Medical Transcription Trends

What makes medical transcription a sought-after profession? Now, skeptics will frown on hearing this but the medical transcription profession is indeed a lucrative profession. Let’s look at the reasons that make medical transcription a sought-after profession.

Unlike most other professions, this one doesn’t ask for your degrees or experience. The fact that medical transcription has no prerequisites makes it easy for everyone to consider it. However, the profession expects a certain aptitude. Finally, there’s a job you get based on your aptitude and not on your scores.

Now, since the profession doesn’t ask for any formal qualification or experience, you would think that it will not pay you enough. Well, on the contrary, the profession pays reasonably well and your income increases with your proficiency.

The medical transcription profession is an extremely flexible one. It lets you work from home. Now, that means setting up your own work timings and hours. However, the interesting thing is that even if you work in a conventional office, medical transcription allows you to choose your work timings. You can also decide the number of hours you want to work. Now, which other profession offers such flexibility?

One draws immense satisfaction from the medical transcription job. Why? Well, the medical records created by the transcriptionist are crucial for the healthcare and insurance industries. And this makes the medical transcriptionist’s job a really important one. The transcriptionist feels he/she is contributing to society in a way.

Does all this information make you interested in medical transcription? Make sure you learn about its cons too before you make the decision.

I want to be a medical transcriptionist but where do I start? Every medical transcription aspirant feels this way unless he/she is being guided by another practicing transcriptionist. So, where does one really start? OK, you need to find out two things even before you consider becoming a medical transcriptionist. One, you should learn about the expectations and challenges in the profession. Two, you should know if you fit into the profession. Only after you understand the profession should you even consider joining it.

Now, in today’s post, we will share with you three steps towards a career in medical transcription.

• Find out if you have the skills and the potential to be a medical transcriptionist. You need to know if you can handle the job. You also need to find out if you will be satisfied with what the profession has to offer you.
• Enroll yourself into a good medical transcription course. Now, you have to choose the course with care. You must find out if the course conforms to COMPRO, has enough dictation hours, and is followed by job assistance.
• Start looking for medical transcription opportunities beyond the ones offered by the medical transcription institute. After you finish your course, look out for opportunities. Submit your resume to job websites, apply to medical transcription companies, and even get in touch with local hospitals and clinics.

It is important you learn as much about the profession as you can before you step into the field. The more informed you are, the better prepared you will be.

What is your primary job in medical transcription? To transcribe medical information, right? Wrong. Your primary job is to create medical records; and transcribing is probably the biggest task in that job. Now, medical records lose their value if they are not completed in time. And they are of no use if they have errors.

As a medical transcriptionist, therefore, you need to create flawless medical records on time. That is what you ought to do. And, yes, there’s another thing: you ought to keep all the medical information that passes through your hands secure and confidential. In today’s post, we will look at the whys and hows of what all you ought to do as a medical transcriptionist.

The overall quality goal in the medical transcription profession is 98%. And that’s with respect to only the major and minor errors. When it comes to critical errors, you have to be 100% accurate. So, when something in the recordings doesn’t make sense or if there is an information gap, don’t assume. Ask for clarifications and research.

Quality makes sense only when you deliver the medical records in time. So, stick to deadlines, no matter what. Most medical transcription tasks have a turnaround time of 24 hours. You have to meet all deadlines and ensure that the quality does not suffer in any way.

You also need to ensure that all the medical information you have access to is not leaked out in any way. The security of such information is your responsibility.

The profession’s expectations are probably what makes medical transcription challenging but none of the expectations are unjustified in any way.

What is the first thing you do when you decide to be a medical transcriptionist? You start looking for a medical transcription course. But wait! Should that be the first thing to do? How did you even reach the decision of joining this profession? What prompted you? Do you even understand the profession well enough to be a part of it? Do you see it becoming a career in the long term?

You have got to be absolutely sure when you decide to get into the medical transcription field. Don’t take it as a fallover option that you can let go once you get a ‘better’ choice later. The profession requires you to be completely dedicated. You cannot even survive in the profession if you enter it casually. So, learn as much about it as you can before committing yourself to it.

