Home Medical Transcription - One Woman's Journey

With high speed internet, home based medical transcription professionals can live anywhere in the US and work for accounts all the way across the country!

I've created a new web page that lets home based medical transcription folks check as many options as possible in their area. Here's how to use these databases for "high speed internet".

Here's what to do, go to this page regarding residential high speed internet service.

If you are looking for a bundled package of Cable TV, High Speed Internet, and Telephone service, click link. That takes you only to those bundled cable internet offers: "Shop for bundled Home Cable/Phone/Internet"

If you're looking for all your high speed options (remember that most medical transcription companies DON'T want you using satellite!). Use the second link for a database of ALL your options. I've labeled that "Shop for DSL".

I hope this helps you find the high speed internet service you need!

Though this training provider is locally based, they can train someone in any state in the US. It's Oak Horizons.

The coolest thing about training locally though is that all students who live near Lawrenceburg are offered internships to get real work experience in the field. And most of these will become paid positions. This gives the medical transcription students that all important first job in the medical transcription field. Without that job experience, all the training in the world may not matter much at all. Awesome - "Training plus a foot in the door!"

Oh yes... our local Community College, Columbia State, offers this online medical transcription training to students nationwide. You can call them for details at 1-877-886-8823 and ask about "Online Medical Transcription Training".

Can people still make a living in home medical transcription? Absolutely!

Our biggest challenge has been getting high speed internet!

The system my wife was using was originally a dial in system, but the software provider warned they were phasing that out and would only support web-based applications!

Many of her co-workers were using a laptop wireless internet card and this was a good solution for them. When we contacted Verizon we weren't sure if our location would allow a good connection so we didn't risk that.

Fortunately a local entrepreneur was setting up wireless internet in our area and worked with us to get high speed internet at our location! Whew! Check out that option if you're in the same situation!

See the tower picture? That's our high speed internet source!

Now that you've seen the variety of companies that hire folks to do Home Medical Transcription Work - how can you know if you really want to do this before investing $4,000 in training and tools?

First, people ask me often, is it possible to get medidcal training in transcription and work from home? Yes, if you have the right knowledge and training.

In fact, if you have a DSL connection you can make decent money from anywhere in the United States doing home medical transcription. No, all the work ISN'T going overseas! Industry insiders say that soon, Home Medical Transcription will be joined with Medical Coding to be an even better opportunity.

I've often thought of putting this home medical transcription information into an ebook and selling it for a few bucks. Until then, however, enjoy! If you do enjoy this page, please patronize it by purchasing some of the supplies I suggest.

Before we go any further, let me reiterate something. This is not "armchair speculation" about Home Medical Transcription Work.

Everything written here is based on my wife's efforts to create her own Home Medical Transcription business and what we learned along the way.

It's like "reality TV" without the TV and eating crawling, slimy bugs I suppose...

So what are the prospects for home medical transcription (or any transcription job for that matter)? Everyone fears that all the work is going overseas.

One local doctor told a young person I know that voice recognition software would elminate the job.

Here are some facts from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

You can read the entire article at the Bureau of Labor Statistics website.


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. {Emphasis added...}

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.

Here are two quick tests to determine whether home medical transcription is a possible career for you. Together they won't cost over $100. It's better to spend this small amount than sink thousands of dollars into training, books, and software then never use it!

Here's the first test:

Can you type quickly? or Can you learn to type quickly?

If you haven't typed in a while or have never typed, see if your local adult education, public library or One Stop Career Center have typing instruction software to test yourself and/or get your typing up to speed.

If you can only type with one finger per hand, this ISN'T the career for you. Failing this you may want to check out something like Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing Deluxe 17 for Windows or MAC

OK, you can type.

Now what's the second test?

Can you learn the Language of Medicine?

You have to know every bit as much about medical language as the physicians you type for... sometimes it will seem you know more if you are a multi-speciality transcriptionist.

Before getting into training that's completely over your head so much that you freak out and quit, give yourself a head start. It's expensive at $55 but not as expensive as starting a course and quitting!

Besides, if you get this and are in the Oak Horizon's course (see link below), it's one less book you'll have to buy. I learned about it through Oak Horizons. Here's the book:

The Language of Medicine with Animation CD-ROM (Language of Medicine (W/2cds))

If you can type quickly and the medical language intrigues you instead of frightening you, then you're a GREAT candidate for home medical transcription! Congratulations.

