Medical transcription

The greater majority of MTs presently work from home offices rather than in hospitals, working off-site for "national" transcription services. It is predominantly those nationals located in the United States who are striving to outsource work to other-than-US-based transcriptionists. In outsourcing work to sometimes lesser-qualified and lower-paid non-US MTs, the nationals unfortunately can force US transcriptionists to accept lower rates, at the risk of losing business altogether to the cheaper outsourcing providers. In addition to the low line rates forced on US transcriptionists, US MTs are often paid as ICs (independent contractors); thus, the nationals save on employee insurance and benefits offered, etc. Unfortunately for the state of healthcare-related administrative costs in the United States, in outsourcing, the nationals still charge the hospitals the same rate as they did in the past for highly qualified US transcriptionists but subcontract the work to non-US MTs, keeping the difference as profit. Medical transcription service Medical transcription service

Medical Transcription and Voice Recognition

Medical Transcription and Voice Recognition

According to the U.S. Government Dept. of Labor, the need for transcriptionists to be greater than for other occupations up through 2016: "Employment of medical transcriptionists is projected to grow 14 percent from 2006 to 2016, faster than the average for all occupations. Demand for medical transcription services will be spurred by a growing and aging population.?

The need for transcriptionists will continue until two things happen, neither of which will happen very soon: First, voice recognition (VR) technology must progress far beyond its present level, and second, the vast majority of physicians must adopt that technology.

Voice recognition technology is still in its infancy. I have continually tried the latest and greatest offerings by the software companies. My experience is that even for a person who has a great deal of time and energy to devote, the process of getting the VR software to understand him or her with a high degree of accuracy is difficult in a technical environment.

Unless the person is very careful to enunciate clearly, and also consciously limits the vocabulary in the dictation, there are going to be a lot of mistakes.

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Duties and responsibilities

* Accurately transcribes the patient-identifying information such as name and Medical Record or Social Security Number.
* Transcribes accurately, utilizing correct punctuation, grammar and spelling, and edits for inconsistencies.
* Maintains/consults references for medical procedures and terminology.
* Keeps a transcription log.
* In some countries, MTs may sort, copy, prepare, assemble, and file records and charts (though in the United States (US) the filing of charts and records are most often assigned to Medical Records Techs in Hospitals or Secretaries in Doctor offices).
* Distributes transcribed reports and collects dictation tapes.
* Follows up on physicians' missing and/or late dictation, returns printed or electronic report in a timely fashion (in US Hospital, MT Supervisor performs).
* Performs quality assurance check.
* May maintain disk and disk backup system (in US Hospital, MT Supervisor performs).
* May order supplies and report equipment operational problems (In US, this task is most often done by Unit Secretaries, Office Secretaries, or Tech Support personnel).
* May collect, tabulate, and generate reports on statistical data, as appropriate (in US, generally performed by MT Supervisor).
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Basic MT knowledge, skills and abilities

Basic MT knowledge, skills and abilities
It is no doubt that a medical transcriptionist must have some basic medical knowledge.Since medical transcription job involves recording medical reports of different kinds, he must know these terms, their pronunciation and spellings, and what each term means in the given context. * Knowledge of basic to advanced medical terminology is essential.
* Knowledge of anatomy and physiology.
* Knowledge of disease processes.
* Knowledge of medical style and grammar.
* Average verbal communication skills.
* Above-average memory skills.
* Ability to sort, check, count, and verify numbers with accuracy.
* Demonstrated skill in the use and operation of basic office equipment/computer.
* Ability to follow verbal and written instructions.
* Records maintenance skills or ability.
* Above-average typing skills.
* Knowledge and experience transcribing (from training or real report work) in the Basic Four work types: History and Physical Exam, Consultation, Operative Report, and Discharge Summary.
* Knowledge of and proper application of grammar.
* Knowledge of and use of correct punctuation and capitalization rules.
* Demonstrated MT proficiencies in multiple report types and multiple specialties.
If the person has all the other essential skills needed for a medical transcriptionist, but no understanding of medical terminologies, he can never aspire to be a successful medical transcriptionist. Medical transcription services Medical transcription service

why is medical transcription important?

The documentation of the patient-health care professional encounter takes place for a number of reasons, some of which are given below:

1. Records provide the medical history of the patient enabling health care professionals to administer the best care possible.
2. It is legally mandatory to maintain patient records.
3. Patient records provide the basis for referrals
4. Patient records are the basis on which insurance claims are made
5. Patient records provide evidence in case of malpractice suits.
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Medical Transcription as a Profession

Medical Transcription as Career and The Benefits An individual who performs medical transcription is known as a medical transcriptionist or an MT. An MT is also known as a Medical Language Specialist or MLS. The equipment the MT uses is called a medical transcriber. The individual who performs medical transcription should always be called a "medical transcriptionist." A medical transcriptionist is the person responsible for converting the patient's medical records into text from recorded dictation.The MT business volume is growing by 20% every year whereas the availability of MTs is falling by 8%. As a result the companies in US are now outsouricing the jobs to cater to their ever-increasing demand of quality transcripts. The term transcriber describes the electronic equipment used in performing medical transcription, e.g., a cassette player with foot controls operated by the MT for report playback and transcription. There have been industry discussions centered around whether or not medical transcriptionists should be called something else; no other industry-wide term has been adopted.The present market share of the US medical transcription industry is estimated at US $ 20 billion. Hipaa Compliant Medical transcription services Medical transcription service

About Medical Transcription

Medical transcription can be extremely rewarding and lucrative, but it is also one of the most competitive areas of transcription. Many home medical transcribers start out as medical secretaries so already have the training and experience needed to become home medical transcribers.The term transcript or "report" as it is more commonly called, is used as the name of the document (electronic or physical hard copy) which results from the medical transcription process, normally in reference to the healthcare professional's specific encounter with a patient on a specific date of service. This report is referred to by many as a "medical record". Each specific transcribed record or report, with its own specific date of service, is then merged and becomes part of the larger patient record commonly known as the patient's medical history. This record is often called the patient's chart in a hospital setting. The job title "Medical Transcriptionist" has changed over the years. Originally called "medical steno" and then "medical transcriber," the role of today's medical transcriptionist or medical language specialist continues to evolve with advancements in technology and healthcare documentation. Nevertheless, the goal remains the same: integrity in healthcare documentation.Medical transcription encompasses the MT, performing document typing and formatting functions according to an established criteria or format, transcribing the spoken word of the patient's care information into a written, easily readable form. MT requires correct spelling of all terms and words, (occasionally) correcting medical terminology or dictation errors. MTs also edit the transcribed documents, print or return the completed documents in a timely fashion. All transcription reports must comply with medico-legal concerns, policies and procedures, and laws under patient confidentiality. Hipaa Compliant Medical transcription services Medical transcription service