Gothenburg Health is proud to share that Gothenburg Health employee, Khelsey Rubenthaler recently received her Certified Coding Specialist (CCS) certificate.

 

“Many people likely don’t know what coding is,” said Rubenthaler. “Coding is when I read the doctor’s notes and apply the correct codes to the chart, ensuring it gets billed properly. If the documentation isn’t correct, then I cannot just put a code on something, I have to follow-up with the doctor to ensure the diagnosis before moving forward. It can be a highly involved process and is very important that all details are accurate and compliant. With my new certificate, I have the proper training to ensure my coding is accurate and appropriate to the highest specificity.”

 

Rubenthaler’s initial exposure to medical coding occurred while pursuing her Associates of Applied Science-Medical Emphasis degree at Mid Plains College. The coursework included Coding 1, a CPT course. At that time, Rubenthaler was also working as an acute CNA at Gothenburg Health and learned that the organization was considering bringing in onsite coding. Upon confirming this direction with Gothenburg Health’s HIM director, Lonna Dodds, Rubenthaler pursued additional coding experience by taking a second coding course, ICD-10. After completing necessary coursework, Rubenthaler received her Coding and Billing Certificate from Mid Plains College. She was hired by the HIM department at Gothenburg Health on the contingency she would get nationally certified with a Certified Coding Associate (CCA) certificate within six months which Khelsey completed in November of 2016.

 

Further motivated, Khelsey pursued additional accreditation and began working towards the next step, the CCS certificate. The CCS certificate is offered through the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). It demonstrates a practitioner’s tested data quality and integrity skills, as well as mastery of coding proficiency through this national coding credential. Required prerequisites that Rubenthaler had already accomplished included the CCA certificate plus at least one year of coding experience directly applying codes.

 

To prepare for the CCS exam, Khelsey collaborated with an offsite coder, receiving web-based training. “It was difficult to learn everything and all the guidelines,” said Rubenthaler. “For me to code on my own, I had to code 30 charts with 95% accuracy on CPT and ICD-10 coding.” After training and preparation, Rubenthaler successfully passed the 4-hour exam which contained 97 multiple choice questions and eight Medical Case Scenarios to receive her long-anticipated CCS certificate. “We are so proud of Khelsey and the hard work she put in to accomplish this great goal,” said Lonna Dodds. “Khelsey is a strong asset to our medical record department, and we couldn’t be happier about her accomplishment.”

 

“I currently get to code all laboratory, radiology, nurse, clinic, emergency, and surgery encounters. I am working towards observation stays, and my ultimate goal is to be able to code inpatient stays. This is why I like Gothenburg Health so much.  I get the opportunity to code all different areas whereas in a larger facility I might only get to focus on one area,” said Rubenthaler.

 

When asked why she decided to pursue this additional certification, Rubenthaler commented, “I love the challenge of figuring out what the outcomes are. It’s like a story problem, every day is a new challenge for me, and I enjoy that. I may be sitting at the computer all day, but I’m reading something different all the time. Also, I wanted to work in the same town I live in and have a job with regular hours. In the future, I’m hoping to become an auditor that goes to other facilities and audits their coding to ensure accuracy and compliance.” Rubenthaler also described the significant personal impact her job, and learning experience has had, “as a coder I've become more aware of my personal health risks, and well-being. I've taken this more seriously which inspired me to stop smoking after ten years.” Rubenthaler went on to say, “I cannot thank Gothenburg Health enough for allowing me this opportunity to become successful in my career and notice the challenges I’ve overcome to get where I am today.”

 

 

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ABOUT GOTHENBURG HEALTH

Gothenburg Health is a premier healthcare facility serving the community of Gothenburg and surrounding areas with state of the art facilities and highly skilled employees. We are a place of help and healing, and a place of education, prevention, and wellness. Since 1969, our passion for caring has come with a dedication to growing and investing in services and capabilities for your best care. We strive to be your continued Partners in healthier living. Gothenburg Health – Well Ahead.

 

PR Contact:

 

Becky Jobman

Chief Planning & Development Officer

Gothenburg Health

910 20th Street, Gothenburg, NE 69138

Direct: 308.537.4094

bjobman@gothenburghealth.org