Medical Coding: There's Enough To Keep You Busy All Day

by  Find-A-Code™
Jul 14th, 2023

There are some jobs that don't offer enough work to keep you busy all day. You end up doing other work to fill in the downtime. If you are looking at medical coding as a potential career, know this: it doesn't qualify as one of those jobs. There is enough medical coding to keep you busy all day, every day.

Future medical coders often ask how many cases they could expect to code in a given day. There is no black-and-white answer to that question. Coders work at their own speed. Not only that, but the complexity of a given case also partially determines how long a coder will spend working on it. More complex cases take longer to complete.

One thing that medical coders can depend on is never facing a shortage of work. A competent coder who does the job well can expect to be kept busy perpetually. Best of all, there is job security in medical coding.

Medical Coder Training and Certification

Although medical coding isn't one of those jobs that involves some amount of busywork, it is one that people outside the industry tend to believe anyone can do. It is common for people to think that medical coding is little more than data entry. It is so much more than that.

Medical coding is a profession that requires specialized knowledge and skill. Professional coders usually go through an intense training process before being certified by an accrediting organization. We say 'usually' because formal training and accreditation are not legal requirements. A healthcare provider could theoretically hire anyone. But as a general rule, healthcare providers usually insist on training and certification.

Training of some sort – whether through a formal training program or on the job – is a necessity due to the complex nature of medical coding. For starters, there are tens of thousands of codes just in the CPT and ICD-10 code sets. Coders aren't expected to memorize all of them, but they are expected to be familiar with code categories, how to read codes, and where to look them up.

Employer Hiring Expectations

Healthcare facilities and third-party medical billing companies tend to look for certain skills when hiring. At the top of the list is knowledge of both medical terminology and insurance billing practices. The way to gain this knowledge is through an accredited training program.

Other skills employers tend to look for include:

• computer skills
• communication skills
• flexibility and adaptability
• attention to detail
• analytical skills
• time management skills

Obviously, a working understanding of coding systems and HIPAA compliance is also expected. Accredited training programs cover both. Given how challenging medical coding can be, it doesn't make sense to pursue work as a coder without first being trained and certified.

Not a Job for Everyone

There is a lot to be said about medical coding as a profession. It pays well, there is plenty of room for advancement, and the job security so many people are looking for is there. But medical coding is not a job for everyone. You need to have a certain temperament just to get by. To do the job well, you must have the right temperament combined with sufficient knowledge and skill.

Fortunately, there are plenty of certification programs available around the country. Training and certification do not require a college degree per se, so you don't have to go to school for three or four years before you can start working. Get your first medical coding job and you will have your foot in the door of a remarkably busy industry. You won't have any difficulty finding work.