About
Applied Medical Systems
Our Team
Dan Johnson
Operations Manager
A graduate in economics from Auburn University, Dan has been in revenue cycle management for the past 23 years, managing teams, processes, and everything in between.
There is always more to do than there is time, and Dan has spent a large portion of those years attempting to automate, improve, and delegate as much work as possible in an attempt to free up time to hang out with his family, read, and ride his bicycle. He has been marginally successful in doing so.
Michelle Durner, CPA, CHBME, CRCR
President
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Rachel Mitchell, CPC-I, COC
Director of Client Development and Relations
With over 33 years spent as a “jack of all trades” in the medical field, Rachel is a Certified Coding Instructor (Since 2005), Certified Professional Coder (Since 1991) as well as billing and coding consultant for a multitude of specialties. She has spent 24 years with AMS managing client base, training providers to document and overseeing coding and billing functions.
Balance between work and home life has never been easy as Rachel’s passion for work is second to none. Her downtime consists of traveling abroad with her husband as well as snuggling with her 3 French bulldogs, Cash, Otis and Ripley.
Anna Bloch, MBA, CPC
Revenue Cycle Strategist
Anna has been with AMS since 2011 and in healthcare administration since 1998. She loves digging deep into data to find actionable trends, and has helped nearly a hundred practices improve their efficiency and profitability. Anna has an archaeology degree from the University of Michigan, an MBA from the University of North Carolina Wilmington, and in her free time loves to salsa dance and explore North Carolina’s many craft breweries.
Arcely Almanza
Medical Billing Team
Arcely has been in the optometry/ophthalmology field since 2013 and loves working in such a complex and fascinating specialty where her knack for retaining complicated billing rules makes her a fast learner. Her clients appreciate her accuracy and consistency.
Arcely is a native Dallas Texan who loves spending time with her family and chasing her two toddlers around, while still somehow finding the time and energy to work out!
Mary Buckner, CPC
Medical Coding Team
Mary has been with Applied Medical Systems since 2019. She is a Certified Professional Coder and has been coding since 2014. When she’s not coding, she enjoys traveling, listening to live music, and discovering new places to wine and dine with her husband, two children, and her dog.
Carol Buonadonna, CPC
Coding Team
Carol was employed as a medical biller with Applied Medical Systems from 2002-2014. She then decided to go back to school to pursue her longtime dream of becoming a Certified Medical Coder. In 2014, her goal was achieved! After a 7-year stint working for a small community hospital coding multispecialty outpatient surgeries, Carol returned to AMS and now codes GI endoscopic procedures.
When Carol is enjoying downtime from her busy coding schedule, she spends her time on the lake kayaking and relaxing with her dog, Evie, and cats, Cali and Roy.
Debbie Carter, CCA
Coding Team
Debbie has been an AHIMA certified coder since 2012. She joined the AMS team in 2021 with quite the history of coding experience. Her coding career started with UNC Healthcare where she retired from being a senior ophthalmology coder. Debbie then continued her career with Duke University Healthcare where she coded multiple medicine specialties. She then decided to leave her family farm in North Carolina and moved to her happy place in Murrells Inlet, South Carolina.
Debbie’s free time consists of world traveling, photography, and spending time with her son and two grandchildren as well as her cat, Buddy.
Kendall Church, CPC
Coding Team
Kendall has been with the AMS family since 2021. She has been a surgical coder since 2016, previously working for a major teaching hospital in North Carolina since 2010. She is passionate about all surgery, but has a major invested focus in Ophthalmology and Orthopedic surgery. Kendall lives on a Farmstead in North Carolina with her husband and three children.
Cyndi Cuthbertson
Coding Team
Cyndi has worked in the medical field since 1994 and has been coding since 2013. She is certified by both AHIMA and the AAPC. In her spare time, she likes to play with Skipper Bear, her Jack Russell, and spend time with her family, especially her wild little grandsons.
Vicki Davis, CPC
Coding Team
I’ve attached my headshot for inclusion on the AMS website. My bio is: “Vicki came to AMS with over 30 years of coding experience, previously working remotely for McKesson and as coding manager for Arnot Medical Services in New York. She is a wealth of knowledge in multiple specialties.
Vicki moved from the great state of New York and now lives with her husband and three of her seven children in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado.
Gabby Dickerson, CPC
Coding Team
Gabby has been coding since 2021 and specializes in Emergency Department Coding. In her free time, she loves to workout, be involved with her church, and spend time with her family and friends.
