Breaking down revenue integrity barriers
Editor’s note: Stephanie Ellis, RN, BSN, COC, CHRI, and Suzanne Lestina will present “The Real Work of Revenue Integrity is NOT Producing Widgets” on day one of the 2024 Revenue Integrity Symposium, which will take place September 12–13 in Oak Brook, Illinois. Ellis is director of revenue performance and audit management at UChicago Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois. Lestina is the executive director, revenue integrity and strategic innovations at UChicago Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois. Get an exclusive insider’s look at what RIS attendees will learn and experience at the event, discuss highlights from the agenda, and more during our upcoming free webinar! Use NAHRI’s justification letter template as a guide to gain your organization’s support for attending. Consider applying for the NAHRI Scholarship, which awards free registration to RIS (the application deadline is May 28).
Q: In what ways does your session challenge revenue integrity professionals to think outside the box?
Ellis: We will encourage moving beyond the day-to-day work of resolving accounts and looking more into digging deeper to find the root cause of issues and help stakeholders understand what they can do to help the organization reach its goals.
Q: What’s the biggest challenge in revenue integrity right now? How does your session help tackle this?
Ellis: Departmental silos. Everything is believed to belong to revenue integrity and nothing to the departments. We will help to open up ideas for better communication with departments to help with achieving the organization’s goals.
Q: What’s one of the key pieces of information you would like people to take away from your session?
Ellis: You need to set goals that everyone can agree to and work together to achieve.
Q: What are you most excited about for this year’s topic?
Ellis: I am excited to be a presenter. I find the Symposium to be a great networking opportunity, along with a great learning and idea generating session. It is just as exciting that I get to present with my executive director Suzanne Lestina.
Q: What's a great piece of advice you've received regarding revenue integrity?
Ellis: There’s no one-size fits all in healthcare revenue integrity. Each organization that has a revenue integrity team/department has a different reporting structure and statement of work. There is no right or wrong—we are all looking for the revenue and compliance in our billing processes.