Commonly Asked Questions Regarding Participation in the Medical Coding Programs

If you haven’t worked in a medical office or recently received medical training, we suggest that you take the Medical Office Procedures Program courses.  This program offers shorter, introductory courses to the medical field. Medical Coders are expected to have experience with medical office procedures.

No, but be prepared to intensively study medical terminology and anatomy and physiology.

No, there are not. Many of our students are new to this field. The program is designed for individuals at a variety of skill levels. However, if you are new to this field, you should take the classes in the order suggested in the program descriptions.

There are prerequisites for taking online classes. Online students must be "proficient" computer users (particularly in keyboarding, managing email, word processing and web browser functions). If you need assistance with any of your computer skills, please take the necessary Continuing Education Computer class. before starting this program. Durham Tech offers computer classes in Keyboarding, PC Fundamentals, Word Processing, and the Internet. In addition, you must also have good grammar skills. If you need a Grammar Refresher, please take the Durham Tech online Ed2go class, “Grammar Refresher” at http://www.ed2go.com/dtcc.

Each online course has prerequisites; many recommend that you take prerequisite courses as well. In the past a permission request form was available, that reminded students of the recommended prerequisites for each online course. It is your responsibility to read the course descriptions and register for only the courses that you meet the prerequisites for.

If you’re interested in our Medical Coding Program and have taken a course at another college, you are encouraged to carefully check our course descriptions, and only take the classes you need to meet the recommended course prerequisites.

You may register several ways:

• Read the policy information and download the registration form. If you are paying by credit card, you may fax the form. If you are paying by check or money order, you must mail it in to: Durham Technical Community College, ATTN: Continuing Education Online Occupational Healthcare Careers Registration, NDC, 2401 Snow Hill Road, Durham, NC 27712.
  
  
• Fax your Continuing Education Registration form and payment information to: Online Occupational Healthcare Careers Registration, 919-686-3519.
  
  
• Stop by the Northern Durham Center located at 2401 Snow Hill Road, Durham NC.
  
  
• You must return your registration form and payment at least five business days before your class start date. If you return your required registration materials late, we can’t guarantee that we’ll be able to process your request.

More infomation about the registration process, ordering textbooks, and logging into courses can be found in the online course registration section.

Each online course description will contain a link to the following: registration information, textbook information, and your online class access instructions (and the information on how to figure out your userid and password).

After we receive your registration form with your required birth date, email address, and current mailing address, and payment for your online class, we’ll update the Durham Tech registration system. If we’ve received these required materials at least five business days before the class start date, we’ll transfer your first and last name to the online Blackboard system. An online Blackboard user name and password will be created for you, and you’ll be added to your Blackboard course roster.

If we received your registration form and payment for your class at least five business days before the class starts, you will be added to your Blackboard class roster. You’ll be able to access your online class on the class start date. If you return your required registration materials late, we can’t guarantee that we’ll be able to process your request; or there may be a delay in generating your Blackboard user name and password.

Detailed logon steps can be found in the online course registration section, step 5.

Each semester the publisher issues an online access code (NOT a CD) that can be bought with the required textbook for these classes:

• Introduction to Medical Terminology and Introduction to Medical Insurance and Billing
• Anatomy & Physiology, Expanded Medical Terminology, Medical Coding I, Medical Coding II and Medical Billing and Insurance.
  

You have three options:

• Buy a NEW textbook from the Durham Tech Bookstore with the online access code (make sure it is for the upcoming semester)
• Buy a "new" textbook from a previous semester and call the Durham Tech bookstore to ORDER the online access code for the upcoming semester (costs $35-$45)
• Buy a used textbook and call the Durham Tech bookstore to ORDER the online access code for the upcoming semester (costs $35-$45).
  

No, it does not.  If you are inexperienced in the medical field, you can sit for the Certified Coding Associate (CCA) AHIMA exam. In order to become a Certified Professional Coder (CPC), you must sit for the CPC exam and successfully pass it; or you can sit for the Certified Coding Specialist (CCS) AHIMA exam or the CCS-P (Physican-based) AHIMA exam and successfully pass it . While this program is designed to prepare you for the exam, you may need additional work experience or education to be fully prepared for the exam. Each student comes from a different background and has a different level of experience.

These courses require strong instructor involvement, and are instructor led. Your instructors are experienced in the medical field, teaching, and online course development, and will post and grade discussion questions and answers, answer questions about your quizzes and exams, provide resources outside the class about the subject, and are available to ask questions about the medical field. Some classes require assignments that will be graded with instructor feedback provided; others require group assignments that your instructor will grade, still others provide virtual medical office assignments that will be graded.

Ask yourself the following questions:

• Do you like to take the initiative, ask questions, and join in discussions?
• Do you like to complete your work ahead of time?
• Are you task-oriented, self-motivated, and organized?
• Do you enjoy reading and figuring things out?
• Do you enjoy experimenting with new technology?
• Do you enjoy helping others to learn?

If you answered "yes" to these questions, then you are well-suited for Internet learning.

Online learning is designed to be interactive both with the other students in the class and with the instructor. Online courses use a Discussion Forum to "have class." You don't have to be online at the same time, but you will need to visit the Forum on a regular basis several times each week. When you visit the Forum, you are expected to read the postings of your classmates and post follow-ups to their postings. The other way the class is interactive is through e-mail. You will be receiving e-mail from your instructor and from your classmates. Thus, it's very important that you check your e-mail on a daily basis to see if there is any response needed on your part.

You must have easy access to a personal computer, either at home, office, or school that has one of the latest versions of the Microsoft Internet Explorer (6 or higher) or Firefox (2 or higher) browser installed. If you use dial up service, a modem speed of 56K or higher is strongly recommended. You will need an active email account that you check regularly as well as a CD-ROM drive.

Yes, but due to low enrollment, the program had to be cancelled.

Yes, we have over 200 students taking our online Medical Coding Program classes each semester.


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