Natalie Glancy, CPPM
Practice Management Coach
Natalie has spent almost 20 years in the optometric field. She is one of the co-founders of the AMS Practice Management Coaching program, where her clear and confident communication allows her to share her extensive knowledge with her clients. Being equal parts creative and energetic, in her spare time Natalie can usually be found hiking, spending time with her family at the beach, or knitting sweaters for herself and her Boston Terriers.
Morgan Gleason, CPC
Medical Coding Team
Joining AMS in 2016, Morgan began her career as an Account Representative before becoming a Certified Professional Coder in 2019 allowing her to have a background in both Medical Billing and Coding. She demonstrates great determination in tackling any project that comes her way and strives to improve processes along the way. Her tenacity has earned her the nickname The Bulldog with AMS. She is currently the Team Lead for Coding Denials and is responsible for training, as well as informing the team of any coding policy updates or changes. When Morgan isn’t working, she enjoys bowling competitively with her husband or relaxing at home with their infant, Bailey, dog, Cane, and cat, Shadow.
Rachel Graham, CPC, CPOT, CPOC
Medical Billing Team
Rachel is a Certified Paraoptometric Coder and Certified Paraoptometric Technician and has specialized in all things optometry since 2004. Her dedication to her clients is legendary- there is nothing she does not have the confidence and determination to tackle and improve. Rachel lives in beautiful western North Carolina with her husband and her pair of Belgian Malinoises, Mallie and Eli.
Amy Jeter CPC, CHONC
Coding Team
Amy has been working in the medical field since 1997. She has worked in multiple fields including Billing and Coding. She became a certified coder in 2005. She is the team lead for our Telehealth and Multi-Specialty teams. Her specialties include Oncology/Hematology, Gastroenterology, Telehealth, and multiple specialties for profee coding. She loves spending time with her family and friends taking trips from the beaches to the mountains.
Chrissi Johnson, CPC, CPCS
Medical Billing Team
A Certified Professional Coder and credentialing specialist who has been with AMS for 15 years, Chrissi is a self-proclaimed “curious button pusher” who never shrinks from a challenge. This makes her one of the best problem-solvers on the team. Chrissi has lived all over the Midwest and East Coast and now makes her home in North Carolina with her teenage daughter and “way too many cats.”
Addie Kimball, CPC, CPB, CEDC
Medical Coding Team
Addie has been coding since 2017 and has been with AMS since 2019. She specializes in Emergency Department coding. Addie enjoys spending time with her husband, 2 kids, and dog.
Cerissa Kimball, CPC, CPB, CPCO, CGSC, CPCD, CUC
Medical Coding Team
Cerissa has been with Applied Medical Services since April 2022. Prior to that she worked with Arnot Medical Services in Elmira, NY for five years. She has a passion for all things surgical coding and staying compliant with the multitude of payor rules and regulations. Currently residing close to the beach, she is learning how to transition from lake life to beach life!
Jacob McArdle, CPC
Coding Team
Joining AMS in 2020, Jacob has spent two-thirds of his coding career with the company. He started out coding in the Emergency Department and since then has expanded his areas of expertise to Telehealth, GI, and IP Trauma/Critical Care. Currently, as the Team Lead for the ED coders, Jacob communicates policy and procedure updates with the team and conducts training.
After growing up in Wilmington, Jacob traveled and lived all over the US before returning to North Carolina and settling in Raleigh.
Kelly McCarthy
Medical Billing Team
Kelly has over 30 years in various realms of the optometry field, including starting her own optical billing company. She has worked exclusively in billing for the last 5 years, her favorite task being tackling the messiest AR reports she can find. Kelly lives in New England with her rescue animals and husband. A trained meteorologist, she loves it there because the weather is never boring!
Amber McKenna, CPC, CRC, CEMC, CHONC
Medical Coding Team
Amber has been coding since 2012 and specializes in multi-specialty evaluation and management. In her free time, Amber enjoys spending time with her family and two German Shepherds. She also enjoys traveling.
Paula Melendez, CPC, CDEO, CEDC, CEMC
Coding Team
Paula joined AMS in September 2020, bringing over 18 years of coding experience in various specialties and settings. She currently codes critical care and telehealth for multiple medicine as well as surgery specialties.
In addition to her part-time work here at AMS, Paula holds a longstanding full-time position with an out-of-state level 1 trauma center. She thrives in both jobs with attention to detail, self motivation and coding research.
Brenda Michaels, RHIT
Coding Team
Brenda joined AMS with over 16 years of coding experience in multiple specialties to include emergency medicine, observation, GI, and oncology. When she is not busy coding emergency medicine charts, she enjoys spending time with family and friends. Traveling and game nights are two of her favorite pastimes. Additionally, Brenda is the undisputed ping-pong champion in her family.
