How to choose a Medical Transcription course

Medical Transcription is an industry that is exploding. It is prestigious and in demand. An individual who performs medical transcription is known as a medical transcriptionist (MT) or a medical transcriber. A medical transcriptionist is the person responsible for converting the patient's medical records into typewritten format rather than handwritten.

In the course of my research, the first thing I learned was that you can't just jump into a career as an MT without training. Medical transcription requires a practical knowledge of medical language, anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, laboratory, medicine, and the internal organization of medical reports. Thus, the medical transcriptionist must be well versed in the language of medicine. Some qualities of a successful MT's are:
· Independent by nature.
· Word Specialist.
· Perfectionist.
· Detail oriented.
· Training options.

Transcription is one of those jobs that many people know can be done from home, and so the interest level is very high. Unfortunately, there are many companies out there trying to capitalize on that interest. The results are over-priced and sub-standard courses.

When you take the time to research the skills that a quality MT needs, it will become evident that a shorter or less comprehensive course of study is not going to give you what you need to succeed in the workplace. Many prospective students who look into very inexpensive fast programs buy into the idea that they can learn medical transcription quickly and then begin making good money right away, but as I think a MT course should offer a prospective MT student is an in-depth, comprehensive program of study including extensive study in every and all subject areas relating to advanced medical transcription and not just the basics.

As an MT student, you are going to have countless questions pertaining to your coursework and a good course needs to provide you with someone who can answer those questions quickly and comprehensively. It is important to know what you are doing wrong and why and what you are doing right. In the workplace an MT needs to work with a high percent of accuracy at between 98-99%. When MTs fall below that accuracy level, they are putting their jobs in risk. In a program, a MT should get immediate feedback on-line after each lesson. In other words, you will have the support of a trained instructor throughout the entire program, and this is imperative for your success.

MT course should offer extensive transcription practice. It is my experience that practice makes perfect. Working MTs come across a variety of difficult accents and medical specialties and without enough practice with real world dictation, the new MT could struggle in the real work environment.

MT course should offer a great deal of real world dictation practice by real doctors. The dictation you will be transcribing comes from a variety of specialties and includes very difficult dictators. It is important to get enough practice while in school so that when you graduate, you will be able to handle the most difficult types of dictation.

Home medical transcription – Redefining flexi-timing.

Flexi-timing is no longer limited to working mothers. Today, more and more professionals are being given the option to work out of home. Software
engineers are already coding from the comfort of their living rooms. Multinationals like IBM and Accenture are also offering their employees the benefits of coming to work only on a few days.

Medical transcription is not new for Indian companies to tie up with hospitals and private physicians in the USA and UK. The idea of earning while working from home so enthralled 32-year-old homeopathy doctor Ravinder Jain that he gave up her modest practice altogether.

Editing transcribed medical notes dictated by doctors in the US allows her to make Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000 per month. To do transcription at home you would need suitable software installed in your home computer and foot pedal.

While people with a science or medical background and a good command over English appear to score over other applicants, almost every company takes its staff through comprehensive training that sometimes lasts for six months. “Awareness of medical knowledge definitely is an edge.

However, there are many medical transcription units in India that also provide placements after training. Proper training of at least six months is a must for anyone desirous of entering this profession

While the company can measure the language skills and concentration levels of the trainee, the trainee can decide whether they find the job interesting enough. Some companies look for medical transcriptionists with experience.

Home Transcription Jobs booming despite of recession

Despite global economic downtrend, the Medical Transcription (MT) industry is looking for a further growth buoyed by a report of the NASSCOM stating that recession has not hit the healthcare industry.

Reverse is the trend in medical transcription outsourcing in the US, which is witnessing agonising attrition in large scale in IT, financial, manufacturing and other sectors.

MT companies in India observe that the demand for medical transcriptionists is great. There is currently a shortage of qualified medical transcriptionists - and demographic trends suggest that the outlook will continue to be favorable for some time to come. Good medical transcriptionists typically have no problem in obtaining and maintaining employment.

