A community of 30,000 US Transcriptionist serving Medical Transcription Industry

Glad I found you guys, MT to CPC question - Shay

Posted: Mar 28, 2012

I'm so glad this board is here. I have been an MT for 19 years. I'm trying to break into the coding field. I have worked around medical records for my entire career, first med records job (I know it's not called that any more) in 1979. Then I worked in a hospital clinical area, then as an MT for 19 years while my kids were at home.

I would like to translate this experience into a coding position. In my MT work, I have mostly done acute care work, some outpatient procedures and emergency medicine, but my real love has alway been acute care.

I'm afraid I made a mistake. My instructor said that sitting for my CPC would be the best way to land a job in coding. I sat for my CPC and passed the exam, though I'm certain I need more experience to really be a good coder.

Basically my questions are.

Did I waste my time/money sitting for the CPC?

Also, how do you get a job with no experience? The postings I have seen so far require experience. I obviously don't have that experience as I have the CPC-A for apprentice and need 2 years experience to have the apprentice designation removed.

I don't mind sending out resumes to a million people, but without experience, how can you convince an employer to even look at your resume or talk you?

Thanks for being here. And...thanks for trying to keep things positive. I appreciate the helpful positive answers on this board, not just a gripe board.

Oops, now I see, no amount of outpatient experience prepares you for Inpatient coding - Shay

[ In Reply To ..]
I really want to do inpatient coding. I'm an acute care kind of girl, have done MT work in all specialties, but now I'm assuming I should find a program to help me pass the CCS.

Do you think having the CCS, without experience would be meaninful to employers and help me land a job?

Yes, having the CCS will help, with or without experience - see message

[ In Reply To ..]
It all depends on what a particular employer decides, of course, but most are thrilled to have a CCS, even if they don't have experience.

As far as the 'A' on the CPC-A - See message

[ In Reply To ..]
At Andrews, all you have to do is ask the school to write a letter and AAPC takes a year off the 2-year experience requirement. Ask your school if they will do that. I'm not sure what the requirements are for the school, but your school probably knows. That will help a little, but still doesn't get you past the 'no experience' predicament.

Thanks for your help - Shay

[ In Reply To ..]
I'm going to start studying for my CCS then. I see myself more as an inpatient type of person.

I worked next to the hospital coders when I was a chart analyst way back in the early '80s. I was interested back then. I wish I would have pursued the career then...oh well. Shoulda, coulda, woulda...

Question for you - Coder

[ In Reply To ..]
Just curious as to how you prepared for the CPC. On your own or a course? I have a reason for asking.

Do not worry about the A hampering your prospects. Most employers are so happy to find a credentialed coder they will not care.

Do not worry too much that job ads state experience. I know few fields where employers prefer the inexperienced. You just have to make a case for yourself and pursue employment aggressively.

Your med recs background is a big plus. Emphasize it. If you did record analysis, you have valuable sklls. They apply directly to coding, especially inpatient.

Inpatient involves an entire stay, not just one office visit, x-ray, or surgical procedure. You have to go through the whole thing and sum it all up in one set of codes. More decisions. More knowledge of medicine. More putting 2 and 2 together. With your background, you can do that. Most coders going into inpatient have to be taught how the record is structured, how hospital medical care works in the US, and how to read all that. They literally do not know what an admission is or the difference between a consult and a discharge summary. You already know that.

If you have an ICD-9 book containing Vols 1, 2, and 3, the inpatient guidelines will be in front of the guidelines in Vol 2. Vol 3 will be what you use to code inpatient procedures. If you have an outpatient only book, get the guidelines from the CDC website. Those guidelines will help you see how the thinking goes.

It is difficult to find an inpatient course that does not involve learning coding all over again and taking forever to do it. HCPro has a bootcamp, but you should be able to get a good feel for it on your own with a copy of Faye Brown. Do every page of it including the cases at the back, do every page of AHIMA's Clinical Coding Workout, and do their CCS review book. The American Hospital Association has an ICD-9 textbook now, which would make a good addition to Faye Brown. You sound like a smart cookie, so I believe you can do this.

Do not just send resumes for this job. Call, ask to visit, volunteer, and take even the smallest, most trivial job to get experience. Once you have some experience, you have it. Employers stop focusing on it as much.

