Q: Case managers used to evaluate their work in terms of tasks completed or length of stay (LOS). Now that LOS has more than a financial meaning, what are some meaningful outcomes case managers can use to set goals for their work?
This month's Q&A answers to readers' questions on collecting payment, contacting physicians, overhearing medical examinations in the emergency department, and discussing the health of adult children.
Q: Are we required to keep copies of a former patient’s records after transferring the records to the patient’s new doctor? If we do, are we allowed to charge for copies now that the patient is no longer “our” patient?
Q: We have a patient admitted with a history of chronic heart failure (CHF) and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) who was admitted with volume overload due to acute kidney injury (AKI) and dialysis noncompliance. The AKI and volume overload resolved with hemodialysis treatment. How should we report this in ICD-10-CM?