Medical Coding Certification Exams
Study & Review Guides
My Preparation for the Exams
I passed AHIMA's Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT) and
Certified Coding Specialist (CCS) certification examinations several
years ago on my first try with flying colors. This is what I did to
prepare for these exams.
RHIT Exam
School -- I reviewed my health information technology program textbooks and exams.
Textbook -- I mostly used our main
textbook Health Information: Management of Strategic Resource by Abdelhak for my exam preparation. This was before AHIMA published their textbooks for the RHIT and RHIA programs. See my HIM books page for all these books.
Review guide -- In addition, I used
the Professional Review Guide for the RHIT Exam book for test practice. This book is also known as the "PRG study (review) guide" for the RHIT and RHIA examinations. It was originally published by the PRG Publishing company, but Delmar Cengage Learning acquired them in 2005.
Timeline -- I took the exam a few months after graduation. The HIT program material was still fresh in my mind.
CCS Exam
Work -- I coded inpatient and same-day-surgery cases at work and
reviewed Coding Clinic and CPT Assistant newsletters (see
resources) as needed. This work
experience was the single most important factor in my very
successful passing of the exam. The exam was pretty much just another day at work!
Guidelines -- I read the Official Coding Guidelines very carefully and made sure
I understood them well. The official coding guidelines are
currently over 100 pages long, so there's plenty to learn. Go to my
coding links page to download
your free copy.
PRG guide -- I used the Professional Review Guide for the CCS
Examination book (see below under CCS) for exam practice. This book is also called
the "PRG review guide" or the "PRG study guide" for CCS. It is a very popular review guide for CCS prep.
Coding Workout -- For additional coding practice, I used a predecessor of the Clinical Coding
Workout book.
This book was called Coding in Context then, and it was my favorite coding practice book.
In summary -- Basically, know the official coding guidelines well and
practice, practice, and practice coding.
If you'd like to share how you prepared for coding
certification exams, please post your message on my comments board.
Note: All exam study guides and textbooks may have occasional errors. If you
don't agree with the answer given, dig deeper into the
issue and find out yourself what the correct answer
might be. Good practice for your future coding job!
Coding rules and guidelines have a lot of gray areas
that cause debate among coders.
AHIMA coding
credentials - CCS, CCS-P, and CCA
AAPC coding credentials -
CPC, CPC-H, and CPC-P
See the medical coding
credentials page for explanations.
him-coding.com
* Resources &
certification info for new
medical coders