A community of 30,000 US Transcriptionist serving Medical Transcription Industry

Bad decision....now what???? - jj

Posted: Nov 23, 2010

I made a poor decision in not researching medical transcription schools fully before starting and went through At-Home Professions, not very smart. I have now completed the course and have come to the conclusion that I am not as prepared as I thought I was to enter this field. I enjoyed what I did learn but am becoming very discouraged with the fact that I wasn't prepared to enter the job market. My dilema is I don't have the funds to take courses some where else as I already wasted money on this course. I am continuing to test but have yet to pass one test. I have gotten responses from my resume but when it comes to testing I just can't seem to pass. I am looking for advice on how to gain more knowledge at a minimal cost, if that is even possible. I will continue to test and pray that I will pass and be able to find work, but in the meantime does anyone have any information that will help me to make up for the fact that I went to such a poor school. TIA

Ten years ago I was in the same position (sm) - Yochana

[ In Reply To ..]
I knew very little about MT, did not know about this board, etc, etc, and chose a near worthless school. However, 10 years ago things were SOOOOOOOO different. I tested with MedQuist did pretty well and was hired. Was I in for an eye opener!!! Fortunately, my team leader mentored me for almost a year and got me on my feet. Unfortunately, this does not happen any more as it is too costly for the MTSO. Your best bet would be to order the SUM tapes, this is what the best schools rely on. Good luck.

Good advice, but they also "rely" on instructors to teach and interpret those materials - No easy answers but see message

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We're always hearing about people who went through this or that course or a community college or even two-year program that teaches everything but quality medical transcription experience. It has always been that way and isn't going to change. The biggest factors that make the difference are the materials they use and the instructors who guide and interpret. No student knows what they even need to know or they wouldn't need training.

I know someone who went through 3 different schools before finally finding one that actually teaches. By that I can give you an example of the opposite. I visited a school once where they just had a basket full of materials and the students pulled one out every day and transcribed. They didn't learn, but they spent the required time and got their degree.

Talk to one of the schools and see if they can advise you. If you learned anything at all in your last school, some of the next course may go easier and faster. I don't know anything at all about the school you went to, but another school may have some kind of payment plan that will help.

Try This - MTINND

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I went through Career Step ... and I don't know about anyone else, but it totally prepared me for work in the field.

They have practice CDs that they sell there for additional practice. What is nice, is the key comes with it, so you can check and see what you are doing right, and what you are doing wrong.

Check with AHDI, they have practice CDs (lots of them) and ask if they come with the key. If you can't see if your making mistakes, the practice doesn't mean too much.

If you can't afford more school, than that is what I would do.

Contrary to what some people say, I think this is a great field. I get paid a decent paycheck (and yes,I actually work for Medquist).

I do basically no VR, all typing and I am NEVER out of work on my account. So, I am of the opinion that you should continue to pursue finding practice CDs with the keys.

Lots of people are down on this profession, but I am not, and I'm sure I'm not the only one. I am extremely happy with my job, my paycheck, and the fact that I can work at home.

Don't give up your training just because you made the mistake of not researching. Just continue on, and try to make your own way.

Go on Amazon and invest in used Stedman's Wordbooks. Get a good medical dictionary, Stedman's or Taber. Get a good drug book... (I like "Quicklook Drug Book".

There are many ways you can go about educating yourself with what you have already learned. Just make sure that whatever you are learning, you are learning correctly. The reference books and the keys on practice dictations are great starting points. And, that way you won't be paying for training that you actually did get, over again (no matter how limited the training).

Hope that made sense ... don't get discouraged ... persevere. You can do it.

wow, you must have a ton of time on your hands. - NM

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NM = no message

at least they had something to offer - nm

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.

Maybe the same school as me, COLA? - MQMT still

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Same happened with me 10 years ago. Tested with MQ and got hired in-house (still cannot figure that one out). Found out how poorly I was prepared for the real world just by the test, but had wonderful mentors and going strong now 10 years later. It is sad there are few in-house transcription jobs left so a newbie can get one-on-one attention. I know I never would have made it without that help.