Employers need you to show them that you are not a dud. You can do that with credentials. You CAN get a job with a CPC, but you might need to start in an outpatient setting. For you, take anything you can for now. Try for a large multispecialty clinic or surgery center. Keep looking for a hospital job doing ambulatory care coding. You can move into inpatient more esaily from there.

My Preparation - Shay

[ In Reply To ..]
Community college course. We just worked through Carol Buck's Step-by-Step book. My instructor was lovable but I would have liked to have seen more hands-on coding. I can read the book and power point slides to myself. I didn't need someone to lecture by reading them to me.

Anyway, we went through that book. I had the workbook that went with that Step-by-Step book but I did not use that. I bought a review book for a certification exam review class but then the class was canceled. Rather than wait for the next class (taught by my same instructor) I figured I would work through that book on my own. I found the errors in that book to be distracting so I just halfheartedly went through that. I did use 3 on-line exam review tests from AAPC, each test was 50 questions.

I do believe I would be able to do a bootcamp and review and be able to study for the CCS exam on my own as I am extremely motivated. I did my studying for the CPC while taking 9 other credits. I may just cut back to one class next semester to allow more time for CCS exam review.

Oh...one more thing. I read the guidelines, read the guidelines, then read the guidelines again. Each time I learned something else interesting and important so I really do believe reading the guidelines over and over was helpful. It was for me anyway.

Thanks for your help, Coder. I copied your above reply to use as a guide as to what steps I might take to continue on my coding quest.

OK, excellent response - Coder

[ In Reply To ..]
You are a self-teacher, so I think you can do this. You are smart if you passed the CPC before completing your course. That course will qualify for a 1-year letter for the CPC.

Buck is mostly outpatient with minimal coverage of diagnosis coding. You will like Faye Brown a lot, I think. It is very mature and professional, and focused to a higher level. Much more detailed. It is published by AHA, so it is accurate. It includes guidance from Coding Clinic, even though it might not say so, so you will be ok there.

If you will reply to me by email, I will see if I have a book or two that you could use. I would be happy to advise during your adventure. I do not think it will ake very long--a couple of months perhaps. (No charge.)

Let me know here if you do or do not email so I will know to look in my spam filter for the email.

Coder, I sent you an email - MT2Coder

[ In Reply To ..]
Sorry for the delay.

MT to CPC - still transcribing

[ In Reply To ..]
I took the AAPC course and sat for and passed my CPC 8 years ago. I have tried for years to land a coding position, but have never landed a job because they all wanted experience (with or without) the certification. I have known RHIT's with no experience who landed hospital coding jobs, but I don't think CPC carries the same weight (in my experience, anyway).

It depends on where you are but you are right - Not the same weight

[ In Reply To ..]
That is why we stress the importance of getting the CCS. It seems to depend on where you are located, but what you noticed does hold true. Some here will say that it is not the case in their hospitals and they know CPCs who are hospital coders, but by and large the CPC does hold little weight for hospital coding.

There is a good reason for that--the CPC is for outpatient coding. Hospitals do some of that, and some may do quite a bit, but their big concern is inpatient coding. Inpatient coding follows different and more complicated guidelines, covers days, weeks, and often months of care, involves diseases more complex than can be treated in an office and procedures too complicated to be done on an outpatient basis, and affects hospital statistical data and reimbursement of much larger amounts where failing to make a cnnection and pick up one little thing can have serious results.

Outpatient coding involves individual office or outpatient services, straightforward diagnosis coding, and procedure coding that can be challenging but which is different. It does not require the same knowledge of disease conditions or of ICD-9 coding guidelines and does not involve DRGs or POA at all. That is why it can be taught as fast as the AAPC courses teach it.

That is the main reason hospital inpatient coders are expected to have the CCS rather than the CPC. The CPC just doesn't say anything about an individual's ability to code inpatient. Neither does the CPC-H, for that matter.

If you have both CCS and CPC, you are way ahead - of the game

[ In Reply To ..]
You have many more options if you have both the CCS and the CPC. Your chances of success are better.

So why, then, would it benefit me to be a CCS, CPC? - MTforNow

[ In Reply To ..]
Should I just strive for the CCS and skip the CPC?

Seems like a lot of CECs to keep up with, $$$ annually, and yet another professional organization filling up my mailbox for no return to me.

