A community of 30,000 US Transcriptionist serving Medical Transcription Industry
A link with a number of interesting things affecting our industry. - Fellow Traveler
Posted: Mar 09, 2012
Here is a tidbit for you. - MTLC
[ In Reply To ..]I probably should post this to the coding board too.
From the link given by the OP:
Quote: The opportunities within complex health care ecosystems are in things as mundane as billing. "There's a half a person per hospital bed on average that sits in the hospital doing coding and collections and trying to get paid," Kocher says.
Their solution? Drop the manual coding and create "a software system that learns as it codes and keeps getting better and better. And all of a sudden you can say to the hospital, Look, we'll charge you 50 or 70 percent of what you're paying now. You guys save 30 percent. But by the way, we can make great margins and make a terrific business because our costs are so much lower, because we've actually used technology rather than just people to attack the problem," Roberts gushes.
- End quote.
Interesting - MT at heart
[ In Reply To ..]Thanks for sharing. We're already on our way with that with EPIC and computer assisted coding. Yes, please post to the coding board, there are some inflated egos over there.
Not News, Inflated Egos - BeenThere
[ In Reply To ..]Some of us have been posting about the (non)future of coding for months, only to be attacked by the same "inflated egos." It seems that MTs who have chosen coding as their new career DO NOT want to hear the truth! Rather than being THANKFUL that someone is being straight with them (instead of sugarcoating it to make a BUCK off of unsuspecting folks as the coding schools have done and continue to do), they go on the attack. Go figure!!!
Anyway, what I and others have been saying was reinforced to met yet again last week by a lady who works with the county DES. She said that anyone who goes into coding and billing now is "CRAZY!" And that is a DIRECT QUOTE.
Agreed. My company sends - al
[ In Reply To ..]news updates about their technology and acquisitions on a regular basis. They've developed software for coding that will reduce the need for coders drastically. They've even developed software that will calculate the radiation load the patient has with each diagnostic imaging report that is generated for that patient.
I've been talking about coding being absolete for - 2 years now, read about, sm, gf
[ In Reply To ..]it a couple of years ago. The programs are not new. I have also been trying to warn of the upcoming computerized coding programs that will be implemented in the future. I considered coding myself once upon a time, until a saw a demonstration video a couple of years ago about the coding program that will eliminate the coder from the position. I started researching when my accounts went to VR and my pay was so drastically cut. Unfortunately, I could never VR 700 or more lph to match my 350-400 lph pay that I was getting. I'm holing on with straight transcription in an EMR program now, which I hate as the company seems to think the pay of 8 cents a line and IC is great for doing a lot of clerical work. I spend half of my time looking up patient information, where to route cc, etc. Fortunately, this is only a part-time gig and supplement that job with non-transcripton work. Anyone going into coding school right now is just wasting their money. JMO
Coding obsolete - MT at heart
[ In Reply To ..]I am one of those "fools" who has been an MT forever who took a coding course because I thought my job was going away, that was more than 2 years ago. I'm still working as an MT and transcribing into an EMR system. The MTs at my facility are still on board because our providers missed the quality work they got with straight transcription, Dragon did not work very well for us. I don't know how long my current job will last but I'm 57 and have given up trying to find a coding job because I have seen how coding has been impacted in the last few months, just where I work. I made the comment about the inflated egos because some things were said on the coding board about MT being a job that people do between "soccer practice, soaps and laundry." Someone else put down billing clerks as being inferior. The people on that board act as if they are better than anyone else, and if you are not a certified coder you are nothing. In this day and age, no one's job is secure not matter what the occupation. I've read many coding forums, and many new coders are saying that they cannot find jobs in their field, with or without certification. Big changes are on the horizon for coding; a year from now they may all be singing a different tune.
There is one coder here who repeatedly takes potshots at MTs - sm
[ In Reply To ..]There have been several digs now about us being clerical workers and clerk typists and comments about our unprofessionalism, in general.
