strengthening their team capacities and providing assistance for their strenuous tasks. The best way of doing this? Technological upgrades.
Technology can have a significant impact on the healthcare industry, whether it be positive or negative. Currently, HIM workers are held back due to only being equipped either with outdated, legacy CAC technology, or the traditional route of simply having to process everything manually. We live in the digital health era, so Canadian hospitals must continue evolving with the technology by using next-generation HIM technology: AI-assisted medical coding and auditing software. AI-powered technology is able to support HIM workers and their capacity by alleviating their workload in ways that past technology has been unable to maintain or even reach. AI plays its role as the solution to capacity issues, just as HIM plays its role in this new era of digital health.
The emergence of COVID-19 led to a Canada that is more conscious of its health system and holds greater interest in measuring health outcomes. Many hospitals across Canada are adopting, or have recently adopted, EMRs and now, forms of CAC technology. Because of this adoption, there is an increased reliance on HIM to accurately code in light of such a large transition. This is a great step from manual processes, and a step towards innovation. However, as it always is in an era of technology, there are improvements and upgrades that are able to make people’s lives easier. The latest and most modern form of HIM technology, AI-assisted medical coding and auditing, is this upgrade.
HIM professionals are seeing a rise in new challenges, including the sheer increase of both the volume of data and the data’s complexity. With so much more to code and audit, the workload for HIM employees has gotten heavier and more time-consuming, especially when coupled with industry-wide staffing shortages. Lastly, analytics demands are growing, which means the accuracy of coded data is now paramount.
AI has the power to better equip HIM workers with its several functions and resources to ease these rising challenges. With its uncontested technological range and efficiency, AI-assisted medical coding and auditing is the present and future of HIM.
The past decade has seen the HIM industry littered with inefficiencies and inaccuracies due to the use of outdated, manual technology in its medical coding and auditing processes. HIM employees are overwhelmed with excessive workloads that can be relieved with the assistance of reliable technology in order to streamline their workflow, which then allows these workers to focus on higher-priority tasks. However, in many cases, department productivity is prevented from achieving its full potential because HIM employees are being limited to utilizing error-prone, rule-based technology that is unable to adapt to workers’ needs.
CAC relies on a version of NLP that works with rules created by developers to “understand” the content of a document. Unfortunately, scaling this process was almost impossible due to the near-infinite number of rules required to make it generalized for every scenario in the clinical setting. The algorithm provides limited benefits to the users, leaving them frustrated with a system that did not evolve and grow.
Now, in stark contrast to the rule-based technology of old, AI uses a more sophisticated version of NLP that detects patterns in the text and relates them to specific codes. This updated HIM technology possesses the ability to take large amounts of patient charts and their corresponding codes as training inputs, analyze them, and detect patterns. When a new uncoded-chart is given to trained software, it pattern-matches and assigns the corresponding code to it. In addition, it highlights evidence in the clinical notes to help users understand why the system suggests a particular code.
Efficiency is a pillar of AI-assisted medical coding and auditing; it is nothing if not that. This next-generation of HIM technology is constantly improving with the worker inputs and actions, making it more user-friendly and efficient than its rule-based predecessor. Advancements such as rapidly improving automatic code suggestions, optimized workflows, automated coding, and real-time auditing help coders to improve speed and accuracy incomparable to pre-existing technology. AI can accomplish the tedious tasks for coders and auditors in order to allow them the opportunity to prioritize more significant tasks. Its unique ability to learn and adapt to each user’s needs gives AI the edge to be both the present and future of HIM technology, and thus the solution to HIM capacity issues. It is the best technology capable of assisting HIM workers with their workloads.
The purpose of technology in any profession is to aid workers so that they can fulfill their responsibilities more efficiently. In the context of the medical world, it is especially important for employees to be equipped with technology able to keep up with the fast, demanding pace that the workers are required to maintain. This environment and their responsibilities can result in consequences such as burnout and productivity decline, which is why AI should be given the role of aiding medical coders and auditors.
“More with less” is the mindset of the past.
It is time to give HIM workers the opportunity to do “more with more.”
Want to get actionable healthcare data, medical coding, and auditing content straight to your inbox once a month? Sign up below to be the first to know about new posts, webinars, content, and events that will help you improve data quality and boost HIM team efficiency.
Semantic Health helps hospitals and health systems unlock the true value of their unstructured clinical data. Our intelligent medical coding and auditing platform uses artificial intelligence and deep learning to streamline medical coding & auditing concurrent with patient admission, improve documentation quality, optimize reimbursements, and enable real-time access to coded data for secondary analysis.
.png)
