Click here for more sample CPC practice exam questions with Full Rationale Answers

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Click here for more sample CPC practice exam questions and answers with full rationale

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CPC Practice Exam and Study Guide Package

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What makes a good CPC Practice Exam? Questions and Answers with Full Rationale

CPC Exam Review Video

Laureen shows you her proprietary “Bubbling and Highlighting Technique”

Download your Free copy of my "Medical Coding From Home Ebook" at the top right corner of this page

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2018 CPC Practice Exam Answer Key 150 Questions With Full Rationale (HCPCS, ICD-9-CM, ICD-10, CPT Codes) Click here for more sample CPC practice exam questions with Full Rationale Answers

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Click here for more sample CPC practice exam questions and answers with full rationale

Ophthalmic Technician Exam Question

Can anyone tell me if their technicians are performing visual acuity, gross visual fields, motility/alignment, pupils, and IOP with the physicians adding an attestation that they “performed and/or personally participated in the key and critical portions of the service”, and “have reviewed/updated the documentation, and confirm that all of the information is accurate as documented” within a hospital based clinic (for E/M services)? If so, can you provide resource?

Thanks!

Medical Billing and Coding Forum

Audiology Technician Billing

  Medicare stipulates precise requirements for billing audiology technicians’ services. As outlined in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Transmittal 84 in February 2008, these requirements are distinct from those governing audiologists’ billing. Filter on R84BP. Audiology Services Must Meet Basic Requirements Audiology services—whether provided by an audiologist or audiology technician—must meet basic […]
AAPC Knowledge Center

96102 – Who is considered “technician”?

We are a teaching facility. Psychological Testing* was administered by a Psychology Student.

Later on, a Psychologist (PsyD,HSPP) reviewed and interpreted and prepared a report which began like this – "The following is the psychological report from the above psychological testing. I personally spent over 2 hours supervising and interpreting this assessment and report…."

This obviously cannot be 96101, since the Psychologist did not perform the testing and cannot be coded for interpretation and report of 96102 & 96103.

Is 96102 appropriate here with the Psychology Student as "technician"? or would this be an unbillable service?

96102 – Psychological testing (includes psychodiagnostic assessment of emotionality, intellectual abilities, personality and psychopathology, eg, MMPI and WAIS), with qualified health care professional interpretation and report, administered by technician, per hour of technician time, face to face.

*Tests Administered:
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF)
Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-III (MCMI-III)
Measure of Symptom Validity
Thematic Apperception Test

Thank you in advance.

Diane

Medical Billing and Coding Forum

Tips and Necessary Qualifications For Becoming a Medical Lab Technician

A Medical Lab Technician is usually involved in procedurally performing laboratory tests to ascertain the conditions of the patient(s) as authorized by the Doctor and giving the feedback of test results. They are at a position to prepare the specimens of blood and other body fluids for testing and analysis or they may carry out simple automated tests under strict guidelines. You need to find how to become one? On this page you find the fundamental tips and qualifications that are necessary for you to become a medical technician.

The number one tip of becoming a Medical Technician is to like the career. This calls for not only being interested in becoming a Medical Technician because it is a well paying job or because someone is already one, but because you are prepared to handle all the complexities involved in it. A will to handle the blood samples, stool, urine and other fluids from the human body are a necessity in this profession. It is by these fluids and other tests that the Medical Laboratory Technician is able to detect drugs in the blood, tell the blood group, bacteria, parasites, microorganisms and chemicals in the samples.

Another tip is: do what you can do best, pursue Medical Technician if you find the career self satisfying. Self search yourself and find if you will cope with Medical regulations, working with a number of equipments to analyze samples taken, handling digital based equipments such as cell counters and practicing keenness in analyzing of the results.

Now, having seen the tips, what are the qualifications for becoming a medical technician? In order for you to become a medical lab technician, you will need to meet the following minimum qualifications: be in a possession of an Associate or Bachelor degree in Lab Science or be in possession of an Accredited Medical Lab Certificate. On the other hand, the individual may be required to have an equivalent education and experience qualifications as defined by ASCP in order to be eligible for the MLT/MT category. Basically, having a formal training in Medical Lab from a state recognized institution.

