Bobbie Ballenger

I have been in the medical field for 35 years.  First as a medical assistant and then as a critical care RN for 28 years.  As a medical assistant I did billing and complied with medical record requests as well as completing paperwork that disability or insurance companies requested.   As a RN I have managed complex patients requiring mechanical ventilation, continuous dialysis, ECMO or Impella support.  I have mainly been in the Cardiovascular ICU for the past 4 years.   I did CDI for about 2 years as well using my years of experience to review charts and send queries necessary to complete documentation for coding and billing purposes.

As a medical assistant I had both clinical and office experience.  I was responsible for billing Medicare, Medicaid, United Health, Aetna for office and hospital visits as well as completing requests for medical records or forms needed by the insurance companies.  

As a critical care nurse I have managed medically complex patients while answering questions from the patient's family to ensure everyone understood the situation.   I also do the charge nurse role and work closely with the critical care team while mentoring the younger nurses and being a resource for them.

I graduated in 1991 with my Associate's Degree in Applied Science an emphasis on Medical Assisting. I enjoyed my job and wanted to do more patient care so went back to school at the University of Akron and graduated in 1997 with my Bachelor's of Science in Nursing.