Epic Skills Assessment Patient Data Management 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the primary purpose of the 'Problem List' in Epic's patient record?
- To maintain a persistent, active list of the patient's ongoing medical conditions for clinical decision support (Correct answer)
- To document every complaint from every visit
- To list only conditions that require surgery
- To track billing diagnoses for the current encounter only
Correct answer: To maintain a persistent, active list of the patient's ongoing medical conditions for clinical decision support
The Problem List is a longitudinal, maintained list of active and chronic conditions that drives clinical decision support, risk scoring, and care management.
Question 2: Which data field in Epic is used to record the person legally responsible for a patient's account balance?
- Guarantor (Correct answer)
- Emergency Contact
- Primary Care Provider
- Subscriber
Correct answer: Guarantor
The Guarantor is the person financially responsible for the account, distinct from the insurance subscriber or the patient themselves.
Question 3: A provider wants to send a patient's records to an outside specialist. Which Epic workflow is most appropriate for a compliant release of information?
- Release of Information (ROI) workflow with a signed patient authorization (Correct answer)
- Forwarding the MyChart message thread
- Printing and faxing from any workstation without logging
- Exporting to a personal USB drive
Correct answer: Release of Information (ROI) workflow with a signed patient authorization
HIPAA requires a signed patient authorization and a documented Release of Information workflow to share records with external parties.
Question 4: In Epic, what does 'patient reconciliation' refer to in the context of health information exchange (HIE)?
- Matching incoming external records to the correct patient in the local Epic system (Correct answer)
- Resolving billing disputes with the patient
- Comparing medication lists between two providers
- Updating the patient's preferred pharmacy
Correct answer: Matching incoming external records to the correct patient in the local Epic system
Patient reconciliation in HIE ensures that records received from external sources are accurately matched to the correct Epic patient before incorporation.
Question 5: When a patient's encounter is marked as 'Hospital Outpatient' versus 'Professional' in Epic, what is the primary distinction?
- It determines the billing entity and fee schedule — facility vs. professional charges (Correct answer)
- It decides which physician is assigned to the patient
- It controls whether the patient receives discharge instructions
- It sets the maximum appointment duration
Correct answer: It determines the billing entity and fee schedule — facility vs. professional charges
The encounter classification drives whether facility (hospital) charges or professional (physician) charges are generated, affecting billing workflows and reimbursement.
Question 6: Which Epic report or tool would a Health Information Management (HIM) analyst use to identify incomplete or unsigned documentation?
- Deficiency Tracking / Chart Deficiency (Correct answer)
- Chart Review
- Episode of Care Summary
- Snapshot
Correct answer: Deficiency Tracking / Chart Deficiency
Deficiency Tracking allows HIM staff to identify missing signatures, unsigned notes, and incomplete records for follow-up with providers.
Question 7: A patient declines to provide their Social Security Number during registration. What is the correct Epic practice?
- Document the patient's refusal and proceed with registration using other identifying information (Correct answer)
- Refuse to register the patient until an SSN is provided
- Enter a placeholder SSN such as 999-99-9999
- Leave the field blank without any notation
Correct answer: Document the patient's refusal and proceed with registration using other identifying information
SSN collection is voluntary; staff should note the patient's refusal and complete registration using alternate identifiers per organizational policy.
Epic Skills Assessment Patient Data Management 4
What is the primary purpose of the 'Problem List' in Epic's patient record?