Saturday, November 22, 2008

Medical Transcription Training - Is A Medical Transcription Career Right For You?

Medical Transcription is a career that is interesting to work in. You will be listening to the physician’s notes in regards to how the patients visit went on things such as symptoms, diagnosis, referral tests, and much more. Many notes are in regards to the results of tests done by radiology, blood work, etc.

A medical transcriptionist transcribes dictated recordings from healthcare specialists and physicians and makes reports, correspondence, or other materials regarding administration.However, since the career field has gone from the micro-cassette tapes to digital transcription the jobs have opened up for those wanting to work at home.The main thing is learning the terminology and report formatting.

Now that Medical Transcription has went from tapes to digital you can live in one state and work from home for a doctor or hospital that might be thousands of miles away from you. Medical transcriptionists must understand terms associated with medicine, procedures used to diagnose, comprehend assessments of treatments and have knowledge in physiology, anatomy, and pharmacology.

While your typing speed is important in Medical Transcription; accuracy is a MUST! Your typing speed will determine how much you make per hour on average. Even though you are usually paid by the character line it still averages out per hour. However, your accuracy can determine if you have a job or not. They will only allow a 2% error in most cases. This means your accuracy must be a 98% or better to work at home as a Medical Transcriptionist. Experienced transcriptionists proofread medical reports to point out errors or discrepancies and to make necessary corrections. To decrease the possibility of patients receiving improper or damaging treatment, transcriptionists must have the ability to comprehend and accurately transcribe assessments of patients.

A lot of people say they want to work at home to be with their children. While this is possible, it is important to know that when you are working at home it is just that “work”. You can’t work at home transcribing medical records and have your children yelling in the background. It is very important to either schedule your time around your kids or have a family member or friend come in and help with child care while you get your work done. Also, let others know when you’re planning to work so that they do not interrupt you with requests to run to the store, run errands, etc.

A Medical Transcriptionist can make a good income working at home. The income can have a wide range depending on where your doctor is located, how fast you can type and how many hours you work each day / week. The average for starting out is around $15 - $17.00 an hour. After a few years; many Medical Transcriptionist can make up to $23.00 + an hour. When you factor in not paying for fuel back and forth to the office, office wardrobe, etc. you actually are making more money with all the money you save.

Make sure the Course / School you take does offer Job Assistance to help you through your 1st year at least. There are jobs out there for Medical Transcriptionist that are new, however it does help when you have assistance from the course / school you take your training from. Remember that every experienced MT had to start brand new to get their experience. Some additional duties for medical transcriptionists working in clinics and physicians' offices may include: checking in patients, scheduling appointments, and handling the phone and mail. When written reports are of spoken words are mandatory for communication, keeping records, or legality, medical transcriptionists translate reports word for word of speeches, conversations, legal proceedings, meetings, and other events.

Most medical transcriptionists enjoy comfortable surroundings including offices, hospitals, transcription service offices, clinics, laboratories, libraries of medicine, facilities provided by the government, or even home. Several medical transcriptionists telecommute from offices at home working or subcontracting for hospitals and transcription services. They can also work independently as a contractor, being self-employed Sphere: Related Content

1 comment:

Sara Haley said...

Transcription has been very lucrative for me as a stay-at-home mom, and you have to understand that this is one of those careers that will not be replaced by robots or computers anytime soon! :) That's always good job security right there.

Sara Haley
Transcriptionist
Amy Jamie Transcription Service