Ever since the first day I set foot in a medical records department (and it has been the same everywhere I've worked since then), the coders were the princesses and the MTs were the red-headed stepchildren, viewed as a liability. We never get any credit for creating the document which the Princesses need to do their part. I'd like to see them code a complex case from the surgeon's, multiple consultants', and the pathologist's chickenscratch.
I find it comical that a coder would insult MTs on a messageboard called *MTStars*. Why even bother to come to an MT board if you have such a low opinion of us? Slumming, eh? I've been to a coding board. Their grammar, spelling, and ability to construct a cogent sentence is appalling. They wouldn't last a day in our world. But do I insult them on their own turf?
As far as coding being taken over by computers: Only if you think coding is just plugging numbers onto a screen in the same way that MT is just clerk typing. There is a lot more involved in both that you can't grasp until you actually do the job. Just as VR is a wreck without the human interface, so is coding. Coders will be more auditors and combing for lost income, but they'll still be around. What is going on in their field, on their message boards, and on their jobs boards is NOTHING like what we have been experiencing in our world for the last 5 years or so.
No one on the coding board said those things - MT2Coder
[ In Reply To ..]You showed where the problem lies in your comment about coders being princesses. You may have that perception from your workplace and that is coloring your interpretation of what you read here. Really, nobody on the coding board said those things. You are misreading what you see there.
They have been on the main board. - nm
[ In Reply To ..].
Yes they did - MT at Heart
[ In Reply To ..]Read the threads under "Is it Worth It" on the coding board and find the one about why I love coding or words to that effect. In that, the comment was made about "soccer mom, laundry and soaps." Further up, I think in the same thread, the remarks were made about billing clerks.
I disagree - sm
[ In Reply To ..]I disagree. I read that entire thread and saw what you refer to. The statement about "soccer mom, laundry and soaps" said nothing about MTs. It stood alone, in a paragraph by itself, in a string of points the writer was making about REMOTE CODING. Remote coding is not something you can do between soccer mom, laundry, and soaps.
I do not see any mention of MT in that. It is not even implied.
It may be that YOU associate working between soccer mom, laundry, and soaps with MT in general or with YOUR MT job. That is the only way I can see any association.
It may also be that you are assuming that the writer is associating it with MT because you think you can read her mind. In other words, you "just KNOW how those coders think."
Either way, that writer did not say what you claim they said. Your statement is untrue. Someone told you that on that board, but you persist in telling that untruth here, as well. What motive would you have?
When people get up in arms about imagined slights, it is often because the shoe fits.
Hospitals are ALWAYS looking to cut costs & cut - s/m
[ In Reply To ..]corners. Now that MT has been all but elimintated, and they're having to pay for coders, you can bet your sweet bippy that coding/billing could be next on the chopping block. Just as happened with MT, when the need was there, and there was a shortage of MTs, they looked to outsourcing, offshoring, and mechanization to deal with the problem. (All the while hiring, and paying high wages to, more and more managers to make it happen).
I'm sure the software developers are already hard at it, and will eventually come out with software that recognizes billable words & phrases. If the human element remains at all, most likely it'll be the same thing we're stuck with now in MT: Editing the computer's or the offshore coder's work for pennies per line.
It seems that any work that can be done on a computer can be done remotely, and if it can be done remotely, it'll go extinct before too long. I wouldn't be surprised if the only jobs left in America someday will be manual labor, hotel housekeeping, gardening, and food service.
Re paying high wages to more and more managers - MTLC
[ In Reply To ..]I have noticed this among my friends' jobs over the years. One example is the Post Office. They have so many managers milling around those facilities that they practically bump into each other. But they cut the mail carrier work force and try to micromanage their work down to practically the nanosecond.
Hey, maybe we are barking up the wrong tree to slam the so-called Suits. Maybe we should just become suits and rake in our share! (Kidding)
It has taken years for MT to disintegrate to the level that it now is - sm
[ In Reply To ..]We are smack dab in the middle of a vortex of multiple and differing trends that have brought about the decline of MT. And, I must begrudgingly admit that we as a group have only helped to contribute to our own demise.
None of this is going on in coding.
Looking back on things, I can now see the first cracks in the MT dam as long as 7 years ago. It was all there, if one was paying attention.
