Last Updated: Oct 17, 2026
No. of Questions: 152 Questions & Answers with Testing Engine
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Short on study time for the CCDS exam? Actual4Cert packs the ACDIS Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist preparation into 152 focused practice questions and answers, so every hour you spend actually moves you closer to a passing score. No filler, no outdated material — just the topics the exam really tests, explained the way the exam asks about them.
| Certification Vendor: | ACDIS |
|---|---|
| Exam Name: | Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist |
| Exam Number: | CCDS |
| Real Exam Qty: | 140 |
| Available Languages: | English |
| Certificate Validity Period: | 2 years |
| Passing Score: | 88 correct out of 120 scored questions |
| Exam Duration: | 180 minutes |
| Exam Format: | Four answer choices (A-D), 140 questions, Multiple-choice, 120 scored questions + 20 unscored pretest questions |
| Exam Price: | USD 280 for ACDIS members / USD 380 for non-members |
| Sample Questions: | DOWNLOAD DEMO |
| Exam Way: | Computer-based examination administered through Prometric at test centers internationally or via remote proctoring. |
| Pre Condition: | Candidates must currently be employed as a concurrent or retrospective clinical documentation integrity specialist and meet one of three education/experience pathways: (1) RN, RHIA, RHIT, MD, or DO plus 2 years of CDI experience in an inpatient acute care facility using the U.S. IPPS; (2) an associate degree or equivalent in an allied health field plus 3 years of such CDI experience, with college-level medical terminology and anatomy/physiology coursework; or (3) formal accredited college-level coursework in medical terminology, anatomy and physiology, and disease process, or AHIMA CCS/CCS-P, plus 3 years of such CDI experience. A year of experience means full-time employment or more than 2,000 hours worked during that year. |
| Official Syllabus URL: | https://acdis.org/certification/ccds |
| Section | Weight | Objectives |
|---|---|---|
| Anatomy and physiology, pathophysiology, pharmacology, and medical terminology | 19.17% | - Standard medical abbreviations - Injuries, poisonings, and toxic effects of drugs - Alcohol/drug use and alcohol/drug-induced organic brain disorders - Clinical indicators and query opportunities by Major Diagnostic Category - Myeloproliferative diseases and disorders and poorly differentiated neoplasms - Mental diseases and disorders - Diseases and disorders of the nervous system - Infectious and parasitic diseases - Diseases and disorders of the musculoskeletal system - Diagnostic tests as clinical indicators - Diseases and disorders of the digestive system - Diseases and disorders of the kidney and urinary tract - Medications as clinical indicators - Diseases and disorders of the skin, subcutaneous tissue, and breast - Diseases and disorders of the respiratory system - Pharmaceuticals and disease processes - Diseases and disorders of the blood and blood-forming organs and immunological disorders - Diseases and disorders of the hepatobiliary system - Diseases and disorders of the circulatory system - HIV infections - Endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases and disorders |
| Healthcare facility CDI program analysis | 8.33% | - Severity of illness and risk of mortality - Patient Safety Indicators - Provider response rates - CDI specialist productivity metrics - Hospital Value-Based Purchasing measures - High-frequency DRGs - Tracking and trending physician, department, and hospital performance - CC/MCC capture - PEPPER data - Hospital-specific financial data - Publicly reported data - Case mix index (CMI) - Basic computer and software application skills - Physician performance measurement - CDI program forecasting |
| Professionalism, ethics, and compliance | 9.17% | - Compliance risks indicated by PEPPER - Leading queries - Medical record confidentiality - Potential DRG creep - CDI department goals beyond reimbursement - DRG compliance initiatives |
| Impact of reportable diagnoses on quality of care | 8.33% | - Hospital-Acquired Condition Reduction Program - Patient Safety Indicators - Mortality reviews and observed/expected ratios - Hospital Value-Based Purchasing - Coded data elements affecting Patient Safety Indicators - 30-day mortality measures - Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program - Documentation and code assignment impact on mortality index - Healthcare-associated infections and complication codes - CDI impact on Hospital Value-Based Purchasing - Quality data from record abstraction and claims data - Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting Program |
