Interview with a HIM Legend: Rose Dunn

EDITOR’S NOTE: ICD10monitor Publisher and Talk Ten Tuesdays Program Host Chuck Buck recently interviewed Rose Dunn, chief operations officer for the St. Louis-based First Class Solutions. The following are excerpts from that interview.

BUCK: How did you begin your storied career in healthcare?

DUNN: I had two uncles that were physicians, so I wanted to do something in healthcare when I finished high school. Blood was not something I could handle, so I asked my high school guidance counselor to suggest a program in health research. He suggested medical records. The courses I was taking made sense for health research, but I actually didn’t know what medical records was about until my first practicum at the end of my junior year. My first HIM (health information management) real job was as the Director of Medical Records, which I started the day after graduating from St. Louis University.

BUCK: What are some of your main responsibilities at First Class Solutions?

DUNN: Although I am the chief operating officer at First Class Solutions, I also directly serve clients. When First Class Solutions started 35 years ago, my first consulting project was as an interim medical records director. Since then, I’ve served as interim medical records director multiple times, coding manager, network development for insurers, and for the past decade I’ve been serving primarily in interim vice president roles for Revenue Cycle (overseeing HIM, Billing, Coding, and Access).

BUCK: When did you join AHIMA (the American Health Information Management Association)?

DUNN: I joined when I was a student at St. Louis University. So, the math is pretty easy: I’ve been a member for more than half a century.

BUCK: What was the succession path for you at AHIMA?

DUNN: My first volunteer medical records-related leadership role was from 1973-1974 as president of Mu Rho Sigma, the medical records sorority at St. Louis University.  Back then only women were in the program; it’s much different now, so I’m certain the label “sorority” has been dropped.

After graduation, I served on several committees as a member or chair for the Eastern Missouri Health Information Association (EMHIMA). For EMHIMA I eventually served as its president-elect/president/past president in the late 70s and continued to serve in various committee roles through the early 80s.

I was also active in the Missouri Health Information Management Association from 1976 through 2011, again serving on committees and as their president-elect/president/past president from 1979-1982, and again as a past-president director in 1985/1986.

For AHIMA, I threw my name in the hat for a director position on the Board of Directors and was successfully elected to serve from 1987-1990. During that time, I was traveling 96 percent of the time for my job. So, getting to Chicago for board meetings was not difficult.  

I made some very dear friends during my first term on the AHIMA Board. Then I was asked to place my name on the ballot for president-elect and was elected in 1992 to serve in that role, followed by president of AHIMA in 1993/1994 and past president in 1994/1995. I also served on the Foundation Board from 1987-1990, again from 2001-2003, and then as the Foundation’s chair in 2004. 

I participated on the first Fellowship Selection Committee in 2000. I remained active in various council and committee positions for AHIMA through 2015 when ICD-10 hit. At that point, I was saturated with my client’s needs and stepped away from the volunteer roles at AHIMA. 

BUCK: What were the conditions of AHIMA when you took the reins as president?

DUNN: In 2011, the Board asked me to serve as interim CEO, which was at a very exciting time, as ICD-10 was on the horizon. We had a few operational issues that needed attention and were well on the way to being addressed when the reigns were turned over to the newly employed CEO later in 2011.

The Association was offering train-the-trainer courses at that time, but there was much more we could be doing, and many ICD-10-related initiatives were launched.

The international arm of the Association was already in place, and AHIMA had an office in Brussels.

The Association had a robust Foundation arm.

AHIMA also had several contracts with organizations surrounding data standards.

BUCK: How many terms did you serve as president?

DUNN: Just one as a volunteer president and chair of the board.

BUCK: What advice do you offer for others considering a leadership position in AHIMA?

DUNN: Get your feet wet at the local or state level first, but don’t hesitate to volunteer for a committee or council at the national level. It’s a great way to learn what is expected as a volunteer leader and build a robust network of professionals who will likely remain friends for the rest of your career.

BUCK: You’re a prolific author. How many textbooks have you authored, and do you have one that you’re currently writing?

DUNN: About 15 books that include both professional reference books and college texts. One of my first ventures in writing a book was updating the legal manual for the Missouri Health Information Management Association in 1981.

I’ve had approximately 450 articles published in various publications.

People will ask how I found the time to do this much writing. When I am consulting, I have my nights to myself, and it’s easier to write in a hotel room than to go out shopping in a strange town.

My last book was on the release of information, which was released by HcPro in November 2022. My current writing attention is focused on an update to my course on HCCs (Hierarchical Condition Categories) for Libman Education.

Programming note: Listen to Rose Dunn today on Talk Ten Tuesdays when she reports on activities taking place at the AHIMA National Convention underway in Baltimore.