Take a look at coding, read their message boards and their professional journals. In essence, "We're Screwed" was the cover story on one of the big MT journals a while back. You don't see anything like that in the coder journals. And their employment section in the back is chock full. How pathetic is it that there aren't even actual MT jobs in the back of the MT journals?
There's no downward pressure on coding pay, like what has been going on for years in MT. Coders' pay is going straight up. As a matter of fact, the hospital I work for just bumped their salary category *AGAIN*!
Also, coders have the almighty AHIMA, and AHIMA actually does have their back...unlike our AHDI. Not only has AHDI long been a neutered joke of a professional organization, respected by few in the field, they have actually actively worked to hasten the death of MT!
Coders are facing but one wave ... computerized coding. MT could have survived if we just had one wave to fight off. Instead, we've had about four coming at us, one right after the other, from all directions.
Nah, coders will survive this thing.
There is more to coding than that - sm
[ In Reply To ..]There are more jobs in coding than just assigning codes. As software assists become available, coders will move into those positions. Even the major professional organizations that include coders say this.
In this thread, people who know nothing of coding or who were so unsuccessful at it that they never found a job doing it proclaim it to be going down the tubes. Another persom repeats negative misconceptions from another forum even after being told there that nobody said what she thinks they said.
You are doing nothing more than engaging in the nasty grousing and rumor-mongering this board is famous for. Your issue is not with coding--it is with the people in that other forum who are trying to do something to make their lives better.
About 40% of coding positions go unfilled because there are no qualified candidates. Many people take coding courses yet remain unable to code. Many are unable to pass certification tests. Some who pass remain unemployable due to pesonal problems. It is the same in any field.
Coding is not simple - JW
[ In Reply To ..]I took two semesters of coding once and felt like I needed to repeat them. Coding is not simple. You have a huge responsiblity to the physicians as you are the person bringing in the money. The coders and billers are probably the most important to physicians, more than the MT for that reason. I believe that's why we are not taken seriously.
They tried this and it was a disaster for hospitals who lost money - see message
[ In Reply To ..]I remember when they tried that before. It was a nightmare! Hospitals lost hundreds of thousands of dollars because codes were inaccurate or incomplete. People like me in hospitals and institutions learned from our mistakes. New people will have to learn that very painful lesson again. It didn't hurt coders before because they had more work than ever cleaning up the mess.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. - sm
[ In Reply To ..]Hospital administrators don't seem to care about the quality of documentation (medical transcription), but they do care an awful lot about their money (coding).
I have NEVER seen any hospital admin actively trying to get rid of any coder, whereas this MT has done nothing but dodge various bullets since 1995.
It's the hospitals' infatuation with MONEY that'll - drive them towards automated coding.
[ In Reply To ..]The same things you're saying about coding were what we used to say about MT.
And there's another thing about MT that keeps getting swept under the rug when coders boast about their "irreplacibility" because they "bring in money" to the hospital:
Although MTs don't directly bring IN money, without UP-TO-DATE documentation of medical procedures in the patients' charts, a medical facility, be it hospital, clinic or convalescent, can LOSE ITS ACCREDITATION. That's why we used to get these seasonal pushes to get all the backlogged dictation caught up. It's why there is such an emphasis today on TAT.
MTSOs could've made a mint on TAT, because of the hospitals' need for accreditation to remain intact. Even for editing VR or Indian work, if it falls behind at the wrong time, the hospitals would be up a creek.
So do the MTSOs take that into consideration and CHARGE FOR IT? No, instead they put themselves (and us, as well) "on sale" to the hospitals by bidding the work lower and lower.
That's a pretty short-sighted view of things, if you ask me. Because it's not sustainable. Then why do they do it? I think it's because MTSOs are trying to rake in all the profits they can RIGHT NOW, because sooner or later, they're going to be completely obsolete.
VR was a disaster in the beginning, too, as was - offshoring. It works because - s/m
[ In Reply To ..]they were able to con all the MTs into EDITING that inferior work, for a lower price.
