Medical Billing and Coding Jobs

Now that you are out in the real world and looking for that job as a business professional, remember that best qualified for the job doesn’t always mean top skills, experience, and education. Employers are also looking for professionalism, motivation, a passion for excellence and a dedication to continuous learning. So to most employers, good grades, certification, and professional memberships indicate that the applicant is serious, motivated and goal-oriented. Keep in mind that you may not be right out of college but have been in the workplace for several years and are now going in a different direction. Why not consider becoming a Medical Billing and Coding Technician. Medical billing and coding job personnel are utilized by hospitals, clinics, doctor’s offices, health maintenance organizations (HMOs), mental health care facilities and insurance companies and since their doctors and nurses don’t have the time and expertise to deal with health insurance regulations and reimbursements rules and claims, they call on the knowledge of medical billing and coders. So, if your objective is to work for a medical office, group practice, health care provision network, or hospital then keep in mind that most employers prefer and often require national certification as a competency standard for their office or organization.

Medical Billing & Coding Job Description

There are over 819,000 physicians and surgeons; 2.4 million registered nurses, 77,000 occupational therapists, 182,000 physical therapists, and 94,000 respiratory therapists, and millions of other allied health professionals in America’s hospitals alone.

Naturally they ALL want to get paid for their services, and reimbursed for their supplies. This is where the medical billing and coding jobs come into play! They are regarded as the doctor’s key to getting paid. Healthcare records are compiled every time a patient sees a health care provider. For many reasons, including insurance and billing, these records are organized, coded and entered into a computer for storage and easy retrieval. The health care professionals who manage these records have many titles – health information coder, medical coding specialists, coding specialists or health information technician. Medical coding is the process of using a specific set of codes accepted by health care professionals and health insurance providers to identify different kinds of treatments, diagnosis, and medications. Medical billing and coding jobs also requires the collection of payments and submits reimbursement claims to insurance companies. The use of coding saves a great deal of time and effort when processing paperwork relevant to ongoing treatment, billing for services rendered, or when filing an insurance claim. A competent medical billing coder can work in several different environments, including taking assignments for work at home. In fact, some inpatient charts are very long and so sometimes this may require you starting on one in the afternoon and having to come back and finish it the next day. Working in medical billing and coding jobs involves the daily handling of confidential patient files and medical records and requires employees to be professional and discreet.

A medical billing and coding job may be contrary to popular belief, as it is not a job for someone who doesn’t like a lot of pressure, and social interaction. You will need to answer phones, and interact with people at insurance companies and patients who call in with questions on a daily basis. Your communication will be either directly over the phone, or via written communications such as letters, forms and emails. Also when communicating with others, medical coders must always project confidence and professionalism, and remain friendly, professional and calm. Naturally, the medical billing and coding job involves medical office work. Rather than wearing scrubs like the rest of the office crew, you will typically wear casual office attire, have a radio with headset, a phone, lots of pencils,paperclips, a favorite mouse pad and last but not least – a computer.

Medical billers and coders receive on-the-job training, but some employers prefer post-secondary education such as a certificate or an associates degree. Medical billing and coding training programs are offered at many allied health and technical schools and can sometimes be found at vocational schools. The length of study time for these programs is usually about nine months for certification if attending classes full time. Some two-year colleges also offer medical billing and coding programs that culminate in an associate degree. For those with full-time jobs wanting to further their education, many medical billing and coding programs are offered online.

Medical Billing and Coding Salary Range

A July 2009 survey by Payscale.com reports that the median starting salary for a beginning medical billing and coding professional is about $12.20 per hour. With at least one year of job experience you can expect to average about $12.94 per hour. Certified medical billing and coding specialists who have five or more years of experience can generally earn $14.62 an hour, and those in the field who have been on the job at least 10 years or more can expect to earn at least $15.42 an hour.

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Dialysis Technician Jobs

If you have an interest in science and technology and also like working with people, there are a number of different jobs in the healthcare field from which to choose. One of them you might want to consider is that of a dialysis technician. Not only will you be making competitive wages, but you will be saving lives. Before making your decision on which field you want to go into, you should give thought to whether or not this position is a good fit with your interests and abilities. So read up on the career. Your can go online or go to your school or public library and find books such as Occupational Handbook by the U.S. Department of Labor which provides a thorough overview of health care careers.

