It can be costly to hire a billing and coding specialist, train that person for your business and lose them. You should be hiring the right employee before training them and avoid losing them completely. It's worth spending the time and money to hire a great medical biller from the start.

Recruiting Help

If you have great employees currently, consider asking them to recommend medical experts for the team. It's unlikely that they would jeopardize their own position to recommend a person who can't be trusted. You can also offer incentives for those who bring in a candidate that gets hired for the job.

Local training programs and colleges will have staff that are looking to place their graduates. You might also recruit interns who can be watched and trained before being invited to the team. The school will have a ready supply of graduates that can be interviewed and tested over a month or two before being hired for the position.

Online Options

There are traditional classifieds online like Craigslist that might seem like a good idea for your search for a professional. Unfortunately, you're leaving yourself open for hundreds of resumes from unsuitable candidates.

It's better if you turn to a more professional online job site. Indeed, Monster and Career Builder are good alternatives to a classified site. You can also turn to social media platforms like LinkedIn where professionals gather. This can lead to more suitable candidates, and it allows you to do some online checking of your candidates before asking them for an interview.

Current staff members might have connected with some potential candidates in groups on LinkedIn or in groups on Facebook. Let them spread the word about openings in your company especially if medical billing and coding online is the goal.

Expectations in Writing

Potential candidates should always be given a set of expectations in writing. This should not just list their job title. Often, a person's job goes beyond the simple job title they are given.

When you list out the responsibilities and tasks you expect in that position, you're helping the candidates understand what's expected of them. The world of medical billing and coding is a constantly changing landscape that needs employees who are willing to work with the team and accomplish certain goals.

An employee who won't step up and do what needs to be done for the good of the company is not an employee who will last very long. You always want to make sure that the potential candidate is willing to perform a variety of duties as needed. In fact, that should be written into the expectations of the position.

Test the Candidates

Don't assume that the person's work history will be an indication of their knowledge. Candidates have been known to stretch the truth and have less knowledge and experience than they advertise.

You can develop a small test that can reveal their knowledge. Once you're ready for the interview stage, have the candidates take a small test with questions that should be obvious as well as those that aren't. You can ask them to explain what COB stands for, or give them basic math skill questions.

Instead of asking about standard interview scenarios like, “Tell me about a time in your previous jobs when you had to troubleshoot,” you can give them a medical billing scenario from a real-world situation. Remove confidential patient information and ask how they would handle the claim.

Always Check References

Once you've narrowed down the possibilities, you should always check references, prior work history and background. It's unfortunate that many candidates stretch the truth on their resumes. They might give a friend's name and phone number as a reference for a position in a previous company.

When you're checking references, it's best to call the company directly and ask whether they've heard of the candidate as well as the person used for a reference. Don't take any information at face value. Always do your own research.

Their schooling should be verified as well. Even if the person has had a few jobs since graduation, you want to know whether they have the basic fundamentals in place from an accredited institution of learning.

Patience is Vital

You might need to hire someone immediately, but that doesn't mean you should skip any of the above steps. If you must, task a trusted employee with some of the research into the background of each candidate.

As the boss, you'll want to do final interviews and make the hiring decisions, but there's no reason you can't have someone else narrow down the search for you.

Retaining from the Start

A good candidate will want to be valued. This starts from the moment he or she is hired. You don't want to wait for the employee to become frustrated before you start valuing their contributions or try to fix your mistakes.

As soon as you hire this person, speak to him or her directly and show the new employee how much you want them on the team. If you aren't valuing other employees, it's time to start. Employee turnover is expensive. Every vacant position puts a strain on the rest of the team, and you'll have to take time to screen and hire a replacement.

Along with the initial interviewing and screening, you'll have to have that person trained, which takes more time and money. It's important to keep your employees happy and make sure that you're only hiring the best.