If your career goals revolve around working in medicine, starting out as a medical scribe is your best opportunity for gaining hands-on experience and learning the importance of patient care. Working closely with physicians, the main duty of a medical scribe is to chart patient encounters in the electronic medical record. If this sounds appealing to you, here are five reasons why those wanting to go to medical school should consider working as a medical scribe first.
You Will Shadow Physicians
Before applying for medical school, the majority of admission committees expect students to obtain shadowing experience. One of the great benefits of working as a medical scribe is that you will have the opportunity to shadow physicians and see how they handle being stressed and busy. The more experience you gain, the better chance you have of being accepted for medical school.
Expand Medical Knowledge
When working as a medical scribe, you will begin to look out for the signs and symptoms that help physicians come to a diagnosis. Over time, you will broaden your medical knowledge and begin to anticipate what some of these diagnoses could be, as well as what treatment the patient may need.
Understand the Importance of Teamwork
For patients to get the best care possible, physicians need to work closely alongside other healthcare professionals. When shadowing a physician, you will be able to observe the respect that is given to team members, as well as have the chance to watch them intuitively help each other. Working closely alongside physicians will mean you can build long-lasting relationships. What’s more, you will interact with the entire care team and understand the importance of networking. When applying for medical school, providers will be happy to give you a letter of recommendation.
You Will Learn Medical Language
The more experience you gain, the better you will become at spelling and pronouncing medical words. Rather than relying on rote memorization, you will become more familiar with the terminology. In general, humans tend to remember things better through experience, rather than reading text, so having medical language at your disposal can help you before entering medical school.
You Will Develop Listening Skills
When engaging with patients on a daily basis, you will get to hear their story, their fears, and their pain. Understanding a patient’s point of view and blocking out distractions is what will take you far in the medicine world. Patients want their doctors to listen to their needs and to provide the best care possible, so gaining hands-on experience as a medical scribe will help you have more empathy and an understanding of the patient’s needs. Learn more about being a medical scribe and the duties and roles required before you decide whether this is a job you can do.
Working as a medical scribe will give you a great chance to immerse yourself in the world of medicine. If your goal is to work in medicine, starting your career as a medical scribe will teach you invaluable skills and attributes that can help you with your professional
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