Author – Pankaj Gupta

Emergency Medical Technician Training Prospects

Quick in-field reaction to trauma is an essential skill that professional emergency medical technicians have to obtain. Educational training opportunities start preparing students for the field by developing the competency to provide patient care in urgent situations. Vocational colleges provide students with several training prospects that develop professional skills.

EMTs are trained to respond to emergency situations where people need immediate medical attention. Professionals stabilize patients and transport them to the nearest hospital. Training is as absolute necessity when pursuing careers as technicians, as they are required to provide emergency care in a variety of situations. Three program levels are available but students have to begin with the first level and work their way up. This is due to the nature of training. Each available area prepares students to provide certain medical duties. Professionals can only provide assistance that corresponds to their level of training. Training prospects include:

*EMT – Basic

Basic training focuses on teaching students to assist people in situations that may include respiratory, heart, and trauma emergencies. Training develops the skills to properly assess the condition of a patient. Programs usually consist of 100-120 credit hours, which are broken up into both theoretical and clinical knowledge. Triage procedure and bleeding control are highly discussed throughout the coursework, as well as burn classification, shock management, cardio pulmonary resuscitation (CPR), hemorrhage control, and joint splinting. Students that step into health care career positions will perform clinical duties under the supervision of more experienced and trained professionals.

*EMT – Intermediate

As an intermediate EMT, professionals perform more advanced assistance practices that are determined by the state they work in. Training breaks down the protocols taken to treat trauma relating to numerous areas such as breathing and burns. Life support practices are stressed, as EMTs need to follow specific transportation procedures to keep patients stable until they reach a medical facility. Some major medical course topics include disinfection, blood borne pathogen control, hazardous material identification, and gunshot wound response. Trauma training is dedicated to giving students an overview of how to treat patients that have suffered chest, spinal, lung, or trachea injuries. Students learn to provide emergency assistance to adults and children. Training typically requires a minimum of 35-55 credit hours of training.

*EMT – Paramedic

Paramedic training is the highest level available when pursuing a career as an EMT. Students learn to take the knowledge gained in the previous programs and apply it to administering medications, interpreting electrocardiograms, and providing intubations. Programs are very extensive and require students to complete at least 1,000 hours of training. This typically includes all coursework and field experience training. Cardiology, airway management, and trauma management are core subjects discussed within training.

Training is focused on providing students with the knowledge to obtain EMT certification, which is required in all 50 states. Accredited educational training is available at all levels as long as students successfully complete all program levels. Agencies like the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) can fully accredit the best training programs that provide students with a quality education. Enter the fast-paced medical industry by studying to become an EMT.

 

DISCLAIMER: Above is a GENERIC OUTLINE and may or may not depict precise methods, courses and/or focuses related to ANY ONE specific school(s) that may or may not be advertised at PETAP.org.

Copyright 2010 – All rights reserved by PETAP.org.

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Renata McGee is a staff writer for PETAP.org. Locate Emergency Medical Technician Career Training as well as an Online EMT Training at PETAP.org, your Partners in Education and Tuition Assistance Programs.

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Ways to Become the Medical Technician

Many people mistakenly believe that a surgical technician is just accountable for cleaning and maintaining surgical equipment. However, this is a career that provides extremely good purchase the person who has what it takes to be accountable for human lives. If you’re seriously interested in as an assistant to an OR surgeon, then you can desire to continue reading.This isn’t a simple field of medicine for a person to obtain accepted in, and requires a 2 year accredited degree program, and passing the Certification Study of multiple choice questions .

When you complete your schooling and tests, you’ll qualify to become person in the Association of Surgical Technologists. The courses you will have to take are anatomy, and courses that teach extensively detailed medical terminology, along with courses within the specialized sterilization techniques. You will have real experience of hands on training with internships just like a doctor, and will be supervised on your clinical training.You won’t just be handing surgical instruments towards the surgeon throughout a surgery, you will be the main one who’s extracting human tissues and making the sutures to close in the incisions .

