Medical Transcription

Training, Other Qualifications, and Advancement

2007-04-20T13:52:00.000-07:00

Training, Other Qualifications, and Advancement

Employers prefer to hire transcriptionists who have completed postsecondary training in medical transcription, offered by many vocational schools, community colleges, and distance-learning programs. Completion of a 2-year associate degree or 1-year certificate program—including coursework in anatomy, medical terminology, legal issues relating to health care documentation, and English grammar and punctuation—is highly recommended, but not always required. Many of these programs include supervised on-the-job experience. Some transcriptionists, especially those already familiar with medical terminology from previous experience as a nurse or medical secretary, become proficient through refresher courses and training.

The American Association for Medical Transcription (AAMT) awards the voluntary designation Certified Medical Transcriptionist (CMT), to those who earn a passing score on a certification examination. As in many other fields, certification is recognized as a sign of competence. Because medicine is constantly evolving, medical transcriptionists are encouraged to update their skills regularly. Every 3 years, CMTs must earn continuing education credits to be recertified.

In addition to understanding medical terminology, transcriptionists must have good English grammar and punctuation skills, as well as proficiency with personal computers and word processing software. Normal hearing acuity and good listening skills also are necessary. Employers require applicants to take pre-employment tests and usually prefer individuals with experience.

With experience, medical transcriptionists can advance to supervisory positions, home-based work, editing, consulting, or teaching. With additional education or training, some become medical records and health information technicians, medical coders, or medical records and health information administrators.

Job Outlook

2007-04-20T13:51:00.001-07:00

Job Outlook

Job opportunities will be good. Employment of medical transcriptionists is projected to grow faster than average for all occupations through 2014. Demand for medical transcription services will be spurred by a growing and aging population. Older age groups receive proportionately greater numbers of medical tests, treatments, and procedures that require documentation. A high level of demand for transcription services also will be sustained by the continued need for electronic documentation that can easily be shared among providers, third-party payers, regulators, consumers, and health information systems. Growing numbers of medical transcriptionists will be needed to amend patients’ records, edit documents from speech recognition systems, and identify discrepancies in medical reports.

Contracting out transcription work overseas and advancements in speech recognition technology are not expected to significantly reduce the need for well-trained medical transcriptionists. Outsourcing transcription work abroad—to countries such as India, Pakistan, Philippines, and the Caribbean—has grown more popular as transmitting confidential health information over the Internet has become more secure; however, the demand for overseas transcription services is expected only to supplement the demand for well-trained domestic medical transcriptionists. In addition, reports transcribed by overseas medical transcription services usually require editing for accuracy by domestic medical transcriptionists before they meet domestic quality standards. Speech-recognition technology allows physicians and other health professionals to dictate medical reports to a computer that immediately creates an electronic document. In spite of the advances in this technology, the software has been slow to grasp and analyze the human voice and the English language, and the medical vernacular with all its diversity. As a result, there will continue to be a need for skilled medical transcriptionists to identify and appropriately edit the inevitable errors created by speech recognition systems, and to create a final document.

Hospitals will continue to employ a large percentage of medical transcriptionists, but job growth there will not be as fast as in other industries. An increasing demand for standardized records should result in rapid employment growth in physicians’ offices, especially in large group practices.

Earnings

2007-04-20T13:42:00.000-07:00

Earnings

Medical transcriptionists had median hourly earnings of $13.64 in May 2004. The middle 50 percent earned between $11.50 and $16.32. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $9.67, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $19.11. Median hourly earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of medical transcriptionists in May 2004 were:

General medical and surgical hospitals $13.83
Offices of physicians 13.40
Business support services 13.40

Compensation methods for medical transcriptionists vary. Some are paid based on the number of hours they work or on the number of lines they transcribe. Others receive a base pay per hour with incentives for extra production. Employees of transcription services and independent contractors almost always receive production-based pay. Independent contractors earn more than do transcriptionists who work for others, but independent contractors have higher expenses than their corporate counterparts, receive no benefits, and may face higher risk of termination than do employed transcriptionists.

What health insurance is available for self-employed MTs?

2007-04-18T10:05:00.001-07:00

What health insurance is available for self-employed MTs?

http://www.mybenefitsplus.com/CFreed

31. What are the services that help MT companies find new accounts, or help hospitals and clinics and doctors' offices find MT services?

http://www.mtdaily.com/outsource

http://www.medicaltranscription.com

http://www.medical-transcription1.com

What are the TASPS? (transcription application service providers)

2007-04-18T10:04:00.001-07:00

What are the TASPS? (transcription application service providers)

http://www.mtdaily.com/mentors/tasps

Cooperative Systems: http://www.coopsys.com/
Cybertranscriber (Speech Machines) with MedSite: http://www.cybertranscriber.com
DoctorSurf: http://www.doctorsurf.com
Dr. MT http://www.drmt.org
Emdat: http://www.emdat.com
EvoiceManager: http://www.EvoiceManager.com/
Hypersoft: http://www.hypersoft.com
iDigital: http://www.transcriptiongear.com/idigital/idigital.htm
Medikin: http://www.medikin.com
MetroScript: http://www.metroscript.com
MTScribe: http://www.mtscribe.com
R-TAS Systems: http://rtas.com
SmartScribe: http://www.smartscribe.com
Spantel: http://www.spantel.com
Vareque: http://www.vareque.com
Vianeta: http://www.vianeta.com
VoiceWave: http://www.voicewave.com
WebMD: http://webmd-practice.medcast.com/Z/Channels/2779
Zydoc: http://www.zydoc.com

What are some health information sites?

