2021-2022 Catalog 
    
    Mar 29, 2024  
2021-2022 Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Medical Coding Specialist Certificate of Achievement


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This certificate program prepares the student for employment as a medical coder and revenue cycle specialist in an acute care hospital, clinic or physician’s office, long-term care facility, and other health care settings. Coders review medical records, adhere to current coding guidelines to assign accurate codes for medical diagnoses and procedures to facilitate reimbursement, analyze patient outcomes, and medical research. The Medical Coding Specialist Certificate of Achievement prepares students to take the national certification examination to become a Certified Coding Associate (CCA), the Certified Coding Specialist (CCS) offered by American Health Information Association (AHIMA), and the Certified Professional Coder (CPC) exam through the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC). This program provides training through didactic instruction and labs. Facilities employing coding professionals include hospitals, ambulatory care centers, physician offices, long-term care facilities, and insurance firms, medical research organizations and other healthcare settings. This program is part of a multidirectional pathways that include the Health Information Technology, Healthcare Technology Optimization Specialist, and the Medical Assisting programs. 

  • Coding Specialist
  • Clinical Documentation Specialist
  • HIM Revenue Auditor
  • Revenue Cycle Manager
  • Coding Manager
  • Reimbursement and Insurance Manager Competencies:
  • Patient clinical record content, both inpatient and outpatient
  • Physiological changes and altered functions in the human body resulting from disease processes. 
  • ICD, CPT/HCPCS diagnostic and procedural coding systems, and common coding errors.
  • Diagnosis Related Groups (DRGs), Resource-Based Relative Value Scale (RBRVS), Ambulatory Payment Classifications (APCs), components of fee setting, optimizing reimbursement based on insurance specifications. 
  • Basic pharmacological terminology and concepts, drug categories and their uses, mechanisms of drug action, dosage forms and routes of administration. 
  • Data quality impact and characteristics, including validity, reliability, completeness, legibility, currency, timeliness and accessibility. 
  • Encoders and groupers, their benefits and limitations.
  • Legal aspects of heath care, confidentiality requirements.
  • Computer applications and topics related to computers in health care.

Program Student Learning Outcomes


Students who complete this program will be able to:

  • Use software applications in coding, reimbursement, and revenue cycle management.
  • Apply diagnosis/procedure codes according to current nomenclature and guidelines.
  • Ensure accuracy of diagnostic/procedural groupings.
  • Resolve discrepancies between coded data and supporting documentation.
Course ID Title Units
HSC 104   Medical Terminology 3
HIT 100   Health Information Science 2
HSC 107  * Human Body Fundamentals 3
HSC 106   Legal and Ethical Aspects of Health Information 3
HSC 108  * Disease Processes for the Health Sciences 3
HIT 109  * ICD Diagnostic Coding 3
HIT 110  * ICD Procedure Coding 2
HIT 115  * CPT and Ambulatory Care Coding 3
HIT 122   Reimbursement Methodologies 3
HIT 222  * Advanced Coding Applications 4
  Restricted Electives 3-4

TOTAL UNITS FOR THE CERTIFICATE:


32-33

Restricted Elective:  Select 3-4 units from the following  
HSC 234   Certified Coding Specialist (CCS) Exam Preparation 3
HSC 230   Certified Professional Coder (CPC) Exam Preparation 3
CIM 10   Introduction to Information Systems 3
CIM 1   Computer Information Systems 4

*Course has a prerequisite, corequisite, limitation, or recommended preparation; see course description.

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