OmniMD works as an end-to-end solution provider for its clients, providing the most advanced medical transcription services and automated faxing services to ensure greater accuracy and faster delivery cycles. Our state-of-the art medical transcription services setup acts as the backbone for providing record turnaround time and exceptionally high quality in our medical transcription and fax services. This is all part of OmniMD's commitment to offering a complete solution to a physician's practice, with its powerful combination of products and services. Our medical transcription services offer a number of factors that make us the right choice as your preferred medical transcription services provider:
Fax Services
OmniMD offers a Fax Service, which automatically faxes transcribed reports to attending or referral physicians as required. It relieves the office staff of the time-consuming process of sending faxes manually.
Quick Turnaround Time
The medical transcription services maintain an average turn-around time of 12 hrs from receiving the voice files till completion and attaching the transcriptions to Patient's electronic medical records. Depending on the client requirements the system provides the option of having turn around time as short as four hours.
Ease of Use
The OmniMD medical transcription workflow management system has been designed as intuitive and easy to use. With this simplicity in design, an average of one hour is enough for a user to learn and independently start managing the system.
Complete Security and Integrity
OmniMD safeguards client data and information with HIPAA complaint communication protocols, 128-bit encryption and public key authentication. As per the HIPAA norms of strong grade encryption and authentication, OmniMD meets all the regulatory requirements enabling security and confidentiality.
Client Confidentiality
OmniMD maintains client confidentiality contracts wherein all patient data, medical reports, physician lists are guarded as the sole proprietary records of the client and cannot be divulged or duplicated.
Quality Standards
OmniMD strives to maintain the highest quality norms with an objective of exceeding customer expectations while providing medical transcription services. OmniMD guarantees 98.5% quality assurance standards to the client.
Optimal Pricing
OmniMD charges based on line counts instead of number of characters, and hence charging fair rates as per the acutal number of lines and not characters in the transcribed report.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Career in Medical Transcription
Eligibility
It does not require specialised IT skills but it requires primary skills like good listening and language skills and knowledge of medical terms. Fluency in English, especially understanding of American way of speech and accent is a must to be in this field.
However, an ideal qualification for a medical transcriptionist is Graduation with English comprehension skill and undergoing a training course in MT is an added advantage. Further, the candidate should be able to quickly develop new skills and adjust with the different accents and diction. Throughout the career as a medical transcriptionist one would need to keep up with changes in medical terminologies, medical procedures etc. and have the ability to detect medical inconsistencies in dictation and fix poor grammar and syntax. One must also have patience, as the work may get monotonous and repetitive. Regular comprehensive quality training is necessary to be successful in this field.
Job Prospects & Career Options
In India, lot of companies in the metros and major cities have ventured into the field. Since the job requires experience, these companies are expected to recruit a lot of people as trainees and then develop their skills so that they become experts in this field. Induj Infotech Ltd. of the S. Kumar group based in Mumbai, Infoscript Services Pvt. Ltd. in Bangalore, Webcom Infotech Ltd. in Mumbai, Pioneer Transcription Systems in Delhi etc are some of the companies in MT.
There are lots of options available in the field abroad. One may choose to work from home for yourself. Another option would be to work outside your home in a hospital or for a medical transcription service. Other options include working in a doctor's office, insurance company, attorney's office, or a company marketing medical products or a medical book publishing company.
Remuneration
It is a lucrative career with lot of benefits. At entry level medical transcriptionist is paid around Rs. 5000/- per month, which can exceed to Rs. 20000/- per month with two years, depending on their capabilities. There are also additional perks and performance incentives. Usually there are editors who help the transcriptionists in their work. If the MTs can become independent and do editors work also they have better prospects to earn more. With experience one can move on to becoming a supervisor, editor, trainer or manager of a medical transcription unit.
It does not require specialised IT skills but it requires primary skills like good listening and language skills and knowledge of medical terms. Fluency in English, especially understanding of American way of speech and accent is a must to be in this field.
However, an ideal qualification for a medical transcriptionist is Graduation with English comprehension skill and undergoing a training course in MT is an added advantage. Further, the candidate should be able to quickly develop new skills and adjust with the different accents and diction. Throughout the career as a medical transcriptionist one would need to keep up with changes in medical terminologies, medical procedures etc. and have the ability to detect medical inconsistencies in dictation and fix poor grammar and syntax. One must also have patience, as the work may get monotonous and repetitive. Regular comprehensive quality training is necessary to be successful in this field.
Job Prospects & Career Options
In India, lot of companies in the metros and major cities have ventured into the field. Since the job requires experience, these companies are expected to recruit a lot of people as trainees and then develop their skills so that they become experts in this field. Induj Infotech Ltd. of the S. Kumar group based in Mumbai, Infoscript Services Pvt. Ltd. in Bangalore, Webcom Infotech Ltd. in Mumbai, Pioneer Transcription Systems in Delhi etc are some of the companies in MT.
