Medical Transcription or Coding?

[treehuggingmommy]

Hello, I am just looking for some advice about which direction I should take......I was planning on taking medical transcription at my local community college for a certificate, the more research I do the more I am unsure about this profession, is it on it's way out? Just wondering if maybe I should go into medical billing/coding instead? Thanks for any help

[pawp11]

I don't know that it is necessarily on its way out, but I do know that your local community college certificate won't mean much for online work in the medical transcription field. It might be of value in your community with local doctors, but not for getting on with any of the major online companies. (Someone correct me if I am wrong here!)

Are you looking to work from home or in a hospital or clinic or something else?

As far as coding goes, some programs are better than others. If the program you are going to get involved with offers job placement assistance, I would definitely explore it some more. I have several friends who have graduated our local CC program and can't find work because they lack experience. Most are working as administrative assistants now.

Perhaps you could speak with the advisors of both programs about the success of graduates getting work?

Do you have any medical background? Having clinical experience of some kind is most helpful in either job.

Someone with more knowledge in this arena will pop in and offer their thoughts soon. Good luck with whatever you choose to do.

[MTHome]

Medical transcription often involves VR editing now. Some like editing, some don't. I liked it.

[treehuggingmommy]

Thank you for the information, I do have an associates degree in Medical Assisting and would really like to find a decent paying work at home job (who isnt?) in the medical field. I did not realize that the certificate would not make a difference in finding a job online. I am waiting on a reply from my advisor on the local hospitals and how they do transcription.

[deegamiz]

Hello
I have been a medical transcriptionist for 3 years now. I graduated from Career Step. If I can go back and do it all over again, I would of done their coding program instead. I believe there is more of a demand for coders right now. Not to mention that I feel your earning potential is better as a coder. That is just my opinion. Good Luck.

[BarbB]

I have a long medical career (x-ray tech) and was looking into coding. I did medical transcription for a while too but it's hard to make a lot of money unless you type extremely fast (which I don't).

Everything I've read about coding shows that no one can find a job. All places want 2-5 years experience so I decided not to pursue it. A couple good sites to check on coding are www.aacp.com, www.ahima.org, www.justcoding.com and www.codingcertification.org.

Good luck in whatever you decide.