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After being a MT for 20 years, I found success as a Medical Coder. - MO-CPC

Posted: Jan 26th, 2019 - 12:17 pm In Reply to: Coding and Billing Courses - TomKat

In my opinion, medical coding should be a natural fit for an experienced MT. It all just clicked with me. I made the move to coding a year and a half ago. I worked in a hospital as a medical transcriptionist and I had the unique opportunity to move into coding as the administrator for this small hospital prefers to promote from within. My boss, the coding manager, suggested I do an online coding "boot camp" through a company called HCPro. It cost $1600 and it was a three month program. It consisted of 44 (I think) modules. I basically logged into the HCPro website and watched each module. At the end of each module there are practice questions and after each question, you are told if you are correct or not and are given the rationale for the correct answer. At the end of all 44 modules, there is a 40 question practice certification exam. Because I had such a strong medical background from 20 years of transcription, I found the boot camp very helpful. You have three months from the first time you log in to complete the boot camp and then you will lose access to it, but if you are disciplined and work on it every day, you'll get it done in plenty of time to even go back over some of the modules if you need to which I did. Also there are handouts and worksheet you can print out, as well as printing out the slides for each module which I found useful. I printed out the slides and made notes all over them as I watched the modules.

After I finished the boot camp, I purchased two different 150-question CPC practice exams. Everyday for a month and a half, I got these tests out and just coded from the books. There were a couple of very useful YouTube videos on how to tab your books which were extremely helpful. I just passed my certification test on my first try in December which made me a CPC-A (apprentice), but my boss and one of my coworkers wrote letters of recommendation to the AAPC and they removed the apprentice status and I am now a fully fledged CPC.

I don't know why anyone would try to discourage you from trying. It is hard work and takes discipline, but it is so worth it. I am now out of transcription and making more money than I was with all my years experience in transcription and have so much more job security.

I say go for it and good luck!

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- After being a MT for 20 years, I found success as a Medical Coder. - MO-CPC
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