Bad Decision - Old Pro

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My best advice to you would be to contact both Andrews and M-TEC, tell them your situation, and try to get some real MT education. I am sorry that you have this challenge, and I wish you all the best. I think that, with a better school, you will have a fighting chance! Good luck to you!

Research - mymt

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Check on Ebay for SUM tapes or check around with schools that may give you access for practice.

Do you feel you received a thorough education with regard to anatomy and physiology? I like the book, Language of Medicine- comes with a CD, I used to use it to train MTs.

That's a recipe for another failure unfortunately - Been there

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I can tell you from experience that you would be setting yourself up for another failure by trying to teach yourself what you don't know.

blanket statement - mymt

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Perhaps that was YOUR experience. I've seen others go the route I just recommended and they've done quite well.

Especially if you've been taught the basics. The Language of Medicine is an excellent book and the SUM tapes are the "sought after" method of learning. You don't need to necessarily pay someone $3k to learn MT.

Recipe for failure? - Anonymous

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Hello....That is why she wants to teach herself, to learn what she doesn't know. Your statement makes no sense. Anytime someone wants to learn something new, they study. I don't go to school every time I want to learn something, I find books at the library or do independent research. I agree with the other person who posted. Some people do really well with independent study and don't necessarily need instructor feedback all the time. Having gone through one course already, that may be all that is needed and save hundreds of dollars.

Let me give you an example of why it doesn't work that way in MT - Plus a possible option

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A person I know took a really bad MT course. It's one everyone has heard of, but their graduates don't do well because they can't transcribe. They can't transcribe because the course taught them lots of terms and then set before them some canned reports that were read by announcers. After they finish, they are worse than when they had started, because they think medical transcription comes in canned reports being 'read by' instead of dictated by physicians. Big difference.

So when I tried to help by pointing out errors she just wasn't seeing as she was 'grading' her own work. It would have been a full-time job to try to explain all those errors to her. She simply could not see the errors because they didn't seem like errors to her. These were industry standards, not errors that are debatable. As I explained each one to her, it was obvious that she still didn't think they made any difference, because she had no training. The training she did have was so flawed that it hurt her rather than helped.

She would have been happy to continue with my pointing out each error and attempting to explain it, followed by her saying it seemed like nitpicking to her and they didn't do it that way in school, and why wasn't it done another way or why was it even important at all because...up to the point where it just wasn't worth her time or mine to continue. She had been harmed by that very poor school and it couldn't be easily fixed by just learning it on her own.

Even if she had been more teachable, she was just not aware of what to look for. Staring an error right in the face, she still wouldn't have identified it.

On the positive side though, there are jobs that don't require the level of skills that it takes to do acute care medical transcription. You usually have to go on-site to do those jobs, but the fact that you know medical terms helps. If you have other skills along with it, you could qualify for a Medical Administrative Assistant or Medical Secretary. There's nothing wrong with those kinds of positions.

As far as acute care medical transcription though, that's not something to play around with on your own.

Acute care - Anonymous

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My first job after I finished school was in acute care, I worked for that hospital for 5 years and went on to other acute care employment following that. I would say that I probably learned 75% of it on the job and by researching things independently. You have a very superior attitude in regard to schools doing irreparable harm to students and a certain student being unteachable, but there's no need to continue this discussion. The OP stated she had no money to spend on another school and we were trying to offer ways to help that would be less expensive. Don't assume that everyone is stupid.

The last poster made a helpful suggestion that would cost nothing - See message

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As far as people assuming everyone is stupid, there is a lot of that going around these days. Look at another discussion today where someone suggests coding and someone else says that it's hard work and you have to keep up with changes.

The message earlier about using the terms she used to get a job, even if it has a different title than medical transcriptionist, is a good one.

I learned on my own, on the job, many years ago, but that ship has sailed. Employers will tell you that they are not schools and don't have time to teach you. Those are facts.

