Many of us, as children, had ideas of what we wanted to be when we grew up. From astronauts to doctors and lawyers, our ideas were ever reaching. I don’t recall ever once thinking, I want to be a Medical Coder; now, I want nothing more than to be just that. Throughout this paper we are going to look at exactly what Medical Coding is, the rules and regulations, as well as the requirements for achieving this career. My hope is that, by the end of this paper, you understand my determination and that you may, too, consider this opportunity for yourself. The medical field is an area that never seems to falter. With increasing technology to increasing charges, it is ever growing and ever changing. Luckily, this means that there will always be a high …show more content…
According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act was created in 1996 to protect patient’s information as it is being used to create a higher quality of care for the individual. HIPAAs biggest aspect is the creation and management of electronic medical transactions. When we think of HIPAA we normally think mainly about patient documentation, but HIPAA includes coding. The Medical Coding and Billing Organization tells us that HIPAA’s effect covers to almost every part of the medical billing process, from how records are kept and retrieved to how codes are used in generating claims. Ethics in Medical Coding is the same ethics that cover everything else. Confidentiality first and for most. It is a coder’s responsibility to keep what they say and do to themselves. This not only covers ethics but also HIPAA regulations. You cannot let your partialities to patients or to insurance companies affect the way you do your job, how you code or how you bill. Honesty coincides with ethics. You must be honest in your work. Dishonesty is fraudulent. Patients have the right to be treated with your utmost respect and care. Always treat patients as you would want your loved ones …show more content…
The minimum education required by most employers and facilites is a postsecondary certificate. The course load includes diagnostic coding, procedural coding, and medical insurance. Although, this is the minimum education needed, every person must understand in this field you are always learning. Once the education is obtained and passed at a certain grade point average, next comes the Certified Professional Coders Exam. This isn’t a test that should be taken lightly. It is a 150 question test that lasts approximately 5.5 hours. In ones mind, 150 questions may not seem a lot but it is noted that the highest percentage of failures are due to time lapse. This is a red flag that the test must be highly prepared for but once the test is passed you will reap the rewards. As of current, CareerBuilders is showing a little of 12,000 medical coding jobs while Indeed is showing an additional 12,000 jobs with the United States. Many of these postings may be the same but on the rare chance they are not, that is a little over 24,000 jobs. While that may seem like a drop in the bucket when compared to 318 million people, the way the medical field is grown this will grow as well. Any occupation that is high demand is a good field to look into especially the medical
Certified Coding Specialist are experienced professional coders who use ICD-10-CM and CPT coding systems to categorize information from patients medical records for insurance reimbursement purposes (AHIMA). Retrieve medical records of patients for review of clinical data. Assign codes accordingly per ICD-10 and CPT coding guidelines. Communicate and cooperate with healthcare facility and billing offices.
There are two Associations for Medical Coders, one is the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) and the other is the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC). AHIMA is the leading association of health information management for professionals all over the world (www.ahima.org 2015). In 1928, AHIMA was known for refining the quality of health records. “AHIMA is working to advance the implementation of electronic health records by leading key industry initiatives and advocating high and consistent standards” (www.ahima.org 2015). AHIMA 's credentials includes Certified Coding Associate (CCA)
The importance of HIPAA compliance in medical transcription lies in the fact that it ensures confidentiality of patient information in accordance with law. The HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) Privacy Rule, approved by the U.S. Congress in 1996, establishes identifiable policies for the exposure and utilization of an individual patient's health details. HIPAA stipulates non-disclosure of protected health information (PHI) without the patient's permission, for healthcare requirements, national interests and public benefits. It also seriously investigates compliance associated problems. Why HIPAA Medical Transcription Services are Important Medical Ethics and Appropriate Treatment - The first reason is that medical
1/ Why are there different guidelines for inpatient versus outpatient coding? The field of medical coding offers two broad career paths that aspirants can pursue - outpatient coding and inpatient coding. There are some differences in not just the training required for the two career paths, but also in the job itself. Inpatient coding is done in hospitals for those who were admitted for an extended stay.
Each procedure and diagnosis has a code associated with it. They have to be accurate since these codes are used for billing the insurance company. A code that is incorrect can severely limit the treatment that a
With this being said the job outlook for me in this area is very good. If I was a coder I would be able to work in every type of medical facility including, doctors’ offices, surgery centers, hospitals and health care systems (“Medical Coder”). The more experience that I have with this job the more opportunities I will have to be able to work at home with either a hospital or a contractor (“Medical Coder”). This job has the highest percentage of women. Around 88.4% of this career field is made up of women (Shatkin).
