Even though those unemployment figures just don’t  seem to want to budge, ultrasound technician schools are one of the few places providing dependable job placement. Ultrasound is one of the few sectors in the job market that is strong and getting stronger. Other health care jobs are going unfilled as well — which explains the increase in students for medical billing and coding school.

However, many potential job applicants get discouraged, thinking that the educational and training requirements for one of these positions is beyond their reach. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Anyone who has ever had a child or who has known someone who was pregnant is well aware of the effect that the science of ultrasound has made on prenatal medicine. In addition to making it possible for parents-to-be to get a sneak peak at their child before he or she is  born, ultrasound is also used to assist with the diagnosis of other conditions, including those affecting the liver, kidneys, spleen, gallbladder, pancreas, brain and heart.

As an ultrasound technician, your primary duties will involve utilizing specialized equipment in order to direct sound waves into certain parts of the patient’s body. With the help of this technology, you will develop images that are created from the reflected echoes of these sound waves. By videotaping and photographing these images and providing them to a physician, the physician can then examine the internal organs of the patient in order to determine a diagnosis and a proper treatment plan.

Those who are interested in a career in this field must first complete a program through ultrasound technician schools. Students will learn about the technology behind the equipment that is being used, as well as how to look for the subtle visual cues that will help them differentiate between the healthy areas and those that are not.

If you’re interested in pursuing a career in the healthcare industry, but you don’t want to be directly involved with caring for patients, you might want to consider attending medical billing and coding school. As a medical billing and coding specialist, you will be part of your employer’s medical records and health information team. In short, your job will involve coding patient medical records in order to ensure the patients and their insurance companies are billed properly.

In order to be successful in the industry, it is important to complete a program through a medical billing and coding school. You will learn about the specialized coding that is used in the field. Depending upon the place of employment, the medical billing and coding specialist might also need to be familiar with several different coding systems, including those that are used in physician’s offices, ambulatory settings and long-term care facilities.

To pursue a career in this field, it is generally necessary to obtain a minimum of an associate degree from a medical billing and coding school. Many employers also require certification in the field. Several organizations offer certification medical billing and coding, including the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC), the Board of Medical Specialty Coding (BMSC) and the Professional Association of Health care Coding Specialists (PAHCS).

About the Author

Shannon Braun has been working in the online marketing industry for the past three years. She has over five years of freelance writing experience, and has written on a variety of topics including ultrasound education and medical billing and coding school.