Posted: May 19th, 2004

The VLC talks with working grads

VLC: Where do you work as a medical transcriptionist and how long have you been there?
Chrystal: I have just graduated and will be seeking an MT position online. I want to work from home.

VLC: Where do you live?
Chrystal: I live in a very small, Vermont mountain town, near several ski areas; Stratton, Bromley, Okemo. The winters are tough here, but the summers are beautiful. I plan to live here in the summers and go somewhere warm in winters. The area I live in consists of many second homes and the rest of the population needs to travel a minimum of 30 minutes over snowy mountain roads to their work, or they are self employed.

VLC: What did you do before becoming an MT?
Chrystal: I have been primarily in management positions. My experience began in 1984, when I started working for a manufacturing company, where I became a Purchasing manager. My now husband and I, both left that company and purchased a business which consisted of a deli, meat market and Vermont State Liquor Store. We both later went on to another manufacturing company which moved to North Carolina, and we went with them. It did not take us long, however, to realize we wanted to be back in Vermont and out of the manufacturing world completely. I guess after working for yourself, it is hard to go back to working for someone else. It was during the time we were in NC and even before, that I knew I had to do make a career change. I had been thinking about medical transcription for a while.

VLC: Why did you decide to become an MT?
Chrystal: I was becoming very stressed in the corporate world and as I became nearer to retirement age, I wanted to be in a position where I could take my work with me, to be able to travel and live where ever I wanted, and for as long as I wanted. The medical field has always intrigued me; many of my family members are in it, but I am much too squeamish to be a nurse. Working as an MT seemed to fit me, and I was already an excellent typist.

VLC: Which of VLC medical transcription courses did you take?
Chrystal: I started out taking [what was then called] the Professionial Edition Medical Transcription course, but later upgraded to the [current] Advanced course. I did this mainly to give myself more opportunities for employment with some major companies.

VLC: How long did it take you to complete it?
Chrystal: I began this course in September of 2002 and finished in May of 2004. In the beginning, I seemed to be going through it at a good pace, until we moved from North Carolina to Vermont and I was without an Internet connection for a period of about 9 months. During this time, I had to set up an account in town and travel those snow covered roads to send my work in to my instructor, then go back a few days later and get my grades. This was difficult as I also lacked all the resources the Internet has to offer while taking this course. This slowed me down considerably.

VLC: Who was your instructor?
Chrystal: I had a two main instructors both named Carol, and at times there were others who marked my work.

VLC: What impressed you the most about your instructor?
Chrystal: The encouragement and timely feedback were very important.

VLC: What impressed you most about the course?
Chrystal: Its intensity. Just when you thought you must have heard every word there was, there was another module to go through with more words you had never heard. The scope of the course; many, many medical areas were touched upon.

VLC: What did you enjoy most about the course?
Chrystal: Working at my own pace. The student website was very helpful and informative, although I was not one to post questions or comments. It helped to create a classroom atmosphere where, if you wanted to, you could bounce thoughts and feelings off other students.

VLC: Did you find the practice tapes are helping you now at work?
Chrystal: I think these will be an on-going tool to keep you familiar with the various areas of transcription.

VLC: Is there anything about the course or the training system you would recommend changing?
Chrystal: Yes, I never had an outline of my particular course. I went from one module to another without knowing if it was my last or if I had 2 or 3 more to go. Maybe if I knew I had 2 or 3 more to go, I would not have gotten through it. This course is not easy and is very intense. Students need to know what is expected so they can gauge their time and their life.

VLC: How did you go about applying for jobs?
Chrystal: Currently I am going online and sending my resume to different companies. I am also collecting names of hospitals and clinics in Vermont and neighboring states to send my resume to. Looking for anything part time or per diem.

VLC: Do you have any advice for anyone thinking of training to be an MT?
Chrystal: Be a perfectionist, dedicated, organized, and hungry for knowledge.

VLC: What do you expect to be doing five years from now?
Chrystal: I would like to be working as a medical transcriptionist 20-30 hours a week (until retirement of course, then maybe 10-15 hours a week); in Vermont in the summer, and someplace very, very "w-a-r-m" in the winter.