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

breaking in - to patient care

Posted: Jul 30, 2010

Due to shrinking transcription work possibilities (that's an understatement), I was thinking of going back to school to become certified in some kind of hands-on patient care program-- ultrasound, LPN, RN, even CNA. I live in an area with a heavy concentration of medical facilities, and there is always a high demand for new hires.

The problem is: The local community colleges cannot keep up with the demand for education. To get into ANY kind of patient care program, you have to already be licensed and working actively in patient care. So, to get into the radiology tech program, you must be an employed nurse already; or vice versa. That counts for 50% of the entrance requirement. Even CNA programs are booked up months in advance. Essentially, the colleges have limited their programs to employed healthcare workers making a lateral career move. There is no chance of breaking in.

Has anyone else experienced this? I would like to work in some kind of medical field besides transcription--where I could be around people, and doing something more active. Are the community colleges like this in every place, or just my small city? It has sure thrown a wrench in my job-retraining plans! Thanks for any feedback.

Breaking in - Catgrrl

[ In Reply To ..]
Allied health and other health care programs have always been competitive no matter what area you live in. I am currently in the last 2 semesters of RN school and that is after being an MT for many years. The first step if you really want to be in RN school or radiology technician school, is to get your sciences done first (i.e. your prerequisites), then start applying to programs. I am not really sure why a radiology technician program would require someone to be an RN? While you are doing the sciences, you can then apply to take the CNA class. There is no easy track to any of these programs. It takes a lot of hard work and persistent and it really does not take 2 years to get to your associates in nursing or most other health care professions; it has taken me 2 years just to get the core nursing classes done. Good luck and just jump in start taking the required sciences (they have to be less than 5 years for most programs anyway).

requirements - changed

[ In Reply To ..]
Thanks for the info Catgrrl, I did go back and look at the admission requirements again--fortunately! It has completely changed since spring 2010. The 50% weighted preference has disappeared. Now it is based on course prerequisites and a general academic skills test. Nursing students do need to be CNAs already, but radiology looks open to anyone. Yay! November 2010 is the deadline for fall 2011 admission, so it's still a long wait though!

Radiology tech - No jobs

[ In Reply To ..]
I have two friends who've graduated from very good rad tech programs in the last year and neither can find work. The field is saturated.

Another, in CA, just entered a pretigious rad tech program but was told not to expect employment as the opportunities have become few and far between. So make sure you check the want-ads before deciding what direction to go in.

OTOH, my daughter just graduated from a 2-year occupational therapy assistant program and immediately upon graduation had several job offers (she's east coast) and got a $3k sign-on bonus, plus $50k a year salary. OT's can make upwards of $60-70k a year. And I always see ads for these positions.

School - mt

[ In Reply To ..]
Where I live, if you don't have all of the non-nursing or non-radiology courses, they pretty much assure you that you will not get in until they are completed. This can take a year or so to get. Even then, they are going to usually go for GPA after that. I would watch some of those choices you have listed and research. Most of the facilities I live near, and there are many large ones, are very low on radiology tech jobs. I think new grads may be having a hard time on that one. Also, most of the hospitals will barely hire LPNs, mostly have to go nursing home or physician office. I have been taking classes here and there through the years and hopefully will go back full time some day. Good Luck!!

Similar Messages:

Sep 01, 2010

Looking to break into VR Editing. Can anybody give me any tips? What companies hire for this. I am a 52-yo medical transcriptionist with 20+ years experience and I am in the need of something different. I am looking for a parttime position. Two friends gave me two different leads, but I see one had massive lay-offs today and the other wants experienced VR Editors only. Any tips will be greatly appreciated:) ...

Dec 07, 2009

I always thought it was ok to break a job if I had to leave the computer due to some crisis at home. If I'm working on a job and I've got to jump off the computer and don't know how long I'll be I break the job I'm working on, sign off, and when I sign back on it eventually does come back to me. Is this wrong? (Guess it is, from what I gather from comments on this board about cherry picking and being penalized for breaking jobs and what have you). ...

Apr 03, 2012

I'm working for a small company and upon initial hire, I signed a contract stating I need to give 14 days notice if I quit. Can they sue me for breaking the contract if I don't give notice? I've had something come up where I'm not able to work for them any longer and 14 days notice is just not feasible for me. ...

Jun 25, 2013

It takes longer to edit a report than to transcribe it! I have been keeping track of the time it takes using the process below. So, paying half the line count is just an excuse used. There is no truth to the statement that we can edit twice as fast, and your time clock production data shows this. In the past two days I have doubled my production with straight transcription over editing. EDITING PROCESS: Delete extraneous text that was not dictated. Correct font, point size ...

Sep 10, 2013

No more PTO for part time employees as of October of this year. This SUCKS!!! ...

Feb 23, 2010

Does anyone know the rules on how many jobs you're allowed to abandon or break from?? Thanks. ...

May 11, 2012

Well, it's done folks! A couple of VERY brave ladies have filed a class action suit for make up to minimum and OT issues against Transcend. If anyone is interested in getting their own going against some other MTSO's, well, it's time to be heard. We're not going to take it anymore! If you would like info on the attorneys who filed this suit, please feel free to email me. A very proud day indeed! ...