If you’re thinking about becoming a medical transcriptionist, you need about 18 to 24 months of training beyond just a general GED. Since some are part-time and others are work-from-home opportunities, moms who want more family time could find this as a great ideal career.
So what is a medical transcriptionist? They are there to listen to dictation from physicians and other healthcare professionals. Then, they are able to use a word program to put the notes in written from for patient records, discharge summaries, letters of referral, consultations and related documents. Some of these use voice recognition technology which can greatly enhance the number of documents they can produce on an hourly basis.
Requirements include either a one year certificate or a two-year associate degree in medical transcription. Programs are offered through vocational-technical schools such as community colleges or for-profit career schools. Some programs can be completed online but before you go ahead and sign up, make sure that the program is an accredited class.
As far as coursework goes, typically it can include anatomy and physiology, information management, medical terminology, keyboarding, grammar and editing as well as proof reading. Certification by exam, administered by the Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity also known as AHDI and is voluntary but it may open the door to a higher pay and more opportunities for you.
The promise of learning the business and working from home lures many prospective students each year to buy expensive training software or enroll in poor-quality programs. Do not rely on testimonials from students that are posted on a program’s website, as they may be planted. Look at independent reviews from online medical transcriptionist communities or talk to people already in the field. Unfortunately, no on-the-job training opportunities are available.
Most medical transcriptionists, also known as health care documentation specialists, work in hospitals and doctors’ offices and for third-party transcription services. Some transcriptionists are self-employed and work from home, but remember that it can take years to establish a professional reputation and client base.
The average hourly wage for a medical transcriptionist is $15.28. Median annual salary for a full-time medical transcriptionist is $44,058, which means that half the people in the field earn more, while half earn less. Geographic location can affect pay, as can promotion to a supervisory position. Jobs in pathology and neurology tend to pay more. Experience does not have much impact on salary. Here are some expected ranges:
● Less than 1 year of experience: $40,898–$43,699
● 5–6 years of experience: $44,965–$47,985
● 10–14 years of experience: $44,965–$47,985
● 20+ years of experience: $44,965–$47,985
FInding a job can be tricky. If you’re looking for a larger company in the local Charleston area, then be sure to check iMedX. They are the leader in the medical informations solutions and offer high-value revenue management solutions including those that are in the transcription field as well as education, training, data analytics and coding services. If you want them to help you start your own company with positive results and sharing how they’ve helped the success of thousands, it’s a company that you can count on day in and day out to help with all of your transcribing needs. The people at iMedX take the burden off physicians and help administrators improve overall performance. The stuaff understands medical context from training, catches errors and provides unparalleled service to all that enter. They are the critical thinkers and the problem solvers to help reduce process friction and provide a peace of mind.
Interested in becoming a Medical transcriptionist yourself? These steps will help you to get to your dream job whether hat is working out of your own home office or for a company like iMedX. Again, it’s a great position for working Mom’s looking to make some extra money while there kids are at work, as well as those who are quick typers, understand the medical language and wanting to make a difference within the medical field.
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