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

going back to school and getting certified as a Medical Assistant - Ms Pam

Posted: Mar 24, 2014

I have been in the field of Education for 23 yrs and have been an Administrator for the past 13. Due to the economy, schools would rather hire those with no experience and pay them less than seasoned veterans like myself. I have 2 in college and a 10yr old I adopted at birth so I am far from retirement. I am considering going back to school and getting certified as a Medical Assistant (which would include Phlebotomy and X-ray tech) and Medical Billing/Coding or Transcription. I am currently unemployed so I would go to class for one and do one online. I could then work one job during the day and do the coding or transcription at night. I need to find programs I can finish quickly and fund with FAFSA. I have nothing in teacher retirement as I withdrew to take care of. Aged parents. Are these good fields? Is this a good idea? Help!

i really would not recommend medical assisting - East MT

[ In Reply To ..]
extremely low pay. Facilities would rather hire LPNs than a medical assistant. things may have changed but when i was in school 13 years ago i went to class with many MA students. Upon talking to them later they could not find jobs.

Transcription is a dying field. It is being taken over by point and click programs. Please do not waste your time or money.

I don't know about billing at all, can't help you there.

Starting coding school next week so I can't tell you any anything about that.

If nothing else, you could try nursing. You will never have trouble finding a job.

Good luck in whatever you do!

needing advice - 16TRANSCRIBER

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One more thing, unfortunately hindsight is 20/20, but if I had to do it all over again I would go for x-ray tech. I know some large hospitals have a 1 1/2 to 2 year program that train you. You apply and have to get accepted. I live in Alabama, and D.C.H. (Druid City Hospital) does that. DO NOT WASTE TIME WITH TRANSCRIPTION!

I didnt advise on xray tech because I went to - East MT

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a local program years ago and they required a year of prerequisites, taking a test and then only 25 get in plus 5 alternates. I was an alternate. I didn't have another year to wait. Xray tech is a great program if you can get in.

LPN vs Medical Office Assistant - see msg

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Because LPNs are being phased out, medical office assistants or medical assistants are way more prominent than they were years ago. It is very, very rare to see an LPN in the clinic or hospital anymore; it's mostly all RNs and MOAs or MAs and if your certified, the money is fairly decent. I'm not certified, but I make close to $14 an hour and we get annual raises. Maybe not as much as coders, but having left MT a year ago after 12 yes, I consider that a blessing.

The only jobs out there for LPNs are longterm care (meaning nursing homes) or home healthcare; if you don't believe me read up on it or Google it. Also, with MA, you can do a variety of different jobs. I have learned so much just within the past year and have gained some marketable skills.

thats great! I didnt know LPNs were being phased out - East MT

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sorry if I was misinformed. I haven't been in school in quite a while! But I still don't ever see any medical assistants at any facility I visit, just RNs or LPNs.

Yeah, it's been that way for a while. I worked on - the clinical side for

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Years before becoming an MT and was actually in an LPN program with one semester to go before I got my cushie MT job at a local hospital making $40,000 a year before being outsourced and never went back to finish.

Pretty much all nurses go on for their RN because opportunities are so limited for LPNs; although some states still hire them in the hospital and clinical settings. I guess it just depends on where you live.

I just checked on the website where I got my MT - East MT

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and they still offer the LPN program. Makes you wish they would add a disclaimer, huh?

Its still offered. I didn't - say they dont exist, I said

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They are being phased out. In order to understand where I'm coming from, you would have to read up on it or speak to a guidance counselor at your local community college, you could even inquire at "all nurses.com" or if you know someone who is a nurse or works in the clinical setting ask them. Not making it up, promise; it's been this way a while. That's why a lot of nurses start out as LPNs and bridge over to the RN program, because it's faster to get your LPN and you can support yourself while finishing school.

Pre-reqs take a year for nursing and LPN is a 1 yr program after pre-reqs and 2 yr program for RN after pre-reqs and that's pending acceptance into the program. You can take all your pre-reqs and still not be accepted because nursing programs are extremely competive and can be hard to get into. Only so many are accepted per year or per semester.

oh no I totally got what you mean. I was just saying - East MT

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it seems like they should offer a disclaimer. Same with MT.

Yeah, I just didn't want you to think I was deliberately - trying to disagree. Glad you

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Understand. And congrats on passing your coding test, best wishes to you and ignore the haters!

Thanks :) - East MT

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x

No problem. I'm rooting for all of you. - You will do great. Hang in there.