I think the CPC test is great for a warm-up with the main goal being the CCS - The Way I See It

[ In Reply To ..]
The CPC is a good one to take first. If you mess up, you get to take it again. You get the confidence of being able to take a test. Once you've done that, the CCS isn't nearly as scary, if you did well on the CPC and had really excellent training in the CCS areas as well.

No return to you??? From a credential??? Not in this field. - Coder

[ In Reply To ..]
"Seems like a lot of CECs to keep up with, $$$ annually, and yet another professional organization filling up my mailbox for no return to me."

OK, I have a bunch of credentials, so I can tell you that I need about 75 to 100 hours a year. However, most of the CEUs do double duty. I have a few specialty credentials that require specific CEUs in that specialty, but those actually work for the other credentials, as well.

The cost of maintaining them does not have to be excessive. There are ways to get free CEUs and renewals often come with a webinar or something tossed in for free. If you pay attention to companies like Guidant, they have free CEU webinars all the time.

Regardless of the cost, it is a necessary and worthwhile expense because those credentials are what enable you to get and keep a job, and some enable you to get outside work for things like lecturing on ICD-10 or consulting. Maybe not right now, but they will later. You don't want to be stuck in the same job forever, you know. Some employers provide CEU activities for you. You can even host your own under some circumstances. Some employers pay for continuing education.

Your current view is colored by the credentialing/professional organization situation in MT. It is not like that in coding. Professional organizations are respected and so are credentials. Those organizations do a lot to benefit you and your career field. They are the reason salaries are good and riff-raff aren't wandering in to scarf up our jobs. In large part, they are the reason we are respected.

The question is not why you need two credentials, but why you need credentials from two organizations. You don't really need more than one--many coders have perfectly good jobs with just one--but having both helps with job hunting. This is especially true early in your career before you have acquired a load of impressive experience.

If you are limited to just one kind of coding, you are limited to just one type of job. Why would you want to hamper yourself like that? Wouldn't it be better to be ready and available for ANY kind of job? You'll be desperate enough when you graduate, so why eliminate half the job market for want of one credential???

It isn't just the ability to DO the job that counts, either. If you have a credential (or even several credentials) from just one organization, you will eliminate yourself from the running if the manager prefers the other organization. As open-minded as we try to be here, that open-mindedness does not hold true for everyone else. Some people think that some organizations and some credentials are more equal than others. If you are in the position of wanting a job, arguing about this isn't much use. It's a lot easier just to have credentials that will appeal to everyone, regardless of what they think.

And, you know, some managers don't know what the credentials mean. They might have had CPCs in the past and look for that because that's all they know. If you only have a CCS, where will you be? At home poring over job ads.

If you find out that the local hospital has a rabidly anti-AAPC manager, well, then apply using your CCS. Don't whang her in the face with your CPC. If you are applying for an outpatient job to an AAPC manager, well, then you can safely put the CPC first and the CCS second.

I know lots of coders who have strings of credentials from just one organization. They do fine. YOU, however, are not them. They have experience and jobs. You only want experience and a job. Any job.

It's all part of the game, but in this case the game pays off. It often pays better if you put more effort into it, too. Two credentials, assertive and intelligent job hunting, excellent preparation, a confident attitude, and the willingness to go the extra mile for yourself and your employer.

A conservative suit and heels, a trip to a hair salon, modest and unobtrusive makeup, a delightful lack of perfume, minimal jewelry, a silent cell phone, a wristwatch, a fantastic attitude, and a well-done resume also help considerably.

Also, if you have dragon nails, reduce them to a tasteful manicure. They spread nosocomial infections, so many hospitals ban them. Others just find them nauseating. Why let that keep you from a job???

Sound like you need to be someone else? Maybe so. Most all of us do! Just make sure that someone else has two credentials. :)

Thank you for the information - MT2Coder

[ In Reply To ..]
I appreciate all the information you freely provide for us, the newbies out here just getting our credentials and looking for our first coding job. I wonder at times if I'm just too old or if I've just between an MT too long. Then I read one of your posts, Coder, and I feel my years as an MT really have been useful, that my worth is not just in my head.