I predict the same thing will happen to coding and billing. It'll get offshored and/or automated, and the people that formerly did that work will be paid the same cr*p wages that MTs get now for editing it and cleaning it up.
I think they're probably talking the next generation here. SM - Fellow Traveler
[ In Reply To ..]Improving computer coding does not mean doing away with coders altogether. Either-or? Nonsense.
It's also nonsense, though, to think computers won't be taking over a lot, lot more coding than before and ultimately doing what it can do quite well. After that, that's where we step in.
Please note this article says a lot more money will be invested in bringing this about, with a real impetus from the ICD-10.
How about this: "businesses that do things like help hospitals - keep patients from returning to the hospital with
[ In Reply To ..]"A big-ticket cost." This isn't all about our paychecks, it's also about our lives and those of our loved ones.
Here's another tidbit: Medical errors are the 5th to 8th leading - cause of death in the U.S. What we do
[ In Reply To ..]is part of this dreadful, shameful reality. The mess medical reports have degenerated into as our role has been reduced is also part of it.
Take another look at that article I posted. It's not about coding but about investing to make money by providing better medical care.
BTW, next time you type up a medication list: "Serious medication errors occur in the cases of 5 to 10 percent of patients admitted to hospitals." Scared me. Fellow Traveler.
Medication errors - MT at heart
[ In Reply To ..]And that is our fault because??? If the doc prescribes the wrong med, the liability falls on the doctor. Transcriptionists are not permitted to make those kind of judgment calls. Of course, the obvious things can be corrected, but sometimes it's difficult to know. I make corrections or flag things if I catch them. Some MTs have verbatim accounts and are not allowed to make changes. I couldn't tell if you thought this was the transcriptionist's fault. As a coder, do you catch and correct medication errors?
Actually... - sm
[ In Reply To ..]I do QA and, yes, MTs do make mistakes in meds, lab values, diagnoses, all sorts of things and, yes, it is often their fault. Sometimes it's the doc.
The whole sequence -- the doctor reading the lab value or med correctly, then speaking it correctly without accidentally reading off the next line down, then it being recorded correctly and clearly, then the MT hearing it correctly, then the MT getting it on paper without transposing the numbers -- it's a harrowing process, fraught with the potential for errors at every turn. I see all sorts of things in QA that would make your hair stand on end.
If there is one good thing about the coming of Epic, it's that it will completely cut out the above sequence entirely as all those data will be imported into the report from the EHR. Much safer for the patient, overall. (Of course, it means the workload has just been cut by ~70% and so many MTs will no longer be needed--the downside.)
Epic - MT at heart
[ In Reply To ..]I transcribe into Epic and it's actually pretty cool. We are able to populate the note with the patient's vital signs and other info by using an expander. When the physician dictates he will say to insert the vital signs, etc. into the dictated note. The other comment that I wanted to make in regard to med errors is that it can also occur at the nursing level if documented incorrectly and then the provider dictates that. Then there's the issue of the patient just being given the wrong med - thankfully that does not happen much, at least to my knowledge.
The med errors of concern are not typing errors - sm
[ In Reply To ..]Actually, errors in which the patient is given the wrong medication, the wrong dose, by the wrong route of administration, at the wrong time, or to which they are allergic or sustain an advese interaction with another medication ARE what is happening. It happens OFTEN and results in harm including death OFTEN.
That is what people are talking about when they discuss medication errors. They aren't talking about what you type, but about what providers do on the floors.
Your post indicates that the MTs here think med errors mean typing errors invoving meds. The articles and reports about med errors, the programs to prevent them, and providers who are interested in them are not talking about typing errors. They are talking about what happens to patients who are hospitalized. Your work has little or nothing to do with that. Two different things.
All errors that harm are of concern. The idea that no - decisions are made based on reading the
[ In Reply To ..]reports we work on is hard to understand, to put it at its nicest.
Please explain - further
[ In Reply To ..]OK. Please explain . . .
1. What you think a "medical error" is.
2. What "decisions" are made based on your reports.
3. How your reports affect those decisions and what effect errors in those reports have on those decisions.
In other words, what errors in your reports cause harm to patients and what kind of harm is it.
