Who's in your network, and I don't mean Sprint

Do you network or do you do your job in a vacuum? Are you an employee or a professional?

How we see ourselves and present ourselves to others about what we do at work influences how others think about us - do they respect and look up to us or feel sorry for us? I often feel that it's the latter.

Today I had the opportunity to meet about thirty other documentation specialists at a networking round table hosted by CDI specialists at a neighboring hospital. I have to tell you, there are days when I feel like the voice in the wilderness; but not today! Thank you, Nancy and Lea Ann, for being such wonderful hosts and taking the time and energy to pull this together!

Since this was our first get-together the agenda was loose - it consisted of "where are you from", "how long have you been doing this"; some process items: do you reconcile your worksheets, how do you measure your performance, physician advisers/champions and more.

There were differences: some programs are DRG-focused, others overall documentation compliance; some had optimal staffing, some were woefully under-staffed. One CDI Specialist is a lonely-only and does documentation review, Core Measures, and other quality-related data tasks with about 500 discharges/month. I'm assuming she works 24-7 - how else does she get it all done?

We talked about a desire to see our profession grow and be recognized with certification. Several attendees were planning on attending the ACDIS conference next month. I'll be attending and am looking forward to not only the information I hope to take away, but even more to meeting CDI Specialists from around the country. I'm sure that I'll be up late talking and sharing war stories with the other CDI specialists.

At the end of our time together everyone felt that we should do this on a regular basis. E-mail addresses were exchanged and it was suggested to rotate the site of upcoming meetings. You could feel the energy in the room. Today's meeting was only an hour and a half; we probably could've have talked for hours!

And this is what networking is all about: sharing what we know with others and learning even more from them; coming together to form an organization of professionals who can be proud of what we do. When we're in the minor-est of minorities in a hospital it's easy to feel under-valued or unappreciated, especially after a confrontation or futile discussion with a physician. Knowing that others are going through the same thing and learning their survival strategies can be empowering.

I spent today with my peer group and it felt wonderful! To all you great women who were there today - thank you!!