Why pre-screen health information managers before the panel interview and compliance review
Pre-screening health information managers saves your panel from candidates who have only worked inside one EHR at one volume. Applicants arrive from coding teams, transcription vendors, HIM tech roles, and revenue cycle, and a resume lists RHIA or CCS and Epic or Cerner without showing whether they owned release of information, retention schedules, or audit responses. Ten minutes surfaces actual chart volume, coding accuracy figures, and how they answer a subpoena question when a clinician wants it signed off today.
What actually matters when screening Health Information Manager candidates
- 01
Execution and reliability
Check the record volume and systems they managed, plus coding, release of information, and retention practice.
- 02
Improving the process
Test what they fixed: coding accuracy, chart deficiency backlogs, or release turnaround times.
- 03
Judgement and autonomy
Assess how they judge a records request that is legally borderline, with a clinician pushing for speed.
- 04
Communication
Judge how they train clinicians on documentation they consider a distraction from patient care.
Pre-screening questions to ask Health Information Manager candidates
12 questions grouped by what they test. Ask the same set in every screen and score answers on a consistent scale, or send them as an async video screen and compare answers side by side.
Credentials and systems
3 questions01What degree or certification do you hold in health information management, and is it currently active?
Listen forA named credential (RHIA, RHIT, CCS, CDIP, CHPS) with the issuing body, the year earned, and their current continuing education cycle.
Claims a credential without naming the issuing body, or admits it lapsed without explaining any plan to reinstate it.
02Which medical coding systems do you work in, and which do you code in yourself versus audit?
Listen forICD-10-CM and PCS, CPT, HCPCS Level II, plus DRG grouping, with a clear line between hands-on coding and quality auditing.
Says only "medical coding" or names a system that does not exist in their setting, such as PCS in an outpatient-only role.
03Which health information technology systems have you used, and which EHR did you administer rather than just work in?
Listen forNamed platforms (Epic HIM, Cerner, MEDITECH, 3M 360 Encompass, ChartWise) plus their specific role: build, master patient index cleanup, or reporting.
Lists platforms with no description of what they configured, corrected, or reported on inside them.
Volume and reliability
3 questions04We process large quantities of data daily. What record volume did you handle, and how big was your team?
Listen forConcrete figures: charts or encounters per month, discharges coded weekly, release requests per week, and headcount they supervised or coordinated.
Cannot approximate any volume figure, or gives numbers that contradict the size of the organisation described.
05How do you handle incomplete or inaccurate patient records, and how did you keep the deficiency backlog under control?
Listen forA named workflow: deficiency reports, physician query process, delinquent record escalation, and a before-and-after backlog or completion timeliness number.
Describes chasing charts ad hoc with no tracking, escalation path, or measure of how long deficiencies stayed open.
06Walk me through an audit or inspection of your health information systems and what the findings were.
Listen forA named audit type (Joint Commission, RAC, CERT, payer or state survey), specific findings, and what they changed in response.
Claims audits always came back clean with no findings, or cannot say who conducted the review.
Judgement and compliance
4 questions07How do you manage data retrieval requests without breaching patient confidentiality, especially when a clinician is pushing for speed?
Listen forChecks on authorisation validity, minimum necessary scope, subpoena versus court order, and a specific example of narrowing or refusing a request.
Prioritises turnaround over verification, or treats a clinician's or attorney's assurance as authorisation.
08Talk me through your hands-on experience with HIPAA and the other records laws that applied in your setting.
Listen forPrivacy and Security Rules applied in practice, plus retention schedules, state law variations, and areas like 42 CFR Part 2 or minor consent where relevant.
Recites HIPAA at the level of a staff training slide with no rule, retention period, or incident they personally handled.
09How do you stay current on changes in health information regulations and coding updates?
Listen forNamed sources: annual ICD-10 and IPPS final rule updates, AHIMA or state association bulletins, OCR guidance, coding clinics, and how they cascade changes to staff.
Relies on the employer to notify them, or names no specific publication, rule cycle, or professional body.
10Record a short walkthrough of a complex health information project you managed, from the problem to the measured outcome.
Listen forA defined scope (EHR conversion, ROI centralisation, CDI programme launch), their decisions, stakeholders involved, and a number that moved.
Describes a project they observed rather than led, or ends with no outcome, metric, or lesson.
Training and logistics
2 questions11Tell me about training or supervising clinicians and staff on documentation they saw as a distraction from patient care.
Listen forA real example with the pushback named, how they framed the ask (denials, query volume, quality scores), and whether documentation behaviour changed.
Frames clinicians as the problem, or relies only on mandatory emails and policy citations with no follow-up.
12What change did you implement that improved efficiency in health information management, and what was the measured result?
Listen forA named fix (release turnaround days, coding accuracy percentage, DNFB reduction, scanning backlog) with the baseline and the result after the change.
Claims improvements with no baseline, no metric, or an outcome they cannot connect to anything they personally did.
How to score responses
Score every candidate on the same four criteria immediately after the screen. At this stage you are shortlisting for panel interviews, not making the final call.
Execution and reliability
35%5Has run real record volume across coding, release of information, and retention, in systems you would recognise.
Improving the process
25%5Has cut a real backlog or lifted coding accuracy, with numbers and a process change that outlasted them.
Judgement and autonomy
25%5Judges borderline release requests correctly under pressure, and knows exactly when to escalate to legal.
Communication
15%5Gets documentation compliance from busy clinicians by making it easier rather than by escalating.
Release of information judgement and clinician training both live in tone. Recorded audio or video lets you hear whether they can explain a documentation query to a resistant physician without sounding either apologetic or bureaucratic.
Try it on HirevireScreening FAQ
Process basics
What credentials should a health information manager have?
Look for RHIA or RHIT through AHIMA, often paired with a coding credential such as CCS, CPC, or CDIP. Some candidates hold CHPS for privacy work. Verify the credential is current, since AHIMA requires continuing education units on a two year cycle, and ask which cycle they are in and what coursework they completed.,
How long should a health information manager screen take?
Eight to twelve minutes of recorded answers is enough. Use short text fields for credentials, EHR platforms, and code sets, then two or three audio or video prompts for the release of information scenario and clinician training example. That split keeps factual claims scannable while giving you their actual reasoning on the judgement calls.,
Evaluating answers
How do you tell real coding depth from buzzword answers?
Real depth sounds specific: ICD-10-CM and PCS, CPT and HCPCS Level II, MS-DRG or APR-DRG grouping, and named audits such as RAC or CERT reviews. They cite their coding accuracy rate, how it was audited, and how they closed queries with physicians. Buzzword answers name the EHR but never the code sets or the audit method.,
What is a red flag in a release of information answer?
The biggest red flag is a candidate who releases records to satisfy a clinician or attorney without checking authorisation validity, minimum necessary scope, and whether the request is a subpoena or a court order. Also watch for anyone who cannot name a single instance where they refused or narrowed a request.,
Go deeper on this role
Sanat has been hiring since 2012 and watching the recruitment industry change up close ever since, and turned that screening process into Hirevire's video screening platform. LinkedIn
