So the thing that people struggle with the most in my ICD-10-CM medical coding study groups–is understanding the coding guidelines. Now I’m not saying you have to memorize the guidelines or know them off the top of your head completely. There are a lot–general guidelines, inpatient, outpatient, sequencing etc. But the thing is, you need to have an excellent understanding of the guidelines to be successful as a medical coder. So how can you learn the guidelines?
Well, the obvious answer is to spend some time reading and studying the guidelines. Learn where they are in the book. Don’t be afraid to write in your books and highlight things so you can reference them easier in the future. But there’s more to it than that. If you’re currently taking a coding course–has your instructor spent class time reviewing the guidelines? Or giving you coding examples that references the guidelines so you can see how the guidelines are applied in real life coding? Now if you said “yes” to that question–you are in good shape and are in an excellent coding program. There are some really awesome instructors out there, and what I’m about to say next is in no way trying to put anyone down.
But, if you said “no” to that question and your instructor has not spent any time going over the guidelines…how are you expected to be a good coder? How will you have a good foundation? How will you pass the CPC exam? Yes, you can self study…but it’s confusing.
If you’re already enrolled in a medical coding course, and would like extra ICD-10-CM coding practice, I offer medical coding study groups. We answer true/false questions and fill in the blank questions together as a group through Zoom. These questions are directly related to the guidelines and you will see how the guidelines work in real life coding.
You will get 4 sessions and each session is 90 minutes. The cost is $35. For more info and to sign up, go HERE.
**This post originally appeared on our blog.