Even the resume and interview tips can be of great help when all you've applied for are MTSO transcription jobs for so long. I feel like employers look at my resume and think I have not had a Ã¢ï¿½ï¿½realÃ¢ï¿½ï¿½ job in 19 years because I've been working from home. Just because the family thinks I don't have a real job, employers need to see the value in that type of experience...the multitasking without a drop in accuracy is a feat in itself!

The value in having independent work habits, the ability to consistently meet production and financial goals, as well as understanding the structure of the medical record. Now I have to figure out how to relay that message in my resume before the 20 seconds it takes HR to hit the delete button when they don't see any coding-specific experience.

Anyway, thanks for always being so helpful and positive!

Similar Messages:

Mar 12, 2010

I am really glad I found this board. I felt really alone. It's nice to know I'm not the only one who thinks MQ is making a profit off of the MTs. Being cut in pay for ASR was bad enough, but this first time right stuff is too much. I am going back to school and I'm getting out of the MT business. ...

Mar 04, 2011

rt ...

Jun 20, 2012

I did my last ASR for MModal last Friday and started my new job today. My heart goes out to all of you trying to keep your heads above water with Mmodal. I've never seen such a mess of a company as this one is and from the posts on here, it just keeps getting worse. With the weight of ASR, crappy pay scale, NJA, dozen of accounts, working holidays and weekends off my shoulders, my stress level is almost nil. I cleared out my work station and had enough paperwork to throw away to b ...

Jan 22, 2015

So I finally get my check. I say finally because after many emails they admitted this week they held my training pay a payperiod. So this check should've had my training pay, a full week and another half week's worth of work. Nope! Came in waaaaaaaaaaaay under what it was supposed to be, and of course, I can't access the time card anymore. So glad I left that dishonest company! ...

Oct 11, 2009

I am getting my foot back in the water on a PT basis. Have tried about 4 other companies out there and didn't find a better fit yet. I know all companies have good and bad, but all the changes MQ made that enticed me to leave are now being instituted by other companies too. It is like MQ was the leader of the pack and they all thought --- Hummm, if they can, so can we. ...

Jul 02, 2010

This is what I have been complaining about for a while now -- that my ASR accounts are HORRIBLE. They are not even putting out anything that makes sense, lots of gibberish, sometimes made-up words, and is taking a huge amount of time to edit this bunk. At least now some other accounts are doing the same thing and I know I am not nuts. ASR is regressing. ...

Aug 19, 2010

Today is my last day with MQ (formerly Spheris) and I quit just in time. I got the new MT Rewards Plan document and I don't know if everyone is affected the same but it would mean my pay would go down another 10%. Are these folks just plain crazy or what? Good riddance to this whole company. ...

Sep 25, 2010

So... I worked for WMX for 3 years (after MQ for 7), then I left to work for the local school system for a year and a half. I got laid off due to state budget cuts. My former manager from WMX took me back but said I had to work third shift -- maybe not permanently -- no promises. I worked my *#% off for 6 months, almost to the day. It wrecked my sleep patterns, my personal life, everything... but I needed the money and benefits, so I did it. Finally, my account went through the ISR conversi ...

Sep 12, 2011

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904103404576560742746021106.html?mod=WSJ_hp_MIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsThird ...

Sep 15, 2012

MModal didn't cut my pay this week, I haven't been thrown into the cesspool yet, I haven't been put on QA review (yet) and I have plenty of work. So we'll see what tomorrow brings. ...

Jan 19, 2013

back in the day, I took the course at the junior college. The cost was negligible. I'd be really upset if I spent what these schools charge, only to get a job that pays minimum wage. ...

Dec 05, 2014

Can I confess to a guilty pleasure? I left Nuance back in July and I confess that at the end of the day I love coming on this site and feeling like my decision to leave gets validated every time I do. Honestly, it feels better than chocolate, and less calories. I left with an "Anything would be better than this mentality," and actually it's been true. I started working at a large DIY store, made way more money, but admittedly did find it pretty boring (I think becaus ...

Mar 20, 2010

I've been sitting here reading all the garbage about MQ and their "yET ONE MORE" great idea HA. I can't believe it....well, yes, I can. They have come up with yet one more terrible idea (that won't last) and a way to "cheat" the transcriptionist/editor out of more money!!!!!! "Right the first time" and docking 3 cpl if you send too many reports to QA....GOOD GRIEF! I feel another class action suit about to be filed. LOL LOL Anyway, I ...

