More and more students are pursuing their majors in medical coding. With public interest in the noble profession at an all-time high, we decided now is the ideal time to give some market information about medical coding.
So, if you’re a medical coding student or if you’re looking to enroll in medical coding classes, here are 5 essential things you need to know.
1. It’s not the same as Medical Billing:
Before we begin, let’s clear out one thing; medical coding and medical billing are NOT the same profession. Given the fact that most promotional brochures tend to use these two terms interchangeably, it’s no wonder that most people mix up the two and consider them to be the same thing.
To set the record straight, medical coding professionals must convert medical records like diagnosis and lab results into alphanumeric codes. Medical billers, however, generate medical bills and bridge the gap between the insurance provider and the healthcare provider.
2. A Brief History:
You may be surprised to know but medical coding isn’t a new profession; it’s been around for centuries. The first medical coding system (called the Bertillon Classification of Causes of Death) was devised by French physician Dr. Jacques Bertillon in the late nineteenth century!
Granted the Bertillon Classification of Causes of Death wasn’t nearly as comprehensive as the coding systems used these days, it’s still widely considered to be the predecessor to medical coding.
3. The Nature of the Job:
Contrary to popular belief, medical coders don’t just have to sit at a desk all day and look at alphanumeric codes; their job is much more complex and nuanced than that. A medical coder’s typical day at work consists of review patient notes and converting them into medical codes.
Factors that dictate the quality of the code include clinical setting (inpatient coding or outpatient coding) and the nature of these services performed.
4. Inpatient and Outpatient Coding:
As discussed above, the complexity of the final bill depends a lot on the clinical setting i.e. whether the client was inpatient or an outpatient. Simply put, this refers to whether the patients had been admitted to the facility and had completed at least a 24 hour stay in the premises.
On the other hand, outpatient coding refers to the medical coding performed for patients who visited the healthcare center but were not admitted.
Fun Fact: If a patient was admitted for a few hours they will not be considered an inpatient unless they’ve been in clinic or hospital for at least 24 hours.
5. Credentials Matter:
It goes without saying that not all medical coders are the same, and as such you shouldn’t expect to have the same paycheck as your peers (more on that later). The most important aspect that dictates your pay grade is the credentials that you boast. For example, do you hold a CPC Certification or a CIRCC certification?
We’ve merely discussed medical coding on the surface as there remains a lot to discuss about the subject. Join us next time as we discuss more important facts about medical coding and list some advantages of doing so that will blow your mind!
About Allied Prep Technical Institute:
We are a medical training institute that conducts medical billing and coding training and provides certifications to our students on campus and online. Our rigorous tests and training programs arm our students with the knowledge and the expertise they need to perform their job at the highest level possible.
Contact us today to learn more about how you stand to benefit from signing up for our classes!