Avoid “Email Fail” Seeking Medical Billing Specialist Jobs

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Soon, another class of medical billing specialists will complete their medical billing classes online with the Allen School and gear up for the tasks of landing their first job in their new career.  They’ll be well prepared to perform at a very high level, having been trained by one of the top medical billing and coding schools in the country.  What they may not have been taught however, is how to avoid making mistakes in their approach to hiring managers. For example, the very first step in a job hunt is to send email queries to hiring authorities, offering a resume and trying to get noticed over the other respondents to advertised job openings.  But did you know that this seemingly simple first step can truly hobble your efforts if done improperly?  Yes, it’s true.  There are some very common mistakes job candidates frequently make when sending out job search emails.  Learn what they are and avoid shooting yourself in the foot from the get-go! Here are the four email fails reported by the folks over at the SavvyIntern blog.
  1. Your Resume Filename is… “Resume”
  2. Your Email Makes No Reference to the Open Position
  3. Your Email Has No Text
  4. You Tell Me You Have “All of the Right Qualifications” (Wrong!)
Visit their piece here for all the details on why each of these four common screw-ups make for bad job hunting mojo!

Affordable Medical Assistant Courses in NY and AZ

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The Allen School Blog always keeps an eye out for stories of people doing amazing things in healthcare with very few resources.  Like the story we published about a Nigerian clinic operator who built an operable centrifuge out of a bicycle, or the doctoral student who developed a surgical suction device that could be manufactured and sold for a mere $3, today’s story offers the same spirit of frugal medical achievement. Affordable nursing assistant coursesAccording to this story from ABC News, “Manu Prakash, a professor at Stanford University, and his students have developed a microscope out of a flat sheet of paper, a watch battery, LED, and optical units that when folded together, much like origami, creates a functional instrument with the resolution of 800 nanometers – basically magnifying an object up to 2,000 times.”  This amazing idea and the ones referenced above prove that it doesn’t take a fortune to produce things that will help advance the cause of medicine and aid millions of people for decades to come. Of course, the Allen School is also proof of that axiom. The certified medical assistant course is eminently affordable and produces hundreds of certified nursing assistants every year. Certified nursing assistants who go out into their communities and, over the course of their lifetimes in this compelling career, provide comfort, aid suffering and help thousands upon thousands of people to reach better states of health and wellness. Contact us today to get your career as a medical assistant started at our New York and Phoenix campuses.   Article updated March 15, 2024

Lies Damage Your Job Prospects After Healthcare Training School

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Like many students at the Allen School, perhaps you’ve decided to study medical assistant training or certified nursing assistant courses as part of a plan to switch career fields.  Yet, when you go out to seek your first new job in this exciting field, you’ll still need to include positions at your past employment on your résumé .  You may feel like you need to “fudge” a little, or embellish on your experiences.  Or maybe you wish to obscure the reasons behind gaps in your job history lasting more than a few weeks/months.  But be cautious in this regard.  Fibbing or even “creative explanations” on a résumé can often be easily uncovered by interviewers and the small white lies can wind up damaging your credibility and torpedoing your chances. Yahoo’s Small Business Advisor published a list of 5 Lies that Damage Your Reputation.  They are:
  1. Hiding a Gap in Employment by Excluding the Months of Employment on Your résumé
  2. Hiding Why You Left a Previous Employer, or, Why You Were Let Go
  3. Hiding Information That May Show Up on a Background or Drug Screen
  4. Providing a Friend as a Manager Reference
  5. Falsifying skills you have or have gained in your past employment
Read the full article at Yahoo Small Business Advisor and then make sure you’re prepared with well-conceived, thoughtful responses to the questions that you feel inclined to avoid.  In this way, you’ll demonstrate that not only are a a well-trained certified nursing assistant or medical office assistant, but you’re also a person of integrity.

