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Medical coding - risk for offshoring - Future coder

Posted: Feb 21, 2011

I am speaking with a counselor at a community college about a medical insurance coding certificate. I am more interested in outpatient coding in an outpatient setting and earning the CPC credential for professional coders. I really do not want to work in a hospital again. From a current medical coder's perspective, is outpatient coding and CPC a good option as compared to inpatient coding? What about the job market? Is the job marketing pretty stable for outpatient coders, who are not working in hospitals? I imagine that the outpatient-coding field will continue to grow. What about working for insurance companies or medical device, etc. companies? Is that a realistic option? AND :-), what coding jobs are at risk for offshoring -- hospital coders?

Just interested - jm

[ In Reply To ..]
Yes, it is a good option, and I am sure there are plenty of outpatient coder jobs out there. Just curious why you don't want to work in a hospital again? I find the subject interesting, because I am just the opposite.

Coding - Future coder

[ In Reply To ..]
Well, I kind of have a "bad taste in my mouth" for hospitals at this point. I have worked as an MT for many years in hospitals and during the last few years working for them, I was treated like an illiterate idiot instead of an educated professional, which I am; nobody cared about anything except "how many lines" one could do an hour. I was a good producer, naturally, but I didn't like the idea of being compared to and treated like a common assembly line worker. I always put my heart and soul into whatever I do, and I have been burned unfairly to the point of asking how could any group of people do such a thing.

Besides that, I took a job PRN as a unit secretary at a hospital. Those unit secretaries are treated like "dirt under foot" by everyone. And . . . the other unit secretaries are so bitter that the entire atmosphere was just awful, not to mention that communication was unbelievable and everyone was telling me to do something different. But . . . the entire nursing unit was "mad at the world" all the time.

Maybe doing outpatient coding for a hospital in a different setting than the HIM department or near the nursing department might be okay. At this point, just thinking about going back to a hospital makes me want to throw up.

I am interested and need a job that will either be reliable and sustainable in the future or at least I can use the information in a lateral way to work at an insurance or medical company, etc.

I see. nm - jm

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

Suggestions - Coder

[ In Reply To ..]
You might want to check below to see what has already been said on this topic. It has been discussed often.

Also check the AAPC website for information about coding and their credentials. There is a SALARY SURVEY there which should provide useful information for you. There is also a list of local chapters there. You need to find yours and attend a few meetings, talk to some actual coders, and get their impression of the job market in your area.

This is doubly important because that is the group that will offer the exam in your area. You can find out from them how many graduates of that community college program pass the exam. If there are successful graduates, they'll be at that meeting, too. If you don't find any, or if it takes the graduates a year or two to become able to pass the exam, that's a bad sign. A lot of college program grads can't pass the exam and aren't successful in the job market.

You're also likely to notice that there are CPCs there who work in hospitals. It is not entirely true that the CPC is only good for working in outpatient. Outpatient coding doesn't mean it is DONE outside of hospitals, but that it is done according to outpatient rules for specific types of services that have to be coded that way. Those types of services include ambulatory surgeries, radiology, pathology and lab, other services provided to outpatients, as well as physician services provided in the hospital and in outside offices. There are quite a lot of those services coded by coders who work for hospitals and large facilities. The number of coders who do this can easily outnumber the coders who specialize in inpatient coding.

That being said, there are loads of CPC coders who code inpatient records--what matters to most employers is that the coder is an excellent coder, not that they have one specific credential.

If the college program is only teaching outpatient coding, just recognize that it will limit your job prospects considerably. It WILL limit you to ONLY outpatient jobs, because you will have had no exposure at all to inpatient coding.

Offshoring really isn't a problem in coding. Coding isn't like MT. Coding affects revenue to such a high degree that it isn't something anyone wants to lose control of. It is also something that is being constantly audited by federal agencies, so facilities are not terribly interested in increasing their potential for being investigated and having to pay huge sums in fines. Coding that had been offshored tended to come back quickly and we pretty much do not see this any longer. Federal facilities have been prohibited from offshoring for several years, and this trend is spreading.

Coding - Future coder

[ In Reply To ..]
THANKS SO MUCH!!

I have a B.S. degree from a major university and already spent a lot of money; however, in this economy I cannot find a job of any type at all. I am working as an adjunct instrctor on a temporary basis, but that contract is up in a few weeks.

I am going to meet with an advisor tomorrow. She did tell me that they don't teach the hospital coding, per se, i.e. HIM; however, their curricula does cover both CPT, ICD, and others. I've been in healthcare for many years, and with that background, I thought that maybe this would be a great option. I am actually teaching an introductory course that covers coding aspects now. I figure that if I am good enough to teach the introductory course that I am good enough to get a certificate, take the exam, and work as a certified coder.

I did a little research and a lot of people have said that they take both the CPC and CCS exams.

You may be able to do that, but I think the CCS is more than "Introductory" level - if I am not mistaken

[ In Reply To ..]
I think the CCS exam tests at a higher level than "Introductory", but I don't believe you said that your skills were at the introductory level. You said you were teaching that that level. A person who actually only has the introductory skills that are taught in most colleges would probably not do well on that exam, to put it politely. You'll probably do fine though if your education and skills are at a higher level than introductory.

do - you mean

[ In Reply To ..]
Part of the course you are teaching covers coding, but you have never done any coding?

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