Since I write these posts about medical coding from a home office, I don't see why medical coding can't be done from home.

Holly Cassano explains why medical billing and coding are careers where you can work from home. While my work is nowhere near as technical as what medical coders do, I have enough experience working from home to see how it can work if you have the proper computer equipment and high-speed Internet connection. Here's how she sums up the pros and cons:

Advantages

• Can work from anywhere
• Flexible schedule
• No commuting
• More personal time
• No professional wardrobe
• Improved autonomy
• Less stress

Disadvantages

• Solitary workplace
• HIPAA compliance

“Golden Rules of Remote Work”

• "Be results oriented"
• Maintain self-discipline
• "Get up the same time daily and get dressed as if you had to leave the house (unless you’re sick)"
• "Must be an independent worker and able to time manage accordingly"
• "Stay organized!"
• "Have a separate home office from the rest of your home"

My take: I'm a fan of remote working but there are some factors you need to fully consider:

Who's your boss?

Working at home for an employer is very different from working at home as a freelancer or contract worker. Freelancers:

• Need to dedicate time to finding new contracts or gigs.
• Have more autonomy than employees.
• Need to rely more on their money-management skills (ie, taxes).
• Do not have paid time off.

What else you need to know

Whether you're an employee or freelancer, there are some other considerations:

• Remoteness creates barriers: Quite simply it's harder to communicate with peers in other offices. It's not insurmountable. But there needs to be a higher level of organization and dedication to communication to make sure work flows smoothly. Also keep in mind that it's going to be harder to query physicians for more detail from a remote location.

• Your home office needs to be very secure: HIPAA is very strict about how patient information is handled. You become responsible for compliance. Even without federal law, you have an obligation to protect patient information. This means only you have access to the records you will work on. Think about how you want your medical information to be handled.

• Working in exile: Working without coworkers can create a very productive environment because there are fewer distractions. (Unless you have a very active home with children for example.) But the lack of interaction may make you feel isolated in a not so good way. Some people need the interaction found in a workplace.

• Productivity counts: Because a medical practice will have less direct supervision, they will want quantifiable results from you to see if they're getting their money's worth. Be prepared to track how many medical records and claims you can process.

• Flexibility equals opportunity: This will favor freelancers. Medical practices will need to offset productivity losses due to ICD-10 training and implementation. That may not be best served by hiring full-time employees. But maybe a few hours here and there are needed to keep cash flow healthy.

• You can work from anywhere: That is an advantage and disadvantage. While working from the beach sounds like a selling point, it sucks to have to take your laptop on vacation. This mainly pertains to freelancers. You need to have backups in case you need to take time off for vacation, family emergencies or sickness.

Working from home is generally a pretty good gig. I can see it working for medical coders who have strong organization and communication skills.