Supervisor, Coding in Coupeville, Washington at Whidbey General Hospital

JOB SUMMARY

The ideal candidate is a collaborative leader with strong E/M and CPT coding expertise, a proven track record of staff management, and a commitment to coding quality, compliance, and operational excellence across clinic and hospital operations.

The Coding Supervisor is responsible for the daily oversight and coordination of coding operations. This role supervises Coding staff while ensuring accurate, timely, and compliant coding, reimbursement optimization, and revenue cycle support.

The Coding Supervisor serves as a subject matter expert in coding compliance, revenue integrity, and regulatory requirements. This position leads departmental coding workflow optimization, quality assurance activities, staff development, coding audits, denial prevention initiatives, and MEDITECH Expanse system functionality. The Supervisor collaborates closely with physicians, Clinical Documentation Integrity (CDI), Revenue Cycle, Patient Financial Services (PFS), Information Technology (IT), Compliance, and operational leaders to ensure organizational goals are achieved.

PRINCIPLE FUNCTIONS include the following, other duties may be assigned:

Leadership & Staff Management

• Supervises the daily operations of Coding personnel.
• Participates in recruitment, interviewing, hiring, onboarding, training, and retention of coding department staff.
• Develops employee work schedules and manages staffing assignments to meet operational and financial goals.
• Participates in performance evaluations, productivity reviews, coaching sessions, and corrective action as needed.
• Promotes employee engagement, accountability, teamwork, and professional development.
• Cross-trains staff and ensures adequate coding coverage.
• Acts as department leader in the absence of the Manager, Director or designated leader.
• Approve staff timecards and ensure direct report compliance with Whidbey Health work schedule and attendance policies.
• Review, update, and approve Health Information Services coding policies and procedures, ensuring effective education, implementation, and compliance monitoring.

Coding Operations & Revenue Integrity

• Supervises all coding activities for inpatient, outpatient, observation, emergency, surgery, and professional services as applicable.
• Ensures accurate assignment of ICD-10-CM, ICD-10-PCS, CPT, and HCPCS codes in accordance with Official Coding Guidelines and payer requirements.
• Serves as a subject matter expert for complex coding cases, surgical coding, regulatory changes, and reimbursement methodologies.
• Monitors coding productivity, quality, timeliness, and compliance standards.
• Reviews coding-related escalations and provides guidance to coding staff.
• Assists with reducing discharged-not-final-coded (DNFC) accounts.
• Supports revenue cycle performance through reimbursement optimization and coding accuracy initiatives.
• Coordinate with Chargemaster and operational departments to maintain accurate CPT code assignment tools and obtain new charge codes as needed for HIM charge functions.
• Collaborate with departments to resolve documentation and charge issues that delay final coding, ensuring timely account completion.
• Maintain and monitor departmental issue logs and facilitate recurring meetings with high-volume departments to address coding and charge reconciliation holds.
• Collaborates with CDI specialists, providers, and clinical leadership to improve clinical documentation quality and accuracy.
• Develops and monitors physician query processes to support complete and compliant documentation practices.
• Identifies documentation trends and develops education plans to improve coding specificity and reimbursement outcomes.
• Presents findings and recommendations to providers and leadership teams.
• Promotes documentation practices that support quality metrics, risk adjustment, severity capture, and regulatory compliance.

Audit, Compliance & Quality Management

• Coordinates routine coding, documentation, and HIM operational audits to ensure quality and compliance.
• Evaluates coding accuracy, documentation integrity, workflow effectiveness, and process adherence.
• Develops corrective action plans and educational programs based on audit findings.
• Monitors compliance with CMS, OIG, state, federal, and payer-specific regulations.
• Coordinates internal and external audit requests and facilitates responses.
• Maintains coding departmental readiness for accreditation and regulatory surveys.

Denial Prevention & Revenue Cycle Collaboration

• Analyzes coding and documentation-related denials and identifies root causes.
• Partners with PFS, Revenue Cycle, CDI, and providers to improve clean claim rates and reimbursement outcomes.
• Supports appeals and denial resolution efforts.
• Develops action plans to mitigate recurring denial patterns.
• Tracks denial trends and key revenue cycle metrics to improve overall financial performance.

MEDITECH & Technology Management

• Serves as departmental lead and liaison for MEDITECH Expanse Abstracting and coding-related applications.
• Coordinates annual ICD-10, CPT, HCPCS, and regulatory system updates.
• Participates in software testing, upgrades, workflow design, and process improvement initiatives.
• Collaborate with IT and vendors to resolve functionality issues and optimize workflows.
• Utilizes reporting tools and analytics to monitor coding department performance and operational outcomes.

Education & Professional Development

• Develops and delivers education for coders, providers, CDI, and Revenue Cycle personnel.
• Communicates coding updates, regulatory changes, payer requirements, and documentation expectations.
• Facilitates ongoing professional development and continuing education opportunities.
• Promotes a culture of continuous improvement, learning, and excellence.

Performance Metrics

Monitors and manages coding departmental performance indicators including:

• Coding Accuracy
• Coding Productivity
• DNFC
• Denial Rates
• Query Response Rates
• Audit Outcomes
• Staff Productivity and Quality Benchmarks

Uses data analytics and reporting tools to drive continuous improvement and accountability.

JOB KNOWLEDGE & QUALIFICATIONS

Education

• Highest level of education completed, minimum high school diploma or equivalent required.
• Associate or bachelor’s degree in health information management, Health Administration, Business Administration, or related field preferred.

Training and Experience

• Minimum five (5) years’ coding experience in acute and professional clinic settings required.
• Minimum two (2) years of leadership, supervisory, or management experience preferred.
• Experience with coding audits, denial management, and regulatory compliance required.
• Experience with MEDITECH Expanse strongly preferred.

Certificates, Licenses, Registrations

One of the following certifications is required:

• RHIA (Registered Health Information Administrator)
• RHIT (Registered Health Information Technician)
• CCS (Certified Coding Specialist)
• CPC (Certified Professional Coder)

Multiple certifications preferred.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES

• Advanced knowledge of ICD-10-CM, ICD-10-PCS, CPT, and HCPCS coding systems.
• Strong understanding of CMS, OIG, Joint Commission, HIPAA, and payer regulations.
• Knowledge of clinical documentation improvement methodologies.
• Proficiency with MEDITECH Expanse.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to lead teams, foster collaboration, and manage change effectively.
• Strong customer service orientation and commitment to operational excellence.

WORK ENVIRONMENT & PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

• Primarily sedentary work performed in an office and healthcare environment.
• Frequent computer use, keyboarding, and visual concentration.
• Regular communication with employees, providers, patients, and external stakeholders.
• Ability to sit for prolonged periods and perform repetitive hand movements.
• Occasional lifting of up to 10 pounds.

Health & Well-Being You Can Count On

We offer a thoughtful, comprehensive benefits package designed to support you and your family at every stage of life:

• Medical Coverage – HDHP w/HSA / PPO
• Prescription Drug Coverage
• Dental Options – PPO / Managed-Care Plan
• Vision Benefits – VSP
• Life & AD&D Insurance – Employer paid coverage
• Long-Term Disability Coverage – Employer paid income Protection
• Health Savings Account (HSA) – If enrolled in HDHP
• Healthcare Flexible Spending Account (FSA) – Dependent & Healthcare
• Employee & Provider Assistance Programs – Free, confidential support
• Voluntary Life & AD&D Insurance – Additional employee paid buy up option
• Voluntary Long-Term Disability Coverage – Additional employee paid buy up option