July 29, 2013 – Working from home is a great solution for many people who aren’t available to get out and specialize in a nine to five every day, but it can be difficult to find a legitimate and satisfying job with location limitations if you don’t know where to look. It may come as a surprise to find out that there are actually a few work-from-home jobs in the healthcare field that might be appealing and even rewarding for an individual with some experience in the medical area already or willing to be certified and who’s interested in pursuing a new career. Working from home has several advantages, as long as you are able to stay focused and have the relevant equipment needed for the job, and usually allows flexibility with hours. The medical industry is always growing and evolving, so medical transcriptionists, coders and writers shouldn’t become obsolete careers any time soon.
Medical Transcriptionist
Medical transcriptionists are very beneficial to the healthcare industry. They are responsible for transcribing all of a physician’s notes about a patient into a full permanent report that can be used to refer back to on all future interactions with the patient. It is a transcriptionist’s job to create completely accurate records that are easily readable by all medical personnel who may become involved in the patient’s care. A medical transcriptionist will be expected to use proper grammar, spelling and punctuation, follow the medical code of ethics and adhere to patient confidentiality, keep a transcription log, manage regular computer backups, pass quality assurance checks and engage in the appropriate communication needed between healthcare professionals.
Healthcare Writer
A healthcare writer can be employed by several different clients in areas that range from pharmaceutical and general health to medical devices and clinical research. Writers might prepare official documents that help communicate research findings and clinical data or put together educational materials about new drugs, programs, procedures, etc. Healthcare writers cover a variety of topics and aren’t usually limited to one specific type of writing. It’s important for their research skills to be up to par and have a clear understanding of medical jargon and how to translate that into terms for a general audience.
Telephone Triage Nurse
Nursing is one of the very reasons people go into the medical field to begin with, but not everyone can stand the extra long shifts or nerve-racking environment of an emergency room. Becoming a telephone triage nurse will still require the proper education and training, but will allow you to work from the comfort of your home with a telephone and a computer, knowing that you’re still helping to save the lives of others. These nurses assist patients via telephone and can answer questions about immediate care. They will also ask for details to determine what kind of healthcare provider the patient needs to see and can get online access to patient files if required.
Medical Recruiter
Independent medical recruiters help to staff hospitals, doctor’s offices and a number of other medical outlets that just simply don’t have the time to weed through all the applicants themselves. Recruiters will conduct phone interviews with potential candidates and help to sell the position with their presentation skills and talent to promote the positives. Organization, attention to detail and the ability to keep in mind exactly what the facility needs are key requirements for the job. It is also important to note that healthcare facilities are now helping recruiters by implementing a number of software to aid in recruitment; they are even using locum tenens specific software. Getting involved in the health care industry is a worthwhile career move whether you choose to become a medical transcriptionist or one of the other experts mentioned above, and working from home will give you the opportunity to be satisfied in many areas of your life.
About the Author
Tiffany Olson is a passionate writer from Northern California who gets a kick out of research and writing. She believes strongly in helping veterans and their families in any way possible and loves sharing knowledge and information via guest blogging and social media.