Interview Question for Surgery Coder
Same day Surgery (SDS) is the most demanding and high payable job in field of medical coder. Today, we will discuss the steps to get qualified in interview as a Sds coder/Auditor.
The question's, a surgery coder is asked that's rely on the specialist with whom they are working, along with some general inquiries. If you are mulitspecialist then they can ask questions from any topic.
The most common specialist for most of the surgery coders are :
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General Question : NCCI edit, Global Pacakge, Separate Procedure
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Digestive system : Gastro, Colonoscopy, ERCP
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Ortho : Arthorplasty -Hip,shoulder,Knee, Arthroscopy Procedure,Joint Injection,Spinal Procedure
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Urology : Cystoscopy, Lithotripsy,TURBT, TURP, Cystourethroscopy
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General Surgery : Lipoma resection, Cholecystectomy, Hernia, Tonsillectomy, Breast Procedure
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Integumentary : Excision , Laceration Repair, I&D, Biopsy, Adjacent Tissue Transfer
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Female Genital: Hysterectomy,Dilation and Currettage, Colposcopy, Hysterscopy
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Male Genital : Circumcision, Penile prosthetic implant
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Eye Procedure : Cataract Extraction, Blepharoplasty, Strabismus surgery
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Other Minor Procdure : Bronchoscopy, Ekg,Laryngoscopy
These above contents are not the limit, the interviewer may ask questions beyond this but this the common procedure that usually the coder come across and should know this.
Surgery Interview question
1.Updates
CPC Updates
ICD Updates
2.Basic General Guideline
1.What is surgical Package ?
2.What are the service that are inclusive in surgical package ?
3.What is separate procedure ?
4.What is Unlisted service or procedure ?
5.What are the services that is not Included in the Surgical Package?
6.What is NCCI edits ?
7.What is PTP edits of NCCI ?
8.What is MUE ?
9.What are HCPCS level 2 codes and there usage ?
10.What are HCPCS level 1 codes and there usage ?
11.What is global period ?
12.What you will code if any procedure is performed first through endoscoppy approach and after that through open approach ?
13.How you will code if the biospy is performed for a lesion and then lesion is completely excised ?
14.What are scout procedure, give example of scout procedure in Hysterectomy ?
15. What is diagnostic and therapeutic procedure ?
3.Modifier
1.What is Modifier ?
2.What are the difference between Modifier 51 and Modifier 59 ?
3.What is XU,XS,XP, XE modifier ?
4.What is Global modifier ?
5.Explain 58,78 & 79 Modifier ?
6.When to use 22 Modifier ?
7.What are the difference between modifier 52 & modifier 53 ?
8.What is 62 modifier ?
9.What is AS & 80 modifier ?
10.What is Modifier 26 ?
4.Integumentary System
1.What is Fine needle aspiration and Core needle biopsy?
2.What is Cytologic examination and histopathlogic evaluation used in Needle biopsy?
3.How we differentiate Incision and drainage of abscess simple or complicated ?
4.What is puncture aspiration of abscess, hematoma, bulla or cyst?
5.How we code Wound debridement(11042-11047) ?
6.What are the layer of the skin ?
7.How do we code biopsy in integumentary System ?
8.What are the different technique of biopsy in integumentary system ?
9.How to code multiple biopsy, like tangential, punch or incisional ?
10.Hierarchy for selecting primary code for multiple biopsy
11.What are the major difference between CPT 11102 and 11300 ?
12.What is excision in integumentary system ?
13.How we code excision in integumentary ?
14.What is frozen section pathology ?
15.How we code subsequent excision of lesion ?
16.How we can report re-excision of lesion ?
17.What are different type of repair, explain all?
18.Explain the condition required for complex repair ?
19.What are the important coding guideline for wound repair ?
20.What is Limited Undermining?
21.What is Adjacent tissue transfer ?
22.What are the type of Flap used in Adjacent Tissue transfer?
23.What is primary and secondary defect ?
24. How do we calculate the size of ATT ?
25.What is Skin substitute graft ?
26.What is Surgical preparation ?
27.What is split-thickness autograft ?
28.What is epidermal autograft ?
29.What are the major difference between full thickness graft and split thickness graft ?
30.What is Flap ?
31.What are the types of Flaps ?
32.What are the difference between graft and Flap ?
33.What is Dermabrasion ?
34.What is Liposuction ?
35.What is Mohr surgery ?
36.What is Undermining of wound ?
37.What is Sarcoma ?
5.Musculoskeletal Procedure
1.When we report cast removal in musculoskeletal ?
2.When to code autogenous graft in musculoskeletal?
3.What is manipulation ?
4.What is closed treatment of fracture and how it is performed ?
5.What is percutaneous treatment of fracture and how it is performed ?
6.What is open treatment of fracture and how it is performed ?
6.What is Closed fracture and open fracture ?
7.What is external Fixation ?
7.What are malleolous fracture ?
(Soft tissue Tumor Excision )
8.What is excision of subcuteanous soft connective tissue tumors ?
9.What are the code selection criteria for excision of subcuteanous soft connective tissue tumors ?
10.What is excision of subfascial soft tissue tumors ?
11.What are the code selection criteria for excision of subfascial connective tissue tumors ?
12.What is radical resection of soft tissue connective tumors ?
13.What is fascia, define deep fascia and superficial fascia ?
14.What are the difference between CPT 20240(Superificial bone biopsy) and CPT 20245 (Deep bone biopsy) ?
15.What is trigger point and when to code trigger point injection?
16.What is arthrocentesis ?
(Spinal Procedure)
17.What is Vertaboplasty ?
18.What is corpectomy and facetectomy ?
What is Laminectomy ?
20.What is vertebral segment and vertebral interspace ?
21.What is spinal instrumentation?