 Your work will not end once you have signed off on the Or just being completely sterile, you’ll need a surefire stomach to keep your wits about you and become completely focused on every detail happening.You must realize that a patient’s every day life is based on you having made sure there aren’t any contaminants which can endanger outdoors incision. Your detailed focus on the cleanliness of surgical instruments can not be overstated  

Courses offered in pursuing work in surgical tech include but not restricted to anatomy, medical terminology and physiology. Just like in firefighting, they incorporate a hands-on training particularly in other locations of sterilization techniques, handling of equipment, procedures of surgery, caring for patients and ensuring their safety within the hospital environment. Supervised clinical practice is also provided which really goes a long way in building the trainee’s portfolio or resume for job searching after graduation.In the usa, employers often only employ surgical techs who’ve written and passed a national certification examination. This could be the exams in the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA). The exam of the board is available in are multiple choice test which is taken on a computer. Only those who passed CAAHEP or ABHES qualify to use and write this exam.  

For details visit Certified Surgical Technologist

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Medical Laboratory Technician Training

Work behind the scenes in the health care industry as a medical laboratory technician to help patients live healthier, longer lives. Also known as clinical laboratory technicians or medical technicians, these trained technicians play a vital role in detecting, diagnosing and treating disease.
Overview of Medical Laboratory Technician Training
These trained technicians use cell counters, microscopes and other tools in their day-to-day work. Under the supervision of medical laboratory technologists, who typically have more training and a more complex job, technicians employ their own knowledge to solve mysteries within the human body.
With the help of high-tech devices and a trained eye, medical laboratory technicians use their skills to perform a number of different tasks. A day in the life of a medical laboratory technician might involve the following tasks:
Examine fluids for parasites or bacteria
Match blood from different donors for transfusions
Analyze the chemical content of fluids
Determine how a patient is responding to treatment by testing for drug levels in the blood
Though the job description is broad and includes complex tasks, medical laboratory technicians often find themselves in charge of a fairly automated process. Advanced machines do much of the workload in the job and technicians are there to use their training to properly complete tests, make sure procedures are conducted safely and interpret results.
Like most health care workers, medical laboratory technicians can choose to specialize in one aspect of the field. Below are examples of specialties available to medical laboratory technicians:
Phlebotomists collect blood samples from patients for transfusion or testing
Histotechnicians cut and stain tissue specimens for microscopic examination by pathologists
For workers with the proper training, healthy salaries are a bonus of the career. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that medical laboratory technicians earned mean annual wages of $ 37,860 in 2009. Those who worked in general medical and surgical hospitals earned slightly more, at $ 38,820.
Medical Laboratory Technician Training: Degrees and Coursework
An associate’s degree or certificate is recommended for medical laboratory technician training. Technicians need to work somewhat independently in the lab, so a high level of responsibility requires a higher level of education.
Medical laboratory technician training typically consists of core medical classes, general education essentials and hands-on laboratory practice. Take a look at some basic courses you might find in a training program for medical technicians:
Microbiology
Organic chemistry
Computer literacy
Laboratory residency
Coursework in a medical laboratory technician training program is designed to give you the fundamentals of clinical training plus the targeted instruction you need to accurately complete and interpret tests.
In addition to completing coursework, securing professional certification helps prove your competence and dedication to the career. The following associations offer certification for medical laboratory technicians:
Board of Registry of the American Society for Clinical Pathology
American Medical Technologists
National Credentialing Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences
Board of Registry of the American Association of Bioanalysts
While no career training program or certification can guarantee a career in the field, hiring managers often prefer to take on technicians with formal training experience. Working your way through a formal training program helps increase your knowledge and improve your odds of employment in hospitals, laboratories and doctor’s offices.
Medical Laboratory Technician Career Outlook
The BLS projects excellent job opportunities for medical laboratory technicians in the coming years. An estimated 25,000 new careers for medical and clinical laboratory technicians are expected to enter the industry between 2008 and 2018, for a growth rate of 16 percent.
For career growth within the industry, technicians may return to school to complete a bachelor’s degree in medical technology. From there, education and experience can lead you to a job as a medical technologist or a supervisor in the lab.
The projected career growth is due to the development of new types of tests as well as nationwide population growth. For the best opportunities in the field, aspiring technicians should seek out formal training from an accredited college or vocational school.

thesis methodology

Ultrasound Technician Schools and Other Medical Assistance Schools in the Right Place at the Right Time

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.