In the medical field, there are many types of jobs to choose from and they all require diffrent things from you, but what really makes the job worth it is if you enjoy what you do and can look past the negatives of it. Many factors, including education, skill, salaries, job duties, job benefits and job drawbacks will help you choose between the multitudinous numbers of careers in the healthcare world. While researching, I found that Endocrinologist, Phlebotomist, and Dental Hygienist were all excellent careers that met positive results for all of the factors listed above. Endocrinology is the career that requires the most schooling and training, but it is also the one that I think will be the most enjoyable because I have a great love for biological sciences, and there is a lot of biology required in this career path. I also chose this career because it will allow me to help other kids and adults that may have turner syndrome or other disorders of the endocrine system, so I will find it very relatable and will already have some experience with the issues and concerns the patients may have.
Becoming an Anesthesia Assistant would allow me to work as a healthcare professional, help people in their time of need, and have an increasingly dynamic career. I know that my attention to detail, creativity, and critical thinking capacity developed over years working in the medical field make me an ideal candidate for the Master’s of Medical Science in Anesthesiologist Assistant program at Emory University. As my life progresses, I have created a desire for a profession that offers a varied assortment of opportunities. I find it gratifying to have a career that is not only rewarding for caring for surgical patients, but also the attraction of a career that is a life long learning process. The attractiveness of a career with different possibilities and education expansion is energizing and motivational.
There are many careers out there for you to choose from, and Medical Billing and Coding should be at the top of your list. This position allows you to work in various establishments within the healthcare business. These types of institutions include physician offices, nursing homes, hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, and insurance companies. A medical biller performs several duties in the workplace that include reviewing the patient 's records, submitting claims, answering any questions regarding claims, and calculating charges. Medical billers also comply to legal guidelines and policies such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
The top physician assistant specialties that currently spark my interest are the pediatric practice, the surgical practice and the emergency department. I have previously shadowed all three fields in my pervious journey to obtaining my Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) licenses. The fields interested me because of the work required and the environments they worked in. However, any field would be fine with me as long as their primary mission is focused on the bettering of patient’s health.
For Ms. Sallie Thomas, a phlebotomist manager at Upper Valley Medical Center, she never knows exactly what each day will bring. Working in a hospital, especially the emergency room, there are wide ranges of people she will interact with and potentially collect blood from. Most of all, she believes that the patients come first. She has always held herself and her employees to the ethical codes of beneficence, nonmaleficence, and fidelity. However, like in all health care practice, there are challenges she faces.
To become an Emergency Medical Technician, you must have your High School Diploma and Certification in CPR. You must then take a training course that lasts 1 to 2 years. This course is called Emergency Medical Technology, and can be taken locally at Jones County Junior College (JCJC). JCJC offers multiple courses and classes in this subject such as Emergency Medical Technician Basic, Patient Assessment, Pre-Hospital Care, and Fundamentals of Pre-Hospital Care.
This is leading to the employment of biomedical engineers increasing, is suggested to grow 23% from 2014 to
After four years of working as Medical Technologist II at Quest Diagnostics, one of the largest diagnostics laboratories institute in the world, and one year at the National Institute of Health (NIH) the world most prestigious research organizations in the world and also the world 's foremost medical research center I wanted to return to the academic life and start graduate classes in Health and Medical policy in my home school George Mason University. Right after I graduated with a degree in Medical Technology from GMU, I decided to join the field of diagnostics to apply the knowledge that I have learned and also to gain new experience by being part of the clinical environment, moreover to get the feeling of what the real life of a medical technologists and laboratory scientists feels like. I enjoy and appreciate every single second of my work. Not everyone gets the opportunity to be part of a team that have such huge impact on humans life by utilizing cutting-edge instruments and techniques and discussing results and ideas with physicians, nurse, and scientists, Although I enjoy handling the complex equipment and processing results, I realized that I am not going to be satisfied with carrying out routine procedures under the direction of Superiors.
We as nurses will need to document information pertaining to the nursing process, as in vital signs, medications and any patient teaching provided. I can use informatics to also complete discharge planning along with other communication purposes like SBAR’s and patient transfers. We have to remember though, that with this newfound way of communicating, there are many risk factors involved. One of them is making sure that we do not violate the HIPAA guidelines. The Health Information Protection and Accountability Act (HIPAA) guidelines expand on meeting needs for exchange of protected health information for continues care while requiring informed consent and tracking disclosure of other request for information” (Hebda, T., & Czar, P., 2013).