ScribeAmerica: A Unique and Valuable Opportunity
By Nick Hamilton, ScribeAmerica Alumnus
My journey with ScribeAmerica started typically but quickly developed into an experience that I could not have imagined. I applied for a position shortly after I graduated college in 2014 and moved back home, in the hope of gaining some experience in the medical field to help me figure out what to do with my life. Fortunately, there was a new site being implemented in the area, and I was hired and trained quickly. As I was one of their first hires, I had the opportunity to become one of the chief scribes at that site shortly thereafter. My position as a medical scribe was my first “real” job, and within a couple of months I had a management position that made me at least partially responsible for quality assurance, hiring, training, scheduling, and so much more. I worked at my original site for approximately 1 year and learned so much during that time, but I knew that I would be with the company for at least one year longer and I was eager to continue to learn and grow. As such, I applied to become a travelling Project Manager (formerly Junior Project Leader) and assumed that role around 1 year after my initial hire date.
My first assignment was only a couple of hours from home and was another emergency medicine site. Since I was now a part of the implementation team, I got to be involved in the initial meeting and became the main point of contact for our client. I was fortunate to have chief scribe experience, as many of those duties were very similar to the expectations of my role as a Project Manager. This first implementation lasted 4-5 months before I was pulled away to help set up a new site at my first new specialty, in a Long Term Acute Care Hospital. This presented a whole new set of challenges, but the first was that I essentially was able to lead the initial meeting with the client this time. Afterwards, due to my experience, I was essentially responsible for conducting the implementation independently, though with regular check-ins with my supervisors. This process has repeated over the past few years, and to date I have worked in nine specialties with nine different clients in five states through my time as a travelling implementer. I will also be entering medical school in the fall with 15,000-20,000 patient encounters documented in those various specialties during my tenure as a scribe. I will be leaving the company as a Senior Project Manager, after being hired as a regular medical scribe just fewer than four years ago.
Very few employers could have possibly offered me the opportunities and experiences that was afforded to me during my time with ScribeAmerica. At the age of 23, I was given the opportunity to independently travel throughout the country, living in corporate housing and experiencing places I otherwise likely never would have been. Since that time, I have been able to do things that few other people my age can claim; I have been responsible for leading meetings with hospital CEOs, recruiting (sometimes under difficult circumstances), hiring and training numerous scribes, independently troubleshooting many different problems, and so much more. I can’t say that it was all easy, but I know that these experiences will undoubtedly benefit me in my personal and professional life in the future.
If you are reading this and already a ScribeAmerica employee, I hope you find your time with the company as beneficial as I have. I know that there are difficulties that come with any position, but I hope you reflect on the opportunity that you have before you. I would also recommend that you keep yourself aware of the possible positions that may ScribeAmerica has to offer, as they can provide life-changing opportunities if you are interested in them. For anyone reading this who is debating whether or not to apply, I wholeheartedly encourage you to do so if you are interested in any field of medicine at all. I knew that I was going to enjoy being a scribe, but I could have never anticipated all of the experiences and opportunities that I have been afforded in these past years. I am very excited to begin the next chapter of my life as I move on to medical school, and I am very thankful to ScribeAmerica and the people that have been a part of this journey.