| Medical record documentation | 19.17% | - Translating clinical indicators into compliant queries - ACDIS/AHIMA Guidelines for Achieving a Compliant Query Practice - Clinical indicators - Addressing diagnoses without clinical support - Provider role and diagnosis code assignment - Compliant and noncompliant queries - Health record elements used for diagnosis and procedure code assignment - When a physician query is warranted - Documentation requiring clarification - Types of physician queries - Situations in which queries are not appropriate - Physician query formats |
| Healthcare regulations, reimbursement, and documentation requirements related to the IPPS | 12.5% | - Medicare Severity Diagnosis Related Groups (MS-DRGs) - Inpatient admission criteria and CMS Two-Midnight Rule - Coding and billing practices vulnerable to denial - IPPS and its updates and revisions - Principal diagnosis and medical necessity - Major complication/comorbidity (MCC) - Case mix index (CMI) - Complication/comorbidity (CC) - Medical staff and clinical staff documentation responsibilities - Documentation and medical necessity of setting - Medicare contractors and their impact on CDI - Documentation impact on IPPS reimbursement |
| Communication skills | 9.17% | - Roles and responsibilities of coders working with CDI departments - Roles and responsibilities of CDI specialists - Effective and non-confrontational physician communication - Educational presentations for healthcare departments and administration - Reconciling CDI working DRGs with final coded DRGs - Physician education forms and tools - Verbal versus written physician communication |
| Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting | 14.17% | - Working DRG assignment for multiple diagnoses - AHA Coding Clinic - Principal diagnosis assignment - Present on admission indicators - Discharge dispositions and transfers - Coding guidelines for principal diagnosis selection - Secondary diagnosis assignment - Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting updates - Hospital-acquired conditions |
The CCDS exam is the official test behind the Clinical Documentation Specialist certification, a Professional-level credential from ACDIS. Passing it validates the skills measured by the ACDIS Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist objectives and proves to employers that you can apply those skills in real-world scenarios, not just recite theory. For candidates planning a longer-term career move, the CCDS exam is often the step that turns study effort into a verifiable, resumé-ready qualification.
The ACDIS Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist blueprint is divided into 8 exam domains. The first three are Communication skills (9.17%), Professionalism, ethics, and compliance (9.17%), and Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting (14.17%). The weightings matter: they tell you where the bulk of your score comes from, so allocate study time in proportion rather than spreading it evenly. Scroll back to the exam topics section above for the complete domain-by-domain breakdown of the CCDS exam.
The ACDIS Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist exam gives you 180 minutes to work through 140 questions. Do the math before test day: divide the total time by the question count to set a steady per-question pace, and treat that number as a hard budget rather than a guideline. When a question eats more than its share, flag it and move on — a flagged question can be revisited, but lost minutes can't. Running two or three full timed mock exams in the Actual4Cert test engine before your exam date is the most reliable way to make that pacing automatic.
The passing score for the ACDIS Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist exam is 88 correct out of 120 scored questions, and the official registration fee is USD 280 for ACDIS members / USD 380 for non-members. Keep in mind that a failed attempt means paying that fee in full again — there are no discounted retakes — so booking the exam before you're ready is the most expensive shortcut in certification. A practical rule: take a timed self-assessment with Actual4Cert practice tests first, and only schedule your seat once you're scoring comfortably above the passing mark with time to spare. That buffer absorbs exam-day nerves and the handful of questions that always seem to come from nowhere.
According to ACDIS, the ACDIS Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist exam uses the following question formats: Multiple-choice, 140 questions, Four answer choices (A-D), 120 scored questions + 20 unscored pretest questions. Different formats reward different habits. For scenario-based items, read the final sentence of the question stem first so you know what's actually being asked before you dig into the details, and never change an answer unless you can point to the exact clue you missed. The Actual4Cert question bank lets you rehearse every format until each one feels routine.