Errors that harm is the whole point - sm
[ In Reply To ..]What are you calling "harm?" No harm is going to come from bad paragraphing, misplaced punctuation, or misspellings. Doctors and institutions just don't want to be represented by it.
It is unlikely that any harm will come from incorrect medication names or dosages, or even anatomic location errors, especially in hospital reports, because that information is contained elsewhere in the record and decisions are made based on that information. In fact, decisions have already been made long before you even get to the dictated reports.
Yor reports need to be correct, but it is not because they are critical elements in preventing medical errors.
Medical errors are adverse events involving harm to patients, like wrongful surgery and medication administration errors. They are not typos in your reports.
Med errors as a coding concern - sm
[ In Reply To ..]Med errors are not the MTs fault. As that other post says, med errors occur long before reports are transcribed. Medications are ordered and officially documented in order entry systems.
Do I catch medication errors? How could I do that if I am not on the floor while they are being ordered, in the pharmacy, or watching the nurse who administers them?
Do you see the point I am making? When we talk about medication errors, we are not talking about mistakes in typed reports.
But, yes, I do find errors in typed reports. I find a lot of incorrect drugs and quantities, along with completely omitted drugs and quantities. Same for devices, instruments, and details of techniques.
I find those because we look for certain documentation in order to support coding or billing. Sometimes the doctor did not mention it, but more often he did and the MT left it out or got it wrong. No harm comes to the patient, but we have it added in order to bill for it.
Med errors have little to do with transcribed reports - sm
[ In Reply To ..]Medication errors have next to nothing to do with the reports MTs transcribe. Do you actually think no meds are administered until you have transcribed an admission note or consult 2 to 3 days later?
Meds are administered on the basis of orders written or entered electronically. Physicians make errors in prescribing. Pharmacists make errors in filling. Nurses make errors in administering. They are not looking at typed notes when they do this.
Nothing an MT does has any effect on causing or preventing medication errors in hospitals. In solutions intended to prevent medication errors, no fingers are pointed at transcribed reports. Those reports are not the cause.
About my tidbit . . . - MTLC
[ In Reply To ..]I do not endorse or condemn the statements made in the quote. I decided on that particular quote so that a discussion might get started, which it did. I was not trying to stir up trouble, but I really like the analysis of those already in the coding field. In the end, I usually come to the conclusion that being a skilled coder can lead to all kinds of jobs in the healthcare documentation industry.
:)
Feel the same. That's why I'm going into coding, too. - nm
[ In Reply To ..]xx
I agree with your reasoning, MTLC. Coders have to have a - greater understanding, something of
[ In Reply To ..]real value as the world continues its spin. Fellow Traveler.
Multiple things to do with coding cert: CDI, RAC auditing, etc. (sm) - me again
[ In Reply To ..]When people here dismiss coding out of hand, I know that they haven't truly done their due diligence.
There are all sorts of opportunities available that exist beyond what the "ladies in that other room" do.
One more thing - MT at Heart
[ In Reply To ..]It seems that those of you considering coding assume that jobs fcr new coders are falling off the trees. Having certification will help you, but employers rtill want experience as well. Visit other coding forums (notably AAPC) and you will see how many new grads and seasoned coders alike are looking for work. One comment that was made was that so many are pursuing coding now that the job market is saturated. I know you would never get that information here because it's all pie in the sky, but that's some of the information that's out there. And, many of the jobs mentioned here are not entry level coding jobs, they require years of experience. Go ahead and tell me how wrong I am, you'd soon find out if you did some fact checking instead of believing everything Andrews students tell you.
