Question 1

The Director of the Health Information Services Department has asked that the supervisor pf coding institute a method to monitor the accuracy of coding. What method would be the most effective approach?

Accepted Answer

Reviewing a random sample of each employee's work monthly would be the most effective approach to monitor accuracy of coding. This allows for a consistent review of each employee's work and ensures that all employees are held to the same standard. Reviewing a sample regularly also catches errors before they become a problem and allows for timely feedback and training if necessary. Performing a 100% review of one employee's work daily would be too time-consuming and could lead to burnout or potential errors. Reviewing a sample only annually would not allow for timely feedback and could lead to a build-up of errors. Having employees check each other's work and report problems to the supervisor could create a culture of distrust and may not catch all errors consistently.

Question 2

Your job description states that as Assistant Director of the Health Information Management Department, you will supervise day-to-day operations for the record processing, transcription, and release of information areas. What principle of management is described?

Accepted Answer

Span of control refers to the number of subordinates a manager or supervisor can directly control, which is relevant to supervising day-to-day operations in various areas.

Question 3

The Director of Health Information Services has asked the supervisor over files to determine productivity standards for the file clerks. In initiating this process, the supervisor has determined that the best way to institute work standards is to

Accepted Answer

Developing standards based on professional standards and industry benchmarks is the best approach as it ensures that productivity standards are aligned with industry best practices and reflect the work expected of professionals in the field. This approach also helps to establish fair and achievable benchmarks for employee performance. Simply determining which employee can work the fastest or performing time and motion studies may result in setting unrealistic or arbitrary productivity standards that are not in line with industry best practices. Improving employee morale is important but is not directly related to determining productivity standards.

Question 4

Mallory, the coding supervisor, must determine the number of full-time employees (FTEs) needed to code 600 discharges per week. It takes an average of 20 minutes to code each record and each coder will work 40 hours per week. How many coders are needed?

Accepted Answer

1. Time required to code one discharge record = 20 minutes
2. Time available to each coder per week = 40 hours = 2400 minutes
3. Number of discharge records that can be coded by each coder per week = 2400/20 = 120
4. Number of coders needed to code 600 discharges per week = 600/120 = 5.0

Since the number of coders needs to be a whole number, the answer is 5.0, which is rounded up to 5.

Question 5

Postage charges for Health Information Services have increased over the last quarter. As t Director, you have seen mail envelopes that have been meter-stamped that did not appear to official hospital business. The best course of action is to

Accepted Answer

Putting one person in charge of the meter will provide accountability and help prevent unauthorized use. This person can also monitor usage and ensure that it is only used for official hospital business. Removing the meter completely may not be practical and could cause delays in sending important mail, while keeping a watchful eye may not effectively address the issue. Calling a department meeting and issuing employee warnings may be necessary if the misuse continues despite the designated person in charge.

Question 6

Dana, the transcription supervisor, has prepared an evaluation for one of her employees. As the evaluation is reviewed by the HIM director, he notes that the employee received an overall rating of "needs improvement." After reading the comments, the director asks Dana to document specific performance improvement recommendations. Dana is unable to do so because she is basing her assessment on her memory of incidents that have occurred over the past year. The director suggests that Dana reassess the employee's evaluation because, ideally, performance appraisals should occur

Accepted Answer

The best choice is "on a continuous basis." Performance evaluations should not be a one-time event but rather an ongoing process where feedback is given regularly to the employee. This allows the supervisor to document specific instances of good or poor performance, which can be used to provide constructive feedback and improve overall performance. Waiting until the end of the year to provide feedback can result in less accurate evaluations and missed opportunities for improvement.

Question 7

Holly is the day supervisor who works from 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Kim is the evening supervisor who works from 2:00 PM to 11:00 PM. Suni is a transcriptionist who works from 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM which overlaps the day and evening shifts. Suni asked 1 lolly, the day supervisor, if she could leave early for personal reasons. Holly said she could leave early if Kim, the evening supervisor, agrees. This situation violates which theory of management?

Accepted Answer

This situation violates the unity of command principle, which states that each employee should have only one direct supervisor. Suni, the transcriptionist, is receiving conflicting instructions from two supervisors (Holly and Kim) which can cause confusion and ineffective communication.

Question 8

The HIPAA Privacy and Security Rule requires that training be documented. What methods of documenting training efforts need to be used?

Accepted Answer

The HIPAA Privacy and Security Rule require documentation of training efforts including the training content, training dates, and attendee names. Retention of training aids and handouts, meeting handouts and minutes, and signed confidentiality statements may be helpful but are not specifically required for documenting training efforts.

