Hazel Said:

What is a better and more profitable career choice: Medical billing and coding or Medical Transcriptioning?

We Answered:

In patient coding, which is also known as ICD-9 coding is the most profitable career, with the possibilities of advancement. There's coding auditor's, the OIG, with the right amount of experience. Check on the AHIMA website, www.ahima.org for more information on these programs, and the certifications that come along with it. You can choose and exciting and rewarding career in coding. Many doctor;s offices hire billers and coders, and there is a growing need for certified. The hospital I work for actually only hires certified coders because of the loss of income the endure.

Transcription will soon be a thing of the past I feel, because the advancement of clinics and doctor's offices converting to electronic health records. This will eliminate the need to dictation because everything is already typed and documented. If you can find a hospital or small clinic that is not yet converted, you can then do these. Some people get paid by the hour, around 25 - 50 a tape, if you do this full-time it will be an hourly job.

A lot of school offer programs for both coding and transcription, which can be taken concurrently. You can work from home with both, BUT you need at least 5 years experience coding before you can do a home setup, if you can contract from home, your looking at a potential of about 45 an hour.

Penny Said:

Career decision: Medical assistant or medical billing?

We Answered:

I believe you should go into medical billing but that is just an opinion.As a medical assistant you may need to be from job to job until you find one where you are comfortable at least this is what happened to one of my friends.She said that sometimes dealing with the doctors is not so much fun as they are very arrogant and will want things their way.You will as well be dealing with some nasty patients who wouldn't make your life so comfortable.As medical billing you will be working at an office as well but the interaction with the people will be minimum.You will just have to be worried about not making mistakes with the billing and following the documentation practice.Now this is just an opinion but it would serve you better to talk to some adviser about your concerns and let her give you a description about what each of those jobs entails.It wouldn't hurt to interview some medical assistants and medical billing assistants to find out what they like or dislike about their job.