Key Points:
- Rising Demand for Medical Scribes: The demand for medical scribes in the US healthcare industry is at an all-time high, driven by the growing need for efficient EHR documentation and healthcare facilities’ recognition of the benefits scribes offer in improving productivity and physician well-being.
- Key Reasons Behind the Demand: Healthcare providers are increasingly turning to medical scribes to save time, reduce stress, and prevent physician burnout. Additionally, the rapid turnover of scribes—often pre-med students looking to gain experience—keeps job openings high, further fueling the demand.
- Opportunity for Aspiring Medical Professionals: The high demand for medical scribes offers a unique opportunity for individuals looking to gain healthcare experience, particularly those aiming for medical school. Working as a scribe provides valuable insight into a physician’s daily tasks while enhancing one’s clinical knowledge.
With so many medical scribe job openings, you might be wondering: Are medical scribes in demand? The answer is yes. Currently, they are extremely sought-after in the US. Hospitals and clinics see an increase in the need for EHR documentation, and medical scribes are being hired to remedy this headache. But that’s not the only factor that generates the demand for scribes—let’s discuss this in more detail.
The Medical Scribe Demand
The demand for medical scribes has never been higher as healthcare facilities started recognizing the benefits of hiring them. To showcase this, at the time of writing this article, our careers page contains…408 medical scribe job openings!
Healthcare providers are actively looking for medical scribe candidates to enhance their operations, boost productivity, and even improve the satisfaction and engagement of their physicians. Yet, at the same time, their search is highly vetted—although the demand is high, you need to have a certain medical scribe skillset to land the job. This is because medical scribes require extensive training (both online and on-site)—this requires investments; hence, the candidates must be promising!
Why Are Medical Scribes in Demand?
The fact that medical scribes are in demand in healthcare is not random—there are a lot of reasons behind this healthcare trend. Let’s look at them now.
Healthcare Professionals Understand the Benefits of Working with a Scribe
The first and foremost reason is that healthcare professionals, including providers, realize that Depending on the facility, working with a scribe can increase the number of patients treated daily to up to 20%.
What is more, healthcare providers often want to work with medicalhiring a scribe is…a way to save time, money and stress. scribes themself, as they can see how much easier their job gets thanks to this. It also affects their well-being, as having a scribe at one’s disposal reduces the risk of physician burnout.
The EHR System
The electronic health records system is always hungry, waiting to be fed more data. Healthcare providers simply don’t have time to do this, making their employers look for alternative options. Medical scribes are a solution to this problem, hence the higher demand.
Turnover
Finally, most scribes are pre-med students wishing to gain invaluable experience or increase their chances of getting into medical school. Therefore, they resign after a year or two to pursue their studies and become physicians in various specialties. As a result, they create openings, increasing the demand for scribes!
Current Trends Driving the Increasing Demand for Medical Scribes
The demand for medical scribes keeps growing because healthcare is changing fast. More paperwork, new telemedicine visits, and stricter rules mean doctors need more help with documentation. Medical scribes are the answer, making it easier for providers to focus on patients instead of notes. So, if you’re wondering are medical scribes in demand, the answer is yes—and this trend is only getting stronger.
The Takeaway: Why the Demand for Medical Scribes Benefits You
The demand for medical scribes is high, so you should use this opportunity to get your first healthcare experience. Remember, although it is a purely administrative job, it lets you observe and shadow physicians, giving you an inside overview of their tasks that you would not be able to gain anywhere else. Hence, if you are planning to apply for medical school, we strongly recommend working as a scribe for at least a year!
You may also read: Does Medical Scribe Count as Clinical Experience (USCE)?
