What is your role in the Department of Otolaryngology and how long have you been here?
I have worked at Washington University for 21 years, all of that time in the Department of Otolaryngology. My title is IBC Assistant II, which means I am an insurance billing/collections assistant. I have done charge entry in the department for all of my time here.
Charge entry means I review the clinical charges in EPIC before they are billed out to the insurance payers. I also help with follow-up and appeals efforts when payments are late or disputed.
What do you like best about your job, and how has that been affected by COVID?
Believe it or not, I enjoy the paperwork. It helps the time pass quickly, and I love the fact that Washington University helped put my three daughters through college. Since the pandemic showed up, there are fewer people in the office every day. That makes the office area much quieter which I find kind of unnerving because I am very much a people person.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
In my spare time I love to read, mostly fiction mystery novels. My favorite mystery writer is Mary Higgins Clark. I also enjoy watching movies and just relaxing with my girls – Tiffani, Tori and Tamera.
Tiffani and Tori have graduated. Tiffani works for Riverview Gardens School District here in St. Louis, and Tori works and resides in Kirksville, MO. Tamera is a freshman at Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, as a fine arts major. She is very disappointed all her classes are still virtual.
What Christmas movie did you most look forward to watching this year?
One of my favorite Christmas movies is “It’s a Wonderful Life”. Watching that has been a tradition since I was a child.