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Hi Donna,
I wonder why you've put http://robertscashblog.com as a link under your virtual assistant idea. I'm not questioning the legitimacy of Robert's method, but it does not seem to be a true example of what a virtual assistant (popularly known as VA) is.

Hi Donna,
I realized now why that there was that robertscashblog link and now that link is no longer there... it seems that it was randomly generated by the ContentLink application! In any case... it can potentially be misleading to the subject at hand...

Cheers,
Karina
http://travellingturtle.wordpress.com/

Donna, your article was stumbled upon by a colleague of mine. We both work for the Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity (AHDI - formerly AAMT), the professional association that represents, advocates for, and credentials medical transcriptionists. You do your readers a GREAT disservice by misleading them about the standards and requirements to be a proficient and successful medical transcriptionist in the rapidly evolving arena of healthcare delivery. You need way more than a computer, headset, Internet connection, and access to Google to survive in this industry. Your readers need to be aware that the professionals who capture and record health encounters are generally paid under a per-unit compensation model (typically are paid by the line), and only those MTs who have been adequately trained (a minimum of 10 months of intensive formal training through an educational program with a track record of preparing job-ready and exam-ready graduates can even get a foot in the door - there is no such thing as OTJ training in MT anymore) and those who have spent hours integrating advanced clinical knowledge with a highly interpretive ear will ever hope to survive in an industry that demands accurate capture and rapid turn-around. There is a high drop-out rate in this industry. Many do not even make it through the educational programs, the demands of learning and accurately interpreting complex clinical language dictated by wide range of practitioners weeds out many along the way. Add to that complexity the challenge of interpreting dictation from physicians dictating at a high rate of speed or those for whom English is their second language and you will begin to recognize that this is not an easy profession. Anyone who chooses it needs to do so with their eyes (and ears) WIDE OPEN. You don't just pick up a footpedal and a headset and hope that Google will help you find a medical word. People entering the profession right now need to also be very aware of the impact that speech recognition and EHR technologies are having on the profession and the kind of advanced technical training will be demanded as healthcare migrates to a fully interoperable EHR. Please consider in the future providing your readers with the right research, information, and links to credible organizations that can give them an accurate picture of the professions you are recommending.

For readers who are seriously interested in medical transcription as a career, please do your homework and make an informed choice about the industry and finding the right school for training. Go to http://ahdionline.org.

Sorry, I did not mean to reply anonymously. I am posting on behalf of AHDI.

Lea M. Sims, CMT, AHDI-F
Directory of Communications & Publications
Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity (AHDI)

@Lea: Post edited. I'm now making it about simple transcription. Appreciate you pointing that out.

@Karina: Unfortunately, I have no control over that. Thanks for pointing that out though. 

Donna Pacheco
Small Business Writer