Now, what should you know about the profession? You should find out the nature of the work, the benefits and the challenges. And after learning about all this, you need to figure out if you really fit into the profession. Are you as committed as the profession expects you to be? Will it be possible to keep yourself motivated in the long run? Will you be able to stop the everyday deadlines and quality goals from taking a toll on you? Are you sure you are ready?

It is only after you are absolutely sure that you should look for that medical transcription course. And I must warn you that you have gotta choose it with care.

Is the medical transcription profession for losers? Some people may tell you so. Why would they think that? Because this profession does not lay down a list of prerequisites. You don’t need to produce degrees or even possess any kind of experience. So, a high-school graduate can take up medical transcription and so can someone who has been a homemaker for years. This makes some people believe that absolutely anyone can become a medical transcriptionist and that the people who opt for the profession don’t have any skills to boast about.

Now, since this is a medical transcription blog, you know what I am going to say. That medical transcription is not as easy as it is made out to be. And it is definitely not a loser’s cup of tea. But you won’t believe me just like that, will you? So, let me present my case.

The reason the profession doesn’t have any prerequisites is that it is not looking for people holding a certain qualification or experience. It is looking for people with a certain aptitude and the willingness to make medical transcription their career. Now, how do you spell this requirement in terms of prerequisites?  You can’t. And that is why there are no eligibility criteria in the profession. However, any experienced medical transcriptionist will tell you that you need an aptitude for the profession. Now, it is up to you to find out if you are fit for the profession or not.

Deadlines are not the only challenges in medical transcription. The medical transcriptionist’s job is an extremely responsible one. The profession is a specialized one too. One gains the specialization through the training one attends before getting into the field. The medical records created in the job are crucial for the healthcare and insurance industries. You have got to not only meet every deadline but also ensure quality of records and confidentiality of information. That explains why medical transcription is not everyone’s cup of tea.

Would you still believe the people who tell you that medical transcription is for losers?

Well, the most effective way of getting recognized in the field of medical transcription is by doing good work. Meet every deadline and quality goal and ensure the security and confidentiality of medical information. However, if you want to be established beyond your known circle of clients/employers, seek the help of the Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity (AHDI).

Now, AHDI has established a few credentials for the medical transcriptionist, establishing his/her expertise in the field. Getting credentialed can help you in your medical transcription career though they are not mandatory. Let’s look at the credentials and designations AHDI offers.

Certified Medical Transcriptionist (CMT): The CMT credential establishes your expert knowledge in the medical transcription field. One has to pass an exam called Level 2 exam to become a CMT. Only the transcriptionists with at least two years of experience in acute care are eligible to take the CMT exam.

Registered Medical Transcriptionist (RMT): The RMT credential is for those who have less than two years of experience in acute care. One has to pass the Level 1 exam to get the credential.

Certified Medical Transcriptionist – Retired (CMT-R) Status: This status is given to those medical transcriptionists who have been awarded the CMT credential earlier but who no longer practice medical transcription. This status has to be voluntarily received by requesting the CMT credential to be retired.

AHDI Fellowship (AHDI-F): The AHDI Fellowship is offered to the medical transcriptionist who has achieved much in his life other than in his regular medical transcription practice.

You can learn more about these from AHDI’s website.

So, medical transcription is a specialized profession. And it has its benefits and challenges. But are you aware of the kind of challenges it has in store for you? You have an idea, you say. Let me give you an exhaustive – well, almost – list of challenges you have to face on the profession.

It all starts with stringent deadlines. Do you know that you have to cope with deadlines on a daily basis? Sometimes, the turnaround time of some tasks is less than four hours.

Then there are those quality goals that are really high. The profession expects at least 98 percent accuracy in its work.

Let’s not forget the incomprehensible recordings that you may have to deal with pretty often. Add to this difficult reviewers. Some reviewers may prolong the review rounds, eating up your time for other tasks.

You get no supervision in this profession. You will not have access to regular guidance in the profession and have to be prepared to handle crisis situations on your own.

Now, in spite of the everyday excitement of deadlines and quality goals, the work can tend to get monotonous over a period of time. You have to always keep yourself motivated; yes, you need self-motivation skills to survive in this profession.

