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Advice on tabbing ICD-9 book - Coding student

Posted: Sep 01, 2013

I am a new student with an ICD9 book from Buck, volumes 1,2 and 3. Can anyone give me advice on how to tab it? Right now I've just divided the sections. Other classmates have tabbed everything. Is that the best way?

The only tabbing I do ... - Minimalist Coder

[ In Reply To ..]
That's a good question! I know coders who tab all over the place, but I don't. I do have reasons for that.

The big reason is that I can't stand the way it looks with all those little flaps hanging out all over. They are really difficult to affix neatly. Plus, they tear half out, get grimy, and feel sticky around the edges. Put the book in a tote and they get all smushed.

The next reason is that once you get used to them, you are dependent on them. If you need to use someone else's book, you're stuck because their tabs won't look like your tabs. Every time you get a new book, you have to put the tabs on before you can use it. Publishers change the tabs, or stop providing them, and then you are stuck.

And how often do you get a new book? Every year. Pretty soon, you'll dread the annual Ritual of the Tabs. October will start coming sooner and sooner. You'll begin to loathe the sight of pumpkins and Halloween candy, seeing only tabs, tabs, and more tabs.

Do you need tabs? Nope. The stuff in your book will stay right where it is without those tabs! You'll figure out where it is quickly enough. I just open it to right where I want.

Does your book have colored page edges, even if they are in shades of gray? That tells you right where you are. (For your next book, get an Ingenix Professional.)

Do I ever tab? Sometimes. I often use a post-it tab on Vol. 3, or on some section I use a lot, like maybe a particular portion of the V codes. Not the front of the V codes, but a page inside it perhaps. I also might use a removable tab on a section I use infrequently or which is not very big, like the table of drugs and chemicals.

My recommendation is for minimal tabbing using removable tabs. Affix them to major sections like Vol 1, 2, and 3, and to specific parts as you study them. Just until you get the hang of where they are. That happens very quickly if you don't tab much.

I was never a tabber - You

[ In Reply To ..]
get to know where things are quite quickly. Tabbing is not necessary, unless you like it. Some people are tabbers some are not I guess.

Thank you both for your responses! - You make good points

[ In Reply To ..]
I don't think I'm going to be much of a tabber either. :)

Tabbing ICD -9 - Patricia

[ In Reply To ..]
I have a word doc you have use; since you are enrolled in a coding course you should check out
www.medbillnetwork.com
There's a lot of information there and it's free like this site.

It's for people enrolled in MBC courses. You may find something about tabbing your codebooks there.

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