Medical Coding Specialist
- Medical Coding Specialist — Diploma 41 credits
(Program is in partnership with Anoka Technical College (ATC)
Major Description
This program is designed to provide entry-level personnel that perform abstracting and coding of medical records. Graduates of the program will analyze medical record documentation in order to assign diagnostic and procedural codes, provide important information for the health care reimbursement process, and assist in medical research and statistics. In addition, the medical coding specialist is knowledgeable in medical terminology, disease processes, anatomy and physiology, and pharmacology.
Accreditation
The Medical Coding Specialist program is approved by the Council on Accreditation of the American Health Information Management Association.
Nature of Work
The Medical Coding Specialist major is designed to prepare students to work in a medical setting. Their expertise will be to understand health care procedures and diagnostic procedures, analyze patients' medical records and assign appropriate codes for reimbursement purposes.
Career Opportunities
Graduates will find employment in any health care/medical setting: clinics, hospitals or insurance companies.
Program Delivery
Students can begin this program full- or part-time in the Fall semester and part-time only in the Spring semester. Courses are offered during the day at DCTC and some coding classes are offered online through Anoka Technical College. Students can apply for admissions at DCTC and DCTC will forward all admissions information to Anoka TC for acceptance. Students will have a DCTC identification number and an identification number from Anoka for course registration purposes. Students applying for financial aid will have to use Anoka Technical College financial aid code. All grants, scholarships and loans are processed by the financial aid staff at Anoka Technical College.
Advanced Standing
Previous college courses, certification, licensure, and training may be considered for credit in the major. The responsibility for seeking credit rests with the student and can be initiated by completing the course SMGT2950 Prior Experiential Learning Portfolio Development (1 elective credit).
After DCTC
DCTC has transfer agreements for this program with the following colleges: Southwest Minnesota State University and Saint Mary's University. See Career Services for more information.
Student Outcomes
- Graduates will be prepared for immediate employment in the medical coding field.
- See General Education section outcome statement.
Faculty
| Susan Johanson | 651.423.8239 | susan.johanson@dctc.edu | BIO |