Indiana ACDIS Chapter…the beginning
The Central Indiana Chapter of ACDIS began back in November 2009 when Sandy Beatty, Columbus Regional Hospital and Susan Bradford, Riverview Hospital connected through Melissa Varnavas, Associate Director of ACDIS, and decided to send out an initial survey to determine if there was interest in forming a local chapter of CDI professionals in Indiana. We met for the first time January 13, 2010 with 12 people in attendance. At that first organizational meeting, using survey response as our guide, the group made the decision to meet on a quarterly basis. The consensus of the group was to not require ACDIS membership for participation in chapter meetings. It was determined the primary focus of meetings would be to offer continuing education, promote best practices, as well as networking opportunities for the Clinical Documentation Specialist and CDI professionals in Indiana. Meeting hosts and presentations have been done on a volunteer basis, along with a volunteer Executive Leadership Team to coordinate meetings and communicate with members.
Over the past years our chapter has continued to grow with members representing multiple health care organizations across the “cross roads” of Indiana. With the growth of our local chapter and in order to continue to serve the membership, it was proposed at the October 2011 meeting to move from a volunteer leadership team to a formal election of officers holding the positions of President, Vice President and Secretary and they will hold office for 2 year periods. Officers are to work with local chapter members to facilitate the educational needs of the membership and act as liaisons between ACDIS national and the local chapter. As our chapter continues to grow, our mission will remain to offer educational opportunities, promote best practices, share resources, encourage collaboration and facilitate networking of the CDI professional.
Indiana Chapter Leadership Biographies
Sara Masters, Co-President
Current CDI position and Organization:
CCDS with Ascension St Vincent
Past CDI positions and Organizations:
1. CDI x 3 years with Ascension St Vincent
2. Past employment as RN with IU Health, Sutter in California, small hospitals in Logansport, IN and Peru, IN
3. Travel nurse x 2 years with assignments in PA, FL and CA
Education:
ASN 1997 – Indiana University Kokomo
BSN 2013 – Walden University
Professional Organization Memberships:
Current ACDIS member – National and Indiana chapter
Professional Experience and Attributes:
RN for 23 years with experience in acute, long term and hospice care.
Served on various committees throughout my career with interest in process improvement.
CCDS in 2019
I serve on our query committee to develop, improve our query practice.
I served on our orientation committee to develop our orientation program.
I am involved in orienting and precepting new CDIS.
I have served on the Indiana ACDIS chapter planning committee for one year.
Your vision for Indiana ACDIS future:
1. Keeping our Indiana chapter up to date with the latest news and trends in the CDI realm.
2. Providing our chapter meaningful education to enhance their CDI careers.
3. Growing the chapter to include new CDIS across the state. Get the word out!
Angela Green, Co-President
Current Position and Organization:
CDI Team Lead Harmony Healthcare
Past Positions and Organizations:
Manager CDI – IU Health
CDIS/Director Case Management/Case Manager/Staff RN/Care Manager – Community Hospital Network
Director of Nursing Midtown Nursing and Rehab
Director Nursing Miller’s Health System
Education:
Lutheran College: ASN
Manchester College: BA Psychology
CCDS
Professional organization memberships:
National and Indiana ACDIS Chapters
Professional Experience and Attributes:
Dedicated RN healthcare professional with 24 years of nursing and supervisory/management experience in the following areas:
• Clinical Documentation Specialist: 13yrs
• Case Management: 6yrs
• Utilization Review: 6yrs
• Discharge Planning: 6yrs
• Clinical Medical/Surgical, Orthopedics, Neurology, Behavioral Care, Geriatrics: 24yrs
Objectives and Vision for 2017:
- Continue to promote professional growth with continuing education programs
- Promote best practices
- Share resources and facilitate networking for CDI professional
- Increase participation and membership of Indiana ACDIS Chapter
Diksha Sharma, Vice President
Current CDI position and Organization: CCDS, Physician CDI, Franciscan Health
Education:
Bachelor of Science Honors program in Nutrition and Nutraceutical Science, University of Guelph, 2006
Doctor of Medicine (MD), Avalon University School of Medicine, 2012
Professional Organization Memberships: ACDIS, AHIMA, IAMA (Indian American Medical Association of IL)
Professional Experience and Attributes:
Currently lead a CDI teams comprising of CDI RN at Franciscan hospital locations across IL and Indiana
Develop various CDI educational initiatives for both CDI and Physicians throughout the Franciscan network
Passionate about physician engagement and education on CDI/coding/quality topics
Your vision for Indiana ACDIS future:
- Continue to grow and bring quality CDI and coding education to our valued members
- Increase collaboration with other chapters to learn from one another failures and successes
- Become a collaborative and creative hub for our members who can lean on the local chapter to help guide them through CDI challenges
Nancy Coney, Secretary
Current CDI position and Organization:
Mortality Reviewer post billing for Coding Education Program in HIM at Baylor, Scott and White Health System (Remote)
Past CDI positions and Organizations:
Southern Maine Medical Center, St Joseph’s Regional Medical Center, McLaren Bay Medical Center (Travel position), University of Miami (Remote temp), Rush Medical Center (Travel position- Special Project)
Education:
Diploma Nurse, BSN Bethel College (now University), BSHI Western Governor’s University.
Professional Organization Memberships:
ACDIS, AHIMA, past active in Emergency Nurse Association.
Professional Experience and Attributes:
Nursing History: Emergency and Pre-Op/PACU focus with Family Practice office experience part time. Travel Nursing after local experience. Active on Safety Committee, Employee Suggestions committee, Trauma Committee, Quality Circles and Unit organizations.
Facilities include: Memorial Hospital of South Bend, St Joseph’s Regional Medical Center, Elkhart General Hospital, Schneider Regional Medical Center St. Thomas USVI, Johns Hopkins Bayview Hospital, Johns Hopkins Medical Center, Georgetown University Medical Center, Towanda Memorial Hospital in Towanda PA.
Your vision for Indiana ACDIS future: To be the best resource for networking and education. To combine fun and high-quality educational opportunities and CEUs for members of our local chapter and national members. Getting CEUs to keep up our credentials should not bankrupt members, and needs to be informative in our rapidly changing world.
Janell Murray, Social Media Manager
Current CDI position and Organization: Parkview Health, CDI
Education:
ASN, IVY Tech Community College, 2008
BSN, WGU 2015
CCDS, ACDIS 2016
Professional Organization Memberships:
National and Indiana ACDIS chapters
Professional Experience and Attributes:
BSN, RN, CDI with over 13 years nursing experience and 6 years in CDI, current ACDIS and IN-ACDIS Committee member. Worked in Medical, Cardiac and ICU departments. Branched out to CDI, covering community /rural facilities, including a critical access facility.
Your vision for Indiana ACDIS future:
1. Continue development and momentum within our active Indiana chapter. Increase networking with other CDI across the state and region. Inviting speakers that will propel education and growth.
2. To be one of the top ACDIS chapters for CDI education, resources, networking and pursue clinical integrity for the CDI community.
IN ACDIS 