How hard is it to pass the Certified Professional Coder exam?

Although the Certified Professional Coder (CPC) examination is an important certification for individuals interested in pursuing a career in medical coding as it is a critical component of the healthcare industry in terms of industry recognition, career advancement, professional development, and the quality of care but acquiring this certification sometimes become challenging enough because of its comprehensive nature. Also, It covers a wide range of topics, including anatomy and physiology, medical terminology, coding guidelines and regulations, reimbursement issues, and healthcare policies. The exam also requires a high level of attention to detail, as medical codes must be selected and assigned to record and bill for healthcare services accurately. Here are a few potential complications that may arise when preparing for or taking the CPC exam. These may include:

• Time constraintsThe CPC exam is lengthy, with 150 multiple-choice questions that must be completed within five hours. This can be a challenge for some individuals, especially if they are not used to taking long exams.
• The difficulty of the material: The material covered on the CPC exam can be challenging, especially for those unfamiliar with medical terminology or coding guidelines. Cost: The cost of the CPC exam can be a barrier for some individuals. The fee for the exam is currently $399 for AAPC members and $449 for non-members.

Overall, the Certified Professional Coder exam is a challenging but worthwhile undertaking for those interested in pursuing a career in medical coding. Therefore this particular post aims to demonstrate solutions to overcome them.

How hard is it to pass the certified professional coder exam?

Passing the CPC exam is not very hard if you thoroughly understand coding guidelines and medical terminologies. Moreover, you can heed the tips below to help you prepare and pass the CPC exam.

Prepare for the CPC exam

See the AAPC prep course:The AAPC has given the course outline to prepare for the CPC test. To start studying, everyone should visit the AAPC website and see the prep course of coding to prepare accordingly. The AAPC claims that following their CPC prep course doubles a participant’s probability of passing the CPC Exam. Diagnose & prioritize your focus areas: Aspirants should know that not all sections require equal time to prepare for the exam. Some parts necessitate extra time to understand and learn them:

• Coding scenarios often demand extra time and focus on understanding.
• Find out your weak points and spend more time working on them.
• Spend time and effort to grasp critical ideas and difficult coding situations properly.

Prep your medical code books:The CPC test is an open book, meaning that you may utilize specific books to obtain the answers to those questions requiring codes or information. The more familiar you are with your coding books, the quicker you will be able to find information to answer correctly. The AAPC also suggests that you should familiarize yourself with these publications to swiftly identify codes, directions, and recommendations while providing answers. Underlining or highlighting important information in your books will assist you in many ways.

Use CPC study guides:To assist students in reviewing their knowledge and getting ready for the exam, the AAPC publishes official study guides for the CPC examination. Candidates will get advantages after using these guides.

Keep solving model Certified Professional Coder (CPC) papers:Practice is the key to accuracy, and it is said that practice makes a man perfect. So never enter an exam room before you practice the model paper:

• Solving the model paper will help you understand the format of the paper and also let you know what type of questions you will face in the exam.
• Moreover, practicing the models will help you to make strategies to manage time and attempt a full paper within the given time.
• Another significant benefit is that you will know what types of mistakes you must avoid while attempting the paper.

Take practice test:Attempt 2-3 practice exams before registering for the real CPC exam. Your aim in giving these practice exams is to evaluate your knowledge and skills. These tests will educate you on your readiness to take the test.

Tips for taking the CPC exam

Be confident for the certified professional coder exam: Do not panic because it will disturb your mind and make you feel like you are not fresh. Moreover, being scared might lead you to forget the knowledge and information you have learned about coding. Moreover, if you lose your confidence, you might become confused about selecting the right option:

• Take a water bottle with you to refresh your body and mind during the exam.
• Put any challenging questions that take you longer to answer aside and move on to the next ones. The advantage of using this method is that it will instantly raise your confidence when you see yourself answering questions.
• Remain calm and carry on if others will complete before you. Do not let it go on your nerves, and utilize your entire time.

Strategies for dealing with questions

• Start with short-lined questions:Before tackling and answering lengthy questions, try to approach and address one- or two-lined problems.
• Leave complicated questions for the end:When you find out the questions that are complicated and consuming extra time, skip that question and attempt those questions that are easy and quick to answer. Come back to the tricky questions after answering easy questions.
• Make your best guess:If you are stuck on a challenging question, make a reasonable guess and mark the answer.
• Read each question carefully:Read the question attentively because it might be making a point that will aid in choosing the correct response. Take note of phrases like not, most, least, except, and greatest since they are frequently crucial in establishing the right response.
• Narrow down your answers:You cannot check each code in the four answers due to time constraints; eliminating two wrong options puts you closer to the right response. For instance, if a query relates to the musculoskeletal system, you would exclude any CPT codes that don’t start with 2.

Attempt full question paper

Never leave any questions unanswered. This exam has no negative markings; therefore, you must avoid missing any questions. So you don’t have to worry about getting marks deducted; you can answer every question. If you do not know the exact answer to a question, you can guess the answer and mark the option. It might become the correct answer by chance, and you will get marks. This is a simple technique that might contribute to gaining passing marks.

Time management

Time management is typically the central issue of coding candidates ready for the CPC test. Therefore, read the following tips to help with time management:

• Divide the questions into parts and fix each section for a specific time. Try to attempt the questions of each segment within the specified time.
• Do not waste extra time on the questions that are stumping you. Skip them and come back on them later.
• Keep an eye on the time and tend to complete your exam 30 minutes early to allow for time-consuming questions that still need to be answered.

CPC exam basics

This is an exam held by AAPC for candidates who want to be certified coders in the medical field:

Exam structure: The CPC exam is a paper containing 150 Multiple Choice Questions to assess your capability and knowledge in 17 different sections of healthcare coding.

CPC exam passing score: This is a legal exam to get certified for CPC and is taken by AAPC. The passing marks criteria for the CPC exam would be 70%, meaning if you choose the correct answers for 70% of the questions, you are in the category of passing candidates.

Items needed to take an online exam:

• A laptop or computer is the mandatory requirement to give an online CPC exam.
• A stable internet connection is necessary to connect to the online exam room.
• A webcam will be required, and it must be mounted so that your hands, face, and keyboard is visible.

Items needed to take the in-person exam: You can bring your CPT, ICD-10-CM, HCPCS-ii manuals, and a calculator to the examination room.

The paper will contain questions from different medical fields , including:

• Digestive system surgical coding
• Respiratory system Surgical Coding
• Eye & Ocular Adnexa Surgical Coding
• Medical Terminology
• Anatomy and Physiology
• Anesthesia
• Mediastinum & Diaphragm Surgical Coding
• Medicine
• Laboratory
• Integumentary Surgical Coding
• Pathology
• Male/Female Genital Surgical Coding
• Medicine
• Radiology
• Hemic & Lymphatic Surgical Coding
• Musculoskeletal System Surgical Coding
• Nervous System Surgical Coding
• Urinary System Surgical Coding
• Endocrine system surgical coding
• Nervous System Surgical Coding
• Coding guidelines
• HCPCS level 2
• ICD-10-CM
• CPT
• Practice management