Dialysis Technician Job Description

Dialysis technicians work in a specialized part of the health care industry closely with patients whose kidneys are failing. Sometimes called Hemodialysis technicians, Renal Dialysis Tecnicians or Patient Care Technicians, these healthcare workers operate machines that remove wastes, salt and excess water from patient’s blood. Dialysis Technicians perform their duties under the supervision of physicians or registered nurses. They not only have clinical skills, but they have technical skills as well and can be responsible for both direct patient care and dialysis equipment maintenance and repair. Other responsibilities include observing the patient during the dialysis procedure, monitoring and recording vital signs during treatment, administering local anesthetic and drugs under supervision, assess patients for any complications that may occur during the procedure. They must also be ready to take any necessary emergency measures – including administering oxygen or performing basis cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and train patients for at-home dialysis treatment.

Some important skills, knowledge, and abilities for Dialysis Technicians include:

1. Operation Monitoring – watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.

2. Operaton and Control – controlling operations of equipment or systems.

3. Technology Design – generating or adapting equipment and technology to serve user needs.

4. Be and active listener – giving your full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

5. Oral Expression – the ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

6. Written Comprehension – the ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing, and

7. Information Ordering – the ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or patern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letter, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

Although some dialysis technicians can find jobs with a diploma and acquire the necessary skills while working, an increasing number of employers now want candidates with additional training from an accredited dialysis technology school. The school you attend to become a dialysis technician is very important. For example, Dialysis Technicians who want to work in California must be certified by the California Department of Health Services. Then you would hold the title of Certified Hemodialysis Technician (CHD). In order to become CHT, individuals must either complete a California Dept. of Health Services approved training and testing program in a hemodialsis clinic, hospital unit, or private school, or be certified by the Board of Nephrology Examiners Nursing and Technology (BONENT). Technicians from another state who are BONENT certified can work in California without repeating the training. The U.S. Department of Education provides a list of accepted accreditation organizations. If you attend a reputable school, it should offer the established curricula and an externship at the end of the training including hands-on experience in artificial kidneys, technical assessments, fluid oversite,dialysis processes, monitoring equipment and common hemodialysis issues.

The possibilities for continued career growth are greater when you have an Associate’s or Bachelor’s Degree. Maybe you could opt for going to school part time while you are working, which is a good possibility because of the fact that you can do online courses at home. Another thing to look into while considering becoming a Dialysis Tech is the requirements in your particular state of employment as in some states dialysis technicians need to take a certification examination before being hired. In others, only accredited training is required. Regardless, in most cases, to be certified, a dialysis technician must have graduated from high school, completed an approved training program and had clinical experience. Also, at least six months of clinical work is recommended in some states before taking the examination for certification.

Advancement opportunities for Dialysis Technicians depend upon the location of the job. For the most part, Technicians can advance to a Chief Technician position in most facilities. Those working in larger clinics have the opportunity to advance to Machine Maintenance Technician where this more specialized position is responsible for all dialysis machine maintenance and repair. Most employers also encourage Technicians to become licensed vocational nurses, registered nurses or other more specialized health care therapists or providers.

As a Dialysis Technician you can generally expect to earn somewhere between $10.00 – 13.25 per hour and work up to about $20.00 per hour after a number of years on the job. Also, for those Techs who work evenings or night shifs usually earn a shift differential of about $2.00 – $3.50 per hour. Dialysis Technician Jobs in large acute-care hospitals normally pay higher wages than those employed in outpatient clinics. And of course wages are generally higher un urban areas.

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EKG Technician Jobs

Choosing a technical career in the medical field has provided great job security through the years due to the high demand of medical technicians. One of the fast track careers in the medical field is employment as an EKG technician, this career choice is on the rise, and demand is expected to grow much faster than the average. Along with this high demand, one will receive excellent pay, benefits, and an exciting and very rewarding work environment. Technologist and technicians in this field of expertise with multiple professional credentials and are trained to perform a wide range of procedures will have the best prospects. There are some things to consider when deciding your career path, schooling, salary, and job description are some key aspects you should focus on.

