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

searching for school - new chapter

Posted: May 21, 2015

I am in Southwest Washington looking for accredited coding/billing school. should i do online or in class? im brand new at this...please help!

Could you explain what you mean by "accredited - coding/billing school"?

[ In Reply To ..]
And do you want to do coding or billing? They are completely different.

schools - new chapter

[ In Reply To ..]
I want to do medical coding...ive been doing some research online and they say a lot of online courses are scams and to make sure I go to an accredited school.

Accredited by whom? - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
Accreditation can mean several things, some of which are meaningless. For-profit scam schools can set up "accreditation" organizations to accredit themselves. Legitimate colleges can be appropriately accredited, but teach poor coding courses.

On the other hand, one of the best coding courses in the country is both online and accreditation-free. (It is the wrong kind of school to be accredited.) It is, however, licensed by the State of Oklahoma, which has one of the most rigorous licensing processes in the country.

just looking for school references - sh

[ In Reply To ..]
I am at the beginning stages of this search and just don't want to choose the wrong course to take. there are so many out there advertising they "they are the best". Ive put some calls in to some local coders so I can pick their brain about this career, hope to hear from them soon. Thank you for your help

Suggestions - Coder

[ In Reply To ..]
You might want to research the career field before trying to choose a course. From the way you ask the question, it does not sound as though you understand what coding is, the types of coding, or how schools fit in with that.

You should also read this board back a few months ... what you asked can be found there several times over. We answer questions about schools all the time.

To answer your question, "accreditation" means several things and it isn't necessarily relevant to coding training. It can mean that a college is accredited by a recognized regional accrediting body. There are also bogus accrediting bodies, so you have to know which are valid. You seem to think it means a school is not a scam, but it does not mean that.

In health information management and technology, the American Health Information Association accredits bachelor's (RHIA) programs in HIM and associate's (RHIT) programs in HIT. You cannot qualify to take their registry exams unless you have graduated from one of those programs. They do not accredit coding programs, however. They only "approve" some programs. A program can be excellent, but not on their list because they are not a college. There are schools on the list that many consider to be for-profit ripoffs. Being approved does not mean it teaches enough for you to qualify for the CCS exam. The coding course that AHIMA itself offers is approved, but it does not qualify.

The American Association of Professional Coders does not accredit or approve courses, but it offers its own and it certifies instructors to use its materials. You do not have to take those courses to take AAPC exams. Their main course is for the CPC, which is outpatient physician services coding. Those courses can be very good, if you want to do only that type of coding.

I recommend Andrews, which is an exceptional school. It qualifies for the CCS exam and everything else from either AHIMA or AAPC. For what you get, it is no more expensive than any other school. It is licensed by the Oklahoma Board of Private Vocational Schools, so you have that assurance that it is not a scam and that students are protected.

If you are not interested in that much training, and you are not interested in spending time getting a college degree in HIT or HIM, just go with an AAPC CPC course.

Thank you for the detailed explanation - Not the OP but thanks

[ In Reply To ..]
The detailed explanation is very helpful. I know from my own experience that what you say is true, but you said it better than I could.

Southwest Washington - More thoughts

[ In Reply To ..]
There are quite a few good community colleges in your area, you could check into those programs and see what they offer. Also, look at the AHIMA website; I think they list the schools that teach accredited programs. Your concern will be passing certificates exams, so make sure you enroll in a good program.

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