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no, no, no! - 16TRANSCRIBER

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Whatever you do, make sure you get something where you actually have to put your hands on the patient! Everything is outsourced to India, Pakistan and Philippines! Even the radiologists are in danger of losing jobs because if an Indian radiologist can do it cheaper, they are seriously sending x-rays over there to get read. I've been a transcriptionist for 16 years, and this industry is being gobbled up by outsourcing to other companies. Coding is following fast in footsteps of transcription. Bottom line, if you have to put your hands on the patient, then go for that. They cannot outsource that. Best of luck!

Um, yes they CAN outsource it. - They just hire foreigners

[ In Reply To ..]
Don't think that you will be saved by "hands on" care. A lot of that is now only part-time. I know people running to part-time jobs at 2 or 3 different places.

There is also the problem of hiring foreigners to work in your hospital. We hire a lot of Irish nurses, etc.

The problem isn't with outsourcing -- you can always work for the outsourcing company, and in coding it's a good job -- but with offshoring. Coding is not particularly likely to be offshored because too much revenue is at stake. Foreign coders don't code as aggressively as US coders, thus causing revenue loss. This has been documented in studies, so facilities are leery of it. They got burned with MT, too, and are more wary now.

ahhh, yes mispoke! - 16TRANSCRIBER

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I misspoke! Offshoring...not outsourcing. Big difference. Our transcription and coding got offshored. Sorry for the confusion. Basically, the entire hospital setting which was once where all the great jobs are is now unstable.

MModal is already training Indian coders. - SayItGirl

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

offshoring coding - 16TRANSCRIBER

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I don't know why everyone is in denial about coding getting offshored. It has been happening for years. Offshore coding is just as popular as offshoring transcription. All you have to do is Google it. Heck, our hospital offshores our coding to India, and we are not a small hospital.

MTs refused to believe it at first too. It's called arrogance. - Afraid it bites you in the end. NM

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xx

Hate to burst your bubble, but it's already being offshored, following MT's path. - nm

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x

Advice - Coder

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I can't recommend one way or the other about medical assisting, but if you are sure you can get a job in your area with it, it's a good bet.

Do *not* go into transcription. It is *not* a fabulous "work at home mommy job." It is a rapidly dying field. MTs are being paid less and less, being eliminated due to electronic records, and can work under abysmal conditions. If you insist on going into it, Andrews is the only school that will get you hired by a decent company. They do not accept FAFSA, but they are truly the only school you can rely on for success. That being said, it is incredibly difficult work with a huge learning curve. Do not think your background will eliminate that, because it won't. Your ability to get a job that will allow you to work at night, rather than on their schedule, is not very good.

Coding is a great field. Pay is excellent (see the salary surveys on www.aapc.com and www.ahima.org) and the job is interesting. It isn't going anywhere any time soon. However, with most programs, you can expect to have difficulty getting a job unless you have a CPC and a CCS, and are willing to work on site for some period of time before going home. Some programs don't even qualify you to take the CCS. Some hardly prepare you well enough to take the CPC. If you have no medical background, you will be learning from the ground up.

The MA program will teach you basic coding, so if you really want to do that, learn some of it there. When you get an MA job, then sign up for a course, get certified, and start transforming your MA experience into coding experience. At that point, you can get a better, real coding job. The MA experience will help with that.

Medical Assisting - Tink

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I would avoid medical assisting, like East said. I went to school for MA and got my certification, had no problem finding a job. I worked in a clinic and was expected to do the same tasks as an RN, but got paid half of what the RNs made. It was insulting. Plus, you are the one that the patients take their frustrations out on if they have to wait (and our patients usually had to wait to the tune to an hour up to 2 hours, seriously, because my doc liked to visit ALL THE TIME, so people got nasty), the one the docs take their frustrations out on if anything goes wrong, etc. One year was all I could take of that...I went back to being a regular secretary making almost twice of what I was making as an MA without all of the drama. I've been an MT 10 years now and honestly it's not as bad as being an MA was, even on the not-so-fun days!! I hear you on needing something good. We have 6 (4 in school and 2 not yet in preschool), and I'm not sure what in the world I'd want to go back to school now that it looks kind of bleak for the MT world. Best wishes on trying something new!!

and see that is so wrong to me. You went to school as long as an RN - East MT

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I saw that happen to so many of my friends. Offered pennies on the dollar compared to those who went for RN. Might as well go for an RN.

