General Surgery Coding Alert

Empower your team by connecting with them.

Remote work arrangements became the norm during the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE), and many healthcare organizations continue to employ work-from-home staff. Several years on, some remote work teams are excelling, while others are experiencing growing pains.

Experts recently discussed their work from home thoughts during AAPC’s REVCON 2024 general session, “Remote Work: Employer and Employee.” Read on to learn what they had to say.

Tip 1: Understand What Is Considered Work From Home

Whether you’re an employee starting a remote work arrangement or a healthcare professional allowing your staff to work remotely, it’s important to know where home is in the phrase “work from home.” Working from home means doing your job from where you live — your home address.

But working from home isn’t just being in your living space while performing your daily duties. With healthcare, you need to stay compliant with HIPAA regulations. This means you should have a designated space where you can safely and securely access patient information without family members or friends viewing your screens. At the same time, you should make sure that everyone in your home knows when you’re working to avoid distracting you during your shift hours.

“If I’m sitting in this chair, I’m working. If I’m signed into this computer, I’m working. It’s not time to do housework or take care of your children. It’s time to sit down and work,” said Jennifer Lavoie, RN, CPC, director of revenue integrity, Rush University Medical Center in Chicago.

A couple of great, yet simple, ways to get this message across are to hang up a sign that says you’re working; or, if your space has a door, simply close the door.

Tip 2: Establish Employment Expectations

Putting objectives in place for your employees is helpful toward having a successful remote work arrangement. Regardless of whether you’re seeking specific working hours or productivity goals, providing parameters for your employees lets them know what to prepare for when working from home.

“Before an employee comes on remotely, they’re giving us a schedule agreement. We go through it with them on their first day, we do a welcome call, and we go through the expectations. Having those expectations up front will be the biggest help,” said Jessica Miller-Dobbs CPC, CPC-P, CGIC, director of professional coding at Datavant in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

As an employee or an employer, establish a schedule and adhere to that routine. If you’re a manager who prefers their staff members to be available and working during the traditional 9-to-5 schedule, then you should let them know this. By putting the goals in place from the start, you’ll help your employees stay focused and on track.

Some agencies opt for monitoring software to track how long each charge claim takes to process. Reports produced each day let managers know where employees are exceeding expectations or having trouble reaching their goals. “If we see a charge that seems to take longer than usual, we look into it. Why is this a one-off? Was it a computer issue?” Miller-Dobbs added.

Tip 3: Get to Know Your Team

Remote employees don’t have other staff members stopping by their desk on the way to the coffee maker, which means team members and managers may not know one another as closely as in-office staff do. By getting to know your remote team well, you’ll better understand their circumstances and situation. According to Terri Brame Joy, MBA, CPC, COC, CGSC, CPC-I, product manager at MRO in Philadelphia, “Having a remote workforce means creating culture in a more purposeful way than we did in the office. Making time for social interaction and team building events is as important as staff updates and productivity reports.”

Here are some ways to establish a connection with your remote team:

• Regular team meetings (daily, weekly, monthly)
• One-on-one meetings between manager and employee

Monthly virtual social hours

Having a human connection over a virtual one allows you to see that employee as more than just a head in a box on a computer screen. This connection will also help you gauge any issues that arise in the employee’s productivity. They’ll feel comfortable coming to you to express issues they’re having with a claim, explain technical issues they’re having, and feel more empowered to be responsible for their workflow.

“You have to speak up and let people know how we can best equip you to be successful in a remote environment,” said Kimberly Jolivette Williams, CPC, CPB, CPMA, CPC-I, CANPC, CCC, CEMC, compliance, coding, and billing analyst at Texas Health Physicians Group in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas. “If you don’t say anything, I’m good, but I cannot read your mind. If you have the right person, they’ll say I’m not afraid, I’m going to ask, and I’m going to speak up because I’m not sure what I’m doing in this situation,” Jolivette Williams explained.

Michael Shaughnessy, BA, CPC, Development Editor