ACDIS currently offers the CCDS exam in English. Choose the language you can reason in fastest under time pressure — reading speed matters more than most candidates expect. If you plan to test in English, working through Actual4Cert's 152 English practice questions doubles as terminology training, so the phrasing on exam day feels familiar rather than foreign.
The credential you earn by passing the ACDIS Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist exam remains valid for 2 years. That clock is worth protecting: set a reminder well before the expiry date and review the official recertification options early, so staying certified becomes a planned task instead of a last-minute scramble. Recertification policies are set by ACDIS and can change, so confirm the current rules on the official certification page.
Every ACDIS Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist product contains the same 152 expert-prepared practice questions; only the way you study with them changes:
Many candidates combine the PDF for daily reading with a test engine for timed weekend mock exams.
Yes. Actual4Cert offers a free PDF demo for the ACDIS Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist exam, so you can review the question style, difficulty level, and answer quality before you pay anything. Every purchase also includes 365 days of free updates — and if you'd like to extend updates after that period, you can renew at a 50% discount from your member zone. Trying first costs you nothing; it simply tells you whether our material matches the way you learn.
ACDIS adjusts its exams over time, so Actual4Cert reviews and updates the ACDIS Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist question bank on a continuous basis to reflect the current skills being tested. Your purchase includes 365 days of free updates; after that, you can repurchase the expired product at a 50% discount from your member zone. To catch a fresh release, check the New Releases section on Actual4Cert, the status on your product's download page, or the Actual4Cert newsletter — and always look for an update a few days before your exam date.
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Actual4Cert backs your purchase with a 100% Money Back Guarantee: if you take the corresponding exam within 60 days of your purchase and don't pass, you can apply for a full refund. To qualify, submit a scanned copy of your exam enrollment slip and the official Score Report PDF within 2 days after the exam — refunds are processed within 7 days of submission. Attempts made within 3 days of purchase, material for exams never actually taken, free items, and expired orders are not eligible, and the candidate name must match the payer name. Prefer new material instead of a refund? You can exchange your product for two free exam products of equal value and keep the update service on your original purchase. Delivery itself is instant: your ACDIS Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist practice questions are available for download and emailed to you within one minute of payment — if nothing arrives within 2 hours, check your spam folder and contact our support team. There's no limit on how many computers you can install the product on.
One purchase covers the whole journey: a free demo to start, instant delivery when you buy, and a full year of updates while you study. Your CCDS product arrives in your mailbox within one minute of payment — if it doesn't show up within 2 hours, our support team will sort it out — and you can install it on as many computers as you need. McAfee security services protect every transaction, and your personal information is never shared with third parties.
Ready when you are: download the free CCDS demo, pick the format that fits your routine, and start working through 152 practice questions today.
A patient develops chest pain and elevated troponins while receiving care in the emergency department. The physician diagnoses an NSTEMI. Several hours later, an inpatient admission order is written. How should the NSTEMI generally be considered for POA purposes?
Correct Answer: C 🗳️
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A CDI program reports the following monthly results:
- Provider response rate: 97%
- Provider agreement rate: 84%
- Queries issued after discharge: 38%
- CDI/coder agreement: 96%
Which metric presents the clearest opportunity to improve concurrent CDI workflow?
Correct Answer: D 🗳️
Explanation: Only visible for Actual4Cert members. You can sign-up / login (it's free).
Which statement BEST defines the principal diagnosis for an inpatient hospitalization?
Correct Answer: D 🗳️
Explanation: Only visible for Actual4Cert members. You can sign-up / login (it's free).
Each MS-DRG has a relative weight (RW). RW is primarily associated with which of the following?
Correct Answer: A 🗳️
Explanation: Only visible for Actual4Cert members. You can sign-up / login (it's free).
A patient with sepsis has acute confusion, impaired attention, fluctuating mental status, and no focal neurologic findings. CT of the head is negative. The provider documents only "AMS secondary to infection." Which clarification would be MOST clinically appropriate?
Correct Answer: D 🗳️
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