CRAHDI Updates

Dear Members + Visitors:

I would like to take this opportunity to tell you how very blessed I am to have served as your Delegate for the past two years. We have experienced great growth in the past year. I was saddened to attend the very last House of Delegates this past August in Phoenix, Arizona, but am greatly looking forward to our newly elected National Leadership Board [NLB].

Historically, I was one of the members who hosted the very first ACE, only then we called it an AAMT Conference, in Fresno, California. Today, I love living in South Carolina, and was greatly appreciative to attend this last ACE. We have a new CEO, Nancy Brighindi, PhD, CAE. She comes to us with a wealth of experience, and was very complimentary of all we had accomplished as a healthcare organization. I have listed the names and emails of the NLB below.

The AHDI National Leadership Board is elected by voting members and represents the association membership at large. The NLB is responsible for setting the strategic direction for the association through policy development and vision sharing and overseeing the fiscal management of the association in coordination with the Chief Executive Officer and staff. We now belong to District 6, and our District Director is Ann Donnelly, CMT, AHDI-F. She can be contacted at Adonne9565@aol.com for any questions concerning the new governance.

As you may already be aware, last House of Delegates, I was elected to serve as the AHDI Strategics Initiative Chair. On this page is the result of our committee's work, which is inclusive of the four Strategic Initiatives

. They are for CREDENTIALING, EDUCATION, MEMBERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, and ADVOCACY + ALLIANCE OUTREACH. These four strategies of focus will be the collateral focus of our organization as we move forward. The Blue Prints and Toolkits will serve as guidelines for all components in AHDI.

In addition to the Blue Prints & Toolkits being listed below, the link for the AHDI website is http://www.ahdionline.org/GetConnected/Leadership/ComponentManagementCenter/LeadershipToolbox/tabid/304/Default.aspx .

Now that my term as delegate comes to an end, if I can be helpful in any way to you on your journey in Healthcare Documentation, please feel free to contact me.

Loretta Foulkrod

lfoulkrod0028@gmail.com

864.230.1356

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Blue Print for Component Engagement

Professional Credentialing

AHDI Goal: Transition our healthcare documentation workforce to a fully credentialed status

Rationale: Professional credentials will send a clear message to providers, end-users, and others in healthcare delivery that this sector is represented by an academically prepared, skilled workforce with an accountable scope of practice and intrinsic contributory value to health data capture and EHR adoption.

Component Engagement Objective

The goal of this blue print is to provide components with a comprehensive, but manageable, strategy for executing the association’s goals for transitioning our workforce to a credentialed status. This would involve components serving as resource organizations that actively facilitate credentialing at the local level through three key engagement touch points:

Reaching: A component actively engaged in promoting professional credentialing will develop strategies for reaching the following stakeholder groups:

 Noncredentialed MTs and students: Developing innovative ways of reaching and recruiting noncredentialed MTs through special offerings and unique campaigns.

 Local MT employers: Establishing dialogue with local employers via one-on-one meetings, presentations at employee staff meetings, etc., to discuss the business case for credentialed employees.

 Local MT schools: Developing a liaison/advisory relationship with area MT schools to promote the RMT as a final exam and/or preparatory requirement for students seeking entry to practice.

Preparing: A component actively engaged in promoting professional credentialing will serve in a mentoring capacity that facilitates exam preparation for potential candidates through:

 CMT/RMT study groups: Committing to the execution and delivery of ongoing study groups as a supportive resource to local employers and MTs seeking credentialing prep assistance.

 Mentoring assignments: Offering a mentor matching program where noncredentialed MTs can seek assistance and support from a local member CMT.

 Resource library: Housing a library of exam prep materials and resources for individuals and employers who need exam prep support and guidance.

Resource/Tool Kit	Available		Description		Status
The Case for a Credentialed Workforce				For initiating the dialogue with MTs, employers, and healthcare facilities around the value of credentialed MTs
Model Job Descriptions & Professional Levels				For explaining the core competency skill levels that differentiate Level 1 (RMT) and Level 2 (CMT) MTs.
CDIA (MTIA) Statement on Credentialing for Healthcare Documentation Workers				For sharing CDIA’s call for a credentialed workforce with MT employers
ADVANCE for HIM Annual Salary Survey				For demonstrating the compensation benefits for advanced credentialing at the CMT level.
Who Cares if You’re Certified?				For sharing with potential CMT candidates the increasing demand and preference for certified, Level 2 MTs and editors
Credentialing Candidate Guide				For orienting and mentoring exam candidates toward exam preparation, eligibility, and successful completion

Blue Print for Component Engagement

Education

AHDI Goal: To assist in the transition of the MT workforce to evolving roles through high standards of education and professional credentialing.

Rationale: An academically prepared, skilled workforce supports the transition to and maintenance of credentialed status as well as providing a foundation of skills for placement in evolving healthcare documentation worker roles.

Component Engagement Objective

The goal of this blueprint is to provide components with a comprehensive, but manageable, strategy for executing the association’s goals to provide continuing education, promote medical transcription education program approval, provide a connection for local students, and encourage involvement in education at association conventions and in regional activities. This would involve components serving as resource organizations that actively facilitate healthcare documentation education at the local level.