Mar 31, 2010

I had put that the patient had "intimate slurred speech" -- (that's what my ears heard!) -- but dictator had said "intermittent slurred speech". SHEW! Brain and ears must work together, always!! ...

Jul 31, 2010

After nearly 20 years in this industry, I am happy to say that I am free now! Praise God! ...

Sep 02, 2011

Some KSMTs posted they got paid today, some got paid on the 1st. This tells me this was not an issue with late line counts or the payroll guru asking them to kindly roll payroll ahead a few days. Truth has to be they do not have the money available to make payroll and had to pick and choose who to pay based on the money available. Those who asked for hardship case or who they did not want to risk losing got paid. Those they thought could be strung along for 2 more days were not paid un ...

May 01, 2012

I am back to post an update from a few months back. I have been attending Andrews for a while now and quite honestly should be finished with the course, but I hit a few bumps in the road, which set me back as far as time. I was feeling REALLY discouraged a few months ago and was just trying to hurry and get through it all and feeling like I had gotten myself into a huge mess with coding. But, I am happy to say that I am so thrilled I didn't give up. Andrews is an awe ...

May 09, 2012

There are nothing but a bunch of highly hateful and bitter MTs on here. Wow!! I think you all need therapy! ...

Jun 29, 2012

"Richard Gwinn, MD, director of urgent care at Sharp Rees-Stealy Medical Group in San Diego sings voice recognition's praises: "It took me less than one-half hour from the time I first opened Dragon Medical to the time I was using it. It’s been a life changing application. I go home earlier. I don’t have stacks of charts on my desk and the swelling has gone down in my fingers (from typing).” This was taken off Nuance's FB page. ...

Oct 08, 2012

suing on a board that is NOT anonymous and full of PROFESSIONAL people. I know now that the rude and stupid responses I got were...well...stupid! lol!! come on people! ...

Aug 23, 2014

I left, it seems to have gone downhill quick. ...

Feb 01, 2014

every single thing we do rather than fixing the question mark problem in Fluency, or the fuzzy physician search, etc. Sigh. ...

Dec 22, 2014

It sounds like the new pay scale isn't as bad as it originally seemed. Thanks for sharing. :) ...

Apr 18, 2012

lets face it the situation rots,,,so we can make the best of a bad situation or curl up and die (cant afford the latter so)...But again thanks for the helpful hints and letting me vent now and again..Im in a better boat then most pulling a disability check from my former job...I just really wish I could do more for you all that depend on this money as your main form of income..There is no way I could do it....so any ideas you all want to try, count me in, if I get fired, I can survive, not very ...

Mar 24, 2015

dated February 2015 http://crankalicious.hubpages.com/hub/The-Worst-Companies-to-Work-For-M-Modal some of it goes a bit far, in that we do get paid time off, but otherwise, its pretty spot on. i would so love to post this on MM's facebook page or on Twitter for their business partners to read, but i don't know how to do it anonymously. ...

May 18, 2015

I'm the one who posted below about the system not seeing all the work I typed today. I uploaded a job just now and I caught it at the end saying returning job. WHAT THE BEEP!! Has it returned all of the jobs I did today even though it says in editor I have done them?!!? I'm dying here. I'm not pulling any more jobs now. what is going on?!?!? Check your lines in manager and see if it matches up with editor. ...

May 24, 2010

Been banned for a while. We won't go into that. . . . Glad to be back. ...

Jun 10, 2011

I was just curious as to how often you guys have to buy new keyboards. Seems like mine are biting the dust more often these days. TIA. ...

Mar 07, 2012

Well, it's time to go, guys. I'm saying goodbye. After 11 years in this field, I've enrolled in paralegal training. Like a lot of you, I figured transcription would get me through my working years with a home-based job and a decent wage that I could live on. Not so anymore. I still have a good job with a hospital, where my bosses claim outsourcing will never happen. Yeah, sure it won't. I went ahead and enrolled in school while I still have a decent income and the heart to le ...

Sep 13, 2012

This ASR mistake was so perfect that it is unbelievable. It's so unbelievable that I would never have put it on here unless it was for real. Dictated: "M-H-C-L, all in caps" ASR: MT agency hell hole ...