Topics for Articles
In what area are you most familiar? Think about the things you are often communicating to others: providers, peers, billing staff, etc. In what area are you considered "the expert" among your peers?
For example, I am well-versed in 1995 E/M guidelines and often publicly speak about the normal distribution of E/M codes in comparison to Medicare's benchmarks. I could write about distribution curves that are outliers, but support based on documentation and patient base. Another topic I often speak about is the difference between the defined parameters (theory) of "Prescription Drug Management" versus the medical necessity of billing a higher code simply because it's a new problem with a prescription (practice). I could write about the difference between 1997 and 1995 DGs, but that doesn't interest me as much, so the likelihood of travelling that path is very low. I am also well-versed in Excel and could write about the importance of using spreadsheets in data collection/auditing.
Do any of these options help you reflect on where you are the expert and what you could write about? You could also compare and contrast anything healthcare related, but what about AAPC certifications? One of our chapter presentations when I was an officer was the comparison of the CPMA to the CPCO. I could possibly write about the similarities and differences between AAPC's CPCO and the Compliance Certification Board's Certified in Healthcare Compliance (the CPCO is AAPC's version of the CHC). But I think I've blocked out sitting for the CHC. I passed and keep up my CEUs to never have to take it again.
Best practices for studying for certification? Survey your peers/chapter and write about the results. Search the forums for topics people are curious about. Do you know the answer or know the background of why such a thing is so? I sometimes assign forum review to my students and ask them to write papers based on what they learned. Do you know how a code/group of codes has/have evolved over time? Compare and contrast again, but what about AAPC certifications versus AHIMA certifications? AAPC versus AMBA?
Keep in mind that 500 words, 12-point Times New Roman font, single spaced, 1-inch margins is about 1 page. Double-spaced, all the rest the same is about 2 pages. Introduction, body, conclusion (in E/M land, intro = history, body = exam, conclusion = MDM). This post is not well organized--it's more free thought--but is about 370 words, which is almost 75% of 500 words.