EKG technician job description

An EKG technician is responsible for assisting physicians in diagnosing and treating cardiac or heart, and peripheral vascular or blood vessel ailments. The abbreviation EKG is short for electrocardiographic technician.  Job duties include scheduling appointments, reviewing physicians’ interpretations of patient files, and monitoring patient’s heart rates. Technicians operate and are responsible for the care of test equipment, explaining procedures to patient, and comparing findings to a standard to identify any problems.

There are different areas that as an EKG technician you can specialize in such as invasive cardiology, non-invasive including echocardiography, or vascular technology. A basic EKG test involves the technician using electrodes on specific parts of the patient’s body such as the chest, arms and legs to determine if the patient has an irregular heartbeat. This procedure provides a print out for the physician to read and analyze to diagnose issues, and falls under a non-invasive procedure. Procedures such as these are typically preformed routinely and are done before other more invasive procedures like surgery.

A more specialized technician such as a cardiovascular technologist specializes in invasive procedures where they assist physicians with cardiac catheterization procedures in which a small tube is threaded through the patients’ artery to the heart. This procedure will determine if there is a blockage in the blood vessels that supply the heart and can help diagnose other issues.  During the procedures the technician monitors the patients’ blood pressure and heart rate with EKG equipment and alert the physician is something appears abnormal. Some cardiology technologists prepare the patient as well as monitor patients during open-heart surgery and also are present for the insertion of pacemakers and stents during these procedures.

Technologists who specialize in using ultrasound to examine the heart chambers, valves, and vessels are called cardiac sonographers, or echo cardiographers.  An Ultrasound technician creates an image with an ultrasound instrument which helps the physician diagnose and treat patients. This procedure is performed while the patient is awake and is either resting or is physically active. Technologist that assist the physician in the diagnosis of disorders affecting the circulation are called vascular technologists, they are responsible for completing the patient’s medical history, evaluate pulses and blood flow while checking for abnormalities. They also use ultrasound to record vascular information and are mostly preformed during or immediately after surgery. Then they provide a summary to the physician to aid in the patient diagnosis and treatment.

EKG Technician Training

To enroll in an EKG School, you will first need your high school diploma or GED and a training Certificate. To obtain this EKG certification you will need to complete a year of schooling and additional training. Most technicians receive this training on the job from an EKG supervisor or cardiologist.

Cardiovascular technologists typically need an associate degree for entry-level employment, and most employers also require professional credential, and most EKG technicians receive on the job training from their supervisor or cardiologist. EKG training courses are offered by technical schools and community colleges around the country.

The majority of technologists in this field complete a 2-year junior or community college program which generates an associate degree. In recent years 4-year training programs have become increasingly accessible. The first year is dedicated to core medical courses and is followed by a year of specialized training in either invasive cardiovascular, noninvasive cardiovascular or noninvasive vascular technology.  Unlike most other cardiovascular technologist and technicians most EKG techs are trained on the job by a supervisor or a certified cardiologist. This specialized on the job training can take anywhere from 4 to 6 weeks, most employers prefer to train people that are already familiar in the medical field such as nursing aids.

Continuing education is required in most if not all ekg technician jobs to maintain your certification. Cardiovascular technologist and technicians must be reliable, have mechanical aptitude, and be able to follow orders and work in a team.  Technicians must be able to ease the patients while explaining complicated procedures, as well as articulate technically with physicians.

EKG Technician Salary

Like any professional careers there are variables that determine your potential earnings, the same is true for EKG technicians and their annual salary. These variables include location, experience, job demand, and your schooling.

With a basic EKG certificate, and one year of schooling and training, you can expect to earn between $22,000 and $30,000 per year, with an average of $24,000 a year. With a more specialized career path and training in cardiovascular technology with the additional 2-4 year programs resulting in associate degrees you can expect to earn between $32,800 and $61,580. With such a degree and training the lowest 10 percent earned around $25,510 and the highest percent around $74,760.

Cardiovascular technologist and technicians along with EKG technicians operate sophisticated equipment that helps physicians diagnose and treat patients. Similar or related occupations in the medical field also include radiation therapists, radiologic technologist and technicians, along with respiratory therapy technicians.

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