A component actively engaged in promoting healthcare documentation education will

1. Develop strategies for offering educational opportunities to the following stakeholder groups

 Students

 Displaced workers (to encourage/facilitate re-tooling/re-training)

 Noncredentialed workforce

 Credentialed workforce

 Local healthcare documentation employers

 Local and on-line schools

 General public

Activities and Tools

1. Identify members of the local student MT community and establish communication with them.

2. Identify individuals in the local community who have been displaced and establish communication with them.

3. Identify local MTs who are not credentialed and establish communications with them.

4. Identify local credentialed MTs and establish communications with them.

5. Identify schools that may be either local or with whom component members have contacts, and establish a network of schools for support and mentoring.

6. Reach out to the local public to explain the role of medical transcription in healthcare documentation and patient safety.

Resource/Tool Kit	Available		Description		Status
New Professionals Alliance			Reach stakeholder: students, job seekers.		Active on the Internet. To sign up, click here.
AHDI staff to assemble and relay information received by AHDI from individual locally displaced MTs or those who feel their jobs are at risk			Reach stakeholder: local displaced workers		Procedure and contact materials to be developed
Staff to provide information about local noncredentialed MTs who are AHDI members			Reach stakeholder group: noncredentialed practitioners		Procedure and contact materials to be developed
Staff to provide information about local credentialed MTs (members and nonmembers)			Reach stakeholder group: credentialed MTS		Procedure and contact materials to be developed
Staff to provide information about local nonapproved MT programs		Reach stakeholder group: Not-yet approved schools		Research needed; procedure and contact materials to be developed
About MT Education Program Approval			Reach stakeholder group: Not-yet approved schools		Available on AHDI website
Information about AHDI and medical transcription: Where We Stand; Healthcare and the Electronic IT Revolution; Press Releases			Reach stakeholder group: the local public		Available on AHDI website

Blue Print for Component Engagement

Membership Development

AHDI Goal: Bring together the healthcare documentation workforce as AHDI members to be a unified voice for document integrity, patient safety, and build a collaborative professional community.

Rationale: Coming together as a large, well-organized professional association will give healthcare documentation professionals a stronger voice in the healthcare community as an essential contributor in documenting patient encounters accurately, timely, and completely. Growing the association’s membership, recognizing and celebrating their contributions, and retaining members will expand the opportunities for members to build meaningful connections, exchange best practices, and advance their careers.

Component Engagement Objective

The goal of this blue print is to provide components with a comprehensive, but manageable, strategy for executing the association’s goals for growing membership and engaging members to be involved in AHDI. This would involve components serving as membership recruiters and organizations that actively facilitate member engagement at the local level through three key engagement touch points:

Organizing: A component firmly committed to creating the infrastructure to recruit and retain members and build a partnership with the national organization on membership initiatives.

 Coordinator: Appoint a membership coordinator to lead membership recruitment and retention initiatives at the local level. (see Oversight and Management section)

 Communication: Maintain open dialog with AHDI leaders across the association, the District Director, staff, and specifically the Membership Advisory Workgroup (MAW) to report on initiatives and share best practices.

Resource/Tool Kit	Available	Description	Status
Component membership coordinator/chair position description, to include communication and participation pathways in AHDI		Membership coordinators or chairs are invited to participate in monthly MAW meetings
Component Officers Alliance (COA) Google Group		Communication among component officers, the Board, and staff via email listserv	All new 2011 component officers are on the listserv

Blue Print for Component Engagement

Advocacy & Alliance Outreach

AHDI Goal:

Unify stakeholders in healthcare delivery under one united message illustrating the critical nature of the healthcare documentation profession and the impact that the dictation/transcription to include the full narrative patient story has to patient safety, clinical decision making and revenue cycles.

Rationale:

Building an interconnected grassroots voice through component advocacy and alliance outreach will expand the sector footprint, strategic reach and promote the healthcare documentation sector contribution to patient care delivery.

Component Engagement Objective

The goal of this blue print is to provide components with a comprehensive, but manageable, strategy for executing the association’s goals for advocacy and alliance outreach. This would involve components serving as resource organizations that actively engage members at the local level through the following key points:

Reaching:

A component committed to creating a sustainable grassroots infrastructure in advocacy and alliance outreach will develop strategies in the following areas.



Engage in legislative activities through local, state, national advocacy efforts



Develop a community alert system



E-mail broadcast messaging



Continuing professional lobbying efforts



Attending Advocacy Summit



Participate in broad grassroots organizing

Resource/Tool Kit	Available		Description
Legislative Issues Group			Read about the Legislative Issues group and email mchalabi@ahdionline.org to join
Attend National Advocacy Summit			Visit Advocacy Summit webpage for details on the event, registration and hotel
Hold Constituent Coffees			Schedule congressional meeting in your district by following these guidelines
Attend State Advocacy Day		State Advocacy Days have not yet started to take place
Develop an Alert System for local components building up to national network of alerts		One page document on developing this system needed
EHR Readiness Toolkit			Important Support Information for Legislative Discussion
Power of 10 Campaign			Donate to the power of 10 campaign which directly supports AHDI advocacy efforts
How to Fund Raise for the Power of 10		Document/Guidelines needed
How to organize a petition letter		Document/Guidelines needed

Carolinas Regional Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity (CRAHDI)