2007-04-18T10:02:00.000-07:00

What are some health information sites?

Healthlinks Medical Resource Center

Where are there some work-at-home websites?

2007-04-17T14:51:00.000-07:00

Where are there some work-at-home websites?

http://www.emmaandannaswaxworks.com

http://www.medical-transcription-at-home.com

http://www.worldwideworkathome.com

http://www.work-at-home-ideas.com

http://www.ModemMoms.com

http://www.work-from-your-home.org

http://www.homeworkingmom.com/

http://www.bizymoms.com/

http://www.momsnetwork.com/

http://www.hbwm.com/

Home-Based Working Moms

http://www.webmoms.com/webmoms/

http://www.wahm.com/

http://www.wwwomen.com/category/busine1.html

http://www.at-homeworks.com/index.htm

http://www.gohome.com/

http://www.ivillage.com/work/

http://www.isquare.com/

http://www.workathomeparents.com/

http://www.work-at-home-dot.com/

Where can I find MT Consultants and Investors?

2007-04-17T14:49:00.000-07:00

Where can I find MT Consultants and Investors?

PRN Funding, http://www.prnfunding.com, Phil Cohen, 3659 Green Road, Suite 217, Cleveland, OH 44122,(216) 504-1000, fax (216) 504-1002.

Transcription Project Consulting, Adrienne C. Yazijian, yaz@cts.com

Patricia "Trish" Merrill, President, OSOLOT Consulting, Inc., 2247 S. Eagle Street, Aurora, CO 80014, 303-337-0093, 303-337-0116, 303-617-3152, OSOLOT98@aol.com, http://www.mtdaily.com/mentors/digital/messages/59.html

Where are practice tests found on the web?

2007-04-17T14:26:00.002-07:00

Where are practice tests found on the web?

http://www.careerstep.com

Comprehensive Skills Assessment, http://www.meditec.com

What are the cheapest long-distance rates?

2007-04-17T14:26:00.001-07:00

What are the cheapest long-distance rates?

http://www.bandwidth.com

Comparisons of long-distance rates, ABTolls http://www.abtolls.com.

Laura Thiele, http://www.worldxchange.com/agent/214336

Onesuite.com, http://www.onesuite.com

Vickie Herndon http://www.worldxchange.com/agent/213431/agcall4.asp,
vhonecmt@aol.com.
Vicki Stinnett, http://ld.net/?vrr1625, TxWolfStar@aol.com

Rate Calculator: http://ld.net/?6040

Betty Young, http://www.telecom-pros.com/members/beyoung, RYoung6717@aol.com

Planet Earth, http://ld.net/6.9/fonebuff.

Cable and Wireless, http://www.cwix.com/start/products/longdistance/index.html

Big Zoo, 3.9c per minute prepaid. http://www.bigzoo.com. When using with digital dictation, avoid # as it terminates call.

Clear Choice, 10-10-636, 5c per minute interstate. http://abelltolls.com/viewer.cgi?www.clearchoice.net. 800-380-0546.

Where can I find physicians' names and addresses?

2007-04-17T14:25:00.002-07:00

Where can I find physicians' names and addresses?

Active Health Management

Call A Doctor in Atlanta GA

Directory of Physician Groups and Networks

DocSearch - Bringing Doctor and Patient Together

Internet based medical information and web-sites

Investigate Your Doctor

MD4me.com

Med Locator

MedAvenue

MedNA - Doctor's Yellow Pages

Mesothelioma Treatment Facilities

Mydoctor.com

The Philadelphia Medical Mall

Questionable Doctors

World Medics

www.medicalresourcesusa.com

AMA Physician Search, http://www.ama-assn.org/aps/amahg.htm.

Doctor Directory, http://www.doctordirectory.com.

The Big Book, http://www.bigbook.com.

Zip Codes http://www.usps.gov/ncsc/lookups/lookup_zip+4.html.

PhoneDisc, $60, http://sourcedata.com/500/000127.html.

Physician.Com, http://www.physician.com

Where can I buy practice dictation tapes?

2007-04-17T14:25:00.001-07:00

Where can I buy practice dictation tapes?

http://www.mtdaily.com/ads.html

Absolute Experience, 12 practice tapes, http://www.absoluteexperience.com/order.htm, HomEx Medical, P. O. Box 637, Hampstead, MD 21074

Meditech, Inc., http://www.meditec.com157 Kaysville, UT 84037, 801, 451-9848, Jari Davis, Interview, 11/98.

Precisely Write tapes: http://www.preciselywritecorp.com/mtaids.html

The SUM program, http://hpisum.com/free+downloads.ihtml, from HPI, Health Professions Institute, Box 801, Modesto, CA 95353, 209, 551-2112, hpi@ainet.com

AAMT, The American Association for Medical Transcription, http://www.aamt.org, aamt@sna.com, P.O. Box 576187, Modesto, CA 95357-6187; 800, 982-2182. Fax: 209, 551-9317.

Where can I find new medical terms for MTs on the web?

2007-04-17T14:24:00.001-07:00

Where can I find new medical terms for MTs on the web?

http://www.mtdaily.com/mb/whatsnew

HPI's Current Terms, every two weeks, http://hpisum.com/transcription.ihtml

MT Daily Word Board, http://www.mtdaily.com/board, Registration required.

Johns Hopkins Resources, http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH

MT Daily Links Board, http://www.mtdaily.com/mb/links, Registration required.

Center Watch Clinical Trials, http://www.centerwatch.com/drugs/DRUGLIST.HTM.

NMTC Listserv Archives, http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/CGI/wa.exe?A0=nmtc&D=1&H=0&O=T&T=1

Rx List, http://www.rxlist.com.

