Caregiver Feature
MySpace: Crystal Watters Coder II, Health Information Management
Published November 2025 in Fall 2025
Behind every medical procedure is a complex coding process. Crystal Watters’ expertise ensures accurate documentation that helps patients and providers navigate insurance requirements.
When you are treated at a hospital, you are probably not thinking much about how the costs of your care are tracked. However, your arrival triggers a complicated process in which every treatment you receive, every medication you are given, is notated by nurses and physicians and then must be transcribed into a numerical code that will be used for billing.
That’s where Crystal Watters, Coder II for Health Information Management, comes in.
“Each procedure and each diagnosis that a patient receives has a code that goes on the claim to the insurance company,” Crystal said. “Coding is about getting the correct information for patients to get their claims and services paid. A Coder puts what the physicians and providers do into a language that the insurance companies can understand.”
A 10-year veteran of Monument Health, Crystal codes for all of General Surgery and Trauma Surgery across the organization. She spends a lot of time interpreting and clarifying physician notes.
“Insurance things are hard enough as it is, so we want to input the correct information and get reimbursement for the organization. We don’t want to have that burden for our patients. We also need to be in federal compliance,” she said.
Crystal and her fellow Coders once relied on reference books to find the right codes. The books, which she called “big and cumbersome” are still in use today, though most coding is now done using software. “There’s a lot in my head, but there’s a lot of things that you just can’t memorize. So we start with an electronic dictionary, where you put in the first few words of the procedure or diagnosis, then drill down to the most specific procedure or diagnosis.”
Originally from Iowa, Crystal moved to Spearfish from Wheatland, Wyoming, where she started out posting payments at a clinic while working as a dental assistant. She was ultimately approached about taking on the role of Billing and Coding Manager for the clinic. Unfamiliar with the duties of the job, she simply learned as she went. “When I moved here, I had been on that Coder path and that’s what I wanted to do,” she said.
In addition to her duties at Monument Health, Crystal is the President of the local chapter of American Academy of Professional Coders, an organization for fellow Coders to get education, share information and network. “I presented for the national conference in Orlando this year on bariatric surgery/obesity medicine, which is rapidly evolving with the growing impact of weight loss drugs,” Crystal said.
“My presentation was called ‘The Skinny on Bariatric Surgery and Medical Weight Loss Management.’ After that, somebody at the Obesity Medicine Association asked me to speak at their conference at the end of April at National Harbor in Washington, D.C. Looking at the speaker list and seeing Ph.D.s and M.D.s, was intimidating. Then I remembered that even though they are experts in their part of this, I’m an expert in my part. It was a really great experience.”
Crystal has since presented to the American Academy of Pediatrics and will present this November to the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery in Louisville, Kentucky.
The thing Crystal likes most about her job is interacting with physicians and collaborating with them to clarify their documentation. “My providers are awesome. They’re so supportive of me, and they just help me learn and be a better coder. Their clinical brain and my coder brain don’t always say the same thing and in that case we work together to translate their words into a code that fits.”
In her spare time, Crystal loves to go to indoor climbing gyms and attend concerts. Her favorite venue is Red Rocks in Colorado, where she’s seen artists like Nine Inch Nails, Tom Petty and Soundgarden.
Our Patient Financial Service Advocates are dedicated to supporting patients in navigating the financial aspects of their health care journey. From assisting with insurance claims to offering flexible payment options and financial assistance, we work to ensure patients have the resources and support they need to manage their health care expenses with confidence. To learn more, click here.