There are lots of options available in the field abroad. One may choose to work from home for yourself. Another option would be to work outside your home in a hospital or for a medical transcription service. Other options include working in a doctor's office, insurance company, attorney's office, or a company marketing medical products or a medical book publishing company.
Remuneration
It is a lucrative career with lot of benefits. At entry level medical transcriptionist is paid around Rs. 5000/- per month, which can exceed to Rs. 20000/- per month with two years, depending on their capabilities. There are also additional perks and performance incentives. Usually there are editors who help the transcriptionists in their work. If the MTs can become independent and do editors work also they have better prospects to earn more. With experience one can move on to becoming a supervisor, editor, trainer or manager of a medical transcription unit.
Introduction to Medical Transcription
Medical Transcription is one of the fastest growing fields in health care. Medical Transcriptionists are in demand in Western countries especially in the US where the entire healthcare industry is based on insurance and detailed medical records are needed for processing insurance claims. Medical transcription could be one of the speedy growing IT enabled service in India also, with the rapid change in the outlook in Indian healthcare and privatization of the insurance sector. India provides an ideal location for conducting medical transcription with the large population of educated English speaking people and the comparative low cost which encourages companies abroad to outsource their work to the Indian Medical Transcription field.
Medical transcription is an interesting and challenging career. It is the process whereby 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. M.T. or Medical Transcriptionist is a person who assists physicians and specialty surgeons usually by transcribing, formatting, and proof reading their dictated medically oriented report of a patient's health history. This dictation covers pretty much everything that takes place between the health care provider and the patient. Usually, the information dictated by doctors is recorded either into tape or onto digital voice processing systems. The process of medical transcription is transferring this information using word processing. Transcription services range from small, one-person home-based businesses to sophisticated, high-tech corporations which employ transcriptionists. Some medical transcription services now employ both 'on-site' and home-based medical transcriptionists. Medical transcription services serve client hospitals throughout the nation and abroad.
In India there was a boom in this industry couple of years back with a lot of companies and training institutes entering this field. Most companies except a few could not survive due to lack of proper training and understanding of this comparatively new concept in India. By improving the work standards and quality of service, India has a wide scope for capturing the huge clientele in the US and provide employment opportunities to the huge mass of English speaking and computer literate people in the country. The success of the surviving companies proves that Medical transcription can hold a vital link in altering the Indian job scenario.
Medical transcription is an interesting and challenging career. It is the process whereby 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. M.T. or Medical Transcriptionist is a person who assists physicians and specialty surgeons usually by transcribing, formatting, and proof reading their dictated medically oriented report of a patient's health history. This dictation covers pretty much everything that takes place between the health care provider and the patient. Usually, the information dictated by doctors is recorded either into tape or onto digital voice processing systems. The process of medical transcription is transferring this information using word processing. Transcription services range from small, one-person home-based businesses to sophisticated, high-tech corporations which employ transcriptionists. Some medical transcription services now employ both 'on-site' and home-based medical transcriptionists. Medical transcription services serve client hospitals throughout the nation and abroad.
In India there was a boom in this industry couple of years back with a lot of companies and training institutes entering this field. Most companies except a few could not survive due to lack of proper training and understanding of this comparatively new concept in India. By improving the work standards and quality of service, India has a wide scope for capturing the huge clientele in the US and provide employment opportunities to the huge mass of English speaking and computer literate people in the country. The success of the surviving companies proves that Medical transcription can hold a vital link in altering the Indian job scenario.
Monday, January 29, 2007
What is medical transcription, how is it done, and what does it pay
Medical transcription is the process whereby 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 ear phones, a foot pedal for start-stop control and a word processing program. A variety of word-processing systems are used. It requires good listening and language skills, computer skills and knowledge of medical terms.
Several dictionaries are necessary: Medical definitions, medications, medical terms by specialty, laboratory terms, surgical terms and abbreviations. Specialized word lists are also helpful, and journals and computer networking are helpful for current information about new medications and terms. Transcription is done more efficiently with the use of a medical spellchecker and an extensive abbreviation system such as Instant Text or Smartype.
As an employee in an office or hospital, transcriptionists may be paid by the hour. In the year 2000 in the United States, a starting transcriptionist in an office may make the equivalent of $8-12 per hour. After two years of experience, one can expect to make the equivalent of $12-20 per hour in an office. National transcription companies usually require 1-5 years of hospital experience.
