The internet is a wild place in many ways. Anyone can put up a website saying anything they want. You have to know which resources you can trust.
This is a problem you may have noticed as you researched medical transcription schools. There are fake schools out there that exist only to take your money. There are low quality schools that send you a few poorly written books and say in essence, "You’re on your own now. Go study!" And there are a few really good schools that make the expense worthwhile. It makes choosing a good school a frustrating process for many.
The same situation persists as you look for resources to help you understand new and unfamiliar medical terminology. There are people out there who will post anything, regardless of its accuracy.
How do you pick the quality resources when there are so many websites out there?
Start out with any resources you learned about while learning medical transcription. You can often buy a membership for access to online versions of printed resources. These may be kept more up to date, as it’s easier to change a page on a website than it is to issue a new book.
Add in a good quality medical transcription forum. Your fellow medical transcriptionists are often a big help in figuring out terminology and in finding good resources to learn more.
The AHDI website is another good choice, both for information and to join as a member. This is an association of healthcare documentation professionals.
Sites run by the government are good choices as well, such as Medline or cancer.gov.
Don’t trust forums run by people who have a particular condition. Some provide bits of good information, but too often it’s cluttered by theories and imperfectly understood information.
You should be cautious of information posted on personal websites as well. They aren’t always accurate. When you’re trying to be a professional, you should focus on professional resources.
Remember that a professional look to a site doesn’t make it a quality resource. An outdated look doesn’t make a site a bad resource. You have to consider the quality of the resource, not its appearance.
The quality of the resources you use in your work make a big difference in your success as a medical transcriptionist. Too many mistakes can endanger your job or profession reputation. Make sure you take the time to use accurate resources so the reports you transcribe are accurate.