Do you know your work is not about mere transcription. You are required to research and analyze information. Yes, as a medical transcriptionist, you need to refer to external materials and analyze information logically to deliver a complete, meaningful, and relevant medical record.

Oh yeah, the medical transcription professional also needs to learn regularly. What does that mean? Well, you need to keep updating your medical knowledge or you will soon be left with obsolete medical knowledge.

As an aspiring medical transcriptionist, you need to find out as much about the medical transcription profession as you can. So, here’s a post for all those interested in the profession.

Understanding medical transcription

Medical transcription is not just about transcribing medical information. It is about creating healthcare documents. The doctor records information in voice which is later converted into meaningful information by transcriptionists.

Becoming a medical transcriptionist

The profession provides for an easy entry. You don’t need to possess a certain qualification or have a certain experience for being a medical transcriptionist. What you need, however, is a certain aptitude, which calls for good hearing skills, command over the English language, proficiency on a computer, willingness to learn on a regular basis, ability to research independently and analytical skills.

You need to undergo training in medical transcription to join the industry. You can choose a classroom course or an online course according to your convenience.

The medical transcriptionist’s responsibility

The medical transcriptionist has a very important role to play in the society today as healthcare records created by him/her are critical for the smooth functioning of the healthcare and insurance industries.

The future of medical transcription

The opportunities in the profession are not likely to decrease because of the aging and ever-increasing population. As long as the world needs medical records, it will need medical transcriptionists. In fact, the profession is one of the rarest ones that emerged unscathed from the recession that affected almost all other industries and occupations.

Keep coming back to the blog for information and opinions on medical transcription.

If you are interested in the medical transcription profession, you must make yourself familiar with the medical transcription process. This, of course, is besides your knowledge of the expectations and challenges of the profession. Let’s look into the process of medical transcription one step at a time.

Step #1: The medical information is recorded.
The doctors and medical staff record information in the form of audios. The task is also referred to as dictation. Typically, doctors dictate medical information into a tape recorder or similar audio device.

Step #2: The audio files are handed over to the transcriptionist.
Once the doctors have recorded medical information in voice, the information is converted into suitable audio files and sent to medical transcriptionists for processing.

Step #3: The medical transcriptionist transcribes the recorded information.
This is where the medical transcriptionist’s work begins. The medical transcriptionist listens to the audio files, interprets and analyzes it to convert it into meaningful and clear medical records.

Step #4: The transcribed text goes through reviews and quality checks.
The transcribed text is sent to reviewers for a quality check. Typically, the reviewers consist of medical experts and the doctors who recorded the information originally. There may be multiple rounds of reviews requiring the medical transcriptionist to fix errors and fill in gaps, if any.

Step #5: The complete medical records are delivered.
The medical records are delivered once they are approved by the reviewers.

Now that you have understood the process of medical transcription, find out if you fit into the scheme of things. Can you handle the challenges of the profession? Can you do with what the profession has to offer? If you think you are ready for medical transcription, it is time you start looking for a good course.

If you are interested in medical transcription, you must have thought over it. But do you know  there are tonnes of factors you should look into before you step into the field? Why do I say so? Because your interest and skills are not enough to help you survive in the medical transcription field.

Do you know that in spite of all your love for the profession, the work is likely to become boring and monotous over a period of time? You can survive only if you can motivate yourself throughout your career.

If you are entering the medical transcription profession thinking that it will be creative in any way, you are making a mistake. Medical transcription is not at all creative. It is about creating complete and accurate medical records from available information.

Some people will tell you that the medical transcription work is easy. Well, there couldn’t be a bigger lie than that. The work is not about mere transcription. Because you are responsible for ensuring that all the recorded information is 100 percent accurate. You will need to follow up with doctors, research extensively, and analyze information to make sense of it. Now, any transcriptionist cannot handle medical transcription work.

Medical transcription requires a lot of perseverance.  It is important you study all the expectations and challenges of the profession before you commit to it.

Do not go by what others say about the profession. Talk to the transcriptionists who have been in the field for long. Become a medical traanscriptionist only after you are sure you can handle it even in the long run.