Medical Transcription...MedQuist? or Should I Go Back for Medical Assistant/LPN?

talk around your area about LPNs. I was considering going into LPN school also. Everyone that I have talked to or my husband had talked to, inlcuding LPNs say that most places will not hire them anymore. Most hospitals don't hire them. they only want RN's with a BSN. go onto the hospitals website and look at job openings. i've been doing that for 3 yrs while my kids are small because i keep going back and forth about what to do. in all that time i've only seen 2 LPN jobs at the hospitals and neither were in the L & D. Dr's offices MIGHT hire you, but they lean more towards MA's. Home Health will hire LPNs and you will make decent money. Some schools will also hire LPNs and also the nursing homes. that's all that i have found in the last few years. check out the hours for the clinics that you will have to do. that is the main reason i never went. they were the worst times. always from 7 in the mornign until 3:30, so i couldn't drop kids off at school or no one could watch them for me as i couldn't afford daycare. and evening classes were from 2:30-10 or 11p. Medical assistants don't make that much more than a CNA in most places. you can try to take the test for the CNA instead of trying to go for more classes right now, and see how you like the medical field first. my SIL is a Physical Therapist Assistant. They make the most money besides maybe the OT's and speech therapists. they make (in my area) about $25/hr RNs make about $17 and LPNs make about $12-14 as well as the MA's make about $10-12 and so do the CNAs. most of the classes you can probably take online except for the clinics.

The medical transcription industry is declining. I would not recommend getting into it now, especially if you have to take a loan to go to school. It is far cheaper for doctors and hospitals to send transcripts to places like India for coding, or just use software. Twenty years ago you could make a great living from home doing transcription but today I would absolutely pick LPN instead.

I have two friends who are transcriptionists. One gets barely any work and has been in the field for over 10 years, so any work she does get is simply b/c she's worked her way up, she used to get a lot but it's declining. The other friend can't find a job at all since everything can be done with software now and now she's going back to school. I would do something else.

I am doing full time schooling right now working towards being an RN and I have 4 kids age 4 and under. It isn't easy but this is a lifelong dream and I am pursuing it with the support of my husband and family. If you want to do it, set your mind to it and make it work. A lot of hospitals are hiring CNAs to work with the RN/BSNs and they work in all areas. Most of their jobs entail changing bedding, taking vitals, bathing patients, and patient transport. Getting your CNA is a pretty quick and cheap process compared to MA and LPN. I would definitely avoid LPN and just work towards RN if you want to go into the nursing field.

My mom who is a nurse (NICU for 25 years) and now works as a case manager for her health system sent me this link to a "true" and accredited medical transcription program:

http://www.futuremt.com/Jobs/MedicalTranscriptionistSalar...

i don't know if they take financial aide - I didn't look. But I got this from her because I've toyed with the idea, especially since I'd LOVE to be able to work from home!! But I guess there are some programs out there that are better than others.

Good luck!

I have a friend who is an MT and although she is doing pretty well, she recommends not getting in this field as it is dwindling.

I would stay out of transcription, not enough work right now, like others said. So much is done in office or by machine now..