Statutory employee status is the same as independent contractor except that the company pays half of the FICA tax (about 7.5%) and withholds the other half. Independent contractors pay the 15% as self-employment tax. Self-employed transcriptionists provide their own benefits. They may start at the equivalent of $10-15 per hour (7-14c per line), and within several years can expect to earn $15-40 per hour, depending upon the type of work and equipment used. Quarterly payments on taxes and self-employment taxes are required. Equipment expenses are tax deductible, including a percentage of home expenses if working at home.
It involves receiving dictation by tape, digital system or voice file, and using ear phones, a foot pedal for start-stop control and a word processing program. A variety of word-processing systems are used. It requires good listening and language skills, computer skills and knowledge of medical terms.
Several dictionaries are necessary: Medical definitions, medications, medical terms by specialty, laboratory terms, surgical terms and abbreviations. Specialized word lists are also helpful, and journals and computer networking are helpful for current information about new medications and terms. Transcription is done more efficiently with the use of a medical spellchecker and an extensive abbreviation system such as Instant Text or Smartype.
As an employee in an office or hospital, transcriptionists may be paid by the hour. In the year 2000 in the United States, a starting transcriptionist in an office may make the equivalent of $8-12 per hour. After two years of experience, one can expect to make the equivalent of $12-20 per hour in an office. National transcription companies usually require 1-5 years of hospital experience.
Statutory employee status is the same as independent contractor except that the company pays half of the FICA tax (about 7.5%) and withholds the other half. Independent contractors pay the 15% as self-employment tax. Self-employed transcriptionists provide their own benefits. They may start at the equivalent of $10-15 per hour (7-14c per line), and within several years can expect to earn $15-40 per hour, depending upon the type of work and equipment used. Quarterly payments on taxes and self-employment taxes are required. Equipment expenses are tax deductible, including a percentage of home expenses if working at home.
Spectrum Medical Transcription Services
Our Service Offerings Include:
* HIPAA Compliant Medical Transcription Services
* Electronic Medical Record (EMR) Solution
* Customizing & Maintaining EMR For Your Practice
* Record Conversion & Migration
* Total Dictation & Transcription Solution
HIPAA Compliant Medical Transcription Services
Our service offers a number of significant factors that make us an excellent choice as your next medical transcription provider (www.spectramedi.com). Quality, price within your budget, and deliverability have made us one of the leading medical transcription services in the US for discerning medical professionals.
We believe accuracy and attention to every detail are the most important factors in determining to whom you will entrust your medical transcription. Variation in speech patterns, various English accents and dialects, as well as continuous development in the lexicon of medicine and technology require the specialized expertise we have to assure transcription accuracy.
Of course, price is another major consideration. We have documented proof that every medical practice that has switched to SpectraMedi (medical transcription) over the years has saved from 20% to 50% of their previous annualized bill (compared with the same volume).
Almost without exception, all of our present medical clientele initially thought our price was higher than what they were then paying. To learn more about Billing Ethics and Standards, visit our Billing Rate section. To learn more about how our Dictation/Medical Transcription process works, read our "How It Works" section.
Our team has a wide range of expertise in: Operative Reports, Discharge Summaries, H&P's, Consultations, Emergency Room Care and Radiology. Additional areas of expertise are Plastic Surgery, General/Vascular Surgery, Neurosurgery/Neurology, Radiation-Oncology, Orthopedics, Dermatology, Gastroenterology, Urology, Cardiology, OB/GYN, Ophthalmology, Otorhinolaryngology, Internal Medicine, Geriatrics and Family Medicine.
By outsourcing transcription to us, your work is done by some of the finest "ears" in the business. All work performed by our highly skilled and experienced transcriptionists is reviewed, proofread, and verified using the latest medical resources to ensure accuracy.
Electronic Medical Record (EMR) Solution
SpectraMedi offers a simple and user-friendly EMR Solution as an ASP application. You will not require any expensive hardware or software to use this service. We can customize this application to fit your special needs. This application runs on a secure Unix server with a transaction-based ODBC compliant database which can handle terabytes of data. You will enjoy the stability and strong security features of Unix and it is administered by our staff from our location. All you need is a Windows-based PC with Internet connection to use this service.
Customize & Maintain EMR For Your Practice
Obviously, there are many companies trying to sell you EMR software. You may have already purchased or plan to purchase an EMR program. But, the real question is, who will create and maintain your EMR system?. Who will input all your old transcriptions in paper form, or in WordPerfect or in any form for that matter, into this EMR? Who will add all your new transcriptions to your EMR system? Who will upkeep and maintain your system? Can these Windows-based (Harley engine installed on a bike frame) servers effectively handle all your data for years to come? Is your preferred EMR software ODBC compliant so that you can migrate your patient records to future systems? Can it convert your MS Word documents to other formats such as PDF? Who will back-up your data? Whom do you call for support? SpectraMedi! All practices agree that medical transcription is the most significant part of EMR. For years, we have painstakingly input all clients' transcriptions, both old and new, into our EMR software. Our EMR allows you to add, edit, delete records, notes and other attachments. Documents are optionally converted into PDF with electronic signature which can then be e-mailed as password-protected zipped attachments.
