Taking the medical transcription test, also known as the certification exam, is simply a matter of personal preference. You should not be required to be certified or registered to obtain work as a medical transcriptionist. Although that may change in the future.
It is necessary to pass a formal exam to become a registered medical transcriptionist (RMT), that is, someone with less than 2 years transcription experience, or a certified medical transcriptionist (CMT), someone with at least 2 years of acute care transcription experience. If you do choose to obtain certification, at this point in time the certification must be renewed every three years. Recertification is obtained through paying a fee as well as earning a required number of continuing education credits during the 3-year cycle. The number and type of the continuing education credits will vary whether you took the RMT or CMT portion of the exam.
Obtaining certification does have its advantages. Someone who has passed the medical transcription exam may call themselves a registered or certified medical transcriptionist, and may use the initials RMT or CMT after their name. There are some employers who require their transcriptionists be certified. Some will pay their certified transcriptionists a higher salary rate for being certified. Therefore, obtaining certification by passing the medical transcription test could help advance your career in medical transcription.
Those benefits do come with a price. The Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity (AHDI) offers the certification exam as well as oversees the recertification process. You start by paying an application fee of $10. With the CMT portion of the test, the cost is $195 for AHDI members and $275 for nonmembers. The RMT portion of the test costs $120 for AHDI members and $200 for nonmembers. There will also be the recurring recertification fee and fees which may be associated with the cost of continuing education.
The certification exam is divided into two parts, a written test and a transcription test. The written part of the test is multiple choice and covers subjects such as anatomy and physiology and medical terminology as well as language-related subjects such as grammar, punctuation and sentence structure and composition. The practical portion of the test requires transcription of actual medical dictation.
Every applicant will be given 6 hours to finish the test, although you do not need to take the entire 6 hours, and should not need it. The exam looks at all areas of the field. Therefore many transcriptionists elect to take a prep exam or review course to prepare themselves for taking the test. The review course and guide will require an additional fee which increases the end cost of the medical transcription exam.
Though passing the medical transcription certification test comes with certain benefits, it is certainly not necessary to succeed as a medical transcriptionist. There are many highly paid and experienced medical transcriptionists who are not certified.
However, taking the medical transcription test could be a wise move if you have the interest as well as the time and money to spare. Having done so, you then have proof of your skills and abilities as a medical transcriptionist. The medical transcription test and subsequent certification will be a personal achievement and could help you advance in your profession.
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