How does it make me stupid - sm - Anonymous

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Because I made some observations about coding? A lot of people jumping on that bandwagon don't have a clue what they're getting into, IMO. Anyone who thinks they can learn all there is to know about being an MT in school is also in for a rude awakening.

There are levels of skills and schools teach at different levels - Some are better than others

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Hopefully someone who graduates will be a lot better/smarter after a few years of experience, but they can be pretty darn good at the starting line, depending on the quality of training. I've seen the difference with my own eyes. There is a wide range of skill levels that came (or didn't happen) from MT school.

Nobody learns everything there is to know about anything in life. Hopefully we keep learning throughout our entire careers.

Your example - Old Pro

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of why MT self-education does not work is right on. There is an old saying "You cannot know what you do not know." I think MT self-education is downright dangerous.

Recipe for failure - Bobbie

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Hello, her statement makes PERFECT sense. Just as people who try to teach themselves a foreign language often do not succeed very well, so it is that people who try to teach themselves MT often either "teach themselves" errors or do not correct the errors they make by assuming things which are not true. Anyone who thinks they can do an adequate job in MT with one course is simply misinformed.

How do you figure? - Generation Self-Taught

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While there are a lot of self-taught MTs from my generation who didn't know what they didn't know until they didn't know it, there are a whole lot of us, myself included, who have done quite well in transcription. I've never had an MT course. I learned A&P and typed well. I've kicked ass in this profession for over 30 years.

You *can* teach yourself MT. You do not have to hand over thousands of dollars to a school to teach you nothing you couldn't learn on your own. That being said, not everyone is intelligent enough to be an MT. PLain and simple.

But to tell someone you can't teach yourself, especially after they've been through a course, is just irresponsible.

Generation Self-Taught - Nick

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It is not irresponsible; it is REALISTIC.

Seriously? - GST

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Common sense, above-average intelligence, keyboarding abilities, and a grasp of A&P.... you do NOT need to pay thousands to a school.

Some of us have heard that one before - See message

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I can't even count the number of times someone has told me they taught themselves MT because they are smarter than average, have better skills than most, and are more motivated. I can't think of even one of those instances where the person achieved that goal.

Were they smarter than average? Some may have been. Did they have better skills than others? Some did and the others were totally out of reality. Again, they didn't know what they didn't know. In that category you have the people who apply and say they have truly great typing skills, 35 wpm. In case anyone is wondering, that is not great typing no matter how you cut it.

Another misunderstanding is just how far knowledge of medical terms and A&P will take a person in medical transcription these days. That may be about 20% of what we do, and that's not enough.

Common sense? Absolutely! Common sense would also tell you that in a tough economy and a very hard work environment that medical transcriptionists face, this is not the time to cut corners. Employers do not give much credibility to do-it-yourself MT education because there just aren't enough hours in the day to teach what they didn't know they needed to teach themselves.

I will have to say though that there are some MT schools that are no better than someone teaching themselves what they don't know. I heard of one recently where they did have instructors, but they were new graduates of the same school, teaching what they have never even experienced on the job. I think that's disgraceful. It isn't disgraceful to want to teach yourself MT. It's a nice idea. It just doesn't work in today's economy/work environment.

Can only speak from my experience - GST

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And I come from a generation of MTs who taught themselves. The majority of my "group" of MTs are well above par and worth every penny they make. I currently earn over $60k working about 30-35 hours a week. I'm good. My friends are good. We never took a single MT school class. Yes, there was a learning curve. Yes, I spent a lot of time in dictionaries (used to leave a Dorlands in my bathroom even!). Not everyone is cut out for this job.

Not everyone who enters a school, even the really "good" ones should be or CAN be an MT. But schools will take money from anyone who offers it to them. I used to mentor for one school but quit because I couldn't keep lying to students who simply didn't have "it."

But I was able to mentor many others in person, ones I hired who had the traits I mentioned but no MT school. They are excellent MTs today.