This is Why We Go to Healthcare Training School

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Sarah is a reason to become a certified nursing assistantThere are many good reasons to get a nursing assistant education or to take medical assisting training: a stable career path, better compensation, strong employment numbers for the field.   Yet, there is no better reason to become a certified nursing assistant or a medical office assistant than for all the good you will be able to do for your fellow humans over the course of your career. Here’s a story that reminds all of us of the human element and the rewards that far outweigh monetary earnings.  Little Sarah Murnaghan (and happy St. Patty’s to her) was born with Cystic Fibrosis and by age 10, her lungs were failing.  She needed a double lung transplant to survive.  After navigating serious legal issues surrounding the rules for transplant patients and age restrictions, she underwent a TWO transplant operations, as the first transplant was rejected. Against all odds, physical, medical, legal and others, little Sarah has begun the arduous road to recovery.  Just recently, she took her first bike ride ever on a little pink bicycle, a marker signaling her return to “normal little girl” status – a huge milestone for a brave little girl and her long-suffering family.  None of this amazing story would be possible without the hard work and dedication of her surgeons, doctors, nurses, and the medical office staffs including certified nursing assistants and medical office assistants.  THIS is why we go to healthcare training school!

Time to Retire Windows XP if taking Medical Billing Classes Online

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Medical Billing Classes Online Using Windows XP

If Your Machine Shows This Logo When You Boot, It’s Critical to Update your OS Before 4/8

Many folks taking medical billing classes online with the Allen School do so for one very significant reason: to improve their financial lot in life.  It is logical to assume that people who identify the need for more income may be doing the best they can with limited resources.  If you’re among this group of people, and you’re studying medical billing and coding online using an older computer – particularly one running the Windows XP operating system – then you need to know the following, critical information. Recent estimates show that nearly half a billion people still use computers running Microsoft Windows XP.  The XP operating system, now more than a decade old, was at one time, the most popular operating system in the world.  However, as security threats (and other computing needs) grew more sophisticated, Microsoft released new operating systems. Since XPs release, Microsoft has subsequently offered Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8 and Windows 8.1.  Several years ago, Microsoft attempted to cease providing support for Windows XP, but was met with jeers from the millions of consumers still using the popular product.  So Microsoft agreed to continue supporting the XP system with the security patches designed to keep the OS from being overtaken by viruses, spammers, hackers and other online threats.  Yet, it hasn’t been profitable for Microsoft for many years to continue supporting what is essentially and obsolete product. The Allen School Blog first warned of this move by Microsoft in this post from last December, but the cutoff date had not yet been announced.  Well, it is now official.   Support for Windows XP will cease on April 8, 2014.  Repeat, support for Windows XP will cease on April 8, 2014.  So if you’re scraping by using an old computer with this outdated operating system, you need to update to a newer OS or after April 8, your machine will be subject to what experts suggest may be a 66% increase in viruses and hacking attacks.

How to Retain More When Studying for Nurses Aide Certification

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Learn how to retain more of what you read when studying for your nurses aide certification

Learn how to retain more of what you read when studying for your nurses aide certification

Do you find yourself reading your course work, getting to the bottom of the page, and realizing you don’t recall anything you’ve just finished reading?  Perhaps you’re tired.  Or perhaps you’re not focused at the moment.  But did you know that there are actual techniques you can use to maximize the time you spend reading and come away with phenomenal retention of the subject  matter? Yes, it’s true!  You can actually do something to make it easier to remember and retain what you’re studying; thereby making you a much more efficient student on your way to a certified nursing assistant degree. If you want to know how this is achieved, I have three simple words you need to know.  Impression, Association, Repetition.  These three actions are the key to becoming an information retention rock star.  Want to know more detail about how this works?  Sure you do!  Read this great article from the efficiency mavens over at Lifehacker.com.  But hurry up and visit now, before you forget!

Online Medical Billing Courses NOT Bad for Eyes

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There are precious few arguments against taking medical billing classes online.  One of the only halfway plausible arguments I have ever heard involved concern over the “damage” that can happen to one’s eyes if too much time is spent staring at a computer screen.  Mama always used to say “don’t sit too close or too long in front of the Tee Vee or you’ll damage your eyes!”  Later generations of mamas made the same plea, but this time the dangerous activity was spending too long in front of the computer or video game screen.  Well Allen School Online students, I am here to tell you that this is 100% pure, unadulterated bunk!  It is totally untrue that sitting too long in front of any kind of screen is harmful to your eyesight.   View the comical video above for the truth about this old wives tale.  Then, consider all the positive benefits of studying medical billing online with the Allen School and rest assured that the many benefits outweigh this bogus concern.  

