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

Is coding stressful, or low paying? - Smile

Posted: Mar 24, 2015

This forum seems full of cranky people. Is coding that stressful or low paying of a job? Or does it just attract those with inhospitable dispositions?

Is coding stressful - anon

[ In Reply To ..]
I find that most of the posts on here are pleasant, encouraging, and informative. The only times I notice people being "cranky" on this post is when someone mentions THE ANDREWS SCHOOL, either attending or graduated. Go figure!

I am not a coder yet, but I cannot believe coding could possibly be more stressful than the world of transcription is these days. And, coding is certainly not a low paying job. See posts below.

I am not a coder - My thoughts

[ In Reply To ..]
These are my thoughts: Coding is probably not any more stressful than MT or a lot of other jobs, at least you will be paid well. There will probably be deadlines to meet and you will have audits but I like what someone said in regard to using them as a learning experience. Andrews? Well people do get a little cranky about having that constantly thrown in their faces, but that's how it is. There was no need to type the name in ALL CAPS, that is considered shouting.

I agree - with your thoughts

[ In Reply To ..]
I am a coder and I agree with what you said about coding not being more stressful. I was the one who wrote about audits being a learning experience. At my facility, we discuss our audits face to face with our supervisor and have a chance to discuss. one time I coded something that the supervisor didnt and she agreed with my reasoning and gave me my point back. Its one thing if you never pass your audit but if you have a bad month but then continue to improve its more on the learning experience.

Agree, coding audits are nothing like MT QA - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
Coding audits are based on national rules, guidelines, and other verifiable sources. They involve legitimate issues and achievable percentages. They are nothing like MT audits that seem to be based on whims and trivia, and which have unattainable requirements.

We also do not "code verbatim," so you aren't going to find yourself being stressed out by being forced to produce garbage.

QA audits - Careful what you say

[ In Reply To ..]
I would have to disagree with your opinion of MT audits. Actually, QA specialists follow very specific guidelines based on the ADHI Book of Style and facility protocol. In my job, I address specific issues: Unsafe abbreviations, incorrect medication errors and laboratory value errors in addition to errors made on operative reports that do affect billing. None of it is based on my "whim," it is based on what is accurate and acceptable. The only QA score assigned is the one we give to the vendor so that they can honor the terms of their contract with us. Other things such as sentence structure and whether things make sense are also addressed, but my employer and the physicians at our facility appreciate having someone as a buffer between the MTSO and a possible lawsuit. The transcription vendor uses my feedback as a teaching tool for their MTs and they learn from their mistakes. We don't transcribe verbatim either, and do our best not to produce "garbage" that appears in a patient's medical record. Arrogance and ignorance abound in this forum, it boggles the mind.

What kind of errors on op reports would - affect billing??

[ In Reply To ..]
I'm curious because I am a coder and can't think of MT errors that would affect billing, or how a non-coder would know to recognize them.

Op reports - Misinformed and ignorant

[ In Reply To ..]
I am probably wrong as I usually am and I'm sure someone will be glad to tell me how ignorant I am. An incorrect diagnosis could be billed at a different rate. If the provider does not dictate a postoperative diagnosis that holds up coding and billing, at least at my facility. Omitted dictation on the part of the MT could affect billing (it happens). I know coders use the entire chart to code, but an incorrect operative report can hold things up. By the way, no one ever died from an incorrect bill either, so think about that the next time you start telling people how no one gives two hoots about accurate transcription.

I disagree somewhat - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
I think the question intended to ask what kind of MT errors affected billing.

Yes, a missing postoperative diagnosis is a problem, but it is a small, easy solved problem. There is other documentation in the record for that, but if not, we simply get it ourselves. That is not an MT error, but a physician omission.

I have been coding and auditing at a large medical center for more than 15 years. I can't imagine how a bit of omitted dictation on one report could affect billing. Coders should be more alert and attentive than that. First, we see the entire rest of the record, which contains everything usually several times over. We are not going to miss anything of significance simply because anything that important is not going to occur in just one scrap of text in one sole report out of that whole record. If it did, we would be suspicious of it.

Billing does not hinge on diagnoses to the extent that one incorrect diagnosis in a report changes the billing rate. Diagnoses do not occur just once in the record; they appear over and over. No inpatient coder should be coding from one report, nor would they code a diagnosis that appeared suddenly and was inconsistent with prior documentation or unsupported by diagnostic testing. Billing for outpatient services is based primarily on procedure coding, not diagnoses, where the effect of the diagnoses on that is much less.

Yes, inadequate documentation does affect coding and billing, but the types of issues that clinical documentation improvement programs address are things like physician failure to document the organism causing bacterial pneumonia, which we can see in labs, or omission of intubation or bedside procedures, which we can usually see evidence of in the record.

We have had that discussion here before. Really, it is not that big of a deal.

Andrews School - Stuart

[ In Reply To ..]
Hi. Saw your comment regarding the Andrews School. Why do you think those attending or graduating would be cranky? I ask this because i'm thinking of attending their coding school.
Thanks!

It's not those attending or graduating - that are cranky.

[ In Reply To ..]
We(please read all the posts)graduates and attending sing their praises and this brings out people who don't like us talking about Andrews all the time. But people ask and we tell our experience, and it happens to be good.

Cranky - stuart

[ In Reply To ..]
Thanks for that. I've only heard good things and thought maybe someone had a different opinion. :-)

Coding - as a career

[ In Reply To ..]
I have been coding for over a year and started out as a transcriptionist. I dont find coding to be stressful or low paying. It can be demanding due to trying to keep the unbilled amount down, answer questions from billers, deal with providers, leaders, etc, but that is just a part of the job. I dont have any problem passing my audits or making my production. Its not hard as long as you follow the coding rules all of the time. Also at my facility, we use audits as a way to learn and are able to discuss what we coded and why. Some others might think coding is stressful but every job is going to have expectations to work towards. I really happen to like it.

I see, MTs are poor and bitter, not coders - Smile

[ In Reply To ..]
I get it. It's the MTs that are unpleasant.

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