Certified Electronic Health Records Specialist (CEHRS) Practice Exam

What does Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) classify?

1. Patient demographics

2. Medications prescribed

3. Services and procedures used in the outpatient setting

4. Hospital readmission rates

The correct answer is: Services and procedures used in the outpatient setting

Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) serves the specific purpose of classifying and coding the various services and procedures performed by healthcare providers, particularly within an outpatient setting. This standardized system allows for consistent communication among providers, payers, and patients regarding the services rendered. By employing CPT codes, healthcare professionals can document and bill for procedures accurately, ensuring clarity and efficiency in healthcare transactions. Understanding the role of CPT is crucial, as it is heavily utilized for billing and coding in medical practices. Additionally, CPT codes enable the tracking of healthcare services, which can be important for quality assurance, comparisons in healthcare services, and medical research. The other choices pertain to different aspects of medical documentation and assessment. Patient demographics focus on personal information about patients but do not involve the classification of procedures or services. Medications prescribed represent a distinct aspect of patient care involving pharmacotherapy but fall under a different coding system, such as the National Drug Code (NDC) or the American Hospital Formulary Service (AHFS) classification. Hospital readmission rates are statistical measures used to evaluate the quality of care provided, reflecting an outcome rather than the coding of the services performed. Thus, the correct classification pertaining to CPT directly relates to the procedures and services carried out