Pass the AHIMA Documentation Integrity Practitioner (CDI) CDIP Questions and answers with ValidTests

The entity that has the following regulation is the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), which is the federal agency that oversees the Medicare and Medicaid programs and sets the Conditions of Participation (CoPs) and Conditions for Coverage (CfCs) for health care organizations that participate in these programs. The regulation that requires a medical history and physical examination be completed and documented for each patient no more than 30 days before or 24 hours after admission or registration, but prior to surgery or a procedure requiring anesthesia services, is part of the CoPs for Hospitals, which are located in 42 CFR § 482.24. This regulation was revised in 2007 to align with the Joint Commission’s standard and to provide more flexibility and consistency for hospitals and practitioners. (CDIP Exam Preparation Guide)

References:

CDIP Exam Content Outline1

CDIP Exam Preparation Guide2

42 CFR § 482.243

Sharing the mission of the CDI program should be done to ensure a clear sense of what CDI is and the CDI practitioner’s role within the organization. The mission statement defines the purpose, goals, and values of the CDI program, and how it aligns with the organization’s vision and strategy. The mission statement also communicates the benefits and expectations of the CDI program to various stakeholders, such as providers, executives, coders, quality staff, and patients. The mission statement can help establish the credibility, professionalism, and identity of the CDI practitioners, and guide their daily activities and decisions 2.

References: 1: AHIMA CDIP Exam Prep, Fourth Edition, p. 133 3 2: Mission CDI: Guiding goals, values, and principles 1

Query professionals should follow their healthcare entity’s internal policies related to querying, as they may vary depending on the organization’s size, structure, scope, and goals. The internal policies should be based on industry best practices and standards, such as those provided by AHIMA and ACDIS, as well as applicable laws and regulations, such as those from CMS and OIG. However, AHIMA’s and CMS’s policies are not binding for all healthcare entities, and they may not address all the specific situations and challenges that query professionals may encounter. Therefore, query professionals should be familiar with their own healthcare entity’s policies and procedures for querying, such as the query format, content, timing, delivery method, escalation process, retention, and audit. The other options are incorrect because they do not reflect the diversity and complexity of query policies across different healthcare entities.

Hospital-acquired condition pay provisions apply only to inpatient prospective payment system hospitals because they are subject to the CMS policy that reduces payments for cases with conditions that were not present on admission. This policy is intended to encourage hospitals to improve the quality of care and prevent avoidable complications. Other types of hospitals, such as critical access hospitals, long-term acute care hospitals, and inpatient psychiatric hospitals, are not affected by this policy and are paid based on different methodologies. (CDIP Exam Preparation Guide)

References:

CDIP Exam Content Outline1

CDIP Exam Preparation Guide2

Hospital-Acquired Conditions (Present on Admission Indicator): Hospital …3

This response provides the highest level of specificity for the patient’s diagnosis because it includes the following elements:

The type of heart failure: diastolic, which means the heart has difficulty relaxing and filling with blood during diastole, resulting in increased filling pressures and pulmonary congestion. Diastolic heart failure is also known as heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), which is defined as an ejection fraction of 50% or higher 2.

The acuity of heart failure: acute on chronic, which means the patient has a history of chronic heart failure that has worsened acutely due to a precipitating factor, such as infection, ischemia, arrhythmia, or medication noncompliance. Acute on chronic heart failure is associated with higher mortality and morbidity than stable chronic heart failure 3.

The associated conditions: hypertensive renal disease and CKD 3, which indicate that the patient has kidney damage and reduced kidney function due to high blood pressure. CKD 3 is the third stage of chronic kidney disease, which is characterized by a glomerular filtration rate of 30 to 59 mL per minute per 1.73 m2 4.

The other responses are less specific because they either omit or misrepresent some of these elements. For example, response B incorrectly states that the patient has systolic heart failure, which is contradicted by the echocardiogram result. Response C does not specify whether the heart failure is chronic or acute on chronic, which has implications for treatment and prognosis. Response D does not specify the type of heart failure, which affects the coding and classification of the condition.

References: 1: AHIMA CDIP Exam Prep, Fourth Edition, p. 133 5 2: Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction (HFpEF) | American Heart Association 3: Acute-on-Chronic Heart Failure: A High-Risk Phenotype Needing Separate Attention 4: Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) | National Kidney Foundation

One of the best practices for writing a compliant query is to include all relevant clinical indicators from the health record that support the need for clarification and the query options. Clinical indicators are objective and measurable signs, symptoms, laboratory results, diagnostic test results, medications, treatments, and other documented findings that are related to a specific diagnosis or condition. Including clinical indicators helps to provide the rationale for the query, avoid leading or suggesting a desired response, and ensure that the query is based on evidence and not assumptions. The other options are not best practices for writing a compliant query. Directing the physician to a specific diagnosis is leading and noncompliant. Using the term “possible” to describe a condition or diagnosis when uncertain if the diagnosis is present is vague and imprecise. Using a yes/no query format for specificity of a diagnosis is discouraged, as it limits the provider’s choices and may not capture the true clinical picture.

The name of the medication (aspirin), the date, time and location where it was last administered should be documented in the health record for inpatients with a discharge principal diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction, unless a contraindication to aspirin is documented. This is because aspirin is a core measure for acute myocardial infarction patients, and its administration within 24 hours of arrival is an indicator of quality of care and patient safety. The date, time and location are important to verify that the medication was given within the specified timeframe and to avoid duplication or omission of doses4 References: 1: https://www.ahima.org/media/owmhxbv1/cdip_contentoutline_2023_final.pdf  4: https://my.ahima.org/store/product?id=67077

The most appropriate action in this case is to query the provider to document the etiology of pneumonia, which is pseudomonas bacteria. This is because the etiology of pneumonia affects the coding and classification of the condition, as well as the severity of illness, risk of mortality, and reimbursement. According to the ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting, pneumonia should be coded by type whenever possible, and if the type of pneumonia is not documented, then the default code is J18.9, Pneumonia, unspecified organism 2. However, if the type of pneumonia is documented, then a more specific code can be assigned, such as J15.1, Pneumonia due to Pseudomonas 3. Therefore, querying the provider to document the etiology of pneumonia will improve the accuracy and completeness of the documentation and coding, and reflect the true clinical picture of the patient.

References: 1: AHIMA CDIP Exam Prep, Fourth Edition, p. 139 4 2: ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting FY 2021, Section I.C.9.a 3: ICD-10-CM Code J15.1 - Pneumonia due to Pseudomonas

A noncompliant multiple-choice query is one that does not include at least four options because it may limit the provider’s choice and suggest a preferred answer. A compliant multiple-choice query should include at least four options that are clinically significant, reasonable, and plausible based on the clinical indicators and documentation in the health record. The options should also be listed in alphabetical order to avoid any bias or preference. A compliant multiple-choice query should also allow the provider to add their own response if none of the options are appropriate, and include the option of “unable to determine” if the provider cannot make a definitive diagnosis based on the available information. (CDIP Exam Preparation Guide)

References:

CDIP Exam Content Outline1

CDIP Exam Preparation Guide2

Guidelines for Achieving a Compliant Query Practice (2019 Update)3

Proposed changes to the inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) take effect on October 1 of each fiscal year (FY), which begins on October 1 and ends on September 30 of the next calendar year. The IPPS final rule is usually issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) around August 1 of each year, and it updates the Medicare payment policies and rates for acute care hospitals and long-term care hospitals for the upcoming FY. The effective date of the final rule is October 1, unless otherwise specified by CMS 2.

References: 1: Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) 2023 Final Rule Summary of … 3 2: Acute Inpatient PPS | CMS 1