Medical Transcription Trends

Medical transcriptionists are some of the highest paid non-degreed professionals in the workforce today. The reason is quite clear. It all boils down to demand. That’s what all five of these reasons have in common. Here are five reasons medical transcriptionists are as highly paid as they are, and why they might even make more money ten years from now.

1. Baby Boomers are retiring. This means that demand for health care services will rise over the next 20 years furthering demand for medical transcription services.
2. Doctors do not have time to perform their own dictations. Demands on their time and services are expected to increase as well, and they don’t have time for dictation now.
3. Insurance companies require an accurate dictation report before they will pay invoices. Who provides these dictation reports? Medical transcriptionists do.
4. Medical transcription is a specialized skill. If you enroll in a medical transcription course and receive the industry certification, you will be a top-notch medical transcriptionist whose services are in high demand.
5. The rigors of the job are demanding. You have quick turn around times and tight deadlines. You also are expected to maintain 0% critical errors and are allowed only 2% on major and minor errors.

The rise of modern technology has made medical transcription an even more necessary skill for any doctor or hospital. There’s just one problem. They can’t do it themselves. They’d rather hire you.

Medical Transcriptionists’ salaries fluctuate considerably. There is no fixed income for work of this kind, with earnings depending on the productivity and skill of the medical transcriptionist. In 2002, the American Association for Medical Transcription (AAMT) conducted a survey and found that the average annual salary of a little over $31,000 was the norm for the Medical Transcriptionist.

The highest-earning 10% of those surveyed had a salary nearing $18 per hour; the lowest-earning 10% earned a touch over $9 per hour. Of course, some earn distinctly more and some considerably less than that figure. All said and done, a medical transcriptionist’s salary is situational. Sometimes it takes much more than mere skill. It helps the medical transcriptionist to be at the right place at the right time.

By May 2004, Medical Transcriptionists had median hourly earnings of $13.64. On average, a qualified medical transcriptionist can earn about $50,000 for full-time work and $20,000 if she is working part-time. Transcriptionists can bring in a greater salary if they have their own business or are prepared to work from home. 

Medical Transcriptionists are compensated in various ways. Some get their salaries based on the number of lines transcribed or hours worked. Others have a per-hour basic pay with bonuses for additional production. It is important to remember that independent contractors have a greater salary than transcriptionists working for others. However, working independently is fraught with drawbacks. The expenses are greater; they receive no or meager benefits. You will have to work hard to keep the money coming in.

Median hourly earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of medical transcriptionists in May 2004 were:

• General medical and surgical hospitals $13.83
• Offices of physicians 13.40
• Business support services 13.40

There are people who look so much at the money, the flexibility, and the comfort in the medical transcription profession that they don’t pay any attention to what the profession expects of them. The profession’s expectations are not unreasonable. They are exactly what the work requires. Medical transcription-aspirants should be aware of these before they enter the field.

The profession expects you to meet every deadline. Most medical transcription tasks have a turnaround time of 24 hours. Some may even have a turnaround of four hours! You have to meet all deadlines and ensure that the quality does not suffer in any way. Thus, the profession expects you to be highly productive.

As a medical transcriptionist, you are required to meet all the quality goals. The quality goal in this 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 thoroughly.

The profession expects you to ensure the security and confidentiality of medical data. You get access to medical information of many people. You have to ensure that this information is not leaked out in any way. The security of such information is your responsibility. If you choose to work from home, you will have to take measures to ensure it.

Now, don’t treat these expectations as challenges. Treat them as essential part of your medical transcription job.

Medical transcription salaries are above most home based careers when it comes to real dollars terms. When it comes to reliability, it depends on what you are looking at. Whether or not you are paid the right amount on the right payment day is a commercial situation that depends very much on the business that hires you.

What you can be assured of is that if that business has been around for some time, then it must be fairly reliable. There are so many opportunities around now that medical transcriptionist will not stay with businesses that are unreliable. Will you get paid the right amount and on time? If you are employed by a reputable business then its fair to assume yes.

When talking of the reliability of medical transcription salaries when it comes to continuity of employment – again the answer has to be yes. The demand for medical transcription services is growing, not declining so once you develop a reputation for being efficient, accurate and on time – you will never be short of work.

There is one area where you could question the reliability of medical transcription salaries and that revolves around the type of jobs being transcribed. Radiology for example often require very fast turnarounds. These jobs often pay a little more than standard jobs.

Your own experience will also have an impact medical transcription salaries. This is all to the good however. As you gain experience you can expect to see your salary rise. In this situation, your medical transcription salaries are not reliable – but then, when they are going up, you don’t want them to be. That’s what makes it a great profession to be in!