All Things Transcription

A couple of years ago, I saw the handwriting on the wall and decided to train for a new career. I spent many long years working in retail clothing and, after a couple of years working in a hospital setting, I went back to this career. Bad mistake. The company I returned to work for began to show signs of failing. Once I read the writing on the wall, I started to consider a career change.

In the midst of my retail career, I worked in a local hospital Emergency Room. I enjoyed the job very much, but decided to once again to return to retail due to lack of benefits in the position I held in the Emergency Room. When it came to deciding on what kind of retraining to embark on, I started looking around in the healthcare field. One of the main problems with the ER job was the fact that it took so much time away from my family. I began to consider medical transcription. I could work from home and I would still be involved with continuity of care for patients.

I began training before the clothing company I worked for began admitting that the problems they were having were serious. (That writing on the wall thing I mentioned above.) I took my final examination just about 3 weeks before the company closed for good and began the job search. I had some fill in work locally. I accepted a job for a small MTSO, but that’s a subject for another post. Then I began working for the company I currently work for. It’s great! I love it! There just couldn’t be anything better for me. For the first time in a very long time, I love my job! I love medical transcription!

I work from home. I do not have to leave the house if I do not want to. This saves gobs of money due to the fact that my car stays parked most of the time, saving on wear and tear and gas. I only have to fill up about once every 6-8 weeks. I no longer have to buy business clothes. The official uniform of the medical transcriptionist is pajamas! I am no longer tempted to buy vending machine snacks and sodas; hence I have been able to control my soda addiction. I cook the majority of our meals here and, since I love to cook, this is also a tremendous bonus in terms of money saved and job satisfaction.

I love medical transcription because it is never boring. I learn something new everyday and I feel that I am an important part of patient care. I never dread “going to work” because I only have to sit down at my desk in my own home. I work in acute care which accelerates the learning process as a medical transcriptionist. At least once a week, if not more often, I get a type of procedure or condition that is new to me so I always feel that I am advancing my knowledge.

For me, the level of job satisfaction I have has increased exponentially as a medical transcriptionist compared to my former career in retail clothing. Knowing that the report you are transcribing is contributing directly to patient care puts helping someone find a sweater in the shade when it comes to being satisfied with your career choice. Medical transcriptionist is an important part of healthcare. Knowing that the Preop History and Physical I am transcribing must be accurate to ensure the operating room staff is fully prepared for the patient's surgery or the Discharge Summary I am working on will help a patient go home with the information they need to ensure continued recovery is very satisfying.

Medical transcription can also be incredibly frustrating. Bad dictators, poor audio and the other problems that accompany the aforementioned can be enough to make a transcriptionist want to pull their hair out. Sometimes the day can be pretty bad and it can be pretty hard to be positive. However, I have yet to regret making the decision to change my career and become a medical transcriptionist. Life is good!