Best of all, you can participate in a class and KNOW you are qualified. It's not because you were "suckered in"!

I just found this free online typing test to help you discover how many words per minute you can type.

If you can't type faster than my test today - keep practicing!

55 words

Speedtest

The short answer is "It Depends"... on a lot of variables.

As I wrote above, the Bureau of Labor Statistics gives a general range of income for medical transcriptionists. You can see that above.

But usually when people ask this, they mean "how much per line of typing?"

They think if they're really fast, they can beat the odds. And many do if they're really fast typists.

Well that too "Depends".

Here are some of the variables for a home medical transcriptionist.

1. You may not have considered this, but the first variable these days is "Do you have broadband internet?" We constantly check a broadband access database and call the local utility providers here to see if and when we can get broadband! To date the answer is reflected in the photo I've uploaded. (You'll just have to figure it out for yourself!)

Seriously though, having broadband connections opens up a new world of potential employment and skyrockets your chances of making a full time income on a consistent basis. (Satellite broadband on the other hand DOESN'T work with any companies we know of)

Here are some other variables:

2. By the line or hourly? Fast typists can earn $20, $25, or $30 per hour with their typing. But some doctors want to pay hourly. Many transcriptionists will take the hourly accounts to start but if they're good typists they soon swear off that! Still we've seen doctors willing to pay $12 to $13.50 per hour which is a great starting wage for a transcriptionist without experience.

Ok, let's move on...

3. Are you self employed or "employed"? If you're self employed, you are responsible for all your own taxes and self employment taxes. That's where some people get tripped up because they make alot of money, spend it all, and never pay the tax man until it's too late. I knew one home medical transcriptionist who ended up owing the IRS $30,000! Ouch! Looking back, now she wishes she'd been an employee.

Making 8 cents a line as an employee is better than making 8 cents a line solo (as long as the line length is the same) because as an employee, they're paying your taxes and Social Security for you. That means as an employee, 8 cents per line is really worth more to you like 8.6 cents per line not to mention much less worry over tax problems on April 15th.

4. Also, employees can get extra benefits like paid time off, access to health insurance and 401k plans that non-employees don't get. It's hard to figure what these benefits are worth per line, but they can be significant... worth another 2 or 3 cents per line possibly depending on your need for them. The bigger the company the more benefits sometimes. (On the other hand the bigger the company, the greedier some of the management is and the more non-typing mouths they have to feed, but I digress.)

5. Talking about line length, 99% of home medical transciptionists are paid by the line. Just how much depends on how long the lines are. Some companies pay by a 55 character line that includes blank spaces. Others pay by 65 character lines without spaces (total characters divided by 65). Believe it or not they might result in about the same pay since spaces are about 20% of a given line!

Ok what else? Let's see...

6. Is your typing Software Enhanced? That means - are you using a "shorthand" program? It runs in the background. For example, if you have programmed it right, you can type "MI+" and it will print "Myocardial Infarction". You simply program your most commonly typed conditions, medications, and other phrases (yes whole phrases) and it can increase your productivity by 25 to 30%. That increases your pay check by 25 to 30%.

7. Are your expenses reimbursed? In the "olden days" but you'll still find opportunities like this, home medical transcriptionists worked over the phone lines dialing directly into a hospital. Some companies paid to install the second phone line. Some expected the home medical transcriptionist to deduct it herself (or himself). If you're typing for a local doctor and printing letters too... do they reimburse ink cartridges? Do they pay enough for your constantly wearing out printer?

8. Are you paid production incentives? Most companies have basic expectations for full time work - 1200 lines per day is common. If you exceed that amount, do you get more pay per line? If you're fast, that could really make you some good extra money and might tip the scales in favor of that particular opportunity.

These are all variables to consider as you weigh different opportunities. Some aren't financial though. It may be your personality will simply "click" better with company A versus company B.

Or you may just want to work for local doctors, keep as much as you can bill for (varies by city and region) and worry about your own taxes and getting your own customers.

My wife and I PAID for her medical transcription training and equipment and it was well worth the investment.

However, you may be wondering if you can receive a free government training grant for your medical transcription training in the United States.

That depends on the training available in your area.

Here is a tutorial I've written to help you learn if you qualify for this. It's called How To Get A Free Government Education Grant

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