How To Choose A Good Medical Transcription Training Program
© 2006 Margery Hinman, CMT, Director/MT Advantage Career Center

Many ideas abound about what constitutes a good MT program. Some people feel that the schools that advertise on TV showing a mother working at her computer while her children play quietly at her feet is an accurate portrayal of the life of an MT. What is true and what is not true in regard to MT education?

What is AAMT and COMPRO?

The American Association of Medical Transcription (www.aamt.org) is the professional industry organization that represents medical transcriptionists. The AAMT has developed a competency profile for medical transcription education (COMPRO). This profile outlines many of the areas that a good solid MT program should cover. In brief, some of these areas include the following: English language, medical knowledge, technology, healthcare documentation, and professional practice. Under each of these broad headings are very particular sets of competencies that an MT student must demonstrate to show they have mastered that area. The full COMPRO guidelines are listed on the AAMT's web site, and we highly recommend that all prospective MT students visit the site and go over the profile in detail.

Why Not a Less Expensive, Faster Program?

When you take the time to research the skills that a quality MT needs, it will become evident that a shorter, less comprehensive course of study isn't going to give you what you need to succeed in the workplace. Many prospective students who look into very inexpensive fast programs buy into the idea that they can learn medical transcription quickly and then begin making good money right away. You may hear some people say that a comprehensive education is not necessary and that you just type what you hear. This type of thinking is not only faulty but actually dangerous because in medical language many words sound alike but have very different meanings. Please see the example below:

EXERCISE: Say the following words aloud. Say them slowly and then faster:

Dysphagia (dis-phage-ee-a) Difficulty swallowing.

Dysphasia ( dis-phas-ee-a) Difficulty speaking.

Dysplasia (dis-plas-ee-a) Abnormality of development.

Ileum (il-ee-um) The small intestine.

Ilium (il-ee-um) Hip bone.

It is clear to see that without a clear understanding of the meaning of these sound-alike terms and the medical context in which these terms and numerous would be dictated, it would be very easy to type in the wrong word. Now consider the consequences of an MT typing in the wrong medication because it sounded like a similar one. It is true that physicians are supposed to read the completed reports for accuracy before signing them. However, the MT is the main person responsible for proofreading the reports. Unfortunately, the reality is that many physicians are very busy and rushed. Many times they sign reports that they read quickly. It is the job of the MT to make sure these reports are accurate.

What are the Results of Poor School Choice?

It is a fact that even if graduates of other inferior programs are able to pass an employment test and get hired, they have a very hard time on the job. This is because they lack a comprehensive understanding of medical language. Sure, they may know some basic anatomy and terminology; however, they lack a clear understanding of what is being said. How would this affect their potential income and job security? Well, MTs are paid based on production. In other words, most MTs are paid according to how much they are able to transcribe in a day. Most companies have minimum quotas for the amount of work they want each MT to produce in a day. If a new MT has to stop and look up every other word because they do not understand the context or content of the dictation, they are not going to be able to meet the company's minimum quotas. This often happens to new MTs who are poorly trained. See a comparison of two new MTs and one experienced MT and their daily production:

Daily pay @ .07 cents

NEW MT #1- 1,250 lines done for the day. $ 87.50
NEW MT #2- 600 lines done for the day. $ 42.00
EXPERIENCED MT #3 - 2,000 lines done for the day. $140.00

Which of these MTs would you like to be? As you can clearly see, MT #2 is not making very good money. If both MT #1 and #2 worked the same amount of hours that day, what explains the difference in pay? Maybe MT #2 had to stop many, many times during the day to look up simple medical words. MT #2 is not going to be very happy with her paycheck at the end of the day. Also, MT #2 is at risk of losing her job because she is FAR below the company's minimum production standard for the day. However, it is possible that MT #2 feels that she got a great deal on her MT education because it cost under $1,000 and only took her 4 months to complete the entire program. MT #3 has about a year or two of experience, has had advanced MT training, and is clearly making good money.

Most new MTs are hired and then put on a probation period where all of their reports are checked by an editor or quality assurance person. Most companies allow between 30-90 days for a new MT to get up to production standards in terms of production and quality. If the new MTs work is not up to company standards by that time, it is likely they will be let go. This happens every day to new MTs. Being serious about getting a thorough education will avoid this problem. Investing now in a good education will assure that you can start out in the workplace ready to handle difficult dictation with ease.

What Should You Look For In A Good MT Program?

When looking into MT schools, it is important to think about it as an investment that will pay off when you complete the program and begin working. We discussed earlier how some programs offer very short courses and only skim over subjects like anatomy, medical terminology, disease processes, laboratory medicine, and pharmacology. Additionally, many courses do not offer enough comprehensive transcription practice. When evaluating programs it is important to have a base model in which to compare every program. A wonderful model is the AAMT's COMPRO.

