How to Become a Medical Transcriptionist in Connecticut
If you’re drawn to the field of healthcare but don’t really want to work directly with patients, a career as a medical transcriptionist may be right for you. When you work as a medical transcriptionist, you’ll prepare a variety of written documents from voice recordings made by doctors or other healthcare professionals. Examples of documents you might prepare include pathology reports, diagnostic lab results and medical histories.
What’s Required to Become a Medical Transcriptionist in Connecticut?
The first thing you’ll need to become a medical transcriptionist in Connecticut is a high school diploma or the equivalent, and you’ll also need to be at least 18 years old. Most employers prefer applicants who complete postsecondary education. Training programs can be found in community colleges and vocational schools as well as through distance learning
Training Programs for Medical Transcriptionists in Connecticut
Formal training programs to become a medical transcriptionist include important information such as medical terminology, risk management and legalities related to healthcare documentation. Some programs also include training on the job. Examples of training programs in this field in Connecticut include:
- Manchester Community College. This community college offers a certificate program in Business Office Technology – Medical Transcription, which can be completed on a full-time or part-time basis. Students will study keyboarding, grammar, word processing, human biology and pharmacology. Students also have the opportunity to apply classroom theory in an actual work setting.
- Quinebaug Valley Community College. This online certificate program qualifies students to become both a medical transcriptionist and a medical transcription editor, which gives students more flexibility when seeking employment. Training includes working with speech recognition technology as well as keyboarding, grammar, pharmacology and anatomy as well as gaining experience working with dictation by doctors. The program can be completed in four months to a year.
Certification or Licensing of Connecticut Medical Transcriptionists
The state of Connecticut doesn’t require medical transcriptionists to obtain a license or certification. However, you may want to pursue certification from a national organization to demonstrate to potential employers that you have the knowledge and skills needed to fill this role.
The Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity (AHDI) offers two levels of certification to promote professional standards. Certification is intended to recognize those who demonstrate competence by passing a certification exam and can help you to distinguish yourself from those who haven’t obtained this credential.
Job Outlook and Salary Expectations for Connecticut Medical Transcriptionists
In 2018, the mean annual wage for medical transcriptionists was $34,770, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In the state of Connecticut as of December 2019, Salary.com reported that the average medical transcriptionist earned a salary $50,135 per year. Across the state, salary for professionals in this field ranged between $44,662 and $55,890.
Projected employment for medical transcriptionists in the United States is expected to decline from about 58,000 jobs to 56,000 between 2018 and 2028, according to CareerOneStop. Connecticut is a fairly small state, and the number of jobs in this field in Connecticut is also expected to decline from 700 to approximately 610 between 2016 and 2026.
A Career as a Medical Transcriptionist in Connecticut
Your career as a medical transcriptionist in Connecticut will always be interesting as you listen to dictated reports and translate them into an understandable form. Accuracy and attention to detail are needed so that you’ll catch missing information or errors that could have an impact on patient care.
Some places where you might find work include doctors’ offices, outpatient clinics, medical transportation companies, hospitals and other medical facilities. With training and experience, you may be able to work in this role from home. While opportunities are available across the state of Connecticut, the most opportunities are likely to be concentrated in bigger cities such as Bridgeport, New Haven and Hartford.