Lead Clinical Coder

**About The Role**:
As the Lead Clinical Coder for this Clinical Coding Team, you will hold the nationally recognised ACC (Accreditation of Clinical Coders) qualification in clinical coding. You will have a minimum of 7 years coding experience. Managerial experience would be advantageous but not essential. The post holder will provide an effective, accurate, timely, and consistent clinical coding service and ensure all coding quality targets are achieved, assisting in audits as appropriate. You will be expected to promote continuous improvement in data quality by keeping abreast of development and innovations in the medical, surgical, and coding disciplines. The post holder will co-ordinate and line manage the Clinical Coding Team to ensure coding is completed to strict monthly deadlines and to set data quality standards, to secure Trust income. You will supervise and support the training of new and less experienced coding staff, acting as a mentor in understanding clinical coding rules. This role leads the Clinical Coding team which aims to provide credible, accurate, complete, and timely data for the Company.

Coded clinical data is essential for effective management, it is used to support service agreements, clinical governance reporting and benchmarking, and has a direct impact on income.

**What you'll be doing**: To line manage on a daily basis the Clinical Coding Team to ensure coding is completed to strict deadlines, and to set up data quality standards to secure income under National Tariff.

To act as Lead Clinical Coder by providing first line clinical coding expertise on complex queries to the Clinical Coding Team, ensuring clinical information is translated into codes adhering to National Standards using ICD-10 and OPCS classifications, and input the data onto the Patient Administration System (PAS).

Undertake direct complex clinical coding workload to maintain Advanced Clinical Coder status and expertise, analysing, interpreting and extracting relevant information from patient’s clinical case notes relating to diagnosis and operative procedures across all specialties.

To be responsible for the completion of each month’s coding and maintain internal and external timescales.
- To check the accuracy of admissions, transfer and discharge details in the patient’s medical record, identifying and addressing any concerns around data quality relating to the recording of patient episodes on PAS.

To liaise with clinicians and their support staff concerning interpretation of case note documentation affecting coding.

To be responsible for the investigation and correction of coded clinical data rejected or queried by recipient information systems, including answering Clinical Commissioning Group challenges in code assignment in a timely manner.

To be responsible for the implementation of Income Recovery projects.

To participate in clinical audits. To assist with providing the relevant information needed for audit and commissioning to support decision by clinicians, management and the finance department.

To maintain an up-to-date knowledge of Clinical Coding National Standards, and to participate in ongoing clinical coding training to meet those standards.

To assist in the implementation of local policy within national standards.

To plan and prioritise own workload to meet departmental targets and to advise the Senior Finance Manager of any hindrance to the achievement of these targets.

To be able to work under pressure maintaining accuracy especially around monthly closedown periods.

To maintain confidentiality of all coded and other patient information at all times.
- Any other duties, appropriate to the grade as required by the Senior Finance Manager.

**What we’ll look for in you**:

- ACC -Accreditation of Clinical Coders qualification
- 7 years experience in clinical coding is essential
- Experience of management would be useful but not essential