Yahoo By Specialties, http://dir.yahoo.com/health/medicine/.

Taber's Online Dictionary, http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH?t=8805&p=~br,AOL|~st,408|~r,WSAOL002|~b,*|.

Where can I find the E-mail addresses of MTs?

2007-04-17T13:52:00.001-07:00

Where can I find the E-mail addresses of MTs?

http://www.mtdaily.com/mtlist

What E-mail listservs are available?

2007-04-17T13:51:00.001-07:00

What E-mail listservs are available?

http://www.eGroups.com/list/medtrans

http://www.mtdaily.com/medtrans.html

Jill Elliott's MT Students' Newsletter, http://www.onelist.com/subscribe.cgi/ICS_MT_STUDENTS.

Health Information Management: HIM-L list, listserv@lists.umsmed.edu. Put "help" in subject line for instructions.

What books are needed to do medical transcription?

2007-04-17T13:50:00.000-07:00

What books are needed to do medical transcription?

A few medical books that are used by MTs are lin the following list:
2000 American Drug Index by Billups, by Facts and Comparisons, sold through Stedman's
Saunders' Pharmaceutical Drug Book by Drake & Drake
Quick-Look Drug Book
The Medical Word Book by Sloane, 3rd Edition, Saunders
Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language by Gramercy
Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary,Saunders
Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Stedman's Radiology and Oncology Words
Stedman's Dermatology and Immunology Words
Stedman's Orthopedic and Rehab Words
Word Book in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine by Sloane/Dusseau, Saunders
The Medical and Health Sciences Word Book
The Surgical Word Book by Tessier, Saunders
GI Words and Phrases by HPI
Medical Abbreviations by Neal M. Davis
Stedman's Abbreviations, Anacronyms, and Symbols
Saunders' Abbreviations
Cardiology Words and Phrases by HPI
Stedman's OB-GYN Words
American Psychiatric Glossary by American Psychiatric Press, Inc.
The Herb Book by John Lust
And many more

Where are the website dictation and transcription service providers?

2007-04-17T13:49:00.000-07:00

Where are the website dictation and transcription service providers?

https://www.cybertranscriber.com/med/med1_1.asp

sales@speechmachines.com

MT Scribe, http://www.mtscribe.com, msilverm@apk.net. Interview at http://www.mtdaily.com/mentors/leaders/mtscribe.html

Spantel, http://www.spantel.com, Janak Pandit, 3084 Rt. 27, Ste 8, Kendall Park, NJ 08824, 732-821-1075, Fax 732-821-8587, spantell@aol.com. Interview at http://www.mtdaily.com/mentors/leaders/spantel.html">http://www.mtdaily.com/mentors/leaders/spantel.html

VoiceWave, http://www.voicewave.com/default.asp, sales@digitalvoice.com, 417-781-0717.

Webscription, http://www.internetstrategies.net/prog.html, Internet Strategies, Kennewick, WA, 509-783-5775

What companies sell dictation and transcription equipment, including digital equipment?

2007-04-17T13:47:00.000-07:00

What companies sell dictation and transcription equipment, including digital equipment?

http://www.mtdaily.com/ads.html

All-Makes Office Machines, http://www.all-makes.com, 17581 Irvine Bl. #101, Tustin, CA 92780, 714, 730-4857, Fax 714, 730-5103, angie Shepard, angie@all-makes.com

Arrendale Associates, http://www.aaita.com/, 800, 344-1323, 20484G Chartwell Center Drive, Cornelius, NC 28031.

Atlas Ergonomic Book and Copy Holders, http://www.copyholders.com, 800-get-atlas, Cincinnati, OH, dainoffm@copyholders.com

Auction Supersite, http://www.onsale.com, Auction Supersite

Barclay Enterprises, http://www.barclayent.com

Bob's PC Werks, http://www.bobspcwerks.com, 504 Bishop Avenue, Richardson, TX 75081, 214-763-3768, 877-320-1241

BVP Computers, (Bargain C-phone) http://www.dvips.com, 113 Grant Street, Plainfield, Ma. 01070, 413, 634-2187, Bruce Stockwell, bvpcomp@dvips.com

Bytescribe Development Company, digital equipment, http://www.bytescribe.com, P. O. Box 36183, Birmingham, AL 35236, 205, 425-1981 Ext. 4412, postmaster@bytescribe.com

Careflow Net, http://www.careflow.com, 15215 Edwards Ferry Road, Poolesville, Maryland 20837, 301-349-0700.

Catalyst Systems, http://www.catalystsys.com, 405, 943-1655, fax 405, 943-1655, P. O. Box 57210, Oklahoma City, OK 73157-7210, sales@catalystsys.com,p> Cooperative Systems, http://www.coopsys.com, 998 Farmington Ave., #101, West Hartford, CT 06107-2162, 860-523-1000, fax 860-523-1032, info@coopsys.com

Costal Audio, http://www.coastalaudio.com, 609-660-9211, Fax: 609-660-2131, 888-660-9211, info@costalaudio.com

Dictaphone, http://www.dictaphone.com, 888-483-6266.

Dictation Buddy: http://www.highcriteria.com/products_dic.htm, 4 Geranium Court, Richmond Hill, ON, Canada, L4C 7M7, 905-686-2285

Dictation Depot: http://www.dictationdepot.com/

Dictronics, http://www.dictronics.com/dictation.htm, Jim Harrington 781-444-2010 Ext. 550, Jharrington@dictronics.com, fax 781-433-7155, 110 Gould St., Needham, MA 02192.

Digital Accessories, 1-800-578-6854. Digital transcriber stations compatible with Dictaphone, DVI, and VDI.

