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

A lesson for those who are considering being an MT... - cyn

Posted: May 09, 2010

For almost a year and a half I have been going to a technical school for medical transcription and medical coding and billing. Being an MT was what I wanted to do for a living. I chose the coding and billing because I felt it certainly wouldn't hurt to have depending on where I wound up working.

I have made excellent grades and did well in the various classes I have taken. Overall, it was a very good learning experience.

In a few weeks I'll be finished. It made sense to begin looking for a job. I felt that I had the best of both worlds where I live. There is a large medical community here and the option of working at home was also something I was seriously considering.

I discovered that I was not as educated as I should have been. While I transcribed a wide variety of dictations, learned a great deal about terminology and anatomy, and studied medical office procedures, I have since realized that I missed out on other classes I should have had. Pharmacology is at the top of a list of what I should have studied.

I knew that as a newbie I would have a tough time finding a job, but upon discovering that I did not get nearly the education I should have gotten is a tough pill to swallow. Not only am I in debt for an education that will not get me a job, I am also not going to be able to enter a profession that I believed I was a perfect fit for.

Not only that, I have discovered that the large medical community here outsources 90% of their medical transcription to companies who will only hire experienced MTs. There is 1 job being advertised. Just one.

So, for anyone who is seriously considering becoming an MT here are my words of advice. Make sure the institution is ADHI approve (this one was not) and check into the individual classes the school offers. Finally, research, research, and do more research.

Do these things and you will not be sitting with a worthless medical transcription diploma as I am now.

With any luck, I can fork out hundreds of dollars for the coding and billing certifications and get a job in a field that wasn't my first choice.

We hear that a lot about tech schools/community colleges - Good advice from you NM

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

I'm checking into mentoring and internships... - cyn

[ In Reply To ..]
to start with. I am also going to take the online tests that are offered as well.

I'll see how that goes before deciding on my next direction.

Very rarely will a 'mentorship' or even an internship work out well - From What I Have Seen

[ In Reply To ..]
I just keep hearing horror stories about mentorships, where only the mentor benefits by making money or having the mentoree do their work. There are too many ways for those kinds of mentorships to be abused, although if you can find a friend who encourages you and helps you look for work, that might be helpful. The moment they ask for money for mentoring you, or if they want to look at work you do, which is confidential and not appropriate, or worse still want you to do live work for them, that's a big red flag.

Internships sound like a good idea, but they usually fall flat. A few people may get a job, but a good job? Rarely.

Those are just from my own observations as an experienced MT.

MT training - helping

[ In Reply To ..]
Unless you are looking to work for your local Dr. Welby until he retires, I would suggest to any prospective MT to check out the schools who are advertised on these boards. Andrews, Career Step, MTec. I went to a community college, but they used the Career Step curriculum. Otherwise, I fear you are going to find yourself in the original poster's position. Research all you can. Call the companies and see what schools they recognize. Some type of mentor/internship, IMO, is not going to be sufficient.

Dont knock tech schools - Sassy Pants

[ In Reply To ..]
completely off the map. I went to one and was actually given props from prospective employers because of it due to my portfolio and transcripts. My "little tech school" had the best job placement % for grads compared to the BIG TECH SCHOOL in the biggest city in my state and their MTs to be could not get in for internships like we could. So do not talk crap about a tech school because you don't know what I had to do/learn to become an MT. I had a great program. Great instructors. Great everything. I dont know about M-Tec and all the rest either so I have no opinion on them, only my experience. Each school or learning format is different for everyone and may or may not have worked for them. In my case, it did :-)

Cyn - Nick

[ In Reply To ..]
I am honestly sorry that this happened to you. This is why it is so important to do one's "due diligence" regarding school selection. The most important thing of all is whether they use the SUM program. I hope you can find a way to augment your education and be able to do what you want to do. Good luck!

I am so sorry that happened to you - Thanks for posting

[ In Reply To ..]
Good luck with your new career. You may not have gotten off to a good start, but I hope you find the right job and enjoy it.

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