A cover letter is a one-page letter that asks a prospective employer to consider you for an open position for a medical billing and coding specialist, is accompanied by your resume. Both should be the same size and type of paper and be sent in a business size envelope. Don’t staple the cover letter to the resume.
The objective of a cover letter is to have the prospective employer read your resume. And to do this you must think like a salesperson who tells just enough about a product to grab the customer’s attention.
A cover letter usually has seven sections:
1) Your return name and address – It is best to use your word processor to create a letterhead where your name, address, and contact information is in a relatively large, bold type at the type at the top of the cover letter. You can be creative in your design as long as it stays within acceptable letterhead style.
2) Addressee – This contains the prospective employer’s name and address. Be sure to include the full proper name, title, company name and address. Place this along the left margin of the letter.
3) Salutation – Begins by using Dear followed by Mr., Ms., Miss, Mrs., or Dr. and the person’s formal name. Always address a prospective employer formally until you become on a first-name basis with him.
4) Opening Sentence – The opening sentence is where you introduce yourself and tell the prospective employer why you sent the cover letter.
5) The Sales Pitch – This section contains a paragraph that gives the prospective employer reasons for reading your resume. You simply summarize the highlights in this paragraph.
6) Closing Sentence – This sentence gives the prospective employer direction, such as “I’ll give you a call in a few days so we can discuss your position in detail.”
7) Signature – The last section contains your signature. Make sure that you type your full anme and leave room so you can sign the cover letter.
Many large employers require job applicants to apply over the Internet on their Web site by clicking the link to their online application and then filling in the information that is normally required for an application. Alternatively you might be permitted to send a cover letter and your resume instead of filling in the application. Your cover letter and resume must be in an electronic file, which it usually already is if you created it using a word processor. Follow the steps on the Web site, and a copy of your cover letter and resume files will be sent over the internet to the prospective employer’s computer where it is placed into a database.
Someone in human resources then queries the database for resumes that seem to meet the criteria for the position. This means there is a chance that a human won’t review your resume unless the computer deems you qualified.
When a position is open, the human resources department enters the job description and search criteria into its computer. The search criteria specifies the conditions that must be met for the computer to forward the resume to a human resource representative.
There are two ways to increase the chances of the the computer picking your resume.
Use in your resume as many words as possible that are contained in the job description. Spell out and use abbreviations. The computer likely compares words int the job desription with the resume.
Save your file as plain text rather than as a word document. Plain text excludes formatting, which may interfere with picking your resume.
Hepatitis is a bloodborne pathogen that can be present in a person with no obvious signs or symptoms of disease. Health care workers should be cautious about coming into contact with any bloodborne pathogen like HBV, HCV or HIV.
Hepatitis B is a life-threatening bloodborne pathogen that specifically targets and inflames the liver. This bloodborne pathogen frequently infects health care workers and is considered the major occupational hazard in the healthcare industry. Today, healthcare workers and people who work with large gourps of people are urged to be immunized against HBV.
The HBV vaccine consists of a serous of three injections. An initial dose is followed by a second dose one month later. The third dose is administered six months after the initial dose. This vaccine is also effective at protecting against the hepatitis D.
Symptoms of HBV infections resemble flu symptoms. Usually the flu symptoms will last longer than a typical flu. A person infected with HBV may complain of fatigue, loss of appetite, mild fever, muscle, joint, and abdominal pain. Nausea and vomiting are also possible. Jaundice has been found to occur in about a quarter of the cases. More than half infected patients have no symptoms of the disease. HBV carries have an increased chance of developing cirrhosis o fth eliver and liver cancer.
Hepatitis C (HCV) is a widespread and chronic bloodborne illness in the United States. It is often contracted by exposure to infeccted blood or serum. Saliva, urine and semen are also potential carriers but are less likely to cause infection. HCV infection often occurs after multiple exposures. Sexual contact and needle sharing are the primary means of transmission other than in medical settings.
Symptoms of HCV are similar to HBV. Very few people who are infected actually display any symtoms. Most people with this disease will require liver transplants. HCV carriers, like HBV carriers, may develop cirrhosis of the liver and liver cancer.
HIV has been found in blood, semen, saliva, tears, urine, cerebrospinal fluid, anmiotic fluid, breast milk, cervical secretions, and infected tissue. Healthcare workers are at greatest risk of contracting HIV through blood exposure.
Symptoms of HIV include mild-to-severe flu symptoms and the deterioration of the nervous system causing neuroligic symptoms and dementia.
