Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

Picture archiving and communication systems administrator to clinical coder

A picture archiving and communication systems administrator already meets 28% of what the clinical coder role asks for. The move turns on 9 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From picture archiving and communication systems administrator
28 % overlap
Distant match
To clinical coder
7 You already bring
9 Still to learn
23 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Substantial retraining

66.3/ 100

1 How much of what a clinical coder is expected to do is already part of a picture archiving and communication systems administrator’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the clinical coder role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

A clinical coder role treats 3 of its required skills as things a picture archiving and communication systems administrator already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • communicate in healthcare
  • medical terminology
  • use electronic health records management system

What stands in the way is 9 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 7 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A clinical coder role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a picture archiving and communication systems administrator background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held use electronic health records management system working with computers
  • already held archive healthcare users' records information skills
  • already held health records management business, administration and law
  • already held medical informatics health and welfare
  • already held medical terminology health and welfare
  • already held communicate in healthcare communication, collaboration and creativity

All 7 carried skills, including the 3 the clinical coder role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 16 missing skills fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 information skills 3 required, 2 supplementary
  • still to learn perform clinical coding procedures required
  • still to learn review patient's medical data required
  • still to learn manage healthcare users' data required
  • optional, not held collect healthcare user's general data optional
  • optional, not held collect statistics on medical records optional
02 assisting and caring 3 required
  • still to learn maintain healthcare user data confidentiality required
  • still to learn adhere to organisational guidelines required
  • still to learn follow clinical guidelines required
03 health and welfare 2 required, 2 supplementary
  • still to learn clinical coding required
  • still to learn professional documentation in health care required
  • optional, not held healthcare analytics optional
  • optional, not held human physiology optional
04 social sciences, journalism and information 1 required
  • still to learn document management required
05 management skills 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held identify patients' medical records optional
06 services 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held health care system optional

1 further area in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a clinical coder role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 7 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held communicate in healthcare skill
  • already held medical terminology knowledge
  • already held use electronic health records management system skill
  • already held archive healthcare users' records skill
  • already held health records management knowledge
  • already held human anatomy knowledge
  • already held medical informatics knowledge
The 1 learning area not shown above
Skill to pick up Tier
07 working with computers 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held manage digital documents optional
7 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held collect healthcare user's general data optional
  • optional, not held collect statistics on medical records optional
  • optional, not held healthcare analytics optional
  • optional, not held identify patients' medical records optional
  • optional, not held health care system optional
  • optional, not held human physiology optional
  • optional, not held manage digital documents optional
23 held skills the clinical coder role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role Cisco knowledge
  • not needed by the target role ICT system user requirements knowledge
  • not needed by the target role administer ICT system skill
  • not needed by the target role apply company policies skill
  • not needed by the target role attend to ICT systems quality skill
  • not needed by the target role computer science knowledge
  • not needed by the target role data protection knowledge
  • not needed by the target role develop ICT workflow skill
  • not needed by the target role develop professional network skill
  • not needed by the target role empathise with the healthcare user skill
  • not needed by the target role identify suppliers skill
  • not needed by the target role implement strategic planning skill
  • not needed by the target role interact with healthcare users skill
  • not needed by the target role maintain ICT system skill
  • not needed by the target role manage cloud data and storage skill
  • not needed by the target role manage radiology information system skill
  • not needed by the target role perform clerical duties skill
  • not needed by the target role procurement of ICT network equipment knowledge
  • not needed by the target role project management knowledge
  • not needed by the target role provide cost benefit analysis reports skill
  • not needed by the target role radiological photography knowledge
  • not needed by the target role solve ICT system problems skill
  • not needed by the target role supplier management knowledge
6 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to pick up Tier
  • still to learn clinical coding required
  • still to learn document management required
  • still to learn professional documentation in health care required
  • optional, not held healthcare analytics optional
  • optional, not held health care system optional
  • optional, not held human physiology optional
Index
FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can a picture archiving and communication systems administrator become a clinical coder?

Yes, and it is a substantial move. A picture archiving and communication systems administrator already covers 28% of what a clinical coder is expected to do: 7 skills carry over, 3 of which the clinical coder role treats as required.

What skills does a picture archiving and communication systems administrator need to become a clinical coder?

9 required skills are missing, plus 7 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is clinical coding.

How hard is the move from picture archiving and communication systems administrator to clinical coder?

Its learning distance is 66.3 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.

Note

How this record was compiled

Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.