Medical Term of the Week


Infundibuliform

Funnel-shaped.

Production-based pay for Medical Transcriptionists

When looking for a job as a Medical Transcriptionist, you might see some employers offering compensation as $0.06 or $0.12, etc. This does not translate into being paid six or twelve cents an hour. This is what is called production-based pay.

Production-based pay for Medical Transcriptionists is compensation on a per line basis. Therefore, if an employer offered you $0.12 per line, for every line you type in a report, you would receive $0.12. For example, if a history and physical exam report has around 25 lines, that would be $3.00 that you would be compensated for that report. If you can transcribe 5 H&Ps per hour, that would correspond to $15 an hour, which is about the median average wage for MTs, according to the Department of Labor.

This is just one example of production-based pay for Medical Transcriptionists. Many employers offer incentives to pay a higher rate with a higher line count, or a higher rate for working certain hours or days, or typing STAT reports, etc.

Medical Term of the Week

Diastema

From the Greek diastema meaning an interval or space.

A space between two adjacent teeth. Think Madonna or David Letterman.

A special feature of a transcribed report

Medical Transcription is the practice of transcribing or typing medical reports dictated by doctors or other health professionals. A special feature of a transcribed report, something you should see at the bottom of any report that has been typed by a medical transcriptionist, is as follows:

AH/cr
D: 9/18/08
T: 9/19/08

This feature can be found at the bottom of the report, following the physician's signature. The initials "AH" would indicate the initials of the dictating doctor. The initials "cr" designate which transcriptionist typed this particular report. The date following "D:" reveals on what day the report was dictated, and the date following "T:" indicates on which day the report was transcribed.

Therefore, in this instance, Dr. Anthony Hall dictated this report on 9/18/08 and transcriptionist Cassie Rangel transcribed this report on 9/19/08.

So, next time you are reviewing a typed report in a health record, be sure to look for this key feature, identifying the initials of the health professionals involved in generating this report, and bringing you a little closer to the world of medical transcription.

Medical Term of the Week


Podobromidrosis
pod/o-foot
brom/o-foul smell
hidr/o-sweat
osis-condition
A condition of foul smelling sweat of the feet.

Medical Transcription employment prospects

The US Department of Labor notes that Medical Transcription is expected to have significant professional growth in the next 10 years. In 2006, it was noted that there were 98,000 transcriptionists employed nationwide, with an estimated projection of 112,000 to be employed by 2016. That is an anticipated growth of 14-20%!

Job prospects are expected to be exceptionally good for those who are certified. HCC offers the only entirely-online Medical Transcription certification program in the state of Kansas.

Weekly Salient, Obscure or Downright Goofy Medical Term

Rhinotillexomania:
rhino=nose
till/o=to pull
ex/o=outside of
mania=obsession, "condition of madness"

Definition: compulsive nose picking

Medical Transcription Professional Organization

All HIT students know about our professional organization, AHIMA. But did you know that Medical Transcription also has a professional organization? It is called the Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity (AHDI - formerly AAMT.)

For more information on the national organization of Medical Transcription, please visit their website: www.ahdionline.org

For more information on the Kansas Chapter of the AHDI, please visit: www.kahdi.com

If you would be interested in attending a KAHDI meeting, contact Cassie Rangel for more information. The next meeting is scheduled for September 27 in Derby, KS.