In an acute care hospital, patients receive admittance for a short period of time in order to undergo surgery or receive treatment for an illness or complications from a disease. Medical transcriptionists work alongside other professionals to perform clerical tasks in these types of facilities.

Function

Acute care medical transcriptionists listen to recordings of orders and notes left on digital or tape voice recorders by doctors and surgeons and then type the spoken words into a written narrative. The documents produced by acute care medical transcriptionists become part of patients' charts and medical histories at the hospital.

Types

Some acute care medical transcriptionists work for one hospital while others find employment with transcription services that compose patient histories for a many acute care hospitals. Depending on their employers, transcriptionists may work in an office setting or from their homes using the Internet to download and play recordings.

Requirements

Successful acute medical transcriptionists possess the ability to type quickly without sacrificing accuracy. Organization, attention to detail and listening skills are also integral to the work of transcriptionists.

Education

Acute care medical transcriptionists must have familiarity with medical terminology, such as terms for parts of the anatomy and words used to describe diagnoses, medical test results and procedures. Because of this, transcriptionists require post-secondary education, usually in the form of a one-year medical training school or two-year associates degree program.

Compensation

As of January 2010, acute care medical transcriptionists averaged annual salaries of $35,000, reports Indeed.com.

Source:

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Medical Transcriptionists

Indeed.com: Acute Care Medical Transcriptionists Salaries

State of Connecticut: Hospitals Today