Training, Technical Assistance and Consultation
TRAIN-UP!
Training and Readiness for Advancing Impact, Networking, Upskilling and Professionalism
The Local Technical Assistance and Training (LTAT) Branch, part of the Division of Public Health’s Local and Community Support Section, consists of units dedicated to providing training, consultation and technical assistance to local health departments.
LTAT’s consultation units, the Administrative and Financial Support Unit, the Office of the Chief Public Health Nurse and the Public Health Nursing Institute for Continuing Excellence, strive to provide high-quality support based on evidence-based and best practice guidance.
Administrative and Financial Support Unit (AFSU)
The primary purpose of the Administrative and Financial Consultant Unit is to provide administrative and financial training, technical assistance, and consultation to support local health department personnel in all matters related to budget preparation, billing and collections, expenditure reporting and management of state and federal funds.
AFSU Training
Description: Provides a basic understanding of the proper use of ICD-10, Current Procedural Terminology (CPT), and Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) manuals. By the end of the training, the audience should be able to correctly utilize this information to search for codes related to medical billing and coding. The audience will need coding manuals during the training. Please note this training is not program-related, nor will it provide claims billing guidance.
Intended Audience: Staff new to coding and billing
Estimated Time to Complete: 1.5 hours
Venue: In-person, live virtual option
Description: Orientation and high-level overview of the Aid to County (ATC) system. This presentation introduces the why, when, where and what of the ATC.
Intended Audience: Health Directors and Managers
Estimated Time to Complete: 1 hour
Venue: In-person,Live virtual option
Description: Provides a basic understanding of 340B drugs and devices and billing NC Medicaid the acquisition cost. This training also provides a basic process for communicating price changes to staff for proper billing.
Intended Audience: Billing, Purchasing Agent, and Clinical staff
Estimated Time to Complete: 30 minutes
Venue: In-person, Live virtual option
Description: Provides an overview of rules and regulations for LHDs and mandated services. Other areas covered include reminders for administrative front-line staff, administrative monitoring, eligibility and general billing.
Intended Audience: Clerical, billing and eligibility (Administrative staff)
Estimated Time to Complete: 1 hour
Venue: In person, Live virtual option
Description: Orientation and in-depth look at Aid to County expenditure reporting to include amendments and corrections. This training will allow the audience to understand how the budget and Agreement Addenda (AA) drive the reporting in ATC and what information is needed to complete the report.
Intended Audience: Finance Officers and Data Entry Staff for ATC Expenditure Reports
Estimated Time to Complete: 1 hour
Venue: In-person, live virtual option
Description: Provides an in-depth overview of rules and regulations for the local health department’s functionality. The audience will be familiar with the NC Administrative Code (NCAC), NC General Statutes (NCGS), Consolidated Agreement (CA), Agreement Addenda and responsibilities of the State and local health departments.
Intended Audience: Billing and Clinical Supervisors, Finance Officers
Estimated Time to Complete: 1 hour
Venue: In-person, Live virtual option
Description: Provides a comprehensive overview of financial and operational best practices for local health departments, focusing on establishing appropriate service fees, determining client eligibility and effectively managing revenue, billing and collections to support efficient and accessible public health service delivery.
Intended Audience: Clerical, Billing, and Finance Officers
Estimated Time to Complete: 45 minutes
Venue: In-person, Live virtual option
Description: Comprehensive training to effectively plan and manage LHD budgets, ensuring alignment with state regulations and public health objectives.
Intended Audience: Finance Officers
Estimated time to complete: 1 hour
Venue: In-person, Live virtual option
AFSU Consultation/ Technical Assistance
- Providing (current and lived) expertise and experience in coding and billing clinical visits including all components from walking in the door to the LHD being reimbursed (at least for Medicaid patients)
- Providing expertise with the interpretation of NCAC and CA stipulations and AA funding stipulations
- Interpreting and cross-referencing Title V and Title X with NCAC and CA stipulations, and AA funding stipulations
- Experience with and access to Division of Public Health and Division of Child and Family Well-Being program staff to collaborate, resulting in considering multiple viewpoints and expertise to weigh in (nurses, finance, and administrative)
- Ability to adapt training/TA/consultation to the specific LHD's needs because all Financial Consultants (FCs) have first-hand experience with 86 health departments and the 86+ different ways they operate
Office of the Chief Public Health Nurse
The Office of the Chief Public Health Nurse (OCPHN) provides subject matter expert consultation in clinical and public health (PH) nursing systems and operations, technical assistance, guidance and training to the NC Department of Health and Human Services, the Division of Child and Family Well-Being (DCFW), the Division of Public Health (DPH) and local health departments (LHDs) across the state in all 100 counties.