Diskriter, http://www.diskriter.com/, 3257 West Liberty Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 800, 876-4737, Fax 412, 344-4834, info@diskriter.com

Dolbey Systems, 800, 878-7828

DVI, http://www.dvi.com, 417, 781-0717, Fax 417, 781-2589, dnolan@digitalvoice.com

Electronic Communications Systems, http://www.ecs-dictation.com, 4760 Mission Gorge Place, Ste. B, San Diego, CA 92120, 619-287-2000, Fax 619-287-2139, ecs@ecs-dictation.com.

Executive Communication Systems, new and used equipment, http://www.tvps.com, 1891 Goodyear Avenue, Suite 612 Ventura, CA 93003 U.S.A. (805) 644-9525, ext. 101, Fax 805 644-6979, Tom Wilkes, tomw@tvps.com

FutureNet Technologies Corporation, http://www.futurenet-tech.com, Internet dictation service provider, digital equipment, 222 East Huntington Dr., Suite 208, Monrovia, CA 91017, 800-923-4258, 626-357-5032, Mary Patterson mpatterson@futurenet-tech.com

Graymar, http://www.graymar.com, Philips Speech Processing, dictation equipment.

Hilgraeve Inc., DropChute products, http://www.hilgraeve.com, 111 Conant Avenue, Suite A, Monroe, MI 48161, 800, 826-2760, sales@hilgraeve.com

Horus Development, http://www.horusdevelopment.com, digital rerecorder, Red Notebook word list.

HTH Engineering, http://www.startstop.com, 1827 Juanita Ct., Clearwater, FL 33764 USA, 727-532-8360, 727-302-3162, jwinner@mindspring.com.

Internet Strategies, Webscription, http://www.internetstrategies.net/webscrip

Pretty Good Privacy encrpytion for E-mail, http://web.mit.edu/network/pgp.html

Novastor for E-mail encryption software, http://www.novastor.com, sales@novastor.com, 805-579-6700, Fax 805-579-6710, 80B West Cochran, Simi Valley, CA 93065.

Ronald Isabelle buys and sells used transcribers, 2623 McKann Avenue, Norfolk VA 23509, (757) 853-0362, chrismer@exis.net

R. T. King Co., http://www.transcribers.com, new and used equipment, 2971 Plaza Del Amo, Torrance, CA 90503, 213, 747-0194, boki@sprynet.com.

Lanier, http://www.lanier.com, 800-708-7088, or 800-526-4371, Fax: 1-800-252-9703, Lanier Inquiry Services, P.O. Box 785, Dayton, OH 45401.

Live Message America Smartset transcribe station, http://livemessageamerica.com/, 866-LMA-0000, sales@livemessageamerica.com

Martel Electronics, Discount, http://www.martelelectronics.com, martelsales@worldnet.att.net, 800-553-5536, 714-572-0180, 714-572-0183 fax, 2013 Miraloma, Placentia, CA 92670

Narratek, http://www.narratek.com, Joe Weber, 617, 566-1066

Norcom Electronics Corp., Trumbull, Connecticut, 877-722-7551, http://www.norcom-electronics.com

Office Depot, http://www.officedepot.com, sells a $30 Sony transcriber.

Office Direct, http://www.officedirectinc.com, 123 West Madison, Suite 402, Chicago, IL 60602, 312/739-0703, 312/739-0727, OfficeDirect@officedirectinc.com

Olympus Company, http://www.olympusamerica.com/digital/dhome.html, 800, 622-6372

PC Dart, C-phone compatible with Lanier, http://www.bcb.org. Dick Cummins, 800, 563-5418.

Programming Resources, Inc. (PRI), 4711 Trousdale Dr.; #124 Nashville, TN 37220, http://www.programmingresources.com/, 800-497-5281

Tek Discount Warehouse, http://tekgallery.com/, 888-262-8272.

ToppCopy/Copyfax, http://www2.epix.net/~ffalzett/h01.html, 1110 Saginaw Street, Scranton, PA 18505

TranscriptionGear.com, http://www.transcriptiongear.com, admin@transcriptiongear.com, 1.888.834.2392, International 1.540.582.5844, FAX 1.540.582.8095

Van Belkum, http://www.vanbelkum.com, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1-800-968-2740

Voice Network Systems, VoiceFlow, http://www.vnsi.net/index2.html, 3420 Pump Road, #201| Richmond, VA 23233 | (800) 380-7370.

Voice Systems, 800-327-5065, digital transcribers compatible with Dictaphone and DVI.

VoiceWave, Boston Bar Systems Corp., http://www.bostonbar.com, Unit #23 - 7695 Saint Albans Street, Richmond, BC, Canada, V6Y 3W8, 604-303-9876, Fax 604-279-9265, mgaylie@istar.ca.

VSI, Voice Systems Integration (interfaces for digital systems), http://www.vsi-inc.net/, 816-741-1954, sales@vsi-inc.net, 6100 NW 77th Street, Kansas City, MO 64151, 816-741-1954

Winscribe, http://www.winscribe.com/

What companies hire new MTs?

2007-04-17T13:43:00.000-07:00

What companies hire new MTs?

