Archive for April 2010
In nursing informatics, as in any allied health field, it is important to always fine opportunities to improve your skills. One skill that is key for a professional in the nursing informatics field is listening and communicating. Since in nursing informatics, you are the link between nurses and the IT software development department it is very important to have continual dialogue with both sides of the equation. It is important to listen to concerns and suggestions. New techniques and procedures are commonplace in the health care setting. Look for opportunities and ask for a chance to observe and then perform them. Talk to staff and educators too and let them know of your interests. Be willing to come in on your own time occasionally to afford yourself a chance to observe and learn. As you perfect your skills, you will gain confidence and become more and more adept at handling situations. Always strive to keep up your skills, and if you don’t have opportunities to perform, be sure to observe and mentally particiapate. If possible, ask the teams you work with to let you try so you keep your hands on skills. If you work in a teaching facility, you may be much more successful and have much more access and opportunity to observe and practice your new techniques and skills. Take advantage of all that is available to you.
A nursing drug handbook might be a good resource for new medical billing and coding professionals to have…..an up to date edition of some sort of drug book or drug software will be helpful resource if you don’t understand some of the notes by doctors or nurses. A nurse drug handbook should be up to date and the most recent edition. You should discard or disregard any old drug books. New drugs won’t be in your four year old edition.
Read your drug book and become familiar with it so it is easy for you to use quickly when falling back on it as a resource. Understand how drugs are cross referenced, how to find side effects, and what the nursing implications are for each drug. Know how to find the tables that list sound alike drugs. It would be good to have this on-hand all the time and easily accessible while working. Another option to a drug handbook is a PDA. They can be lifesavers. It’s smaller than a drug book and can contain a vast amount of important information which is available at the touch of a button. The software has search capabilities to provide quicker access. These programs cost less then 100 dollars and has the option of adding on more memory and accessories as needed. PDA stands for personal digital assistant. It is virtually a hand held computer. Most are about three inches by five inches and about 1 and 1/2 inch thick. The PDA comes with a smaller device called a stylus that acts like a pencil and pointing device. The PDA is a personal organizer, address book, calendar, to-do list, calculator, and memo/note pad all in one small pocket device. It can house data and e-mail too. Some include voice recorders and cell phones. Accessories can be added to make it serve as an MP3 player even.
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Medical Billing and Coding: Take care of yourself
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Medical Billing and Coding has a high risk of back injuries since so much time is spent at the computer hunched over your keyboard. Be sure to care for yourself by noticing strain and tightness in your back and neck. You must do everything possible to protect your back. Most of these injuries are preventable. Stop and stretch when you get out of your chair before lifting anything heavy….warm up your back when you stand, and try to keep it straight on your chair back when it is required that you spend long hours without moving, at your desk, to meet a deadline. If you do pull a muscle in your back, assess the situation and get help. Never try to ignore sharp pain or a dull ache in your tendons. Massages or a visit to your chiropractor may pay off big time in the long run. Proper body mechanics are essential in transferring and moving objects. Never skip any steps in caring for your health. When a person spends a large majority of time sitting, this is not what our bodies were created for. Sometimes if you feel drowsy at the computer you can do back bending or inversions such as head stands or handstands to free up the blood flow and improve your attention span. Yoga has been an excellent source for me to keep my body supple and flexible rather then stiff. As a medical billing and coding specialist, it is important to remain alert and care for yourself when long hours are required sitting and in front of a monitor.
