# need job advice



## mgauvin (Mar 23, 2010)

hi,
I recently passed the CCA exam. I only had a one year certificate from the local college plus a 6 month internship. However I am finding that in looking for work I can not even get my foot in the door. Physician's offices and hospitals are looking for people with 1+ years of coding experience as well as 3m experience. So far I have not seen any places that offer training in 3m and wonder if anyone has any good ideas how to get my foot in the door.


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## carla3640 (Mar 23, 2010)

I know this probably isn't what you want to hear, but, have you tried just getting a job in a medical setting.  You would be surprised what you will learn as a receptionist or scheduler or any other position you could take.  This may not give you coding experience but it does give you experience in the office or hospital setting.  When I started 15 years ago, there was no special class or certification, you started in the office at an entry level position and learned from the people around you.  I just got my coding certification 6 months ago, but I have 15 years of experience.  This is like any other career, you wont start out on top - but you do have to start somewhere to get to the top or as close to it as you can.  Starting at an entry level position for a year or so will give you valuable experience as far as knowing what information you need to collect from the patient for billing purposes, looking at the patients chart when they check out and comparing it to what is coded on the routing slip, ( you will find it not as black and white as the classes make it out to be in some circumstances), you will also get use to answering billing questions and which insurance companies require which modifiers from checking on claims for patients with the insurance companies.  Also in the ophthalmology field there are 2 code sets to choose from for office visits.  You really won't get any better "on the job training" for developing an understanding of the way the billing and coding cycles work than starting at the bottom and working your way up.
You may find that the one year of experience you gain at Dr A's office if you apply yourself and ask questions and help others (coding and billing) will get you in the door at Dr B's office.


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## mgauvin (Mar 24, 2010)

*hi*

Again. Same issue. Doctor offices up here are looking for people that have had previous medical office experience even as just a receptionist.


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## ASC CODER (Mar 24, 2010)

What about a billing office. They always need data entry which is getting your foot in the door.


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## mgauvin (Mar 24, 2010)

*hi*

we only have one up here and I've applied over and over but I have no billing experience and very limited knowledge.


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