“High-speed Internet access and faster, more reliable operating systems have made collaboration and information exchange more efficient than ever before. Technology advances such as these make it possible for us to offer home-based transcriptionists positions to our staff. This enables us to create a pleasant, family-friendly work environment that promotes both productivity and employee satisfaction,” says Anupam Gupta, HR Executive, MTHomeMD.com.

What is medical transcription?

Medical transcription is the process where one accurately and swiftly transcribes medical records dictated by doctors and others, including history and physical reports, clinic notes, office notes, operative reports, consultation notes, discharge summaries, letters, psychiatric evaluations, laboratory reports, x-ray reports and pathology reports.

It involves receiving dictation by tape, digital system or voice file, and using earphones, a foot pedal for start-stop control and a word processing program. It sometimes includes the use of a printer and sometimes a modem. A variety of word-processing systems are used. It requires good listening and language skills, computer skills and knowledge of medical terms.

Advantage of being in India

MEDICAL TRANSCRIPTION AS A PROFESSION

In simple terms, MT is the conversion of doctors’ digitized audio files into text files. The doctor, while examining patients or performing surgery, dictates the details of the procedures into a Dictaphone which is attached to the computers. The data is collected and transferred to the respective Transcription Company in the form of voice files. The Transcription Company downloads these files and transcribes them using sophisticated software. Upon completion, these files are transferred back to the doctors via the Internet. 

Advantage of being in INDIA

1) A virtual 12-hour time zone difference with USA makes it possible for
us to meet the turn-around-time for MT work. Since we work when it
is night in USA, we are able to deliver work faster than Medical
Transcription companies based in USA
2) A huge pool of English speaking and skilled Computer literate
manpower.
3) Cost of employing qualified personnel is much lower than the USA.

Job Profile of Medical Transcriptionist

The primary task of the medical transcriptionist is to transcribe, format and proofread medical records. Medical records for transcription are primarily sourced from the USA. They are outsourced for transcription from a variety of healthcare settings including doctor's offices, private/public hospitals, clinics, laboratories, legal offices, veterinary and medical clinics, research centres. Dictations are done not only by doctors but also by surgeons, nurses pharmacists, therapists, nurses and other paramedical staff. Medical transcriptionists receive the doctor's dictation by tape, digital systems or as a voice data file. Digitised data through the Internet is the most common means of receiving medical data from the USA.

The local transcription company receives the data and they uncompress it. At this point, the medical transcriptionist takes over. Using a suitable word processing programme/application the audio file is transcribed and edited. There are two stages in MT. The first is the actual process of transcription by a medical transcriptionist. This is followed by proofreading and editing. The MT industry employs a number of proofreaders, junior and senior editors as well. Proofreaders and editors perform the following functions:

* Visual proofreading
* Electronic spellcheck
* Grammar check
* Checking for medical inconsistencies and inaccuracies

The medical record - now in text form - is then routed back to the concerned doctor or hospital.

Is Medical transcription on revival ?

Industry players unanimously agree. "The potential is huge," says Vishal Jain, CEO of Delhi-based Rekha Transcription India. All the key medical transcription companies, he notes, have been logging 30-50% growth. "We are all scrambling for capacity and this is because transcription companies in the United States are scrambling for capacity.

Indeed, that's what is driving this growth. While the $12 billion medical transcription industry there (US), is growing at 20%, the growth of employees is only 10%. The industry, says Valuenotes, will grow to $16.8 billion in 2010.

Around 30% of the work is outsourced in the United States, of which around 10-15% comes to India, which offers a huge cost advantage - work here is 30% cheaper.

Medical transcription was among the first IT-enabled services to be outsourced to India. It is the process whereby one transcribes medical records dictated by doctors and others, including history and physical reports. It is in demand in the US as the entire healthcare industry there is based on insurance and detailed medical records are needed for processing these claims.

After a boom in the mid-1990s, when a lot of mom-and-pop shops erupted on the scene, the industry went bust around 2001, following a huge decline in the quality of work.