Many people will tell you that work and dating don’t mix. While there may be some truth to that, the reality is that many people who work together do date, and some develop long term relationships or even marry. This doesn’t neccessarily mean you should be on the look out for a mate when you get a job, but stuff happens right? However, keep in mind that it is best to keep personal issues separate from work place issues to the greatest possible extent. Additionally make sure you are clear on your facility’s policy on such relationships before you dive on in. Many companies have some sort of policy, and you will be well served by knowing what your company’s policy is before things get too hot and heavy. As a medical billing and coding specialist, you may not have the same policies that apply to the allied health team in your facility that works directly with patients.
For certain, dating someone you work with presents a unique set of challenges. For your part, it can be distracting especially if you encounter this other person frequently during your workday, which can be inevitable if you both work in the same department. If you have a relationship with someone in a position higher then yours, people will always assume that you have direct pipeline to confidential information or that you divulge department secrets to the person you are dating. This is known as pillow talk. If you get a promotion or special recognition for something, there will always be those who assume it is because of whom you are dating. True or not, this can be a difficult situation to deal with, and it maight not only affect your job performance, but also might ruin an otherwise great relationship.
By now, you probably know that career fairs and conventions are important networking arenas and that you should make it your business to get out to them regularly. Although each even has a slightly different focus, your networking approach for both is essentially the same.
I have often heard employed nurses say, “Oh I can’t risk being seen at a career fair. i don’t want my boss to know I’m looking for another job.” Keep in mind that career fairs are not just for those currently in the market for a new job. They are important gatherings of large numbers of nurses and others in health care and are a great way to stay abreast of career opportunities and trends for current and future consideration. Attendance at career fairs should be part of your ongoing career management plan. Career management is not just something you do when actively looking for a job. It is something you do on a regular basis. If you do happen to bump into someone from your place of employment, you might say something such as, “Aren’t the education sessions great? I’m picking up a lot of continuing education credits today.” An even better idea might be to just let your supervisor know you are going and ask if you can pick anything up for him or her.
Networking Tip: Remember that networking is a give-and-take situation. When talking to you contacts, ask, “Is there any way that I can help you?” If someone gives you some information or advice that is helpful or refers you to someone, be sure to send that person a thank-you-note. You can handwrite it on a formal note card or print it on quality stationary. Then, stay in periodic touch with your network acquaintances by occasionally calling to say hello and see how they’re doing, sending them a holiday greeting card, or clipping out and sending an article that might interest them. Don’t just contact them when you need something.
How to choose the right software for your medical billing practice
If you are a medical billing and coding specialist and you are looking to purchase or upgrade your medical billing software, here are a few tips that can help you find the right software to meet your needs.
-Do your research. Before you jump into buying the first fancy software program you come across, be sure to do your research. If possible ask people who are knowledgeable about medical billing for suggestions. You should seek referrals from people who have worked with several different software programs.
-Ask questions and look for answers. Be sure that you identify key questions that you want answered. Questions will help you to narrow down your software options and can point you towards your best option.
-Purchase software that meets the needs of the services you intend to provide. You can save a substantial amount of money by purchasing only what you need. It makes no sense to purchase a full practice management program if you only intend to offer a claim submission service.
-Good software should allow you to upgrade later, should the need arise. You do not want to purchase software that will not allow you to expand your business in the future. Ideally, you will choose a software program that will allow you to expand or upgrade your business without any major expense or extreme effort.
-Choose user friendly software. Remember that the software you choose is the software you will use. Do not choose software that is too complicated to figure out. Since time is money, you cannot afford to waste any time trying to figure out difficult software programs.
-Look for a program that offers technical support. Ideally, any program that you choose will offer technical support in the event that you come across a problem that you cannot solve yourself. The quality of the product you buy can often be seen in the effort the company makes to ensure you are satisfied with your purchase. Great companies will offer technical support to help ensure that the software is installed and questions are answered without additional service fees.
19
Medical Billing and Coding: Avoid Being Scammed!
0 Comments | Posted by admin in Uncategorized
Before you jump into purchasing a medical billing product, training program or service, you should take a few deep breaths and consider these tips on how to avoid being scammed.
It is unfortunate but there are people in almost every profession that try to cheat and steal people hard earned money by lying and offering false hopes. This is no different in the medical billing industry. Perhaps you have seen advertisements in your local newspaper offering people jobs as medical billers from home with no experience necessary. Maybe you have seen commercials or received mail about the earning potential of medical billing and coding specialists and the easy way you too can become one.
Here are several things you can do to prevent being scammed by savvy sales pitches and overinflated promises.
-When in doubt check them out. There is a great website: medicalbillingscamwatch.yuku.com. This is a fantastic resource for identifying medical billing opportunities that really are too good to be true.
-The Federal Trade Commission is a fantastic resource for determining if there are any negative reports against a company. Any company that pressures you into purchasing a product or that will not give you time to do your own research should not be trusted.
