What Does a Medical Secretary Do?
Medical secretaries go through special training to perform administrative and clerical duties to aid doctors, hospital consultants and other senior health care staffers. Their role involves understanding medical terminology and hospital, clinic or laboratory procedures to be able to perform secretarial duties. Working as a medical secretary not only means performing these duties but often interacting with patients as well.
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Responsibilities
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Medical secretaries are responsible for a number of tasks including scheduling and keeping track of appointments, billing patients, compiling and recording medical records and reports, and ensuring that medical tests and samples are appropriately marked and sent. Medical secretaries also provide general administration assistance such as composing professional letters and reports, answering the phone, organizing files, and preparing agendas, notes and travel plans.
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Work Schedule
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It is typical for a medical secretary to work 35 to 40 hours a week. Depending on the place of employment, some may work early in the morning, in the evening and even on weekends. However, medical secretaries also have the opportunity to work on a part-time or temporary basis.
Personal Skills
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The personal skills that are needed to be considered for a position as a medical secretary include being well organized, and the ability to pay attention to detail and to multitask. A medical secretary should also have excellent verbal and written communication skills. In addition, someone looking for a job as a medical secretary should be tactful, honest, empathetic, discreet, sensitive and able to get along well with others.
Job Skills
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A medical secretary should have good typing skills and be proficient in the use of word processing programs and other software programs. Some medical secretaries may need to know how to use medical transcription machines. They should be knowledgeable in operating different office equipment such as fax machines, printers and copiers.
Salary Information
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Based on the industries with the highest level of employment for medical secretaries, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the estimated salary of a medical secretary working in a physician's office is $14.41, with an annual salary of $29,960. The estimated salary of a medical secretary working in general medical and surgical hospitals is $14.74 an hour with an annual salary of $30,670. The estimated salary of a medical secretary working in outpatient care centers is $14.81 an hour with an annual salary of $30,800. The estimated salary of a medical secretary working in a dentist's office is $16.73 an hour with an annual salary of $34,790.
Future Employment
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According to the BLS, the number of jobs for secretaries and administrative assistants is expected to grow about as fast as the average for all occupations through the year 2016. The growth is largely due to the fact that industries where secretaries work such as the health care, social assistance and legal services fields are expected to grow quickly.
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