Trusted Experts: Steady, Informed Leadership
As an integrated network of 18 hospitals, more than 40 outpatient health centers, and 200 physician offices is preparing to implement Epic, Impact Advisors supported the consolidation and standardization of the Charge Description Master and Charge Generation Tracker.
Key Challenges
The project team faced three primary hurdles:
1.) Compressed Timeframe
The first signficant challenge arose out of the gate when we learned we had to implement a new CDM/CGT maintenance tool within the project’s original four-month
timeframe and before any standardization could begin.
2.) Unexpected Complexity
The client’s initial estimate of 4 CDMs turned into 12 with 4 different fee schedules, plus a CGT with 2 professional service catalogs and 32 clinical specialties to consider.
3.) Turnover Among Client Team
A common trend among organizations today, turnover of key revenue cycle roles challenged new leaders with numerous responsibilities and projects to oversee.
“The project lead from Impact Advisors built trust with us almost immediately. That was critical to the success of this project, given we had some internal turnover here at the health system prior to the engagement.”
Our Approach
Guided by Impact Advisors’ Revenue Cycle experts, the project team:
• Established and executed a governance structure.
• Implemented a new CDM/CGT tool for Charge Master management, including transitioning from a static to dynamic environment.
• Optimized and standardized the CDM/CGT and related processes, procedures, and structures.
• Consolidated and prepared a single CDM/CGT for the health system’s upcoming enterprise Epic implementation.
• Built workflows at various stages of the project that could easily transition into the Epic EHR.
• Developed new processes (and communications to support them) for charge capture, charge entry and daily reconciliation, a new charge and billing error policy, as well as pricing considerations, and a yearly maintenance approach.
• Trained the client’s internal team on all new processes, expanded on gap training for workflow planning, and completed project knowledge transfer to ensure sustainability and continued improvement over the long-term.
Our Impact
The project team verified correct codes (and modifiers where appropriate) were assigned to each line item in the Charge Master, and departments received revised Charge Master files. Impacts of these changes included:
• Ensured departments can report all services provided
and confirm line items are compliant.
• Enabled the clinical team to focus on developing the
charge capture methodology, instead of spending time
updating the codes, changing the methodology, testing,
and restarting.
• Reduced the overall CDM/CGT maintenance effort.
• Enabled the EHR implementation team to focus on the
system build and not the data/content.
• Ensured the resultant Epic build was clean, loaded with
accurate codes and charges from the start, and able to
stand up to audits much more easily.
• Removed bad data from the system, providing Finance,
Revenue Cycle, and Clinical departments with clean
information from which to work
"What sets Impact Advisors apart from their competitors is their broad range of skills and their deep expertise. Their Epic knowledge in particular was invaluable for this project... they knew questions to ask that we wouldn't have even thought of. Sharing information is just second nature to Impact Advisors."