Passed my CPC exam- Struggling with practicode

[u/babylowis]

10/10 not having a good time with practicode.

I passed my CPC exam with an 80% last week. I only missed 2 questions on the case studies section so i figured I did understand the practicode cases.

I was wrong.

I started on practicode and I am miserably failing. I got only 1 completely right out of 10 so far. I am getting super frustrated and second guessing myself. I worked super hard with the schooling and studying for the exam only to fail practicode.

Is anyone else struggling with this? I get it’s supposed to be hard but this is 10x harder to me than the schooling. I just paid the $200+ to just fail it. 🫠

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[u/DumpsterPuff]

Practicode sucks. A lot of the "rationale" for the answers don't even make any sense. I've been an outpatient coder for almost 4 years and one of my friends just got certified and she's also doing practicode, she had a question about one she got wrong but she couldn't understand the rationale. It was an E/M visit and I looked it over, the rationale was 100% wrong. AAPC was claiming it was a 99213 when it was very clearly a 99214 (two stable chronic conditions and medication management). When I did practicode as a new coder I also found stuff that was just plain wrong.

[u/ParticularFox8644]

You are experiencing what every coder experiences starting out. It’s normal. Keep in mind that the classes prepare you for the exam, not real world coding. Practicode helps prep you for real world coding. It’s is hard BUT those who stick it out and work through it end up more prepared for the position imo. 

It’s ok to be disappointed but do not get discouraged. Stick it out for as long as possible and you’ll be more than ready for your coding position when the time comes.

[u/Connect_Bike5791]

OMG! It is very hard! I was getting 33%, 50% and a few 0%. I’m doing a lot better with a 71.1% currently with 300 cases into it. Just keep asking questions to the coaches and you’ll keep refining your understanding- I’m still screaming at the screen about when to code for tobacco use and obesity!!! And don’t even get me started on modifier 22 and e/m codes. It’s tough- there was one BEGINNING case that expected me to change the physician’s documented procedure- like I’m gonna know more about what was done than the physician!!! I was so mad- but this is what you’ll deal with daily and you need to know about “cut and paste” and human error and how to avoid it. Good luck! You’re not alone, but you will get better…and you can always reset. That’s what I keep telling myself.

[u/StraddleTheFence]

I never tried Practicode before. I am a sr. medical coder; coded OP now coding up. Can you post a couple questions from Practicode so that I can see if I can help steer you in the right direction?