Entry Level Job In Medical Coding With No Experience

Although the healthcare information management industry is growing rapidly and facing a shortage of qualified workers, it does not mean that new medical coding graduates will be guaranteed entry level jobs with no experience needed. If you are about to graduate from an accredited medical coding program, whether you are sufficiently prepared or not determines how fast you can get employed into available medical coding positions that pays well.

Your first medical coding and billing job may not be what you are trained for in school. Most entry level medical coders have to start in other types of healthcare work. Experience is actually the main distinguishing factor among applicants for the same advertised entry level medical coding position whether in hospitals or at health insurance companies such as Blue Cross Blue Shield, Humana etc. It will be worthwhile to volunteer at healthcare facilities or get an internship so that you stand a higher chance of landing your first job in medical coding faster than other applicants.

It is recommended to join the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) or the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) in order to receive the latest industry news, information on available medical coder employment opportunities and to network effectively with your peers. Look for a mentor through the local chapters who can also be your reference when seeking a no experience needed medical coding job

Do not just wait for a positive response after sending out your first resume. You need to go out and look for beginner jobs in the medical coding field. There are more and more fresh graduates from reputable programs and competition will only increase with time. The best way to ensure your value in the medical coding job market is to continue to upgrade yourself and gain more experience in various aspects of healthcare information management.

The American Academy of Professional Coders has established the Project Xtern to help newly certified medical coders get internship and experience to qualify for entry level medical coding jobs. You can find healthcare facilities willing to offer new graduates a chance to learn and gain real working experience. There are around 200 Approved Official Extern Sites (AOES) nationwide that are participating in Project Xtern and is a good opportunity for new medical coding graduates with no experience. Note that this externship last around three months and externs will not be paid throughout the whole period. However, there is the possibility of securing a paid entry level medical coder position upon completing the AAPC externship.

If you are not able to get full time internships, the primary reason is usually because the health care offices worry the resources required to train you may disrupt their normal work flow. In this case, ask for part time medical coding internships where you can work for one or two days per week. Aside from medical coding externships, you can consider joining as assistants for chiropractors, long term care, drug treatment facilities etc.

It is not easy to find healthcare facilities willing to recruit entry level coders with totally zero experience even if you graduated from a reputable school or program. Medical coding and billing is a very important process that can affect the profitability of a healthcare practice. A single mishandled claim can cost several thousands of dollars which is why experienced medical coders are always in hot demand. New medical coders with no experience are more likely to make costly mistakes.

A common career progression is to start with entry level medical billing jobs if you have no experience and slowly work your way into the coder positions. For smaller clinics with limited resources, usually you will find that both medical coding and billing works are handled by a single certified and experienced coder.

Beware of non accredited medical coding courses that cost too much and claim that you can easily get a high paying career in health information management. Most employers will prefer candidates to have AAPC or AHIMA certifications and several months of externships at health care facilities.

If you cannot wait for the perfect first medical coding job to appear after you graduated, apply for any entry level medical clerk job in hospitals or insurance companies whether it is the receptionist, medical secretary, claims examiner etc. Having multi-disciplinary knowledge and working experience will help you out in the long run so it can be useful to learn more about medical billing and transcription etc.