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| When does the next online class begin? |
| The online Summer 2008 Medical Coding courses
will start on Monday, June 9, 2008. You may register up until five
business days (Monday-Friday) before the first class. For example, if
the class starts on June 9, the last day to register is Monday, June 2. Advance registration is strongly recommended, as classes fill quickly.
Online classes are usually offered each spring (January/February), summer (May
and/or June), and fall (September). |
| I'm not sure what Medical Coding is. Do you offer online introductory classes? |
| Yes, we started offering an online Introduction to Medical Coding starting
in Summer, 2007. |
| Are there any prerequisites for this online program? |
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. |
| Do I need permission to take an online class? |
Before taking each online class, a student must fill out a permission
request form and be approved to take each online class. Before filling
out the permission request form, please review the class prerequisites
in the schedule for
each course you are interested in taking. Make sure you have met the
required prerequisites before taking an online
class. The permission request form usually becomes available one or two months
before the first online class starts. Please check the permission
request form web page regularly for updates. |
| When should I fill out the permission request form and register for an online class? |
| We strongly suggest filling out the permission
request form and registering at least two weeks
before the online class start date, so there will be time to process your
permission request, approval form, registration form, and payment. |
| When is the last date I can access the permission request form and register for an online class? |
The last date the permission request form is available is five business days before the class start date. We strongly suggest that you fill out the permission request form at least three weeks before your online class start date. The last date that we can accept the approval form, registration form,
and class payment in person, by fax, or by mail, is also five business
days before the class start date. If sending your required registration
materials by mail, we must receive the materials
at least five business days before the class start date. Advance registration
is strongly recommended, as classes fill quickly. |
| What if I’ve taken prerequisite classes at another college? Or I have experience in the medical field? |
If you’re interested in receiving our Medical Coding Program Certificate and have taken a course at another college, you can receive a waiver for one required course that you’ve satisfactorily completed at another college. Please see our information about listing prerequisites for requirements for transferring a course into our Certificate Programs. If you have experience in the medical field, and are interested in receiving our Medical Coding Program Certificate, we do not have a testing program at this time. You will need to take all the required classes satisfactorily to receive a Program Certificate. If you’re not interested in receiving a Program Certificate,
please review our information
about listing prerequisites for details about how to fill out the
permission request form, so we are aware of your prior course work or
medical field experience. |
| May I take more than one online class at a time? |
| Yes, you may. However, we strongly recommend
that you start off by taking one class at a time if you are new to the
field or if this is your first time taking a class online. |
| How much time do I need to take an online class? |
| You have to have at least 6-10 hours per week to spend on each online
course. You’ll need the time to perform the required reading and
writing. In addition, you’ll need to allow time for completing assignments
and participating weekly in the Discussion Forum (if required). |
| How do I register for this online course? |
You may register several ways:
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| How long does it take to complete each online course? |
| Each class is designed to last 10-14 weeks. You may complete the course
before this time; however, it is important to finish the course before
the end of the last week of class. |
| How do I access my online class? |
| After you complete the permission request form for a class, we'll return
an email with your 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 approval form, registration form and payment for your online class, we update our 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 our 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. |
| When can I access my online class? |
| If we received your approval form, 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. |
| Is there a certain time of day or day of the week that I should sign on to participate in this online course? |
| No, you can access the course any time of the day or day of the week,
during the duration of the course. Your instructor will provide information
concerning lecture, assignment, quiz or exam availability and deadlines.
Students are strongly recommended to follow the weekly modules as suggested
by the instructor at the beginning of the course. |
| What if I have a question or concern about the online course? |
| If you have a question about the course content, please email your instructor.
If you have a technical issue or program specific concern, please feel
free to contact the program director or program assistant at ceonline@durhamtech.edu. |
| Are there any textbooks or CD's required for these courses? |
| Each course has different requirements. Some courses require the purchase
of a CD and other courses require the purchase of a textbook, online access code, or a coding manual. On average, the textbooks and cds cost between $50-100 (usually each course has at least one required textbook or cd). Online access codes usually cost $35-45. The coding manuals cost $80-100 (each of the two Medical Coding classes requires a coding manual). |
| How do you find out what CD’s or textbooks to buy, and where from? |
| After you have completed the permission request form, you’ll be
sent an approval or non-approval email, with your Continuing Education
Registration information. If you've been approved, your approval email
will contain the information you need to purchase your course CD or textbook.
If you register less than 2 weeks before the start of the online classes,
there could be a delay in purchasing your CD or textbook. |
| Can I buy used textbooks/cd's or coding manuals for my classes? |
You can buy a used book or coding manual or cd for any class, EXCEPT for the following classes starting Spring 2008:
Each semester (fall, spring, summer) the publisher issues an online access code (NOT a CD) that can be bought with the required textbook for these classes:
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| Do I have to take all five courses required in the Medical Coding Certificate Program? |
| No, you do not. You may take any course by itself. However, if your
goal is to attain the Medical Coding Program Certificate, you will need
to complete all five courses. You will receive individual course certificates and CEUs for each course
successfully completed. For complete details about the required courses
for each program certificate, please review the program
descriptions. |
| Does this program certify me as a Certified Professional Coder? |
| No, it does not. In order to become a Certified Professional Coder (CPC),
you must sit for the CPC 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.
Your readiness for the exam will depend on a variety of factors. You may
learn more about becoming a CPC by visiting the following web sites: AAPC–www.aapc.com
and AHIMA–www.ahima.org.
These web sites will also provide you with additional information about
testing dates and locations. |
| What Medical Coding courses do I have to take if the required courses have changed since I started my certificate program? |
| You only need to take the required courses for the Medical Coding Certificate Programs, based on the semester that
you first satisfactorily passed a Medical Coding
Certificate Program course with Durham Technical Community College. To
find out what the required courses were for your program certificate that
you started in the past year, please look at the NOTE
area for the most recent semester’s required class list or look
for the link to the semester you started your program certificate: spring,
summer and fall semester. |
| How does distance learning differ from a traditional classroom environment? |
| When you are in a traditional classroom, you have face-to-face interaction
with the instructor and other students. If you have a question, you have
the ability to have it answered immediately. However, in a virtual environment,
you will have to utilize email to communicate with your instructor. What
makes a good distance learner? A student who is highly motivated and can
work independently will do well in an online class. Online students must
be "proficient" computer users (particularly in word processing,
email, and web browser functions). |
| How do you know if you’ll succeed in an online class? |
Ask yourself the following questions:
If you answered "yes" to these questions, then you are well-suited
for Internet learning. |
| Do I need to participate in an online class? What do I need to do? |
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. |
| What are the computer requirements for participating in this program? |
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 (5.5 or higher) or Netscape Communicator (6.0 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. |
| Didn’t Durham Tech offer an online Medical Transcription Certificate Program? |
Yes, but due to low enrollment, the program had to be cancelled. |
| Will Durham Tech continue to offer the online Medical Coding Certificate Program? |
Yes, we have over 200 students taking our online Medical Coding Certificate Program classes each semester.
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