Question 9

Grace Holt, RHIA, is the HIM Department Manager. She is reviewing interviewing techniques with Maria Hernandez, RHIT, as she prepares to interview for a new analyst. Grace recommends that Maria should

Accepted Answer

Interrupting occasionally to seek clarification can help ensure that the interviewer fully understands the applicant's responses and can lead to a more productive and informative interview.

Question 10

You are preparing a training program for specific functional areas of the department (e.g. coding; transcription, etc.). Which of the following is the primary factor to consider in developing an effective training program?

Accepted Answer

The primary factor to consider in developing an effective training program is the objectives of each functional area. It is important to identify the specific skills and knowledge required for each area and tailor the training program accordingly. Credentials, cost, and number of employees are also important factors to consider, but they should be secondary to the objectives of the functional areas.

Question 11

A new health information management clerk has been on staff for 2 days. She has thus far analyzed charts incorrectly, sent out confidential information improperly, and used the cop machine inappropriately. Evaluate this situation and determine the best resolution.

Accepted Answer

Reviewing the job procedure with the clerk and having the analysis supervisor monitor her progress would be the best resolution. This allows for immediate guidance and correction of mistakes, as well as ongoing supervision to ensure that the clerk is performing the job correctly. An in-service and merit evaluation may be helpful in the future, but the immediate concern is addressing the issues and preventing further mistakes.

Question 12

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), prior to employment, it is illegal to require a

Accepted Answer

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in all employment practices. This includes pre-employment inquiries and medical exams. Therefore, it is illegal to require a pre-employment physical exam. However, it is not illegal to require math aptitude tests, typing skill tests, or coding proficiency tests, as long as they do not discriminate against individuals with disabilities and are job-related and consistent with business necessity.

Question 13

Which of the following statements describes a method?

Accepted Answer

A method is a specific way of doing something. Stapling discharge summaries is a specific action or procedure, making it a method.

Question 14

Kari works 40 hours per week at Rocky Mountain Radiology Associates, which pays time- and-a-half for overtime and double-time for holidays. During the past week, Kari took 6 hours of unpaid personal leave, and worked an 8-hour holiday. How many hours will Kari be paid for?

Accepted Answer

Kari worked for 40 hours - 6 hours of unpaid leave + 8 hours of holiday pay, which equals 42 hours. 
For the 42 hours she worked, she will receive her standard pay for 40 hours plus time-and-a-half pay for 2 hours of overtime, and double-time pay for 8 hours of holiday pay. 
Therefore, Kari will be paid for 40 + 3 + 16 = 59 hours. However, since she only worked 42 hours, the answer is 42.

Question 15

Yanique is a new supervisor at Park Ridge Pavilion, a mental health facility. She discovers that one of her employees has shared her password with a co-worker. This action violates policies and procedures and is the first occasion of difficulty with this employee. Disciplinary action should be taken by

Accepted Answer

Yanique should seek guidance from Human Resources to ensure that the disciplinary action is consistent with company policies and procedures, especially since this is the first occurrence of difficulty with the employee.

Question 16

"Qualified employees should be given priority when vacancies within the organization occur"! an example of

Accepted Answer

This statement is a policy of the organization because it is a guiding principle or a general course of action to be followed by the organization. It emphasizes the importance of qualified employees and sets a standard for decision-making when filling vacancies. It is not an objective (which is a specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound goal) or a rule (which is a specific, prescribed action or behavior that must be followed) or a procedure (which is a step-by-step process for completing a task or achieving an objective).

Question 17

Jason, an HIM educator, plans to lecture on department design and the legislative act or AGENCY that was created to ensure that workers have a safe and healthy work environment. He describes which of the following?

Accepted Answer

OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) is the agency that was created to ensure that workers have a safe and healthy work environment. The other options listed pertains to labor-management relations and collective bargaining, and do not relate to workplace safety.

Question 18

A local union is conducting .an organizing campaign at Pacific Health Systems. The Human Resources department is providing training to management staff. The training indicates that managers can do which of the following during the union campaign?

Accepted Answer

Managers can express their opposition to the union, as long as they do not engage in threatening or coercive behavior towards employees. They cannot make promises of regular wage increases or question employees about their union activity. And while it is technically true that a strike may be a possibility if a union wins a contract and negotiations break down, managers cannot use this as a scare tactic during a union campaign.

Question 19

You are the Coding Supervisor and wish to know the amount of time eight employees had spent coding this month. You have the following productivity log. What percentage of time was spent on coding?

Accepted Answer

The answer of You are the Coding Supervisor and wish...

Question 20

A rule is helpful to both managers and the employees in the decision-making process. A rule

Accepted Answer

A rule pre-decides issues and sets a standard that everyone must adhere to. This eliminates the need for constant decision-making and interpretation, which can lead to inconsistencies and conflicts. Therefore, a rule is beneficial to both managers and employees as it provides clarity and direction.

Exam 1: Registered Health Information Administrator