Trauma Registrar

Essentia Health•Duluth, MN

3d•$23 - $35•Hybrid

About The Position

The Trauma Registrar performs duties related to data collection, analysis, and reporting of various clinical and quality information. Completes projects, identifies opportunities, and makes recommendations for improvements. The Trauma Registrar uses critical thinking skills and knowledge of medical terminology to abstract and analyze clinical data. Prepares reports/statistics and graphs for use by internal departments, presentations, and various committees.

Requirements

Associate’s degree in medical coding or Associate’s degree in healthcare information (must have or obtain RHIT) or Bachelor’s degree in health information management (must have or obtain RHIA) OR other healthcare degree (Nursing, Coding, Health Data Analyst)
Highly detail-oriented — because accurate abstraction and coding depend on precision.
Comfortable with medical records and data — especially reviewing chart notes in EPIC, EMS reports, and other clinical documentation.
Knowledgeable about trauma terminology and standards — or able to learn NTDB, AIS, Minnesota trauma requirements, and TQIP quickly.
Analytical — able to identify patterns, ensure data accuracy, and support quality improvement efforts.
Organized and efficient — since the role often involves managing large volumes of data and meeting reporting deadlines.
Able to work independently — trauma registrars typically need to manage their workload with minimal supervision.
Strong with compliance and quality assurance — because the work directly supports trauma center verification and performance improvement.
Technically comfortable — with registry platforms, EHR systems, and reporting tools.
A good communicator — to work with trauma teams, PI staff, and other departments when clarification is needed.

Nice To Haves

RHIT, RHIA, or CHDA (Certified Health Data Analyst) preferred OR current RN license in the state of employment
Knowledge of medical terminology
Experience with the Trauma Registry database
CSTR (Certified Specialist in Trauma Registry) or CAISS
prior experience in trauma registry, health information management, nursing, coding, or medical records, strong attention to detail, and an interest in clinical quality and patient outcomes.

Responsibilities

Identifies cases for trauma patient inclusion criteria into the trauma registry
Abstracts and enters all necessary patient and clinical information into the trauma registry database, ensuring accuracy for consistent reporting
Identifies and tracks trauma quality indicators for the trauma program
Designs and generates standardized reports, graphs, and analyzes the data, including performing trend analyses on data
Prepares and submits electronic downloads to the Minnesota Department of Health and National Trauma Data Bank
Assigns injury codes based upon the Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM)
Applies knowledge of trauma treatment methods to identify deviations in standards of medical care management practice to be brought forth to leadership
Provides reports/statistics for internal use by nursing, ED, research department, physicians, etc.
Makes all registry preparations for periodic trauma center verification and participates in the verification process/visit
Abstract patient information from EPIC into the trauma registry platform using National Trauma Bank Data dictionary (NTDB), Minnesota trauma data dictionary, and Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS 2015) to ensure compliance with Level I trauma center standards.
Obtain and abstract patient information from EMS records in accordance with the definitions outlined in the above references.
Follow NTDB standards for trauma case identification and inclusion.
Support the trauma program’s performance improvement process.
Generate trauma registry reports to demonstrate compliance with clinical guidelines and quality standards.
Download and submit reports in accordance with Minnesota state trauma system standards and the Trauma Quality Improvement Program (TQIP)
Provide training, guidance, and onboarding support to new colleagues to ensure they are equipped to perform their role effectively.
Serve as a mentor or subject matter resource for new team members, sharing best practices and helping them integrate into the team.