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I want to be a coder so bad but no one will give me a chance....aaaghhh - frustrated

Posted: Mar 07, 2013

I spent two years getting my degree and then my RHIT and then my CPC, but I cannot get a job and am beyond frustrated!!!!! I worked in medical billing before I became an MT, but that was years ago, but that doesn't even matter because I get the same answer every time I apply, "no experience, sorry, we can't hire you." Boooo!!!!!! I feel like I've wasted two years of life putting myself through school, working nights, spending time away from my family...for what...to be an MT again!!! Yuck, I hate MTing, but have to pay my bills. I don't know what else I can possibly do. I've applied for outpatient coding, inpatient coding, HIM jobs, medical billing, even a file clerk and all have been NO. I've attended my local AHIMA meetings, networked myself, but apparently my credentials mean nothing. Sorry all, just needed to vent.....aaahhhhhhh

i feel for you - x

[ In Reply To ..]
I was also a MT for a very long time and just made the transition to being a coder. I just want to give you positive feedback and positive thoughts. You have achieved so much!!! Yes, I understand the bills need to be paid, and you want to start your new career. Understandably so. Just know that there are places out there who do hire people with no experience. I am eternally grateful for the opportunity that I have been given. The salary is LOW, but I need the experience above all things. The salary will come in time and with credentials. Traveling on the road 2 hours a day. Not complaining, still grateful and loving the job. I feel your frustration, and just know that it is not impossible. Best of luck.

Are you driving? - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
How is it going? Are you driving 1 hour each way? Cost of gas and low pay? How are you doing it? I want to do that, but not sure I can. I would have to communte at least that far, and with the low pay and cost of gas, it's just not practical, but I think I will need to widen my horizons. Thanks for your inspiration and posting here. It keeps me going!

are you driving - answer - OP

[ In Reply To ..]
Thanks for asking. It's going okay. I am actually driving to the country instead of the city, so the drive is very pleasant, and I have no traffic whatsoever. Yes, I am spending approx. $50/week on gas, and it's a challenge to keep up with the house. I have been cooking 3 meals (or at least the main part of it) on the weekends and then just pull it out in the evening when I get home, cook some rice or pasta, salad, and there's supper! My son and husband have been pitching in and doing extra around the house. They want me to succeed.

It was a no-brainer decision for me because I needed a job in coding, any job, and this is what was offered to me. Out of about 5 applications, they are the only people who called me for an interview. I will get no increase in pay when I get my credentials, no increase for anything because they have been on a freeze for several years. I will also not be reimbursed for any of my credentialing exams. BUT, I am okay with that. I knew I would start out at the bottom, and this is the salary I expected. It's still a lot more than I was bringing home as a MT in the past few years. The sky is the limit after a couple of years. Good luck to you.

This worries me - worried

[ In Reply To ..]
I am going to start taking courses (4 to be exact) at a local community college which will allow me to take the CPC exam but I am worried about having no experience when I finish school and whether or not I can get a job. I am also an MT whose job was eliminated because of outsourcing. I now work in a medical office scheduling appts and checking in patients but would much rather be working at home again doing transcription but I know that is soon to be a thing of the past, so that is why I am looking into coding. What do you all think? Any advice is much appreciated!

I think you should stop worrying - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
The people who are having trouble getting a coding job are mostly unable to get ANY job that would even lead to a coding job.

You are not in that position because you already have a job in a medical office, which is where you want to be. When you finish your coding course, you aren't going to be trying to "get a job." You'll be trying to get a different job. In other words, unless you quit your current job, you won't be unemployed and desperate.

Furthermore, you are working in a setting in which it is very easy to GET experience. You're IN an office that DOES coding, so you can help out, expand your role, and augment your learning. You can even use that experience to remove the A from your CPC-A.

I would not worry about this. Don't set up roadblocks and fears that aren't really there. Just take the courses, learn what you can, and get certified. Education never hurts.

I don't know what type of course you are going to take, but if it isn't terribly expensive, go for it. You can always take another course later if you need to.

Mismatched credentials - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
My guess is that you may be putting potential employers off by sending the wrong credential message. There is more behind the credentials than you may realize.

You have an RHIT and attend AHIMA functions, and presumably apply for jobs in hospitals and other places where are employers are primarily AHIMA-credentialed. That is fine, so far.

The problem is that your coding credential is from a "rival" organization, the AAPC. You might not know that the two organizations have a long-standing feud going about whose coding credentials are better. To a lot of AHIMA folks, the AAPC's coding credentials are meaningless.

In essence, you have inadvertently allied yourself with the enemy by advertising the "wrong" credential, and it is a credential they do not accept.
If you are a member, they will refuse to accept it as another credential, although they will accept credentials from organizations they accept. Just try to update your member info with it.

You can improve things, believe it or not, by using only the RHIT. Get the CCS, or the CCS-P, or barring those, the CCA. Use those to establish yourself.

You may also live in an area where the local AHIMA culture values coming up through the ranks. Take any job you can get in HIM. The people doing the hiring likely did that, so they expect you to do so. Expecting to come straight into coding may seem presumptuous.

Also, you cannot have the CPC if you have no coding experience. Be sure to use the correct credential, the CPC-A. You should have gotten one year's experience waived because of your degree, so mention that you only need one more year. If you do somehow have the full CPC, be sure to provide evidence of that, because everyone will assume that you could not possibly have it.

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