You do make a valid point, to be sure. - sm
[ In Reply To ..]It's like transcription: Anybody/everybody thinks they can do transcription because "I type fast." But the "real" transcriptionists are the ones who can do anything you throw at them, like op notes on the level of a 4-page pancreatectomy with Whipple procedure (typed from scratch, not "follow the bouncing ball"). I've been really surprised over the years at how many MTs are terrified of learning how to do something that will only make them more valuable. So it is with coding. A lot of people just want to stay in the easy work (ER or outpatient coding, akin to simple clinic work and SOAP notes in transcription) rather than going through some discomfort in the near term while learning how to do the really meaty stuff (inpatient coding) which will make them valuable players in high demand. How many of those people over on the AAPC board have their CCS and cannot get a job? I don't think so. As far as I can tell from looking around in my city, if I've got my CCS in hand, they'll *make* room for me. I'm rambling and I'm dehydrated. Anyway, I think the distinction is to learn inpatient coding and to become certified in that, the hard stuff ... or, in MT speak, how to transcribe op notes. Those that can do that will get jobs.
Also, I'm sure market saturation varies regionally (sm) - me again
[ In Reply To ..]I'd posted this earlier, and it was promptly taken down. I don't know why. My comment was that last week there were 10 new coding jobs posted on indeed for my region (my city and the next city over). I didn't look at every single one, but the couple I did open up were for inpatient gigs. Your mileage may vary. I'm on one of the coasts.
You are correct and your analogy to op notes is - Accurate
[ In Reply To ..]You are right on target with that. It IS exactly like transcribing op notes. Some never want to go there. Some never want to go to acute care, either. Some never want to do more than one specialty. It is too much effort.
There is something in addition to just learning more to get the CCS. Some hospital employers and managers simply do not recognize AAPC or its credentials at all. They don't even think outpatient coding is real coding. They are not going to look at you until you have an AHIMA credential.
AAPC - Anonymous
[ In Reply To ..]You don't seem to care who you offend. Anyone who does outpatient coding for a living is going to be disappointed to hear that what they do is worthless. Remember that the next time you see a doctor or have an outpatient procedure and your insurance company pays your bill. I guess I won't ever be a "real" coder because I wanted to work as an outpatient coder and was getting ready to take the CPC. The facilities in my area recognize AAPC, I suppose you know they credential hospital coders too (CPC-H). It's such a shame, some people are just slackers who never want to make any effort, but it takes all kinds to make a world.
Don't blame the messenger - sm
[ In Reply To ..]I do not see that she is the one doing the offending. She is telling you what some employers think in order to help you make career decisions that will enable you to get a job more easily. Nothing is wrong with the AAPC but some people want to see AHIMA credentials.
You seem to think that the CPC-H is the same as the CCS. That is wrong. The CPC-H may say hospital, but that does not mean inpatient DRG coding. I am sure of that because I have both of them.
Nothing is wrong with getting a CPC. Nothing is wrong with doing outpatient coding. The coders here are just trying to help you see out of the box so you can be more marketable than the run of the mill coder.
Why would you complain about that? When people take their time to help you, maybe show some apprecation for their views instead of attacking them. Most people would not bother giving you the time of day much less honest career advice.
This reminds me of the behavior we used to see with MT hopefuls who came to boards asking if a matchbox school was any good. When we pointed out that the graduates were usually unable to get jobs, the hopeful would claim angrily that everyone was against her.
It is also very similar to office MTs who have transcribed one specialty for years, or to radiology or path MTs, and who are frustrated that employers won't hire them to do hospital transcription. When someone explains why employers think that way, the MT accuses the person who tried to explain of being against them.
The fact that someone presents information that you do not know or had not thought of is not an attack on you or anyone else.
It also does not mean they feel that way themselves. It might just mean they have been in that boat.
People are giving some good advice here. Nobody is forcing you to take it.
Depends on where you look - sm
[ In Reply To ..]You are absolutely right that employers would like experience, but credentialed experienced coders can be hard to find. Market saturation does vary depending on where you are.
If you look at the AAPC forums, you will see a lot of jobless coders. That is where all their jobless coders go in the hope of getting help. The thing is that employed coders do not go there. You aren't going to see successful coders flocking to "I need a job" forums.
AAPC courses produce lots of graduates. Those programs are very short and geared for office coding. Nothing wrong with that, but it is only part of the coding market. The rest requires more extensive preparation and often prefers AHIMA credentials.