Look not only at what subjects the school offers but how in-depth and comprehensive they cover each of these areas. For example, you cannot possibly thoroughly cover the subject of anatomy in a few weeks' time. Medical transcriptionists deal with many different accents, medical specialties, and must have a broad-based understanding of medical language. If the program you are considering does not offer comprehensive study in all of the areas discussed in COMPRO then you may want to consider that it is not a wise investment of your money. You also want to ask the following questions when deciding on a school:

1. Are the instructors experienced transcriptionists?
2. Have the instructors been MT service owners?
3. Have the instructors been MT educators previously?
4. How much dictation is included in the program?
5. Is the dictation authentic doctor dictated reports? (Some schools offer tapes that are read by actors which are WAY too easy.)
6. What type of materials will you receive in the course? Good MTs need good reference materials, and must learn to use them while in school.
7. Will you have easy access to an instructor? Is he or she available via telephone, e-mail or private messaging?
8. Will you receive immediate feedback on assignments or will you have to wait weeks to hear from your instructor through the mail?
9. Does the school offer in-depth coverage of all the topics COMPRO suggests or do they just touch lightly on these subjects?
10. Does the school offer comprehensive job placement assistance? (Handing you a list of services to send a resume to is not considered comprehensive job placement.)

How Does the MT Advantage Program Measure Up?

The goal of this article is not to discuss why some other courses do not live up to the COMPRO guidelines. Quite frankly we have no idea why a course would choose to compromise your training just to save a few dollars. What our school has to offer a prospective MT student is an in-depth, comprehensive program of study including extensive study in every single area outlined in COMPRO. Students of our program will get comprehensive study in all subject areas relating to advanced medical transcription and NOT just the basics.

Our program offers the opportunity to work with mentors and instructors one on one. Specifically, this means that the students have a number of people who can help them with questions throughout the program. Why is this important? As an MT student, you are going to have a myriad of questions pertaining to your coursework, and a good course needs to provide you with someone who can answer those questions quickly and comprehensively. Also, learning MT is not an easy task, and many new students get frustrated and give up. We have found the multiple instructor and mentor idea has worked wonderfully. It's a relief for our students to know that someone is always there.

Comprehensive feedback of your practice MT work is essential to your success. It is important to know what you are doing wrong and why as well as what you are doing right. It is very easy when checking your own work to miss many tiny mistakes. In the workplace an MT needs to work with a high percent of accuracy at between 98-99%. When MTs fall below that accuracy level, they are putting their jobs in jeopardy. In our program, you will get immediate feedback on-line after each lesson. Also, each transcription exam is hand-graded with extensive feedback and returned quickly, usually within 24 hours. In other words, you will have the support of a trained instructor throughout the entire program, and this is imperative to your success.

Additionally, our course offers extensive transcription practice - more than enough for you to get thorough, comprehensive and advanced training, just as you should be getting. Through our program, you could transcribe as many as 5,000 medical reports. Why do you need to transcribe so many reports you might ask? It is our experience that practice makes perfect. Working MTs come across a variety of difficult accents and medical specialties. Without enough hands-on practice with real world dictation, the new MT could flounder in the real work environment. Transcribing a few hundred reports may give you some idea of how it's done, but truly that is not enough practice to enable a new MT to be productive in the real world work environment, no matter what anybody tells you.

One reason there is such a high demand for MTs right now is because there are so many very poorly trained MTs. In fact, it is difficult to come across a well-trained MT. Good MTs have the potential of making a very good income and enjoying a lucrative career. Poor MTs usually go from job to job then finally leave the business because they just can't reach quality or production standards. In our program we offer a great deal of real world dictation practice by real doctors. The dictation you will be transcribing comes from a variety of specialties and includes very difficult dictators. It is important to get enough practice while in school so that when you graduate, you will be able to handle the most difficult types of dictation with ease.

Our school was founded by an MTSO (medical transcription service owner) and Certified Medical Transcriptionist with many years of experience who also taught medical transcription at a local community college and owns three successful MT services. The CMT instructors are highly experienced MTs and MTSOs (medical transcription service owners) and the mentors are experienced transcriptionists, graduates, and top students helping other students. This program was developed by MTs for MTs. Additionally, MT Advantage offers comprehensive resume and job placement assistance upon graduation. The bottom line is…we KNOW what employers want because we ARE one!

The choice is yours. Excellence in education means making the commitment to invest wisely and choosing a school that adheres to the AAMT guidelines as outlined in COMPRO. We have the experience, dedication and ability to create MTs ready to enter the workplace capable of handling even the most difficult dictation.

We wish you every success in making your decision for a quality education and look forward to answering any questions you may have.

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Margery Hinman, CMT, is a certified medical transcriptionist, director and instructor of MT Advantage Career Center (www.mtacc.net) which specializes in online advanced medical transcription training. With her 25 years experience, Margery has worked as an MT in hospitals, doctors' offices, in her own successful MT services and now as a consultant and instructor of medical transcription. Her goal is to train anyone with the interest and aptitude to become not only a top-notch MT, but also to exceed standard production by employing her methods and training practices. You can read more about how MT Advantage Career Center achieves this goal by visiting www.mtacc.net. When you visit, please ask for your free 100-page e-book and mention this site.
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