Wiki Some advice for students and fellow coders

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TTcpc

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Hello everyone,

After reading some of the posts under the student and employment forums, I feel the need to post some advice from a fellow coder. I have worked in medical coding/billing for over 14 years and have been a CPC since 2008. Even after all of this experience it was not easy passing the CPC exam on the first try nor has it been easy finding a job when I have had to move due to my husband's career. It is very frustrating to log on and see students and other coders "bashing" the AAPC and coders who do have a job because you either didn't pass the first time or because you can't find the "dream" job of working from home. I have been a manager and team lead in other jobs and it does not come across as very professional if you paste all over the website that you failed the exam and that the message that you posted looked like you were tweeting the world. From my experience, if you are an AAPC member, employers will check out any posts to see how professional or unprofessional you are and if you are able to follow direction!

Please think twice (or more than twice) before you post in the forums. We are in a career field that deals with professionals and in turn, we must be professional also. If you are having difficulty passing the exam, ask others in your chapter for help and by no means post that you failed (especially in the subject line). And please pay attention when posting in the employment forum, if you are looking for a job, please place it in the appropriate forum or else employers will think that you can not follow directions.

I always wish fellow coders and students the best in taking their exams and searching for a job, but please keep take this advice to heart...you never know who might see your posts!
 
Very well said. May I also add that since this is a professional forum and (future) employers may be checking your posts, watch your spelling and attention to detail. Coding is a detail oriented profession, after all if you transpose a number you are completely changing the diagnosis or procedure. Possible employers will notice if your post is filled with spelling and grammatical errors.

I've been in this profession for over 30 years (before people even knew what medical coding was) and one thing hasn't changed, doctors want to employ people who are good at what they do, can follow directions are accurate in their work and who will be good ambassadors for their practice. First impressions are lasting impressions so as twtcpc stated, thnik twice about what you're posting and think about what kind of impression you're going to make. You never know your future employer may be reading.
 
Advice for students and fellow coders

Recently I started reading the AAPC Forum and I noticed some of the negative posts too. Normally, I like to only read, but I decided I will post my thoughts on this. The first time I took the CPC exam I failed it by 1 point. Talk about a deflating feeling. I had to get around a couple of obstacle but I purposed in myself that I was going to retake the exam, and pass it. While I prepared to retake the exam, I found out what areas I was weak in. That was the first thing I did and I practiced, practiced, and more practice. I even reached out to other certified coders to ask for advice and question about the exam. I have found anything worth having, sometimes you have to make some sacrifices to get it. Passing the exam was the easy part, now I have to make sure I keep my coding skills up as well as earning my CEU's since I am not in the workforce at this time. So get to practising.:)
 
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