I'm trying to decide what department in the medical field I want to become part of.  Now that I'm enrolled in college courses.  So I guess my question is, is it better has a coding and billing specialist, or transcriptionist?  Is it easy to find work? Is the pay decent?

The pay is definitely better for a coder than a transcriptionist, but the pay is decent for both if you are in the right environment (for, example, a hospital) or some contract companies.  I suggest exploring your options while you are doing your internship.  Try your hand at all the HIM functions and see which one appeals to you the most.  That is what I did and I found that coding appealed to me the most.

---

Christina Benjamin
Independent Coding & Education Consultant
Email: cmbenjamin@bellsouth.net
www.tools4coding.com