OCPHN Regional Nurse Consultants provide expert consultation, training, technical assistance and resources related to nursing administration, public health nursing practice, policies/procedures/standing orders and clinical coding integrity.
OCPHN Training
Description: Provided for participants to gain knowledge of the Evaluation and Management (E/M) section of the AMA CPT Codebook, including annual updates, and gain a basic understanding of Medical Decision Making (MDM), use of the MDM grid, and Time-based Coding for a visit.
Intended Audience: Local health department providers and staff
Estimated Time to Complete: 2 hours
Venue: In-person, live virtual option
Description: Orientation and comprehensive education for new lead nurse administrators to provide baseline knowledge regarding foundational public health leadership resources to support their role and responsibilities as a new nurse leader. This training is held as needed in person and requires independent work.
Intended Audience: Director of Nursing or Lead Nurse Administrators
Estimated Time to Complete: 7.25 hours
Venue: In-person, live virtual option
Description: Orientation and comprehensive education for new lead nurse supervisors to provide baseline knowledge regarding foundational public health leadership resources to support their role and responsibilities as a new nurse leader.
Intended Audience: Lead Nurse Administrators
Estimated Time to Complete: 2 hours
Venue: In-person, live virtual option
Description: Provides knowledge to develop public health preceptor skills to promote quality nursing care and increase staff retention. The essential qualities of a nurse preceptor will be defined, and participants will gain an understanding of how relationship-building through preceptorship in a teaching environment can improve retention in the public health team.
Intended Audience: All public health and LHD clinic nurses
Estimated Time to Complete: 2 hours
Venue: In-person, live virtual option
Description: In this course, you will gain knowledge about tools for management and leadership and leave feeling empowered to practice leadership.
Intended Audience: Nursing supervisors and staff with direct reports
Estimated Time to Complete: 90 minutes
Venue: In-person, live virtual option
Description: The purpose of this training is to understand what documentation is needed for Evaluation & Management (E/M) visits, the importance of proper documentation as it relates to ensuring payment, and why documentation is essential for correct coding and billing CPT codes.
Intended Audience: Public health nurses and ERRNs
Estimated Time to Complete: 1.5 to 2 hours
Venue: In-person, live virtual option
Description: In this training, participants will understand the purpose and use of standing orders (SO), the required, individual components of SOs and how to develop an SO.
Intended Audience: Public health nurses
Estimated Time to Complete: 1 hour
Venue: In-person, live virtual option, recorded webinar
Description: Provides education and resources for lead nurse administrators to strengthen local preparedness and response systems and describes the support provided by the Local Technical Assistance and Training Branch Command Center in partnership with NC Public Health Preparedness and Response.
Intended Audience: Lead Nurse Administrators and Nursing Supervisors
Estimated Time to Complete: 1 hour
Venue: In-person, live virtual option, recorded webinar
Recorded Webinar Materials:
Description: Provides education and resources to prepare public health nurses to work in general population shelters and describes the support provided by the Local Technical Assistance and Training Branch Command Center in partnership with NC Public Health Preparedness and Response.
Intended Audience: Public Health Nurses working in LHDs
Estimated Time to Complete: 1 hour
Venue: In-person, live virtual option, recorded webinar
Recorded Webinar Materials:
Description: Provides education and resources to prepare DHHS Public Health Nurse Consultants for disaster response roles and describes the support provided by the Local Technical Assistance and Training Branch Command Center in partnership with NC Public Health Preparedness and Response.
Intended Audience: State Public Health Nurse Consultants
Estimated Time to Complete: 1 hour
Venue: In-person, live virtual option
OCPHN Consultation / Technical Assistance
- Evaluation and Management (E/M) Guidance: Provide expertise and experience on the Evaluation and Management (E/M) section of the AMA CPT Codebook and gain basic knowledge of Medical Decision Making (MDM), use of the MDM grid, and Time-based Coding for a visit.
- Work with LHDs to ensure appropriate CPT codes have been billed and are supported by appropriate documentation. This is done through training and Clinical Record Reviews done once every three years.
- Nursing practice experts that support quality nursing standards of practice, policy and procedure development, quality clinical documentation, clinical efficiency and community health initiatives.
