The Messenger 12.14.07

The University of Tennessee at Martin Office of Extended Campus and Continuing Education has partnered with online course provider Ed2Go to offer “Medical Coding.”
“The knowledge students gain from this course will help prepare them to work almost anywhere in the medical field — doctors’ offices, clinics, public health facilities, hospitals, labs, nursing homes, insurance agencies or even the comfort of their own homes,” said professional coder and course author Jennifer Della’Zanna.
Students will begin the course by reviewing the history of medical insurance and then learn what it means to handle medical insurance claims today. After that, they will learn how to use the standardized forms that medical coders use and take detailed tours through the two primary resources medical coders use: The CPT manual, which lists codes for thousands of the treatments and procedures that doctors use to treat their patients; and the ICD-9-CM, which lists thousands of diseases, conditions and symptoms.
“We’ll go through lots of real-world examples and coding exercises along the way,” Ms. Della’Zanna said. “The goal is to get students using their coding tools in conjunction with their analytical skills to come up with just the right codes to describe any medical situation.”
In the process, students will get all the hands-on experience they need to code medical insurance claims with confidence.
The course includes a classroom that is open day and night. Students can interact with the instructor and their fellow students in Web-based discussion areas, where they can ask as many course-related questions as they’d like. A response is usually promised within one business day and often arrives sooner.
Students can take “Medical Coding” from the convenience of home or office and at any time of the day or night. For more information, contact UT Martin at 1-800-482-5199 or (731) 881-7082.