flynn043

It's conference season! This means I have a lot of speaking engagements coming up. Here's a list of what's on tap for me over the next several months and links to more information. If you have any questions or would like more information, email me at codercoach@gmail.com. If you're in the area, I'd love to meet any and all of you! March Tuesday, March 22 - Coder Coach Event, Emily Griffith Opportunity School, Denver, CO. Topic: "Overview of Health Information Management" (speaker) April Friday, April 15 - NCHIMA Spring Meeting, Bella Sera Event Center, Brighton, CO. Topic: "Confessions of a Dyslexic Coder - What it's Really Like to Learn ICD-10-CM" (speaker) Thursday, April 21 - Montana HFMA 2011 Spring Conference, Bozeman, MT. Topic: ICD-10 and HIPAA 5010 Preparation (speaker) Thursday, April 28 - HCPro audio conference . Topic: "Cardiac Catheterization and Peripheral Revascularization: 2011 CPT Coding Changes Explained" (...

Do I seem like a stranger? Because I feel like a stranger. These days I have two things on my mind: ICD-10 and the CPT coding changes for vascular procedures. And pretty much anything outside of these two topics isn't getting much of my attention lately - including blogging. So in an effort to provide you with a recent blog post - and to keep my attention focused on the t asks at hand - I figured I would blog about what I've been up to recently. This will give some insight into the challenges that existing coding professionals are facing today. Before I let you in on what's been on my plate, I should mention that there is no crossover between these two topics. They are two very different aspects of coding that use two entirely different parts of the human brain. Or at least, they use two very different parts of my brain! When asked why I am so deeply involved in two areas that are so vastly different, all I can say is, I love a challenge. And challenged I've been! CPT C...

This morning my alarm clock went off at 7:00am, just as it does on most work days. Like most anal-retentive coders, I have my morning routine, which includes the usual suspects like brushing teeth and shuffling into the kitchen for that all important initial cup of coffee. Once my breath is fresh and my eyelids are open, I flip on the computer and wallah! I'm at work for the day. My work day routine begins by scanning my work, Coder Coach, and client email accounts. Sometimes I venture onto the Coder Coach page on Facebook to see if anyone has posted anything. Maybe I send or receive an IM to or from a client or coworker. Maybe I actually pick up the phone and call someone (not terribly likely). But rarely, in my daily dealings as a remote coding consultant, does my work involve face-to-face communication with people. And frankly, I miss it. Let me be clear. I love communicating through email. I have relationships with friends in other states solely based on email. I ha...

I meet so many people who are out there looking for their initial break into the field of coding. And so many of them are discouraged when they are continuously told that they need experience in order to be eligible for hire. The first recommendation I make is always to volunteer and many times that advice is met with resentment - "I have a degree - why should I have to volunteer?" Well this is where I usually try to put on my politically correct attitude and explain why but I think what I'm going to start saying is "I have a degree, certifications, and 15 years of experience and I volunteer." As a matter of fact, I can't name a single person in the coding field who's successful who doesn't continue to volunteer because so much of the coding profession is governed by volunteers. And if you're a member of AHIMA or the AAPC and you don't feel like you're getting enough out of your membership (or, like me, you're just really passiona...

So you want to be a coder. And not just that, you want to be a hospital coder because, on average, they make more money than physician coders. And you don't just want to be a hospital coder, you want to be an inpatient hospital coder because then you get to look at the whole chart and piece together the patient's clinical picture. If this is your goal, then everything you need to know you will not learn in school. And that's mainly because there is so much to learn and practical experience is key. Most of all, if you want to be an inpatient coder, you need to know diagnosis-related groups (DRGs) because in hospitals, it's all about DRGs and case mix - and compliance. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, fear not - here's a primer on DRGs! I wish I could say I cover it all here, but this is just a beginning! What is a DRG? The ICD-9-CM coding system contains about 16,000 diagnosis codes and ICD-10-CM contains over 68,000 codes. Imagine trying to de...

I know many of you out there are looking for jobs. And I know that many of you are also suffering from a lot of rejection. And although I'm not much for New Year's resolutions - because let's face it, they don't usually last more than 30 days - I am a fan of new beginnings and the new year is a great time for new beginnings. Spoiler alert: I'm about to get out the pom-pons and get really Pollyanna! First a little diversion - I love Christmas and everything about it. My house is decked out in full Christmas regalia while I'm still digesting Thanksgiving dinner and no room in my house is safe from a little holiday glitz. That said, after the new year, I love packing it all away and getting everything clean and organized and new. Of course, I am a coder, so organizing things is right on the top of my list of favorite things to do. And I encourage you to do the same - except organize your job search efforts instead. It's time for a new perspective. The d...

Most coding students spend semesters learning to navigate ICD-9-CM and CPT code books and maybe a little class time plus internship experience learning how to code using an encoder. And then they graduate and, if they move on to a position at a hospital, they start using an encoder almost exclusively. In fact, many hospitals don't purchase code books for their coders because they pump so much money into encoders. The result can be coders who forget how to use their code books all together. In case you aren't familiar, encoders are software programs that automate the code book. This makes coding faster for the coder and also allows for inclusion of coding and billing edits and coding guidelines and advice. Not to mention, it helps us remember to put fifth digits on all those diagnosis codes! There are two types of encoders: logic-based and book-based. Logic-based encoders are probably the most popular. They ask the coder a series of questions that ultimatel...