Beth Mosley, CPC
Coding Team
Beth has worked in the medical field since 1991. She became a Certified Professional Coder in 2004 and has coded several specialties to include emergency medicine, GI, critical care/trauma, and telehealth.
Beth is a Raleigh native and is a passionate North Carolina State football fan. Some of her personal interests include traveling to the beach, swimming, and spending time with friends and family.
McKenna Motsinger, CPC
Coding Team
McKenna came onboard with AMS in December of 2021 fresh from taking her coding certification. She has been coding telehealth cases for multiple medicine and surgical specialties.
In her free time, McKenna enjoys spending her time with her husband and two children. She also loves crafting with her daughter.
Gabi Nelson, CPC
Coding Team
Gabi worked as a pharmacy technician for many years until her focus turned to medical coding. After completing her CPC in 2020, she began working for Applied Medical as an emergency medicine coder and the rest is history.
When Gabi is not coding or working part-time at the pharmacy, she spends her time weightlifting and jet-setting all over the country with her husband, Pat.
Sunni Nelson, CPC, CPPM
Practice Management Coach
Sunni is a Certified Professional Coder and one of the co-founders of the AMS Practice Management Coaching program. Sunni’s background is in optometric practice management. Sunni is currently pursuing a BSBA in Healthcare Management. When not studying, she loves watching football and murder shows and being chased around by her cocker spaniel, Piper.
Terri Pellicano, CPC
Medical Billing Team
A Certified Professional Coder who has been with AMS since 2014, Terri’s strengths lie in her ability to absorb information quickly, then apply her knowledge in creative ways toward her client’s needs. Terri has a degree in music marketing and loves going on adventures with her daughter, Bella, and her dog, Roxie.
Brittany Phillips
Medical Billing Team
Joining the team in 2019, Brittany brought a decade of optometry expertise as well as truly epic technical writing skills. She quickly masters every EHR she sees and can turn even the most complicated process into a series of easy steps. Brittany has traveled to at least 15 countries and is fluent in French but her happy place is always wherever her pup, Gus, is.
Maggie Sambraus
Medical Billing Team
Maggie has worked in the medical field for 22 years- from psychiatry to pediatric urgent care, there’s hardly a specialty she hasn’t tackled. This experience has made her a truly gifted and compassionate communicator. Maggie loves traveling to the Caribbean but when home in North Carolina, she and her husband love a good road trip, complete with country roads, country music, and their dog, Dolly Parton.
Allison Sawyer
Medical Billing Team
Allison has been in the medical field for over 25 years and has experience in Ophthalmology, Optometry, Podiatry, and Dermatology but she says Gastroenterology is her favorite – “The GI tract is amazing!” Allison’s wide experience and flexible communication style allows her to excel at designing training and process improvement programs for her team and clients.
Originally from California, Allison moved to North Carolina with her family in 1992 where they enjoy the beautiful outdoors – beaches, lakes, camping and gardening.
Julie Stachurski
Medical Billing Team
Julie has been in the medical billing field for almost a decade. Her superpower is pattern recognition within complex data sets. She holds a B.S. in Mathematics and is currently studying Applied Statistics at Penn State University. Julie recently moved back to her hometown in western Pennsylvania where she is renovating her 70-year-old home with the help of her canine sidekick, Raven.
Pragna Thacker
Medical Billing Team
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Suzanne Tingen, CPC, CPMA, CRC, CEDC
Medical Coding Team
Suzanne is a Certified Professional Coder and Certified Medical Record Auditor with over 25 years of experience in the medical field. She is the AMS imperium of all things coding and documentation for emergency medicine.
No grass grows under Suzanne’s feet, as she works full time for AMS as well as owns her own business all while having a young daughter at home. Her work ethic is second to none!
Stacey Wennerberg CPC, CCS-P
Medical Coding Team
Stacey has dual certifications in coding from AAPC and AHIMA and has been coding for 12 years. Stacey specializes in multi-speciality evaluation and management and orthopedic surgeries. In her free time, Stacey enjoys spending time with her husband, two kids and dog. She also enjoys traveling and watching/cheering for Chicago sports teams.
Angie Whitlock, RN, BSN, CPC
Coding Team
Angie Whitlock is a Registered Nurse who graduated with a BSN from Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA in 1996. After 17 years as a RN and the birth of two children, she decided she needed a change and pursued a career as a Medical Coder. She received her certification in 2013 through AAPC and joined Applied Medical Systems shortly thereafter. Her specialties include coding in Cardiac Catheterization Lab, Telehealth, Pediatrics, General Medicine, and Plastic Surgery.
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