MedWare, Emergency Room Transcription, Karen Dual, Director of Human Resources, 1-800-881-3131. Don Flannery, MedWare@internetMCI.com

Medi-Scribe, http://www.medi-scribe.net P.O. Box 31651, Walnut Creek, CA 94598, 925-689-2617, carolrowan@medi-scribe.net, Carol Rowan

TransQuick (Rodeer), Atlanta and Phoenix areas, local. 4848 Riverdale Rd, Atlanta, GA 30337, 770 991 2220

Rapid Transcript, 800-592-4602 or 213-964-0400 (ask for Ora or Cris), Fax 213-964-0412. 4311 Wilshire Blvd. #209, Los Angeles, CA 90010-3716, Attn: Resource Management. ojemi@aol.com or eauh73a.prodigy.com

InHealth Transcription Service, http://www.inhealthtranscriptions.com; Atlanta, GA, Samuel Edelman, 1-800-477-7374 Fax: 770-394-2183. New MTs are only hired locally in Atlanta.

Also see list of MT companies by city, http://www.mtdaily.com/mtcos.html.

Where are some of the job lists and national long-distance transcription companies?

2007-04-17T13:42:00.000-07:00

Where are some of the job lists and national long-distance transcription companies?

Questions to ask companies: http://www.mtdaily.com/wwwboard/messages10/842.html

Job Listings

http://www.mtjobs.com

List of Companies by State and City, http://www.mtdaily.com/mtcos.html

Company Profiles for MTs, http://mtjobs.com/

CQI Placement Service, Carolyn Lee, http://www.angelfire.com/biz/medrec/index.html, Dallas, 888-735-8999.

Health Information Jobs, http://www.gvpub.com/empidx/adindex.htm

Home Jobs, http://www.homejobs.addr.com

Monster Board Jobs, monster.com

MT Connection Placement, Susan Foreman, MTConnection@yahoo.com

NationJob, http://www.nationjob.com/admin

Newspaper Job Ads, http://www.careerpath.com

National Companies

http://www.mtdaily.com/accustat.html

accustat@cuttingedge.net

All Type, Inc., 2202 Route 130, North Brunswick, NJ 08902, 1.800.560.TYPE (8973), 732.422.4242 phone, 732.951.9333 fax, Gerry Kelly, CMT, President, alltype@injersey.com

Alphascribe, Inc., http://www.blakeworld.com/alphascribe.htm, 3377 Bethel Road SE, Port Orchard, WA 98366, 360-874-0373, Fax: 360-874-0381, Rachelle Blake, alphaconsult@netscape.net

America's Transcription Connection, Inc., 80406 Bodine Road, Clatskanie, OR 97016

Ascend Healthcare, http://www.ascendhealthcare.com, 5885 Trinity Parkway, Suite 210, Centreville, VA 20120, 800-344-8347, fax 800-344-0347.

Ascriptus, http://www.ascriptus.com, 2021 Clubhouse Drive, Suite 105 Greeley, CO 80634, (866) 330-6600, Fax: (970) 330-4551, info@ascriptus.com

Bureau of Office Services president@bureauhq.com, Rich Piasecki. Burr Ridge, IL: 630-323-2600, FAX: 630-323-2601; Chicago, IL: 312-922-3342 FAX: 312-922-9290; Menomonee Falls, WI: 414-251-7990 FAX: 414-251-6668

C and C Transcription, Inc., http://www.cnctranscription.com, 800-785-2787 or 407-240-3213, Fax 407-438-9782, 5439 Micco Drive, Suite 101, Orlando, FL 32839, info@cnctranscription.com

CMT Corporation, Evelyn Graham, http://www.mtdaily.com/outsource/available/messages/44.html, egraham@travelin.com, 1375 Sutter St #205, San Francisco, CA 94109, 800-656-6848.

Cobb Medical Transcription, Inc, Carol Northway, CMT, FAAMT, http://www.cobbmt.com, Kennesaw, GA, 30144, 678-574-4445.

DataKey, Lydia Clark, lclark@datakeymd.com, 211 Chinquapin Round Road, 1912 Forest, Annapolis, MD 21401, (410) 295-1160, Fax: (410) 295-1199

Dictation Plus, Inc., 1736 E. Sunshine, Suite 70, Springfield, MO 65804

Digital Transcription Systems, 405 948-9200, Kathy Garber, kgarber@dtsinc.com

Diskriter Health Care Solutions and Placement Service, http://www.diskriter.com/solutions/trans.html 3257 West Liberty Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA. 800, 876-4737, ext 683; fax resumes to 412, 344-4834, info@diskriter.com.

DocuMedX, Seattle, WA, 800 272-5996

Double H Transcription, LLC, 1817 Lankestar Place, Yukon, Oklahoma 73099, http://www.digitalmedicaltranscription.com, 1-405-265-0311, Double-H-Transcription@coxs.net

eTransplus, http://www.etransplus.com, 120 Donelson Pike, Suite 202, Nashville, TN 37214, 615-345-9909, work@etransplus.com

ExecuMed, Inc., Golden, CO, 800-326-5172, Celeste Royal, croyal@execumed.com.

Fast Chart, Inc., http://www.fastchart.com, 3414 N. Duke Street, Durham, NC 27704, (800) 334-6606

Fast Transcription, http://www.fasttranscription.com, Kelly Fast, Fast Transcription, Inc., 2609 Vail Drive, Quincy, IL 62301, 217-222-7057, Fax 217-222-1057, info@fasttranscription.com

Gerger-Moretti Sten-Tel, http://www.kalamazoomi.com/gerger/sten-tel.htm, 151 S. Rose Street, Ste. 920, Kalamazoo, MI 49007, MORT1@NET-LINK.NET, 616-343-0118 or 800-536-0804.

HealthScribe, http://www.healthscribe.com, 403 Glenn Dr. Suite 10, Sterling, VA 20164, 800-550-1438. Robyn Baskot, rlbaskot@healthscribe.com.

