One cold autumn day several years ago, I learned that I was going to lose my job in a printed circuit board factory due to overseas competition. Fortunately, I was given the opportunity to train for a new career, thanks to a government program for displaced workers. After researching career options, I determined that I was a good candidate for the medical transcription field, as I was an excellent typist, had good language skills, and felt confident I could learn the medical terminology. It wasn’t until I started researching schools that I discovered a person could train from home and ultimately work from home as a medical transcriptionist. Although some people claim it is difficult to get an at-home position as a medical transcriptionist with no experience, I found it to be a simple process. I started school in November of one year and was working full time from home by April of the following year. If you feel you would enjoy the field of medical transcription and would like the benefit of working from home, follow these steps:
#1 – Choose a reputable online school, which offers extensive practice transcription in a variety of specialties and settings. You will need to do extensive research to compare curriculums, job placement, and payment options to select the school that is right for you. To get started, type “medical transcription training” into your favorite search engine. When you have narrowed your school choices down to two or three, check their records with the Better Business Bureau before making your final decision.
#2 – Treat school like a job. Working at home requires self-discipline and excellent time management skills. If you learn to set goals, organize your workspace, and be productive as an at-home student, you can be confident that you have what it takes to be successful as a work-at-home medical transcriptionist. This is also the appropriate time to start setting boundaries with family and friends so that they become accustomed to respecting your work time.
#3 – Choose your online friends wisely. There is wonderful technical and moral support available on online school message boards and medical transcription chat sites, but just as in any on-site workplace, there are disgruntled people who will tell you that you’ll never get a job, the pay is lousy, blah, blah, blah. Ignore them. What happens in your transcription career is up to you. As you go through school, make an effort to seek out healthy, positive online relationships with your fellow students, as well as with students at other online schools. Students in online programs graduate at staggered intervals, so these friendships become a valuable source of networking when it is time to start looking for a job.
#4. – Treat looking for a job like a job. If you’ve treated completing your coursework as seriously as if it were a paying job, then you’ll be prepared for this step. Your school will most likely have provided you with a list of medical transcription companies that hire at-home workers. You will also want to do your own research by surfing work-at-home job sites and medical transcriptionist chat rooms. Make a list of potential employers and set challenging yet realistic goals for yourself such as completing ten online applications a day or contacting five of your online friends to see if they have any leads for you. Be brave when it comes to filling out applications. The company that hired me indicated on their application that they only hired people with three years’ experience. I filled out the application anyway, tested well, and got the job.
#5 – Do your best when you test. Most medical transcription companies will evaluate your online application and then send a message to your e-mail inviting you to test with them if they consider you a candidate for employment. Generally, testing is a two-part process. The first part of the test will be a comprehensive test incorporating questions on grammar, spelling, and medical terminology. Most companies then require a transcription test where they’ll send files online to you and you will transcribe several different dictations. These are typically challenging for even the most seasoned of transcriptionists, so don’t panic. Relax, do your best, and never guess at something you can’t hear. If you can’t make out a term or a sentence then follow the instructions for leaving a blank. Many of these dictations are purposefully inaudible at points and the company wants to see if you try to bluff or if you admit that you can’t hear something.
#6 – Practice transcription during job search down time. Your school program will have supplied you with many practice dictations, and it is important that you keep your skills up while you are looking for a job. Whether you feel you are weak in a particular specialty, have difficulty with a specific foreign accent, or need to increase your speed now is the time to improve.
#7 – Celebrate. One day, perhaps when you least expect it, you will receive a phone call or an e-mail informing you that you are being offered a position as an at-home medical transcriptionist. Perhaps you will have several offers to choose from. This is a time to celebrate your accomplishments and pat yourself on the back for the hard work that brought you to this moment!
