Clinical Coding Auditor

Job overview

We currently have an exciting opportunity for a highly skilled  Clinical Coding Auditor to join our audit and training team on a full-time permanent basis. This is a hybrid role consisting of working from home and working on site.

To work closely with the Clinical Coding Audit and Training Team and other Clinical Coding Specialists to support the improvement in clinical documentation and accurate clinically coded data. To advise on data recording practises to ensure clinical coding accurately reflects the Patient care delivered. Undertake internal clinical coding validation audits highlighting training and data quality issues to the Clinical Coding Manager.

Suitable candidates will hold the Approved Clinical Coding Auditor Qualification and will have a hardworking and flexible attitude towards professional tasks at hand.

Interview date: TBC

Main duties of the job

Act as a support to the Assistant manager to facilitate contact with designated directorate or specialties and communicate complex coding issues and National coding standards to medical and non-medical staff to ensure accuracy and consistency of information.

To abstract, analyse, translate and data enter complex medical care records into diagnostic and procedural codes in an accurate and timely manner adhering to the Trusts monthly deadlines.

Act as a mentor and assist in the education of less experienced coders. Ensure accuracy and completeness of the clinical coding to national clinical coding requirements. To work with clinicians on a regular basis to validate clinically coded data.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

KEY DUTIES

• To operate on own initiative referring more complex cases to the Clinical Coding Assistant Manager for advice. To act in the capacity of coding expert and provides advice to junior team members on coding queries ensuring adherence to national clinical guidelines.
• Undertake staff audits and ad hoc specialty audits.
• Assign codes from the International Classification of Diseases (ICD10) and the Office of Populations and Censuses and Surveys (OPCS4)
• Participate in preparing audit reports for staff audits undertaken.
• Participate in Departmental meetings and present the results of relevant reviews.
• Demonstrate good presentation skills to colleagues, the multi-disciplinary team and Clinicians.
• Coordinate engagement between Coders, Clinicians and Divisional Managers.
• Responsible for planning own workload to ensure that the objectives of the whole team are achieved.
• Maintain a professional standard of behaviour with all Trust staff.
• Take responsibility for keeping up to date with current issues and developments within the coding department.
• Work with the Divisional Managers, Associate Managers and Clinicians to improve and sustain accurate clinical data recording to support clinical coding to National Standards.
• Raise clinical coding issues with the Coding Manager.
• Undertake clinical coding reviews as required and agreed.
• Identify key areas impacting on HRG assignment and tariff making recommendations to the Clinical Coding Assistant Manager accordingly.
• Work with the Audit and training team to identify key areas for clinical coding review.
• Plan meetings with Senior Clinicians as and when necessary to undertake review of clinical information where queries have been raised.
• To validate complex clinical data and procedures with Clinicians in order to assure depth of coding for accurate payment.
• Analyse external audit reports and recommend to the Coding Manager and Divisions any corrective measures that need to be put in place to improve data quality and clinical coding outcomes.
• Support the Auditors & Clinical Coding Assistant Manager in obtaining clarification on new interventional procedures and clinical practice within the divisional specialties to ensure correct understanding for code assignment and support cascading this information.
• To liaise with clinicians and their support staff concerning interpretation of case notes documentation affecting coding.
• To prioritise Junior Clinical Coders workload and reallocate work to cover sickness or leave at short notice.
• To work with the Clinical Coding Manager to ensure all coding timescales are met and ensure that Junior Clinical Coders meet their targets.

CLINICAL & PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

• To maintain own high standards of clinical coding accuracy and productivity.
• To participate in ongoing clinical coding training to meet national standards and Trust Requirements.
• Ensure own coding skills are kept up to date.
• Participate in creating an environment conducive to the acquisition of further   knowledge and skills.
• To take every reasonable opportunity to maintain and improve your professional knowledge and competence.
• To take responsibility for developing and pursuing his/her own professional development skills in accordance with an agreed PDP.

ADMINISTRATIVE RESPONSIBILITIES

• To validate the hospital activity details on the PAS system against the information in the case notes. To report any details found to be incorrect to the Data Quality Team and to highlight areas of concern with information in the case notes.