Heartland Information Services, http://www.heartlandis.com, 3103 Executive Pkwy., Suite 600, Toledo, Ohio 43606, 800 626-3830, 419 578-6300

Huntington Transcription Services, http://www.huntingtoncr.com, 1450 West Colorado Boulevard, Suite 100, Pasadena, CA 91105, 626-792-7250, htstype@huntingtoncr.com

Intellitype, Los Angeles, 818, 591-7200.

Jester's Touch, www.jesterstouch.com, P.O. Box 580071 Houston, TX 77258 281-488-3667 (office) 281-282-9958 (fax)

JLG Medical Transcription Services, 1408 N. Westshore Blvd # 908, Tampa, FL 33607. http://www.jlgmedicaltrans.com, jlgmedicaltranscription@yahoo.com, 800-455-0580.

Key Business Solutions, Health Care Meditrans, Chester, PA, 610-368-9619, fax 603-719-0999, http://www.healthcaremeditrans.com/, Shrini, shrini@key-soft.com

Keystrokes Management Corporation, keystrok@netwave.ca, 100 Drumlin Circle, Ste 202, Concord, Ontario, Canada ON L4K3E, 1-888-539-7876

Lehocki Medical Transcription Service, 3606 Logue Road, Myakka City, FL 34251, 941-322-8303, Blondell Lehocki, blondell@prodigy.net

MAG Mutual Healthcare Solutions, Inc., recruiter@hsi.magmutual.com, 3025 Breckinridge Boulevard, Suite 120, Duluth, GA 30096, 770-931-7700 or 888-249-7870, Fax 770-931-9217, Brenda Brown. http://www.magmutual.com/cgi-bin/jobs/transcription-jobs.html

MEDGARDE, http://www.medgarde.com/, service@medgarde.com, 703-353-5624, fax 354-5634, 5035 Backlick Rd., Annandale, VA 22003.

Medical INK, Corp., FAX 781-843-8988. Lisa Fazio, medink@ix.netcom.com

Medicaltranscription.com, Inc., http://www.medicaltranscription.com, 973, 948-5151, P. O. Box 6, Layton, NJ 07851, Melinda Decker.

Mediscribe, 100 Mulberry Lane, Pittsburg, PA 15235-4100, 412, 242-7575; fax 412, 242-6476

Medquist, http://www.medquist.com, Five Greentree Centre, Suite 311, Marlton, NJ 08053, 800-233-3030, (609) 596-8877 Fax (609) 596-3351. See website for regional recruiters' E-mail. Submit resume through website.

MedRec Resources, Toms River, NJ, info@medrecresources.com 732, 818-1825.

Med-Scribe Transcription Services, Inc., Louise Wolkis, R.N., 9 Foxhill Rd., Chestnut Ridge, NY 10977, medscrib@earthlink.net, 800-570-1006, Fax 914-352-6091

Med-Type, L.L.C., http://www.med-type.com, (615) 331-7299, fax 615-837-9657, 4908 Shasta Drive, Unit B, Nashville, TN 37211, Info@Med-Type.com.

Med-Write, http://www.medwrite.org

MxSecure, Inc., 16042 N. 32nd Street, Phoenix, AZ 85032, Tel: 888-580-1010, Fax: 480-452-0823, craig.mercure@mxsecure.com

New England Medical Transcription, Inc., Linda Sullivan, nemt@gwi.net, Maine.

Northwest Transcription Specialists, http://www.silvercreekmtisc.com", sue@northwestmt.com and donna@northwestmt.com, 360-675-3844, 877-477-6700 840 SE 8th Ave., Suite 204, Oak Harbor, WA 98277, Donna Hill.

Oracle Transcription, Inc. (OTI), http://www.oracleti.com, Rockville, MD, 301-929-9100, fax 301-929-9275, HR@oracleti.com, John Salvatore

Pacific Coast Medical Transcription, Inc., Bakersfield, CA, FAX (805)323-0737, pacificmt.@aol.com

Phoenix MedCom, Inc., http://www.phoenixmedcom.com, 10 Meadow Sweet Rd., Cortlandt Manor, NY 10567, Fax: 914-788-6767, busytran@aol.com

QT Medical, http://qtmedical.com/

Range Medical Transcription, Inc., http://www.rangemed.com, 34 South Second Ave., East, Room 208, Ely, MN 55731, 218 365-3500, Fax (218) 365-4757, transcrib@aol.com, Marianne Bitter.

Rapid Text, http://www.rapidtext.com, Fax 949-399-9216, jwoods@rapidtext.com

Rapid Transcript, Inc., http://www.rapidtranscript.com, 4311 Wilshire Boulevard #209, Los Angeles, CA 90010, 800-592-4602, 323-964-0400, Fax 323-064-0412, eauh73a@prodigy.com, ojemi@aol.com, work@rapidtranscript.com.

Spheris, http://www.totalemed.com, 720 Cool Springs Blvd., Ste 200, Franklin, TN 37067, 800, 368-1717

Sten-Tel Inc., http://www.sten-tel.com, 1 Monarch Place, Springfield MA 01144, 888-783-6835, Dustin@Sten-Tel.com.

TBT Medical Transcription Service, http://www.tbtranscription.com, Winchester, TN 37398. Phone: 931-649-3254

Transcend Services, http://www.transcendservices.com/, 3353 Peachtree Road, Suite 1000, Atlanda, GA 30326, 800, 225-7552, Fax 404, 364-8009.

Transcription Solutions, Inc., TSI, http://www.mtdaily.com/tsi.html, Houston, TX; 888, 454-4560, Fax 281-454-4093, Athomas414@aol.com.