22.What is Transforminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion (TLIF) ?
23.What are the approaches for the spinal fusion procedure ?
24.What is Interbody fusion?
25.Can we report laminectomy code separately along with the fusion?
26.How do we code spinal fusion or arthrodesis ?
26.What is Rotator cuff muscle ?
27.What are the code selection criteria for open rotator cuff repair ?
28.What are the code selection criteria for shoulder arthroplasty ?
29.Which component is getting replace in hemi-shoulder arthroplasty?
30.What is saucerization and Craterization?
31.What is tendon lengthening and how it is performed ?
32.What is tendon sheath injection ?
33.What is tendon origin injection ?
34.How do we code for injection on ganglion cyst on wrist ?
35. What is total shoulder arthroplasty?
36.What is acromioplasty?
37.What is the treatment of Si joint dysfunction ?
38.What is Hip arthroplasty?
39.What is hemiarthoplasty of hip?
40.What is total hip arthroplasty?
41.What is Total Knee arthroplasty?
6.GI Procedure
1.What is Screening Colonoscopy?
2. What is Diagnostic Colonoscopy ?
3.What is Therapeutic colonoscopy ?
4.What is High risk and Low risk ?
5.How do you report for screening colonoscopy for high risk and low risk medicare patient ?
6.Explain Colonoscopy decision tree ?
6.When to use PT or 33 Modifier ?
7.What is EMR and when to code EMR ?
8.When to code control of bleeding during colosconopy or EGD ?
9.What is Laparotomy ?
10.What is Hartmann colostomy ?
11.What is colostomy reversal ?
12.What is colectomy and what are the code selection criteria ?
13.What is EGD dilation and its type ?
14.What is ERCP ?
15.What is Sphinterotomy ?
7.Breast Procedure
1.What is Mastectomy ?
2.What are important coding guideline in mastectomy procedure ?
3.What are the difference between radical mastectomy and Modified mastectomy ?
4.What is breast reconstruction?
5.What are the different method of breast reconstruction ?
6.What is mastopexy ?
7.What is breast reduction ?
8.What is breast augmentation?
9.What is tissue expander?
10. What is sentinel lymph node ?
8.General Surgery
1.What is cholecystectomy ?
2.What are the purpose of intraoperative cholangiogram and how they performed ?
3.Do we code lysis of adhesion if performed along with laparoscopy cholecystectomy ?
4.How to code robotic arm used during cholecystectomy ?
5.What is Incidental Appendectomy
6.What is Hernia ?
7.What is incisional hernia ?
8.What is inguinal hernia ?
9.How do we code hernia repair or What are the code selection criteria for hernia repair?
10. What is incarcerated hernia ?
11.What is Strangulated hernia ?
12.Do we code mesh implant during repair of hernia separately ?
13.What are previous and current hernia coding updates ?
14.What is Tonsillectomy ?
15.What are the code selection criteria for tonsillectomy ?
16.What is primary or secondary tonsils removal?
17.What are the code selection for Thyroidectomy ?
18.What are radical neck dissection and Limited neck dissection ?
19.What is subtotal lobectomy ?
9.Gynocology Procedure
1.What is Coloposcopy ?
2.What is Colporrphaphy ?
3.What is colpopexy ?
4.What is LEEP procedure ?
5.What is Hysterctomy and what are the coding guideline ?
6.What is total Abdominal Hyserectomy?
7.What is Supracervical hysterectomy ?
8.What is vaginal hysterectomy ?
9.What is hysteroscopy ?
10.Obgyn Procedure
1.What is antepartum care ?
2.What are service included in anterpartum care ?
3.What is postpartum care ?
4.What are the coding guideline for delivery ?
5.How to code twin delivery ?
6.What is VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean) ?
7.What is induced abortion ?
8.What is Missed abortion ?
9.What is ectopic pregnancy ?
10.What is advanced maternal age ?
11.What are the weeks included in trimester ?
12.What is gestation diabetes ?
13.How to code obgyn antepartum care ?
14.When to code term complicating childbirth. ?
15.what is global package of obgyn ?
16.What is advanced maternal age ?
17.What is postpartum period ?
18.What is different stage of pregnancy based on term such as full term, post term ?
19.What is Induced abortion and missed abortion ?
20.What is Preclampsia ?
10.Other Minor Procedure
1.What is bronchoscopy ?
2.What are the diagnostic procedure performed in bronchoscopy ?
3.What are selective or non-selective catheterization and selective catheterization ?
4.What is Central Venous Access Procedures(CVAC) and peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) ?
Basic HR questions
The motive of this is to ask simple question about yourself and to know about your intention of getting new job. They will identify that the person next to it is reliable and really interested in job. Below are the list of question you should prepare if you are experience :
1.Tell me about yourself : See Sample
Purpose of asking this question
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To make your comfortable
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Observe your communication skill
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To initiate interview
2.What are your strengths?
These question are way to identify the strength that is align with your current job.
3.What certification you have ?
Now a days , company has many options to hire cerified coder, so they will prefer certification either CPC or CCS.But, sometimes Company requires urgent coder so they can hire non certified coder but they will ask you about you view on doing certification,then you have to agree with them as per requirement.
4.Why you want to switch or quit your company ?
You should answered based on career growth, learning oppurtinities and alighment with your professional goals.
5.What is your notice period ?
If you have 1 month notice period then this is fine but if you have 2-3 months notice period, then you have to say that this notice period is negotiable because they are not prefering to wait for 2-3 months.
6.What is your current CTC and what you are expecting ?
Always know the standard value so you should not be underpaid ,but still ask for minimum 30% hike.
7.Do you have already any offer ?
This should be discussed if you are not happy with the offer they are giving , so you can negotitate based on other current offer.