One question I often get is whether or not nurses need to go through medical transcription training in order to start working. They have so much background in medical terminology already that many hope they can just start working. Can they?
No. Not really.
While nurses and other medical professionals may be nicely up to date on medical terminology, drugs, procedures and so forth, transcription is another creature all together. You have to be able to spell all of the terminology correctly, which isn't something nurses typically have to deal with.
Nurses may feel that they are used to hearing doctors talk, but that's not the same as hearing him dictate notes. I've read comments from nurses that they can't believe that doctors expect transcriptionists to understand the dictation because they talk so fast and do so much else while dictating. Transcription is very much so an acquired skill.
The good news is that nurses should be able to finish the training program more quickly. They already know quite a bit of the background information. This means they can really focus on improving spelling as needed and on building their transcription skills.
The course costs the same whether you go fast or slow, but the sooner you complete it with a good understanding of all you've learned, the sooner you can start working. That's a good advantage.
But don't think that going fast is good when you're learning the transcription part. There's no substitute for practice when it comes to developing your ear for transcription. Doctors can get a little crazy with how fast they dictate, and words you should be able to understand will be all but incomprehensible. It may amaze you.
There's also the report formatting to learn, plus dealing with the technology. These days the technology is pretty simple, as you will probably download a program that will allow you to listen to dictation, and use a foot pedal to control it. Takes some practice but it's really not that complex if you're comfortable with computers already.
Report formatting can take some work, but there are a few basic types and the type you need to use will quickly become clear with each dictation.
Overall, it can be quite nice to be using some of what you learned as a nurse in a new, often highly flexible field. Study hard and what you already know will be an advantage. You'll be ready for your new career before you know it.
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