• Work in hospitals, physician offices, clinics, laboratories, medical libraries, government medical facilities, or in home-based offices.
• Listen to dictated recordings made by physicians and other health professionals and transcribe them into medical reports, correspondence and other administrative material.
• Produce documents such as discharge summaries, history and physical examination reports, operating room reports, consultation reports, autopsy reports, diagnostic imaging studies and referral letters.
• Return transcribed documents to the dictator for review and signature, or correction.
• Must understand medical terminology, anatomy and physiology, diagnostic procedures and treatment, and be able to translate medical jargon and abbreviations into their expanded forms.

Education/Training

• Most employers prefer transcriptionists who have completed postsecondary training in medical transcription offered by vocational schools, community colleges and distance-learning programs.
• Coursework includes anatomy, medical terminology, medicolegal issues, English grammar and punctuation.
• The American Association for Medical Transcription awards a voluntary designation of Certified Medical Transcriptionist (CMT) to those who earn passing scores on written and practical examinations.

Salary

• Hourly earnings range from $12.65 to $17.81.

   

More Information

• American Association for Medical Transcription
  3460 Oakdale Road
  Suite M
  Modesto, CA 95355-9690
  http://www.aamt.org