-The Better Business Bureau is another resource that you can use to research information about a company in your state or in another state. You can even access information from the Better Business Bureau on line. You will want to see if any negative claims were made against the company.
-Ask for information to be mailed to you. A legitimate company will usually take the time to put together professional information about the services they are trying to sell you.
-Ask forums. The internet is a fantastic resource for finding people who may have had an experience with the company in question. Post questions of forums. Check out reviews and use search engines to see what other people are saying.
If you are looking into becoming a medical billing and coding specialist, here are a few suggestions that can help to make your jump into this new career easier. Besides ensuring that you receive great training from a reputable and competent medical billing program, there are several tools that you can use.
One of the most important tools you will rely on heavily is your computer. If you are searching around for a good computer for your business, consider something that will give you great speed, storage space and options like a speakerphone, webcam, and Bluetooth. Your computer is what you will be primarily working on and the more your computer can do to help you keep organized the better.
There are many software programs that you should consider if you are running your own medical billing business. It will be very important to have billing software, publishing software, accounting software and contact management software. Of course, there are many different software programs on the market today so do your research. Check reviews, and try and find out what other billing companies are using. There is no need to reinvent the wheel so if you can find a good reputable software, try it out and see if it is something that can work for you.
With your computer as your most important work tool, you should seriously consider buying an auto-saver computer program. This type of program strictly functions to back up the information in your computer from being lost due to any one of many causes, like fire or water damage, file loss or damage, file corruption, hard drive crashes or viruses. Having an auto-saver program working for you can save you a lot of time and money should anything happen to your computer or information unexpectedly.
17
Medical Billing and Coding: Commonly Billed Medical Tests
0 Comments | Posted by admin in Uncategorized
A good medical billing specialist is familiar with the names of common medical tests. Here is a list and explanation of some of the more common tests that are performed in many health care offices.
Abdominal ultrasound: An abdominal ultrasound is used to examine abdominal organs.
ACTH stimulation test: This test is used to diagnose endocrine disorders.
Angiography: A physician will use this test to x ray blood vessels. It is often used to identify possible blockages in blood vessels.
Anteriography: This test is similar to an angiography, however an x ray is taken specifically of arteries.
Barium enema: Physicians use this test on patients with gastrointestinal problems to see images of the lower gastrointestinal tract on x ray.
Barium swallow: This test is similar to a barium enema but an x ray is taken of the upper gastrointestinal tract instead.
Bone density scan: This scan is commonly requested to determine a patient’s bone density. Images of a patient’s bone can be seen on a computer screen or on an x ray film.
Capsule endoscopy: A patient must swallow a flexible capsule that contains a small light and camera. This capsule allows the physician to examine the airways of the lungs.
Cardiac catheterization: A fine tube is used to explore the coronary arteries.
Complete blood count: A blood sample is taken and tested to determine the number of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.
Echocardiography: Ultrasonic waves are used to determine the hearts position in the chest, the motion of the heart walls and the internal parts of the heart, like the valves.
Electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG): This test is used to show a graphic record of the electrical activity of the heart.
Electromyography (EMG): This test is used to determine the how well the muscle fibers respond to electrical activity.
Fluoroscopy: An x-ray.
Genetic testing: DNA is used to identify any genetic alteration.
Lipoprotein profile: This test helps physician’s to measure cholesterol.
Burnout is not just a medical billing and coding thing, or even limited to allied health professionals and teams. It has become commonplace in our society, especially in high-stress jobs such as securities and commodities traders, police officers, air traffic controllers and so on. It is a condition that occurs when people consistently overextend themselves in terms of time, energy, emotional strength and stamina. It happens when you push yourself too hard or when your output exceeds your input by way of not taking time to refresh yourself and replenish your energy. Some other causes of burnout are lack of control, excessive criticism, emotional or work overload, and unrealistic expectations and goals. It usually manifests itself as feeling tired, frustrated, depressed and in despair. You develop a sense of wanting to be anyplace but where you are, and you may feel stripped of your ability to function. As allied health professionals and caregivers, we are particularly susceptible to this due to odd work hours, and the amount of detail our work requires.
The term burnout is often used in a derogatory way to refer to a person who is fed up with their profession. In other words, many people misinterpret burnout as burnout for their job. Some Medical billing and coding specialists may believe that since they no longer feel enthusiasm towards their job, perhaps they need to try another profession all together. In reality, all this means is that a change is in order – that could be a change of jobs, but could also be a change of circumstances, personal habits, or lifestyle….but not a departure from medical billing and coding. The challenge is to fight burnout by keeping work interesting, and challenging, changing jobs or specialties if necessary, and taking care of yourself first and foremost. You can manage situations if you’re aware of the signs of stress. You can avoid burnout if you recognize it early on.