Transolutions, Brenda Drake, bdrake@transolutions.net, 18 N. Waukegan Rd., Ste. 100, Lake Bluff, IL 60044, 888-286-8340, Fax 847-234-3471.

TrueScribe, 4340 E. Indian School Rd #21-146, Phoenix, AZ 85018, Tel. 623-640-6776, Tel. 888-200-9150, ext 225, Fax 602-926-1414, jmunns@truescribe.net, www.truescribe.net

Vasant Scribes, http://www.vasantscribes.com

VRcom Corporation, P.O. Box 56041, Jacksonville, FL 32241-6041, Glenda, http://www.vrcom.net, 904-260-0642, Fax 904-260-8181, sales@vrcom.net

Western Medical Management, http://www.westmed.com, Doug Meier, WY, email@westmed.com,

WorldTech USA, http://www.worldtecusa.com, 605 E. 4th Street, Suite 203, Odessa, TX 79761, ravivf@worldtecusa.com.

Worldwide Dictation, http://www.WorldWideDictation.com, Northway Medical Center, 944 N. Broadway, Yonkers, NY 10701, Doug Ofner, dofner@worldwidedictation.com, 800, 442-5993

What is a C-phone?

2007-04-17T13:11:00.000-07:00

What is a C-phone? How is rerecording over the telephone done?

Rerecording involves using a tape recorder or transcriber with recording capabilities, a speaker telephone, and an inexpensive phone coupler (such as those made by Radio Shack, http://www.radioshack.comOne method of re-recording involves using the telephone to dial into a hospital's digital dictation system and playing the doctors' dictations while recording them for transcription at a later time. Also see http://www.mtdaily.com/mt1/recording.html page.

What companies offer medical spellcheckers, electronic dictionaries, line counters, ergonomics, and other transcription equipment?

2007-04-17T13:09:00.000-07:00

What companies offer medical spellcheckers, electronic dictionaries, line counters, ergonomics, and other transcription equipment?

http://www.mtdaily.com/ads.html

http://www.recycledsoftware.com

http://www.ebay.com

The Abacus line counter: http://www.theabacus.biz/index.html

MedPen and MedPad, automated formats, line counter, and more http://www.medpen.net, 800-579-4300, Fax 727-579-4300, Joe Vann, medpen@ibm.net, 3131 Emmaus Way, Cosby, TN 37722.

Stedman's of Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, http://www.stedmans.com, 800-638-3030, 301-714-2300, Fax: 301-824-7390, P.O. Box 1600, Hagerstown, MD 21741.

W. B. Saunders now Elsevier, http://www.us.elsevierhealth.com/specialty.jsp?lid=3&sid=442.

Spellex, spellchecker and online spellchecker, http://www.spellex.com 800, 442-9673, 813, 885-1968, Fax 813, 855-2581, custsvce@spellex.com, 8313 W. Hillsborough Ave Suite 430, Tampa, FL 33615

Sylcount and spellchecker, Sylvan Software, http://www.sylvansoft.com, 5144 N. Academy Blvd., #531, Colorado Springs, CO 80918, 800, 235-9455, fax 719, 495-8119, sales@sylvansoft.com

PractiCount line counter, http://www.practiline.com, Practiline Software, P.O. Box 34069 #381, Seattle, WA 98124-1069, USA, FAX: 206-984-3919, info@practiline.com

WP Count for WordPerfect, Productive Performance, http://www.foxcomm.net/productive/WPCOUNT.htm, 425, 788-8300, 31820 NE 103rd Street, Carnation, WA 98014-9710, 206-788-8300, productive@foxcomm.net

PC Anywhere, http://www.symantec.com/pcanywhere/ 9 Golden Hill St. Bethel, CT 06801

DataHand Ergonomic Keyboards, http://www.datahand.com, 3032 North 33rd Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85017-5247, 602-233-6000; 800-875-7171; FAX: 602-233-3434, scotts@datahand.com.

Kinesis, http://www.kinesis-ergo.com/, ergonomic equipment, 5657 Memorial Avenue North, Stillwater, MN 55082, 888-881-7592, Linda Knothe, Cathy O'Brien, information@ergointerfaces.com.

Keyboard Alternatives and Vision Solutions, hydralic sit-stand tables and other ergonomic equipment, http://www.keyalt.com/furniture/elecsitstand.htm, 537 College Avenue, Santa Rosa, CA 95404, 800-9530-9262, 707-544-8000, Fax 707-522-1343, keyalt@keyalt.com.

What companies publish or sell medical dictionaries and word books and CDs?

2007-04-17T13:08:00.001-07:00

What companies publish or sell medical dictionaries and word books and CDs?

Books Direct

Both the MTDaily.com Classifieds and the MTDaily.com Bargain page have used books at reasonable prices.

Paul Norton sells and buys used MT books, pnorton1@twcny.rr.com, 800, 628-8477.

American Association for Medical Transcription, http://www.aamt.org 800, 982-2182, Book of Style and word books.

Facts and Comparisons, American Drug Index, and Quarterly Drug Index http://www.factsandcomparisons.com/shop.asp, (800)223-0554 or (314)216-2100.

Health Professions Institute, http://www.hpisum.com, Box 801, Modesto, CA 95353, 209, 551-2112, hpi@ainet.com, word books and more.

Prentice Hall, http://www.prenhall.com, Saddle River, NJ 07458, 800-811-0912, Fax 515-284-2607

W. B. Saunders now Elsevier, http://www.us.elsevierhealth.com/specialty.jsp?lid=3&sid=442, word books and Dorland's.

Stedman's of Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, http://www.stedmans.com">, dictionary and word books.