Job Interviewers’ Pants are On Fire!

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Despite the fact that there is strong, sustained demand for people with medical billing and coding certification, the fact is, finding a new job is time consuming and complicated.  You can expect to send out dozens of resumes and partake of numerous interviews.  Yet, the majority of your efforts will be met with rejection.  Ultimately, you’re well-prepared to find a job as a medical billing specialist with your degree from the Allen School.  But along the way, you can expect to endure a bunch of lies from the people interviewing you. This does not make the interviewers bad people.  Okay, maybe some of them are not great people, but the fact is, they see so many candidates – both qualified candidates like you and unqualified people too – they cannot always do the right thing by each and every one of the hundreds of people they speak to each week. US News put together this insightful piece about the 8 lies interviewers tell candidates.  And while it may be a bit disheartening to read, it does provide you with the insight needed to remain resolute and ultimately land the gig you want.  Here are a few of the lies you’ve surely encountered:
  • “We’ll keep your résumé on file.”
  • “We’ll let you know about future opportunities.”
  • “We’ll get back to you in two weeks.”
Click here to read the entire article which provides insight into why these lies are told and what you can do to minimize the impact of being lied to in such a fashion while seeking a great position as a medical billing and coding professional.

Fast Food Industry Keeps Certified Nurse Assistant Schools Busy

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Waffletaco = more health problems = more Nursing Assistants neededThe KFC Double Down, the McGriddle, the Quadruple Bypass Burger and now the Waffle Taco!  Long time readers of the Allen School Blog know I have a predilection for reporting on the worst excesses of the American Fast Food industry, which seems to have no self control when it comes to developing foods that may ultimately kill their customers.  I just find it almost comical the lengths to which fast food producers will go to stuff more fat, sodium, sugar and calories in their offerings with seeming disregard for the health consequences. Today, Taco Bell joined the illustrious list of over-the-top fast food merchants with the announcement that it will be entering into the highly competitive “breakfast” segment of the fast food market with something called the “Waffletaco”.  As the name implies, it is a taco-shell shaped Belgian waffle stuffed with sausage, egg and cheese and is intended to be topped with a torrent of maple syrup.  Why am I appalled and intrigued at the same time?  I know I should avoid this nutritional abomination like the plague, yet, I am oddly seduced by this siren song of breakfasty goodness. Whether you favor or scorn such fanciful fast food creations, the bottom line is they must be good for business.  The publicity these monster menu items produces is reason enough for these purveyors of heart disease to continue to try and one-up each other with ever more bizarre and unhealthy products.  And what is good for their business also happens to be good for Certified Nurse Assistant schools like the Allen School.  The contribution of the Waffletaco to heart disease, diabetes, obesity, sleep apnea and a host of other ailments keeps demand high for well-trained medical office assistants, certified nurse assistants and all other healthcare professionals!  So bon appetit!

12 Phrases to Avoid if You Want to Get Ahead as a Medical Office Assistant

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Phrases Medical Assistants should avoidGetting your first job as a medical assistant just after graduation at the Allen School is a thrill.  But chances are, you’ll have multiple positions over the course of your career and will have the opportunity to move up through the ranks of several organizations where you’re employed.  Some employees seem to get promoted quickly while others stay mired in their entry level spots for years.  Ever wonder why this is the case? Ilya Pozin, CEO, Forbes contributor and LinkedIn “Influencer” has some idea.  Often times, those who do not excel upward through promotions are kept trapped in their positions by the language they use in their day-to-day activities in the office.  Pozin put together an excellent list of phrases you should avoid like the plague if you want to earn seniority in your position.  Some of them like, “That’s not my job” are pretty obvious.  But there are others that are not as well known.  Read Pozin’s post on LinkedIn here and then erase these twelve phrases from your vocabulary and you’ll be on your way upward.  Excelsior!