Wiki Some code from home, others not, same dept

[lsmft]

It would be good to know what other departmental policies are regarding coding from home. Several coders in our department are coding from home and are supposed to come into the department one day a week. Our manager often tells the at home coders to "stay home and work since the roads are so bad." Meanwhile, those of us who were not given the option to work from home are mandated to drive in on those roads that are too dangerous for the others to risk the hazard.

Recently the weather was so bad that only emergency vehicles and plows were allowed out by state patrol and sheriff mandate. If you are caught driving in these conditions you are ticketed. Those of us who work on site were forced to come in during those conditions. It was felt by management that the road conditions weren't really that bad and the status assigned by the authorities were not appropriate.

Is this double standard common for at home/vs/on site coders? If the weather is too bad for at home coders to come in their one day why is it not bad for on site coders? There is a huge double standard and it is beginning to cause hard feelings.

Is this common practice?

 

[ngeorge05]

Double standard

Hi lsmft,

It is very unfortunately that some managers don't see that this would clearly cause problems in their department. I don't believe this is standard for most companies however I recently left an employer because of some being able to work from home and others like myself couldn't. I live in Florida so the weather doesn't get that bad where the roads shut down but it is clear that your management doesn't value their onsite employees. I currently now work from home, everyone including my director works from home. See if it there is a possibility for a compromise. Also is there a time frame for working with the company before being able to work from home. Can you work like 2-3 in the office then other days at home or vice versa? If you are met with opposition then honestly you have to reevaluate the importance of this job for you. Only you know what is best for you. Whatever you decide do it respectfully and explain your reasoning carefully. Those are my thoughts as I have moved around between 3 jobs in the past year. I had to do what was best for me but I made sure I gave proper notice and did it on good terms.

 

[npricercm]

It would be good to know what other departmental policies are regarding coding from home. Several coders in our department are coding from home and are supposed to come into the department one day a week. Our manager often tells the at home coders to "stay home and work since the roads are so bad." Meanwhile, those of us who were not given the option to work from home are mandated to drive in on those roads that are too dangerous for the others to risk the hazard.

Recently the weather was so bad that only emergency vehicles and plows were allowed out by state patrol and sheriff mandate. If you are caught driving in these conditions you are ticketed. Those of us who work on site were forced to come in during those conditions. It was felt by management that the road conditions weren't really that bad and the status assigned by the authorities were not appropriate.

Is this double standard common for at home/vs/on site coders? If the weather is too bad for at home coders to come in their one day why is it not bad for on site coders? There is a huge double standard and it is beginning to cause hard feelings.

Is this common practice?

I hate to say it, but be grateful for the things you do have. There are many coders not working and they would change places with you, bad road conditions, double standard and all in a heartbeat.

To answer the question, yes it is common to let some work from home and others not. Could it be seniority? Or are these coders extremely productive and accurate? Do they skills and experience that allow them to work independently? Could it just be a personal bias of the manager? Unfair, you bet; illegal not so much.

Learn what you can from this job and look for the next opportunity. Every job is a learning experience; both good and bad. The more experience you have coding the more likely you can get a remote job with another company.

If management is overriding the state mandate to stay off the streets, that's highly questionable and if you have a safety officer, i would take that issue to them.

Hang in there, find the positives, I'm sure there's at least one and fight the good fight by doing the best job you can.

I would give the ticket to management and let them pay it.

 

[lsmft]

The excellent article in Coding Edge recently prompted many thoughts regarding the coding from home issue vs. onsite. Having seen this first hand the article is absolutely correct in the pros and cons of working from home. What it could have never thought to address is the issue of a split department because of it.

Unfortunately you are right, the management does not value the onsite employees. It prompts the question of should onsite employees have a littler higher wage? The coding at home folks do not drive to work, no added wear and tear on the car, no gas money going toward the drive, no clothing costs, less risk of life and limb during inclement weather, etc. I wonder in the future if this might not be something to consider as we move to more at home coding.

The good options you mention have been addressed with Management by those of us who still work onsite. Being a rigid department there will be no changes, unfortunately. At some point it is likely that those of us onsite will be moving on and when we do this will be one of the primary reasons.

 

[lsmft]

npricerpm, thanks for your well stated reply.

"Could it be seniority? Or are these coders extremely productive and accurate? Do they skills and experience that allow them to work independently? Could it just be a personal bias of the manager? Unfair, you bet; illegal not so much."

Seniority is not the issue nor experience, nor ability to work alone. Productive (some of the at home coders are and some are not), accurate-not as much as they should be. The billing issues come back to us to correct so we see everyone's work.

This is just one of those things that is part of this particular job and it is not likely to change, unfortunately. Geographically this is not an area of opportunity so to speak, no other employers unless you want a two hour one way commute.

Yes, I think even those of us left onsite are thankful to have employment, that is not in question. Seeing pages and pages of newly credentialed coders in each issue of our AAPC magazine makes me wonder where all those folks find employment! There are so many every month.

This is just one of those situations that makes us wonder how things are done in other departments.

 

[npricercm]

npricerpm, thanks for your well stated reply.

"Could it be seniority? Or are these coders extremely productive and accurate? Do they skills and experience that allow them to work independently? Could it just be a personal bias of the manager? Unfair, you bet; illegal not so much."

Seniority is not the issue nor experience, nor ability to work alone. Productive (some of the at home coders are and some are not), accurate-not as much as they should be. The billing issues come back to us to correct so we see everyone's work.

This is just one of those things that is part of this particular job and it is not likely to change, unfortunately. Geographically this is not an area of opportunity so to speak, no other employers unless you want a two hour one way commute.

Yes, I think even those of us left onsite are thankful to have employment, that is not in question. Seeing pages and pages of newly credentialed coders in each issue of our AAPC magazine makes me wonder where all those folks find employment! There are so many every month.

This is just one of those situations that makes us wonder how things are done in other departments.

I live in a big city. Many newly certified coders are looking for work in this field. It is not as easy to find those entry level jobs as it was when many people got their first break. At one time you could be a unit secretary or a records clerk, those jobs are not easy to find because they require a certain skill set.

Your skills in correcting the coding errors of other coders is INVALUABLE. Make sure to keep your coding skills fresh. Keep track of your productivity and accuracy. Start a file of all the information you have gathered and then once you have 3 years of experience, start looking at remote coding jobs. There's a number of companies that are looking for remote coders, so be looking for those jobs and start applying for them. Check them out to see if that is something you are even comfortable doing.

Working at home is not glamorous. You have to be focused, dedicated, able to work unsupervised and very motivated. You can't have distractions around. There's no watercooler to stand around and gossip by, there's not a way to yell across your desk for help, there's no one to cheer you up when you are down. And... it's lonely sometimes. If you are a social person, you will find it very difficult.

Everyone has to make the best of their situation.... I wish you the best!

 

[lsmft]

Well said!

Thank you for that last post. It does help bring things into perspective. I have 13 years of facility coding experience and since we are a growing facility we code all sorts of things.

I live in a remote area and can't get cable/high speed internet unfortunately. Most, if not all companies want that and feel it is more secure. Sigh...stay the course I guess.

Thanks!