- Provide supportive services and nursing expertise through the LTAT Branch Command Center during statewide emergency response events requiring general population shelters. The OCPHN nurse consultants serve as liaisons for communication and logistics between LHDs/local emergency management and state emergency management services.
AFSU/OCPHN Training
Description: This presentation encourages open communication between billing staff, nursing staff and providers. This collaborative training between the OCPHN and AFSU consultants provides best practices for documentation and amendments in the medical record.
Intended Audience: Providers, Nurses and Billing Staff
Estimated Time to Complete: 1 hours
Venue: In-person, live virtual option
Description: The purpose of this training is to provide details and understanding of the administrative monitoring and clinical record review. At the end of this presentation, the local health department staff will understand what to anticipate when the review team arrives.
Intended Audience: Finance Officers, Billing Staff, Lead Nurse Administrators and Nursing Supervisors
Estimated Time to Complete: 30 - 45 minutes
Venue: In-person, live virtual option
North Carolina Credentialed Public Health Nurse Program
Description: Provides access to current evidence-based fundamental public health and public health nursing information and supports our commitment to ensuring a strong and inclusive public health workforce. The course is required for all LHD RNs functioning in PHN roles. For more information, please visit the NCCPHN Program webpage.
Intended Audience: RNs from LHDs, DPH and DCFW
Estimated Time to Complete: 15 hours/five weeks
Venue: Virtual, self-paced
Description: This training provides an overview of LHD-HSA error reports and how to use them to identify and resolve data submission issues. Participants will learn how records are validated, common reasons records are rejected, and the recommended process for researching and correcting errors. The session will also explain the relationship between Patient Master (PM), Service Record (SR), and supplemental records (P1–P8), and how errors in one record can impact others.
Intended Audience: Data Manager, Data Entry Staff, Clinical Staff, and Supervisors and Program Coordinators (optional)
Estimated time to complete: 1 hour
Venue: Virtual
Description: This training helps participants better understand how LHD-HSA quarterly and annual reports are generated and interpreted. Topics include Patient Service Reports, Principal Payor Source by Program Reports, required reporting fields, Program Types, and how submitted data impacts report output. Participants will learn how to identify discrepancies, validate report results, and utilize available tools to research and verify reported information.
Intended Audience: Data Managers, Program Managers, Supervisors, and Health Directors
Estimated time to complete: 1 hour
Venue: Virtual
Description: This session provides instruction on managing county access to the Crush SFTP Server. Participants will learn how to request new user accounts, update existing user information, reset passwords, manage account permissions, and maintain access continuity during staff turnover. Best practices for account management and security requirements will also be discussed.
Intended Audience: Crush SFTP Account Administrators and Data Managers
Estimated time to complete: 45 minutes
Venue: Virtual
Description: This training focuses on improving data quality and ensuring successful LHD-HSA file submissions. Participants will learn best practices for data entry, validation, record creation, file generation, and submission procedures. The session will review common data quality issues, methods for preventing errors, and strategies for maintaining complete and accurate reporting throughout the reporting cycle.
Intended Audience: Data Managers, Clinical Staff, Clerical Staff, and Supervisors (optional)
Estimated time to complete: 1 hour
Venue: Virtual
Description: Provides an overview of upcoming changes to the 2027 LHD-HSA record layouts and reporting requirements. Participants will learn about new, modified, and retired data elements, updates to validation rules, and any changes that may impact data collection, file generation, and submission processes. This training helps counties prepare for implementation and supports a smooth transition to the updated reporting requirements.
Intended Audience: Data Managers, Clinical Staff, Clerical Staff, and Supervisors (Attendance is strongly encouraged for counties and vendors responsible for maintaining electronic health record systems, data extraction processes, or LHD-HSA file submissions).
Estimated time to complete: 1 hour
Venue: Virtual
Contacts
If you have additional questions regarding the Local Technical Assistance and Training Branch services, please contact:
- AFSU Regional Finance Consultants: Please contact your Regional AFSU Consultant (PDF) or Janelli Campuzano, LCS Ops Manager, AFSU Supervisor - Janelli.Campuzano@dhhs.nc.gov
- OCPHN Regional Nurse Consultant Unit: Please contact your Regional OCPHN Nurse Consultant (PDF) or Jenifer Simone, ADON - Jenifer.Simone@dhhs.nc.gov
- PHNICE: Please reach out to Director of Nursing CE - Lindsay.Novacek@dhhs.nc.gov
- LHD-HSA: Please reach out to User Support Specialist – Julie.Walker@dhhs.nc.gov
This page was last modified on 07/21/2026