Career Information for a Medical Transcriptionist

Medical transcriptionists can play an important role in health care and medical research. Their accurate documentation of diagnostic procedures and patient care helps medical professionals track processes that can improve health care and prevent mistakes. However, transcriptionists must be willing to immerse themselves in the medical field to understand its terminology and procedures.

Function

• A medical transcriptionist writes documents detailing physical examinations, medical studies, autopsies and other information in the health-care industry. The documents are transcribed from recordings dictated by physicians, researchers and other medical professionals. Transcriptionists' completed documents go through an approval process during which corrections and updates are made. Approved documents may be included in research reports or become part of a patient's permanent medical file.

Considerations

• It's essential for transcriptionists to understand medical terminology. They also need to have knowledge of anatomy and physiology as well as treatment procedures to transcribe recordings accurately. A transcriptionst must be familiar with the style in which medical documents are created to comply with industry standards for medical records. Furthermore, transcriptionists are expected to keep patients' records confidential.

Significance

• A well-trained, experienced transcriptionist can identify mistakes or inconsistencies in a report and either correct them or highlight them for a physician or researcher to review. A transcriptionist's ability to understand medical terminology, health assessments and treatment procedures helps reduce the chance of patients receiving incorrect or harmful medical care, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Effects

• The Internet has helped speed up the medical-transcription process. Many transcriptionists who work independently can access dictation through a medical client's website and quickly return finished documents for approval. Transcriptionists who are employed at physicians' offices may be required to perform other duties, such as scheduling patients' appointments and handling office mail.

Expert Insight

• The website of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicates that employers prefer to hire transcriptionists who have received training at community colleges or through certification programs. Courses on legal issues related to health care and medical terminology are recommended. The BLS expects employment of medical transcriptionists to grow through 2018 as the population of senior citizens increases. An older population will receive more medical tests and medical treatments that will need to be documented. BLS statistics show that medical transcriptionists had median hourly wages of $15.41 in May of 2008.