HI 253 SC 121 Purdue Medical Coding & Human Anatomy & Physiology Responses

INSTRUCTIONS: Discussion responses should be on topic, original, and contribute to the quality ofthe discussion. Responses to classmates and/or professor thatare thoughtful and advance the discussion, each should be at least 75 words,go beyond mere affirmation, and serve to further conversation• Include in-text citations and references following APA style where applicableo Spell check all work, use correct grammar, punctuation, etc.• Work should display superior content, organization, style, and mechanics, aswell as being original and insightful

HI253: Medical Coding I

CLASSMATE POST #1

I am learning medical coding because I wanted to be able to help sick people without physically having to interact with them. A project in my personal finance class my senior year of high school helped me discover medical billing and coding. People like Regina are the reason we do what we do. When we see how much of an impact our work has on people like her, it really opens our eyes to understand how important our work is. “Proper medical coding is important on many levels, from ensuring accurate payment for physicians to creating a valid record of patient care history” (Healthcare Business and Technology 2019). For people just like Regina and her husband, coding is absolutely crucial. When doctors look at medical records, it is often to get prior knowledge about the patient. If something is incorrectly coded, there could be a mistreatment of a disease or disorder, which could lead to serious health complications for the patient. For example, if a patient needed a surgery and would be taking medication afterward, the medical record would indicate that this patient was allergic to a certain medication. If this is coded incorrectly, the patient would receive the incorrect medication. Obviously, there would be some serious health complications if they received the wrong medication. So, in conclusion, coding is something that is vital to maintaining patients’ and their family’s trust in the medical system.

~Alianna Odom~

CLASSMATE POST #2

I am learning medical coding because I want to help people and because it is also a requirement in order for me to become a medical assistant. Medical coding within the healthcare industry is very important because it helps ensure accurate payment to physicians and it creates a valid record of a patient’s health care record. A medical coder’s job is to make it easier for hospitals and insurance companies to understand a patient’s history, their needs and the different treatments they should receive based on their diagnosis. One example of how coding is important in healthcare is if a patient comes in with a cough and fever, the nurse may do the initial testing, the doctor will provide the diagnosis and prescribe the medication but it is the medical coder’s job to put in the information properly in order for the billing to be completely accurate. If the coder accidentally puts the wrong code for the diagnosis or one of the tests it would throw off the entire visit and cause a billing issue whether it be charging too little or too much money for the visit.

Watching Regina’s youtube video about her husband was so heartbreaking, and it goes to show how vital electronic health records are. Regina and her husband are two fo the many people who have suffered due to not being able to easily access health records in a timely manner. It is vital to have your health records when going to see any physician at a clinic or hospital so that you can receive the proper care you need and deserve. I have firsthand struggled with getting my medical records printed, being charged 72 cents for each page. Having electronic health records could help save many people’s lives by allowing them as well as doctor’s to access these documents quickly in order to provide them with the proper care they need to live.

~Ashleigh Cilluffa~

SC121: Human Anatomy and Physiology

CLASSMATE POST #3

From a healthcare perspective, one reason it is vital to know the regions of the body with their proper terminology is for patient safety and accurate record-keeping to avoid a medical error. A simple and seemingly innocent miscommunication about the location of patients’ pain could lead to a medical error that could cost the life of someone’s loved one and/or the career of a health care professional. For example, when note-taking a doctor dictates a patients’ pain is located in the hypochondriac region instead of the hypogastric region. Johns Hopkins conducted a study in 2016 that concluded, “over 250,000 deaths per year are caused by a medical error in the US – or nearly one in ten deaths. Not one-tenth of hospital deaths, but one-tenth of all deaths” (Berkowitz Hanna, LLC, 2019).

In addition, it is important to know the directional terminology in the healthcare field because it makes it easier to communicate the locations of structures in the body in relation to another. It also saves time and can increase job performance.

The body is structured into 6 levels: chemical, cellular, tissue, organ, system, and organism (Tortora & Patton, 2017). The chemical level is described as the foundational level of the body, or as I call it, the genesis level. It is where everything in the body begins. This level includes atoms and molecules, which are the building blocks of life.

I am most interested in learning about the brain. I see the brain as a computer. It can upload data, lose data, and reprogram damaged or weakened circuits perse. I am fascinated by neuroplasticity and how we can reprogram our brains. Learning about the brain would make understanding this concept easier.

~Abigayle Marks~

CLASSMATE POST #4

• Why is learning the regions of the body with their proper terminology important?

It is important to know the correct terms in order to express what you are trying to say with your findings. If there was a problem with a patient not having a bowel movement, I would need to tell the provider what quadrant was firm and where the active sounds were coming from. This allows the provider to be more informed on what is happening with the patient if I were to say lower left quadrant if firm and distended with no active sounds. He would then be able to understand where the blockage or issue maybe.

• How is the understanding of directional terminology important to those in the healthcare field?

Directional Terminology is important when explaining on what part the body the issue is located. If I was to say, the posterior distal forearm has a scant amount of serious drainage from a skin tear measuring at xyz. That would provide the Doctor or whomever maybe reading the note, to know exactly where and give more of an idea of what they are looking for or at.

• The body is structurally organized into levels – choose one level and briefly describe it.

Cellular level is one of my favorites due to all of life comes from this level. At this level chemical hormones trigger actions within the body systems in order to maintain balance. This level is literally responsible for all functions and structures within the human body.

• Which system of the body are you most looking forward to learning and why?

The nervous system is my favorite one of all. It is so complex and even though we have a very good understanding of how and why it works, we have only begun to touch the tip of the ice burg when it comes to the human brain.

~Amanda Lovell~