Nation’s first EMS documentation certification course launches in October 2017

Launching in October 2017, the one-day CADS course will cover essential documentation skills necessary to facilitate high-quality patient care, facilitate accurate billing and improve EMS agency legal compliance.

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. — NAAC® – The National Academy of Ambulance Compliance - the nation’s leader in ambulance compliance certification programs – is proud to announce the launch of the Certified Ambulance Documentation Specialist™ – CADS™ – program in October 2017. The CADS course is designed to improve emergency medical service (EMS) documentation. According to course co-developer, attorney and paramedic Steve Wirth, Esquire, “the overwhelming majority of EMS leaders and managers have described the need to improve the quality of EMS field documentation as their biggest ongoing compliance challenge.” Course co-developer and longtime EMS provider Doug Wolfberg, Esquire added that “the CADS course is the first in the nation that is targeted to this specific and widespread industry challenge.” The arrival of CADS is a watershed moment for EMS in America to address the increasingly critical importance of accurate and complete patient care reporting.

While CADS is intended primarily for EMS practitioners, the program also benefits those involved in EMS and ambulance industry leadership, revenue cycle management, compliance, quality improvement and other support positions. The CADS course covers the essential documentation skills necessary to facilitate high quality patient care, reduce provider liability, improve clinical narratives, facilitate accurate billing and improve EMS agency legal compliance.

CADS is a one-day course with approximately 6 hours of instruction and a written final exam.

CADS is offered by NAAC – the nation’s leader in ambulance compliance education. According to NAAC’s Program Coordinator, Jason Leet, “the CADS course becomes the fourth national EMS compliance-oriented certification program offered by NAAC, joining the Certified Ambulance Coder® (CAC™), Certified Ambulance Compliance Officer™ (CACO®) and Certified Ambulance Privacy Officer™ (CAPO®) programs that make up the current NAAC course catalog.” Like all NAAC programs, the CADS program content was developed by the attorneys and consultants of Page, Wolfberg & Wirth, the nation’s leading EMS industry law firm. According to Leet, “the PWW EMS law firm has been NAAC’s longstanding partner in the development and validation of all NAAC curricula and continuing education programs since its inception.”

Mary Ellen Galuska, Director of Meetings for NAAC’s sister company PWW Media, stated that the inaugural CADS course will be offered on October 23, 2017 in Hershey, Pennsylvania in conjunction with abc360 the national conference on ambulance service revenue cycle management and compliance (abc360conference.com). Galuska added that more detailed information on NAAC and its other ambulance certification courses can be found online at www.AmbulanceCompliance.com.

CADS will be available initially in two ways: (1) CADS will be offered as a one-day workshop prior to the abc360 conference in Hershey, PA in October 2017 and again when abc360 is repeated in Las Vegas, St. Louis and Orlando in the Spring of 2018, and (2) CADS can be presented on-site at any EMS agency in the country. Beginning in 2018, CADS will also be available online through NAAC’s Learning Management System.

About NAAC
The National Academy of Ambulance Compliance represents the industry’s “Gold Standard of Excellence” in compliance, ethics and integrity in all facets of ambulance compliance. NAAC fulfills an industry-wide need for reliable and timely recurrent education for ambulance compliance officers, privacy officers and billing staff, to ensure consistent, ongoing compliance with the ever changing, complex rules and regulations affecting the industry.