My program was actually only 10 months sm - Tink

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That was a loooonnng time ago!! However, I had to assist with in-office surgeries, come in on weekends and help with drug trials, etc. It floored me I could make more as a secretary than doing all of that stuff, plus get blamed for everything. It was waaayyy too much pressure for $8/hour!

I see. The college I got my MT certificate had the MA for 2 years - East MT

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but yeah totally. I think you would be better off being a pharmacy tech

I wonder if your college offered the administrative - type program? sm

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It sounds like it because you said 2years. If so, that involves much more and the pay is decent for that. There is a difference between that and the MOA. I am considering doing that program myself. You have to read up on them or call a local college and talk to a guidance counselor to understand the difference. If it's just a basic medical assistant program without the administrative duties then those programs typically only take 6-9 months depending on where you go or where you live. My job has a program and that's how I got my training.

heres the course description. No clue. - East MT

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The Medical Assisting Program at xxx has a two-fold purpose. The program seeks to ensure students have opportunities to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary for the practice of medical assisting and also prepare them to successfully write the American Association of Medical Assistant Certifying Board examination and become a Certified Medical Assistant (CMA). Completion of the Medical Assisting curriculum earns one an associate in applied science degree. The Program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP), 1361 Park Street, Clearwater, Florida 33756, (727-210-2350), www.caahep.org, on recommendation of the Medical Assisting Education Review Board (MAERB). Accreditation status was reaffirmed in February of 2005 and continues through the fall of 2014. Students enrolled in the Medical Assisting Program at WCC may also focus on short certificate options in the fields of medical transcription and phlebotomy. Completers of the phlebotomy certificate are eligible to sit for the Phlebotomy Technician (ASCP) and Registered Phlebotomy Technician (AMT) certification examinations.

Yes, that's the one where you make more money and - includes the administrative..sm

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Aspect. Because it's the "applied science degree" and is an accredited program. Also it allows you to test out early for certificates such as phlebotomy etc.

What about dental hygiene? - nm

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***

great suggestion! Also pharmacy tech - East MT

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would be reasonable careers to check into.

Dental hygiene? - 16TRANSCRIBER

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I know a lot.....a LOT! of people going into dental hygiene. Makes me wonder if there are enough jobs to go around. One thing that got my attention is being a senior companion or caregiver. I know a lot of people pay out of their own pockets to have someone sit with their elderly parents. I would find that job fulfilling. I would expect the pay to be at least $10-15/hour, and I live in central Alabama where pay is pretty low. Or, you can work for a company and they assign you to a job. That is needed 24/7 sometimes. Just a thought.

I know a dental surgical assistant. Makes good $, - works 3 days a week, and has - sm

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the rest of the time off to play. Not as many of those jobs out there as in hygiene, but great gig if you can get it.

Not a good idea. SM - Liz

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I talked to a woman today who went to dental hygienist school 20 years ago and worked steadily until this most recent crash. She has been out of work for 5 years and literally went to every dentist's office in a 20 mile circle from her house to hand deliver her resume. The only thing she got for that is a fill-in job when people are sick or on vacation (maybe a couple days every month). She was so frustrated. I also have a friend who finished dental hygienist school 2 years ago and has only been able to find a part-time job. This is all in the far south suburban Chicago area in very populated areas. From talking to these two people, this does not sound like an area of study to pursue.

MEDICAL TRANSCRIPTION NOT A GOOD CHOICE - ProMT

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I will never recommend medical transcription to anyone now or in the future. There are very few companies who are willing to hire an inexperienced MT; they all prefer at least 1 to 5 years of experience, so do not waste your time. Medical transcription used to be a very fun and lucrative career, but a lot of the work is being outsourced overseas (India, etc.), so there are now fewer jobs and the salary is now extremely horrible. I wish you the best and hope you can find something you enjoy and where you will not be harassed on your work quality (even if it is good) in your job. Good luck!

You've managed people - Val

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Aim for business, tutoring, teaching at a college? Avoid MT at all costs. Can you talk to a job counselor? I think you have many options you might not have considered. Anyway, I sure hope so for you.

advice - coder1980

[ In Reply To ..]
In our area the biggest need is for surgical techs. Money looks very good. No openings for x-ray techs or phlebotomists.

Did you ever check into being a CNA (does not take too long to get certified, pay is not that great, but some places will hire you and train you).

If you get into one of the bigger hospitals in your area, find out if they have partial tuition reimbursement for further education. Both the hospitals in my area do.

It may be a multistep process, but might be work checking into.

Good luck.

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