Hi
RPorter,
May I ask a question please? Is there a reason you would not be waiting for the consultation results to code this scenario? The pathology report states that "due to the unusual nature of this case it was sent to Laszlo J Karai, M.D., Ph.D for consultation and a copy of the consultation would be forwarded to your office for review".
Why would you want to code this in haste without Dr. Karai's consultation report?
Yes, I wholeheartedly get the coder productivity, number of days the accession is in the WQ (even deferred), and the not checking the box to bill in PowerPath but this is continuity of care.
This is in my "complete" opinion, we wait for Dr. Karai's professional opinion from the consultation request from the slides/possible block that they may have received before rendering a final diagnosis.
I usually see an addendum (or even amendment) to the original report that pulls in Dr. Karai's findings once the consultation has been completed. It is really okay to wait. Sometimes a consultation can take over 2-3 weeks so be patient and just routinely check to see if there has been any updates to complete your coding.
Thank you for listening and have a wonderful evening,
Dana Chock, CPC, CANPC, CHONC, CPMA, CPB, RHIT