A question for coders, please

I would love to get the point of view of others on this topic. I've been watching coders for years, our graduates and others. I've found from my own experience that the best coders are people who enjoy more structure than one might find in medical transcription, for example. People who enjoy accounting, bankers, medical office managers, many nurses, and sometimes burned-out MTs. If you have 10 medical transcriptionists transcribe a report, you may have that many different versions, ea ...

requirements say that education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. If we did not attend an accredited school, can we still apply? It says applicants must only report attendance or degrees from such. So, don't bother reporting if you didn't attend an accredited school? How's that work? ...

to check out coding and what it is all about before going through a course. I am interested in doing coding but am unsure if it is right for me. Thank you for your thoughts and input. ...

Two, actually, if that's alright... 1. What do you love most about your job? 2. If you weren't a coder, what would you be? There is no real reason behind my questions -- no ulterior motive as it were -- just plain ole curiosity. ...

You better be learning the ICD-10. It starts in October. Hopefully you are not just learning ICD-9, because that will be all gone soon. I would ask about the ICD-10, if you are not learning the new up and coming codes, it sounds like this company will use you and then throw you away. ...

How did the coding program work out for those of you "aces" that got in? I would love to get into coding..I am really getting to where I hate transcription and seriously considering heading for the door..in fact I have applications and resumes circulating and am really hoping for a change. ...

What is the average hourly pay for coders? How would you say the income compares with medical transcription. I have been a medical transcriptionist for 14+ years, and looking into coding. I actually used to do some light coding and billing years ago, but it was for a OB/GYN practice back in the day. ...

I spent the better part of today looking at jobs other than MT. Although very few hospitals had openings for MTs (they probably don't even have an MT Dept. anymore), there were coder jobs at almost every facility. None of the ads I looked at gave a wage. What does an experienced (5+ years) coder usually make? Are you paid on production, or by the hour? Is coding done on a computer? What sort of software is used, and in your own experience, is it better t ...

I am going to apply for the coding program at my local community college. I have just finished the required prerequisite courses. I have been a transcriptionist for 30+ years and am having to start over at 60. Could you please tell me if coders are paid by the hour or are they paid piece work? I'm also wonder if you think there will be jobs to be had after going through school. Thanks! ...

Do most of you work in hospitals and clinics or at home? ...

Where do coders go to look for remote and/or in-house jobs? Thanks ...

Just visiting your board to ask a question out of ignorance. I'm an MT working for a hospital, doing straight transcription. There's been a growing trend for the hospitalists to dictate absolutely HUGE, long H&Ps/discharges ... including every stinkin' lab test and diagnostic procedure the patient has had for the last decade, it seems. Most of the reports are walls o' text, as these docs go on and on and bleepin' ON for at least four to five pages of transcribed dic ...

Hi all you MTs-to-Coders! I am curious to know why you left MT for coding? Burnout? Better suited to your personality? Better pay? Also, in conjuction to that, what kind of MT eduction did you have? Learn on the job? School? I ask because I'm trying to decide whether to go into MT or coding--I'm leaning toward MT through Andrews right now (for numerous reasons), but am looking for a perspective from the other end of the tunnel, so to speak. Thanks! ...

Deal with the RACs? Is your accuracy rate based on how many they say are in error? How about the stress related to that? ...

I'm currently an MT for many years, in the process of enrolling to take a coding program at a community college (waitlisted at the moment). I've done much research before making this decision, but have never spoken to someone who actually works in coding. I have some general questions regarding what you think of the profession -- do you like your job? If so, what is it that you like? Do you find it at all monotonous or is there some variety in what you do? I wonder if it ma ...

With all of this outsourcing of MT/Editors, what does the future look like for medical coders? I have heard that Nuance has developed software to "assist" the coder. My concern is that it is going to REPLACE the coder. Any thoughts? ...

Is anyone willing to share their pay rate per chart for outpatient remote contract coding? I am also curious if you ever get an increase in your pay rate or is this renegotiated in your contract. ...

Some of us have worked REALLY hard to get where we are, and it is kind of an insult to that. I am happy for you, truly I am, but really . . . would a nursing assistant call themselves an RN? Perhaps you will understand why when you get through all of your training. Secondly, I can only attest to where I work, as an outpatient coder. I do not make $30 an hour and never will. Not close that. So unless M*Modal pays so much more than a hospital (and they sur ...

I'll start off with some office supply suggestions. Code books have really thin pages, and really teeny writing, so you will want to highlight a FEW choice items. This has to be done *modestly* without ruining them. Regular highlighters will bleed through. Too much highlighting and note-writing will ruin them. AHIMA and AAPC have different requirements for writing in books. Be sure to review that before you staple, paste, glue, tape, write, or highlight. &n ...

They are usually trained to do only one particular type of report, not everything, and so they are not really trained as MTs. Can coding for institutions be broken down like that? I had a friend who worked as a coder at a local hospital. All she was given to do was outpatient ERs, and the "real" coders did all the inpatient work. Being MM, I'm sure they can make your training as "coders" almost worthless. ...

I was wondnering if any of you work as coders from home. ...

How many of you who are working coders work in only one specialty, such as cardiolgy or orthopedics, etc. How many of you do ALL specialties? How many do out-patient vs. acute care (hospital) coding? I'm not sure if there are really many working coders on here, but if you are here, thanks in advance for the information. I'm always interested in learning more. ...

I was wondering if anybody knew of any companies that hire entry level coders. I went to school and got my CCA certificate, but have never done coding in a clinical setting. I'm also a medical transcriptionist with 20 years experience. ...

This may be a dumb question - Do coders work various shifts or usually just during the day? Do they work weekends? Is there ever a need for a chart to be coded "stat" like there is with MT? Do any coders work part time? Thanks for any info. ...

We are being QA'ed into oblivion at our facility. We have our RAC audits, our internal QA, and an outside agency that does QA audits on each coder. We are constantly in a QA cycle for someone, and it is getting to be so tiring. Each reviewer sees things a little differently so one thing may be correct for our internal QA but an error for our external. Can't win. Anyway, I am currently doing outpatient coding. Our facility uses EpicCare for clinical d ...

Just curious. And if so, do coders work as the primary billilng person as well or do they having a billing person and a coder. I don't see too many jobs advertised for coders so I was wondering... maybe not all have them. ...

There is a poster there who is posting blatantly wrong information about coding. Someone needs to post the correct information. I corrected one of the errors, but someone with more experience could probably do a better job of providing the facts. ...

I am considering coding as a career. Are current coders being trained already in ICD-10? Would I be expected to know how to code this way or will my employer supply the training? I am willing to do the training on my own, but was wondering the time frame for implementation of ICD-10, so I can plan my training and job search accordingly. Also what would this mean in terms of credentials? CCS test to include both 9 and 10, or is this all too far in the future? I ...

I was wondering about what on a background check would prohibit one from getting a job as a coder at a hospital. I know the obvious, but what about a misdemeanor DUI from the late 1980s on an otherwise clean-as-a-whistle record with someone who has great credit to boot? Would that be a deal breaker? The applicant would have the preferred credentials in place and would otherwise be a good candidate. ...

A question for coders, please - Student

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Thank you for your reply! - Student

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