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Career Resources >> Browse Articles >> 5 Steps to Becoming A Medical Secretary

STEP 2: Decide If Becoming a Medical Secretary is Right for You

All administrative work takes a great deal of dedication, motivation and tact. It also calls for a comfort with technology and openness to training. When figuring out if becoming a medical secretary is the best fit for you, ask and answer the following questions:

-Do you like the environment of a hospital or a doctor’s or dentist office?

-Do you like greeting and helping people? In person and over the phone?

-Do you like organizing and filing?

-Can you keep close track of appointments’ dates and times?

-Are you comfortable with English grammar, punctuation and usage?

-Are you willing to learn medical and hospital terminology?

-Can you be trusted with confidential medical information?

If you answered “Yes” to most of these questions, then becoming a medical secretary might be right up your alley.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Medical Secretary job description:

Some secretaries and administrative assistants, such as legal and medical secretaries, perform highly specialized work requiring knowledge of technical terminology and procedures. Medical secretaries transcribe dictation, prepare correspondence, and assist physicians or medical scientists with reports, speeches, articles, and conference proceedings. They also record simple medical histories, arrange for patients to be hospitalized, and order supplies. Most medical secretaries need to be familiar with insurance rules, billing practices, and hospital or laboratory procedures. Other technical secretaries who assist engineers or scientists may prepare correspondence, maintain their organization’s technical library, and gather and edit materials for scientific papers.

Is There a Place for You?

In 2006, the Bureau of Labor Statistics sites that there were 408,000 medical secretaries in the U.S. By 2016, this number is projected to grow by 17% to 477,000 medical secretaries. This is faster than the average for all other secretarial fields and faster than the average for all jobs in the U.S., which means the opportunities in this area are plentiful.

Let’s Talk Money

Medical secretaries earned a median annual salary of $28,090 in May 2006, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $40,870!

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