I know a lot of fine coders who have only a CPC, and I had that when I got my first job, but it is a lot more difficult to get a really good job with only that.
If you insist on going that route today, you can expect it to take longer to find any job and you can expect to be working in the outpatient arena.
If you insist on going to a career college for their medical front office "billing and coding" course, you can expect to be unable to find a job outside of medical front offices. That may be right up your alley, but don't complain when you cannot pass even the CPC or get a hospital or large facility job. This is not due to "market saturation" but to the fact that your education is inadequate for hospitals and large facilities.
What the market is saturated with is people who took some course and still can't code.
It is also saturated with people who couldn't get a job doing anything because they are just plain unemployable. Those people can be very vocal on association job boards, making it appear that their plight is a universal phenomenon.
I see new coders get jobs, but they went the extra mile for AHIMA credentials. They work on making themselves appealing to employers. They do the right things.
I also know people who have never gotten a job. They have no credentials or only plan on getting them, sound like gang molls, have 3-inch long artificial nails that violate the hospital infection control policies, make employment-related threats in interviews, claim to have experience based on answering phones in a nursing home, are already collecting disability from 3 different jobs, and actually list a D average on their resume.
There are loads of people now who have criminal backgrounds or terrible employment histories. You cannot or will not be hired in healthcare any longer if you are one of those people. You aren't even likely to pass a background check if you have a history of delinquent debt. Yet career counselors and schools still sign them up for coding.
That is mostly what you see on job boards that you think reflects the state of the market. You do not see the successes.
You are correct that advanced jobs require experience. In what field would that not be true? But coders get that experience and move on every day.
I take your point. I read the AAPC coding forum too. - MTLC
[ In Reply To ..]I have been reading the AAPC general discussion about jobs for a long time. As another poster pointed out, there is more than one reason why people cant get jobs, and that there is more to it than just having a credential.
I have actually been doing research, asking questions and considering my options for over a year. I even went to a local AAPC chapter meeting and got to talk to the hiring manager of a large hospital/clinic system in our area.
I have compiled a list of jobs that I could do that are not coding, but maybe I could get a foot in the door, including general labor work in a hospital.
I have also been doing volunteer work for many years that puts me in touch with all kinds of people and situations. It is my hope that my efforts at improving my people skills will help me in the job market.
For sure, coding isnt for everyone, just like MT isn't. I have been thinking and reading and asking and calculating for a long time.
And maybe I am delusional, but I think I could get a coding job and work my way into other things once I get experience.
#1 Least Stressful Job In America - Med Records Tech
[ In Reply To ..]At least that's what is says here:
Not Worth Mentioning, Really, because.. - MT
[ In Reply To ..]Those positions must be going the way of the dodo bird, given the fact that paper charts are going OUT as the EMR is ushered IN.
Yup, that's what the HIM manager told me, too. - MTforNow
[ In Reply To ..]The records clerks haven't put 2 and 2 together yet. It's not just transcription. They have no idea what's about to hit them. We go to EPIC in 18 months.
We have no paper records and no records clerks - Not a bad thing
[ In Reply To ..]We no longer have a file room or clerks who file.
Jobs in HIM are changing. They will require more education. You did not need education to cram records on a shelf and stick sign-here flags on papers.
What we will have more of are jobs maintaining, programming, ensuring privacy and security and teaching providers to use electronic records. Degrees will be in informatics, not traditional paper. Coding-based jobs will be less focused on finding things to code and more on higher review, coding and provider compliance with regulatory issues, improvement of provider documentation, programming and maintaining the software that assists coding, and data collection an analysis.
I know because we already have it. The people who got the new jobs were the ones who saw it coming and got more education so they could step into new roles.
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nm ...
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Please Sign This Petition To Help Change Our Industry.
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The overall tone of most posts on this site reflect the need for change and regulation in our industry so we can stop being taken advantage of and also that medical records are kept accurate and safe. If you feel this way, please click on the link below and sign the petition to address the joint commission to try to help regulate our industry. http://www.change.org/petitions/joint-commission-petition-the-joint-commission-to-develop-medical-transcription-and-documentation-standards?recruit ...
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