Thoughts on Credentialing

I have been so lucky throughout my career in that I have rarely been in a place where I was absolutely biding my time to get out.  I have had my difficult days and even difficult times.  I think that is true in every job situation, no matter how well you might like the job. 

An incident that really stands out for me is when I became a certified medical transcriptionist (CMT).  The American Association for Medical Transcription (AAMT, now AHDI) was established in 1978 by a group of MTs in California wanting to get our profession out into the light, so to speak, because at that time (and still somewhat true today), no one knew who we were, what we did, or how we did it.  We were stuck in most basements of hospitals with little more than a tattered medical dictionary, and that treasured reference was often shared with the other MTs.  One of the first things these MTs did was to send out flyers about this new professional association.  One of my co-workers happened to see this flyer sitting on the desk of our supervisor and asked if she could see it.  Turns out, she had gotten several and had always thrown them away, never bothering to ask the rest of us if we would be interested in finding out more about this association.  Thankfully, she at least did not care if we took a look at this flyer. 

I have mentioned previously about my mentor, Betty, whom I worked with for 11 years.  She was very interested in this association, so a small group of us worked together to form the first local chapter of AAMT, which became GAC, the Greater Akron Chapter of AAMT.  It was a very successful meeting, with the President of AAMT attending and several MTs in the area signing up to become members.  We started having monthly chapter meetings shortly thereafter. 

One of the first accomplishments of the association was the creation of the CMT credential.  It is a very common practice with a new credential to “grandfather” members rather than testing them.  Now keep in mind, this is not a credential that was just handed out to anyone interested; there was a specific procedure involved.  You had to have at least 5 years of acute care experience and a minimum of 3 letters of reference documenting that you not only had the experience, but that you also had  an excellent MT skill set.  To maintain the CMT credential, you have to have 30 credits of continuing education every 3 years.  I earned my very first credit on July 17, 1982. 

I was so excited and felt so proud when I received my CMT certificate!  Now you would think the supervisor and director of the medical records department would also feel excited and supportive, but nothing could have been further from the truth.  The few of us in the department who obtained our CMT were not only not allowed to have that on our name tags, we were also not allowed to even discuss anything related to AAMT during working hours.  They were convinced this new-fangled AAMT was going to lead to unions and demands for more pay.  So for a few years, we just attended our monthly meetings and enjoyed meeting MTs from around the area.  Eventually I met MTs from all over Ohio, some of whom are still my good friends today. 

A few years into having my CMT, our department moved to new offices.  The MTs actually had their own subdivision within the department where we would be away from the noise of the other office workers answering phones, dealing with the physicians, filing and such.  We also had a new director.  I asked her if I could bring in my certificate to display at my desk, with the reply of absolutely nothing allowed to be hung on the walls to damage them.  One of the office workers told me I could use 2-sided tape that would not harm the wall in any way. Now I will say I probably should have discussed that with the director before I took it upon myself to hang my certificate, but I truly felt she would be okay with it, since there would be no damage whatsoever to the wall.  She walked into our office, and in no uncertain terms, told me off right there in front of everyone.  I calmly told her, and with a smile no less because I just knew everything would be okay, that the perfect solution was the 2-sided tape.  I thought her head was going to explode, her face was so red!  I asked if I could at least keep my certificate on my desk, which she did agree to, but she was definitely not happy about it.  I think she could not think of a valid reason to tell me no.

That certificate sat on my desk until the last day I worked there. It was not about flaunting the fact I was a CMT.  I never once have looked at this as a statement that I am better than any MT not certified.  In fact, I have known many over the years who are absolutely the best at their jobs without ever having sat through a lecture or cared a lick about continuing education.  Certification is not about being better than someone else.  If that were the case, then why are there incompetent doctors, bad lawyers, inept accountants, all of whom have credentials after their names. It has always been my feeling that this is about elevating the profession, not elevating me.  If the majority of MTs became an RMT or CMT, imagine the kind of message that would send to the medical community!  It is not a requirement that coders be certified, yet it is rare you see an ad for a coder without it stating certification is required. 

So displaying my certificate was never about saying I’m better than the other MTs.  It was about letting the other health care professionals in that hospital know that my profession is just as important as their’s.  CMT and RMT should stand up there right along MD, RN, RHIT, CCS and every other medical credential.  If we don’t take our profession seriously, why should anyone else?  Next time: Why I decided it was time to make a move in a new direction.