I realize the money making machine of "you must attend a school" is running full speed ahead, but I still stand by my opinion that if the original poster has already been through a school, she can teach herself what she needs to get a job in MT.

research - ejt

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I am very blessed by God and had the fortune of being trained in orthopedics years ago on the job with training in not such a great school, but we did use that book the Language of Medicine, which I still look up things today in there 18 years down the road from when I went to school. I now do work for rehab and chiro and it all that training on the job is still very useful. It took me 4 years from the date i graduated to land that job. Thank God for good people even then.

Agree LOM is a great book, the school I attended - sm - aMT

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used that book too, as well as practice and actual dictation. It gave me an excellent grounding and I was able to pass tests and get a job in less than 2 months of completing my course. But this was 9 years ago and as mentioned by someone else, things were different 9-10 years ago and it was not as hard to find a job. I still had a lot to learn then and learned a lot just taking test after test after test while looking for a job. Even today I learn things, don't have to look up so much now of course but usually learn a new term at least once a week if not more. --- see about getting a LOM and as suggested the SUM tapes and go through them thoroughly, then try testing with MT companies then, at that point the wait period should be over and you will hopefully pass the second time around. But it is not abnormal to fail those tests even for experienced MTs as the MTSO is extremely picky and a comma or period in the wrong place can be the difference in passing or not.

I think I am in the same boat as you - hc

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I am sorry but I cannot offer any advice as I am thinking I am in the same boat as you. I trained through the same school as you and I am now thinking that maybe I didn't get the right training either b/c I am also having trouble passing tests.

I have worked for a few smaller companies and have had great feedback about my work but there is something about those darn tests that I can't pass. Maybe we didn't get enough practice for these tests. Not sure. I hope you find out some information that will help you and maybe I can learn some things as well.

I am in a case like yours where I do not have the money to pay to go through another schooling. Not sure what I should do.

I wish you well.

HC - Anna

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All you have to do to determine if you got enough training is to compare the number of hours of training you got at your school with the numbers of actual dictation hours required by M-TEC or Andrews. This one test usually separates the matchbooks from the real schools. (And I would never hire anyone who was not trained via the SUM program when I was in a position to influence such matters.)

Agree, but know people who spent 2 years of "time" and learned little - Time Spent Not The Whole Story

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It has to be hours of training actually spent on quality materials with instructors who have enough knowledge to have been successful in their own careers. Anything less than that doesn't make sense, does it?

I sure agree with you that I would not hire anyone that has not been trained using the SUM program at its fullest, with the guidance and expertise of not just barely qualified, but highly-qualified instructors. That's the way I measure it. I think you and I agree.

Bad decision... - jj

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Thanks everyone for all of your responses, I will look into the SUM program as well as other schools, but at this point is not something that I can afford. I will put this in my lessons learned bag and make sure that I don't let it happen again, nothing is worse than getting burned by people you are paying to help you but it happens I guess. Thanks again.

jj - anon

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When you test make sure that you have good references such as Stedman's Abbreviations, Surgical word book, AAMT Book of Style, or a lab reference and pharmaceutical words book. This really helps alot.

advice - Jen

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My advice is to listen and transcribe more reports... Or go to CareerStep. While doing my research on schools, I found them to be the best in price.

Jen - Old Pro

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Sadly, that is the problem. People are interested in "best in PRICE," when they should be interested in best in QUALITY. IMHO, Andrews and M-TEC are the best in quality. Not trying to start a school war here, just sharing my observations, based on experience with dozens of MTs.

I agree on Career Step - Not too expensive and a decent school

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I graduated from Career Step and have had no trouble at all finding work and earning a very decent amount of money. I earned back the cost of my tuition within my first 3 months of transcribing, and of course in the beginning I was earning less because I was slower. That was 2 years ago and I'm still working. You really need to go to a better school. I myself began with one of those courses they advertise on TV, but I sent back all the materials once I received them and asked for a refund (I had to fight to get it, but I got it - it was, I think, 500 dollars or so, a real rip-off). They didn't provide voice files or equipment or anything like that at all - just a couple of crummy books with lists of medical terms.

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