MDS Job Offer-Need Advice

Try to stay away from salary. If you are salary you will lose any chance of overtime. I would ask if they plan on pulling you to the floor when they are short. If you are pulled and you have to submit who will cover your MDS's or will you be stuck at your facility for long hours trying to get your regular work done.

I agree, try to stay hourly. It can be an awesome task. Also due to the citations, you may have a lot of cleaning up to do. Is there anyone who is going to assist you? If there is someone helping with assessments, RAPS, and careplans be sure you have a good working relationship with them. Its also very much a team effort. What kind of citations did the facility receive?

Go to AANAC.org. Wonderful website with a discussion board of MDS nurses and others involved in the process.

Ask your DON about training and support. Find out what the tags were and what they involved. Will you have help or be responsible for everything?

Definatly try to stay hrly.

Will you be pulled to work the floor? Have to take call? What about working hrs?

been there, done that and agree with the other posters who say start hourly. My friend is an MDS coord. as well...she's salaried and works 50-60 hours a week for 40 hours pay.
The easiest way to fix an MDS tag is find the specific mistake they cited,and submit a corrected MDS. THe tags should be specific enough that you'll know which ones need fixing. We got tagged one year on 6 MDS...2 long term and 4 PPS ones because we had a new horrible MDS person. We cleared the tag easily by submitting corrected ones - the MDS person had already been fired for a multitude of things, but that was also part of our plan of correction..that and telling them that the corportation had devised a competency test for anyone doing MDS's. Good luck.

I did MDS when I was DON for a short time (43 bed facility) and it was a lot for me to do, we had 4 SNF at the time. The SNF's are what really need the extra double check. Your RUG rates are driven soley by that MDS and as other posters have said, it is a team effort. Make sure the staff knows how vitally important it is to code correctly, esp ADL's. And your nursing charting needs to match on ALL LEVELS, i.e. therapy notes matching nurses notes matching CNA charting. A lot of times (and I know this happens everywhere) that the CNA's and nurses will copy what the previous shift coded or charted. You could be missing out on some serious reimbursement if things aren't charted appropriately.

As for the question regarding salary vs. hourly, GO HOURLY. And I think with the number of beds you have you will probably be doing 10-12 MDS's a week so you will need a 40 hour week to get those completed. And you should NEVER be considered to be pulled to the floor! MDS is a full time job in itself, and you can do floor work, but who is going to do your MDS's for you?

Good luck, you sound very knowledgeable and prepared for this position. Learn your software and MDS 2.0 book very well. Sometimes they will do an MDS automation update through the state and these are informative regarding transmission, new rules, etc. Attend all the continuing ed you can on MDS's. And as my old nurse consultant used to say regarding care planning, "think outside the box!".

God bless.

As recommended: AANAC.ORG, hourly pay with time and a half after 40h, for me 85 long term + 15 med A's require a full time MDS coordinator plus a part timer, "immunity" from being the nurse in "reserve", a reliable computer w/ high speed internet connection for up to date info

[quote=nursediz]Due to a bad state review regarding MDS tags I was offered the job of MDS Coordinator. I am meeting with the DON tomorrow to discuss this....

Info: LPN 2 years

I think the MDS has to be signed by an RN...so what happens when there is an LPN coordinator?

The DON or ADON would sign as the coordinator on R2b.

May I add it is of utmost importance for that RN that signs anywhere on the MDS that they review the MDS before they sign it. Not only is the LPN who did the assessment responsible, so it the RN. CYA.

Harleygirl