Present on Admission (POA)
Present on Admission (POA) indicates whether a diagnosis was already present when a patient was admitted to an inpatient hospital
Definition
Present on Admission (POA) indicates whether a diagnosis was already present when a patient was admitted to an inpatient hospital
Why it matters
Present on Admission (POA) is part of the Coding vocabulary used across home health operations, documentation, and revenue cycle. Understanding it helps clinicians, QA leads, and administrators stay aligned on care quality and compliance.
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