Practicode, Internships and Removing the ‘A’

Day after day, especially on medical coding forums, we keep seeing that more and more people are constantly asking if practicode is real-world experience. Before you know it, they find themselves thinking it must be since everyone else is doing it, but it isn’t.

The crazy thing is every now and then you will see REAL WORLD CODERS—people who are already working the industry—get on there in an attempt to clarify. You can see them desperately trying to warn everyone that online internships will “under no circumstance” be considered real-world experience. 

I know this and my students know this, but I’m taking the time right now to spell it out for anyone who never received real clarity on this subject. 

What The AAPC Says

Before I do this, however, let me read you the AAPC definition of a CPC-A straight from their website. The AAPC states:

“To remove your apprentice designation via on-the-job experience, submit proof showing completion of at least 80 contact hours of a coding preparation course (not CEUs) AND one letter, on letterhead, signed from your employer verifying one year of ON-THE-JOB experience (externships accepted) using the CPT^®, ICD-10-CM, or HCPCS Level II code sets.”

Towards the bottom of entry it says:

“CPC-A’s Say “Goodbye” to Your Apprentice Status.

Practicode gives you the real-world experience you need to remove your “A,” so you can get the job you want.

The Practicode CPC-A Practicum is now another way to earn 1 year of coding experience toward the removal of your ‘A.’ 

Sign up for Practicode today and gain hands-on experience.”

An Example

Okay so keeping all of that in mind, the best thing to do here is to paint a picture in your minds.

Sara has completed an 80-hour coding program. Sara passes her test expecting the CPC credential in the mail but instead gets a CPC-A credential.  She calls AAPC to inquire on why her certificate says apprentice.  The AAPC explains they created the “A” designation for people who took the test without having at least 2 years of ON THE JOB experience.  Sara feels defeated and hangs up the phone. Within minutes, Sara comes to understand that she’s lacking something and psychologically it tells her that even though she has the skill set, this limitation she’s been tagged with makes the chances of her getting an actual job look very …. grim.  In a panic, she calls the AAPC again and ask them how to get rid of this limitation.  AAPC sells her their online internship known as practicode.  Sara begins to tackle all the cases and eventually gets them all done.  Now we fast forward to the interview.  The prospective employer, well let’s just say her name is Becky…. Becky says “So Sara, I see you are a CPC, that’s great because we’re definitely looking for someone with experience, so that’s just wonderful. So, tell me Sara, go ahead and elaborate on the job or jobs you’ve held in the past where you gained your medical coding experience.  Sara says “Of course, yes well…..I … I didn’t exactly code at an actual job per se, but I did code a bunch of cases online through my school or with the organization called AAPC” The employer cuts her off and says “ohhhh….so wait a minute, you mean you’re counting the fact that you coded some online cases though your school as “on the job” work experience? 

Sara reluctantly musters up the word “yes”. 

Becky comes back with “I see, well Sara, I’m afraid I won’t be able to hire you.  It appears you have gravely misunderstood something.  “On the job” experience means you have actual experience with communicating with all the different payers, entering EOB’s, handling RA’s, submitting claim forms, checking status on claims, verifying benefits, obtaining authorizations, dealing with the IOMS through CMS, sending off appeals, handling patients billing questions, disputing claims, querying physicians, coding from actual electronic health records, referencing the edits, the Coding Clinic, the CPT Assistant..(SCRUNCH) dare I go on…(wimpy laugh)?

Are you seeing what’s happening here?  Sara had her A removed only to end up with the SAME limitation… the fact that she STILL didn’t have ANY on the job experience, because let’s just call it what it is, if you KEEP your “A” you’re telling the employers I have no on the job experience, and if you get  RID of your “A” through school and practicode, which by the way BOTH are education and both have NOTHING to do with ON THE JOB experience, you still end up in the same boat. In other words, you might as well have kept your big fat butt and spent all your precious time practicing for the interview.

Conclusion

I hope you all are connecting the dots here because THERE is no legitimate substitute for on-the-job experience!

Because neither one is ON THE JOB experience… all Practicode IS more education. Education that makes you code from the report without any multiple-choice options. Education where you have to find the codes using the index of your codebooks. 

MORE education that should have been INCLUDED as part of your course training. In other words, you shouldn’t have to finish school then go BUY another product in order to gain what you SHOULD HAVE gained while you were still in school. Again, Practicode is not WORK experience. So please don’t let anyone misinform you that Practicode is ON-THE-JOB experience.

Bottom line, it’s not about practicode or an intern, it’s about KNOWING how to get your employers to bring you in for the interview without any experience and KNOWING how to get the job once you go through the interview. For interview tips and other advice, be sure to join our Facebook medical coding group.