Although the field of medical transcription is very attractive to most people because it does allow the opportunity to work from home and make a decent to good income, most people who want to get into this field do not know what challenges they will face once they decide to pursue a career as a medical transcriptionist (MT).
Medical transcription work is not easy because doctors are rushed. Dictation and paperwork are low priority tasks for them. Treating patients is their number one priority. Even though doctors realize that paperwork and dictation are necessary tasks they must complete, how they do it leaves a lot to be desired. It can be difficult to understand what a doctor has said, let alone what he/she has written.
Consequently, medical transcriptionists....
....must be vigilant and alert when transcribing. An injury to the left leg can suddenly be dictated or written as the right leg and then once again changed back to the left. MTs act in the capacity of a quality control person and must catch such errors.
...are bonified medical language specialists. There are many medical words that sound similar: Oral and aural; abduction and adduction; and effusion and a fusion are good examples of such similar sounding medical terms. A good MT knows what words to use, or more accurately, what word or words the doctor meant to say when he/she was dictating.
...must also be very competent in English usage and grammar. Dictating on the fly, as doctors do, is not easy; and it is the transcriptionist's responsibility to make sure the meaning is conveyed in a concise and grammatically correct format. It takes time, usually years, to fully develop this technical skill.
...must have bulldogged determination to find out what the doctor is saying if it cannot be understood. Developing a network of like-minded people in the same field helps in this regard. There are times when it might take a few minutes just to decipher one or two words on a tape or what has been written in a medical record. This is done by medical transcriptionists because we are there not only to perform an important job but to perform it correctly and properly.
...must have the temperament to deal with pressure and people who do not fully understand or appreciate the challenges of what we do. Grace under fire is something that is developed over time as well.
With all that said, medical transcription is a wonderfully rewarding and challenging field. People who have a passion for the spoken and written word--who collect words and phrases like some people collect baseball cards-are drawn to this field. We have an innate sense of wanting to do and be our best in our profession and to help patients at the same time by creating accurate, quality medical reports. Making the entire process of transcribing medical reports look deceptively simple and easy is performed every day by devoted and dedicated medical transcriptionists.
Mary Ruff-King is a veteran MT. Medical transcription is a challenging and rewarding field. For more insights, resources, and tips regarding medical transcription, visit this author's blog: MT Mastery Center.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/
Medical transcription work is not easy because doctors are rushed. Dictation and paperwork are low priority tasks for them. Treating patients is their number one priority. Even though doctors realize that paperwork and dictation are necessary tasks they must complete, how they do it leaves a lot to be desired. It can be difficult to understand what a doctor has said, let alone what he/she has written.
Consequently, medical transcriptionists....
....must be vigilant and alert when transcribing. An injury to the left leg can suddenly be dictated or written as the right leg and then once again changed back to the left. MTs act in the capacity of a quality control person and must catch such errors.
...are bonified medical language specialists. There are many medical words that sound similar: Oral and aural; abduction and adduction; and effusion and a fusion are good examples of such similar sounding medical terms. A good MT knows what words to use, or more accurately, what word or words the doctor meant to say when he/she was dictating.
...must also be very competent in English usage and grammar. Dictating on the fly, as doctors do, is not easy; and it is the transcriptionist's responsibility to make sure the meaning is conveyed in a concise and grammatically correct format. It takes time, usually years, to fully develop this technical skill.
...must have bulldogged determination to find out what the doctor is saying if it cannot be understood. Developing a network of like-minded people in the same field helps in this regard. There are times when it might take a few minutes just to decipher one or two words on a tape or what has been written in a medical record. This is done by medical transcriptionists because we are there not only to perform an important job but to perform it correctly and properly.
...must have the temperament to deal with pressure and people who do not fully understand or appreciate the challenges of what we do. Grace under fire is something that is developed over time as well.
With all that said, medical transcription is a wonderfully rewarding and challenging field. People who have a passion for the spoken and written word--who collect words and phrases like some people collect baseball cards-are drawn to this field. We have an innate sense of wanting to do and be our best in our profession and to help patients at the same time by creating accurate, quality medical reports. Making the entire process of transcribing medical reports look deceptively simple and easy is performed every day by devoted and dedicated medical transcriptionists.
Mary Ruff-King is a veteran MT. Medical transcription is a challenging and rewarding field. For more insights, resources, and tips regarding medical transcription, visit this author's blog: MT Mastery Center.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/
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