Tarascon Pocket Pharmacopoeia, Tarascon Publishing, http://www.tarascon.com/, 800-929-9926, PO Box 1159, Loma Linda, CA 92354

What journals are available?

2007-04-17T13:06:00.000-07:00

What journals are available?

Monthly Prescribing Reference, http://www.prescribingreference.com, 800-436-9262, Prescribing Reference, Inc., 53 Park Place, Suite 1010, New York, NY 10007 USA, Attn: Circulation Dept.--Code HS.

Advance for Health Information Professionals, a free biweekly to health information professionals: http://www.advanceforhim.com/, Advance@Merion.com, Merion Publications, Inc. 800, 355-5627

For The Record, a weekly for health information professionals: http://www.fortherecordmag.com/ Great Valley Publishing Company, 1288 Valley Forge Rd., P.O. Box 2224, Valley Forge, PA 19482.

Journal of the American Health Information Management Association, Journal of AHIMA, http://www.ahima.org/products/subscription.html.

Journal of Healthcare Information Management, http://www.himss.org/ASP/publications_jhim.asp .

MT Daily Rounds, http://www.mtdaily.com/rounds, a Friday E-mail newsletter with highlights from MT Daily and links of interest.

What journals are available?

Monthly Prescribing Reference, http://www.prescribingreference.com, 800-436-9262, Prescribing Reference, Inc., 53 Park Place, Suite 1010, New York, NY 10007 USA, Attn: Circulation Dept.--Code HS.

Advance for Health Information Professionals, a free biweekly to health information professionals: http://www.advanceforhim.com/, Advance@Merion.com, Merion Publications, Inc. 800, 355-5627

For The Record, a weekly for health information professionals: http://www.fortherecordmag.com/ Great Valley Publishing Company, 1288 Valley Forge Rd., P.O. Box 2224, Valley Forge, PA 19482.

Journal of the American Health Information Management Association, Journal of AHIMA, http://www.ahima.org/products/subscription.html.

Journal of Healthcare Information Management, http://www.himss.org/ASP/publications_jhim.asp .

MT Daily Rounds, http://www.mtdaily.com/rounds, a Friday E-mail newsletter with highlights from MT Daily and links of interest.

Are there any organizations for MTs?

2007-04-17T13:01:00.000-07:00

Are there any organizations for MTs?

AAMT, The American Association for Medical Transcription, http://www.aamt.org was founded in 1978. aamt@sna.com, P.O. Box 576187, Modesto, CA 95357-6187; 800, 982-2182. Fax: 209, 551-9317. Members receive the bimonthly Journal of the Association for American Medical Transcription; access to AAMT's professional staff; discounts on products and services; educational conferences; the names of local AAMT Chapter Presidents; an examination to become a Certified Medical Transcriptionist; and opportunities to serve in local and national leadership.

MTIA, Medical Transcription Industry Alliance, for MT Services: http://www.mtia.com

HPI, Health Professions Institute, http://www.hpisum.com offers publications and seminars. Box 801, Modesto, CA 95353, 209, 551-2112, hpi@ainet.com.

AHIMA, American Health Information Management Association, http://www.ahima.org/index.cfm, 919 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 1400, Chicago, IL 60611, 312, 787-3672, info@ahima.org.

HIMSS, The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, http://www.himss.org, 230 East Ohio, Suite 500, Chicago, IL 60611-3269, 312/664-HIMS, Fax 312/664-6143, himss@himss.org.

Health Information Management Supersite, http://www.himinfo.com, OPUSCOMM Online, 200 Hoods Lane, Marblehead, MA 01945 USA, Phone: 800/650-6787, Fax: 800/639-8511.

Medical Records Institute, http://www.medrecinst.com, Medical Records Institute, 567 Walnut Street, P.O. Box 600770, Newton, MA 02460, 617, 964-3923, Fax 617, 964-3926, jasong@medrecinst.com.

How does one become a medical transcriptionist?

2007-04-17T12:55:00.000-07:00

How does one become a medical transcriptionist?

MTs work in doctors' offices, clinics, hospitals and transcription services. They also work from home, usually after 2-3 years of experience in an office or hospital. With more experience, MTs go on to teach, supervise, consult, edit and write in the field.

What is medical transcription ?

2007-04-17T12:51:00.000-07:00

What is medical transcription, how is it done, and what does it pay?

It involves receiving dictation by tape, digital system or voice file, and using ear phones, a foot pedal for start-stop control and a word processing program. A variety of word-processing systems are used. It requires good listening and language skills, computer skills and knowledge of medical terms.

Several dictionaries are necessary: Medical definitions, medications, medical terms by specialty, laboratory terms, surgical terms and abbreviations. Specialized word lists are also helpful, and journals and computer networking are helpful for current information about new medications and terms. Transcription is done more efficiently with the use of a medical spellchecker and an extensive abbreviation system such as Instant Text or Smartype.

As an employee in an office or hospital, transcriptionists may be paid by the hour. In the year 2000 in the United States, a starting transcriptionist in an office may make the equivalent of $8-12 per hour. After two years of experience, one can expect to make the equivalent of $12-20 per hour in an office. National transcription companies usually require 1-5 years of hospital experience.

Statutory employee status is the same as independent contractor except that the company pays half of the FICA tax (about 7.5%) and withholds the other half. Independent contractors pay the 15% as self-employment tax. Self-employed transcriptionists provide their own benefits. They may start at the equivalent of $10-15 per hour (7-14c per line), and within several years can expect to earn $15-40 per hour, depending upon the type of work and equipment used. Quarterly payments on taxes and self-employment taxes are required. Equipment expenses are tax deductible, including a percentage of home expenses if working at home.