Author Description

Learning advanced medical coding is easy with Carol J. Buck's proven, step-by-step method! The Next Step: Advanced Medical Coding and Auditing, 2014 Edition helps you master coding skills for services such as medical visits, diagnostic testing and interpretation, treatments, surgeries, and anesthesia. Patient cases reflect actual medical records and give you real-world experience with advanced coding. Enhance your decision-making skills and learn to confidently pull the right information from documents, select the right codes, determine the correct sequencing of those codes, properly audit cases, and prepare for the transition to ICD-10 with the help of coding author and educator Carol J. Buck! Realistic patient cases simulate the professional coding experience by using actual medical records (with personal patient details changed or removed), allowing you to practice coding with advanced material. Dual coding addresses the transition to ICD-10 by providing coding answers for both ICD-9 and ICD-10. UNIQUE! Evaluation and Management (E/M) Audit Forms, developed to determine the correct E/M codes, simplify the coding process and help to ensure accuracy. Auditing cases prepare you to assign correct codes to complicated records, as well as audit records for accuracy. From the Trenches boxes highlight the experiences of real-life medical coders and provide practical tips, advice, and encouragement. UNIQUE! Netter anatomy plates in each chapter help you understand anatomy and how it affects coding. More than 160 full-color illustrations depict and clarify advanced concepts. Updated content includes the latest coding information available, to promote accurate coding and success on the job.