Record Conversion & Migration
Our expertise in software development and hardware integration, coupled with our knowledge in the medical field make us the perfect source to convert your paper medical charts and/or WordPerfect documents into a new EMR system. We can provide this service irrespective of which EMR software you use. When it comes to converting your paper-based or other forms of medical records, turn to SpectraMedi for efficient and cost effective solutions.
Total Dictation & Transcription Solution
Do you want to start your own business using our next generation Medical/Legal Transcription solution? Are you the Medical Records Manager in your hospital with hundreds of doctors dictating every minute and transcription support that is unmanageable? Then, you need SpectraMedi's outstanding and complete dictation and transcription management system. To learn more about our solutions and capabilities, read our "products" section.
Apart from providing medical transcription Services, we have developed a host of products and services that act as an aid to Transcription. Our list of products include software components that can effectively handle the data from the moment of dictation to the final delivery of transcribed files to be preserved as medical records. Spectrum has developed software that enables people and organizations to capture voice files, transform them into small digital packages and send them instantly anywhere in the world via the Internet or any other computer network. Spectrum Software Solutions (our parent company) is a fast growing system integrator and software developer. Spectrum is an accredited IBM Lotus business partner and approved Allaire ColdFusion development partner. We have extensive experience in developing applications for various medical/hospital uses. We are also an authorized reseller for various hardware products including IBM, HP, Cisco Systems, BCB and Compaq.
http://www.spectrum.net.in/medicaltranscription.htm
* HIPAA Compliant Medical Transcription Services
* Electronic Medical Record (EMR) Solution
* Customizing & Maintaining EMR For Your Practice
* Record Conversion & Migration
* Total Dictation & Transcription Solution
HIPAA Compliant Medical Transcription Services
Our service offers a number of significant factors that make us an excellent choice as your next medical transcription provider (www.spectramedi.com). Quality, price within your budget, and deliverability have made us one of the leading medical transcription services in the US for discerning medical professionals.
We believe accuracy and attention to every detail are the most important factors in determining to whom you will entrust your medical transcription. Variation in speech patterns, various English accents and dialects, as well as continuous development in the lexicon of medicine and technology require the specialized expertise we have to assure transcription accuracy.
Of course, price is another major consideration. We have documented proof that every medical practice that has switched to SpectraMedi (medical transcription) over the years has saved from 20% to 50% of their previous annualized bill (compared with the same volume).
Almost without exception, all of our present medical clientele initially thought our price was higher than what they were then paying. To learn more about Billing Ethics and Standards, visit our Billing Rate section. To learn more about how our Dictation/Medical Transcription process works, read our "How It Works" section.
Our team has a wide range of expertise in: Operative Reports, Discharge Summaries, H&P's, Consultations, Emergency Room Care and Radiology. Additional areas of expertise are Plastic Surgery, General/Vascular Surgery, Neurosurgery/Neurology, Radiation-Oncology, Orthopedics, Dermatology, Gastroenterology, Urology, Cardiology, OB/GYN, Ophthalmology, Otorhinolaryngology, Internal Medicine, Geriatrics and Family Medicine.
By outsourcing transcription to us, your work is done by some of the finest "ears" in the business. All work performed by our highly skilled and experienced transcriptionists is reviewed, proofread, and verified using the latest medical resources to ensure accuracy.
Electronic Medical Record (EMR) Solution
SpectraMedi offers a simple and user-friendly EMR Solution as an ASP application. You will not require any expensive hardware or software to use this service. We can customize this application to fit your special needs. This application runs on a secure Unix server with a transaction-based ODBC compliant database which can handle terabytes of data. You will enjoy the stability and strong security features of Unix and it is administered by our staff from our location. All you need is a Windows-based PC with Internet connection to use this service.
Customize & Maintain EMR For Your Practice
Obviously, there are many companies trying to sell you EMR software. You may have already purchased or plan to purchase an EMR program. But, the real question is, who will create and maintain your EMR system?. Who will input all your old transcriptions in paper form, or in WordPerfect or in any form for that matter, into this EMR? Who will add all your new transcriptions to your EMR system? Who will upkeep and maintain your system? Can these Windows-based (Harley engine installed on a bike frame) servers effectively handle all your data for years to come? Is your preferred EMR software ODBC compliant so that you can migrate your patient records to future systems? Can it convert your MS Word documents to other formats such as PDF? Who will back-up your data? Whom do you call for support? SpectraMedi! All practices agree that medical transcription is the most significant part of EMR. For years, we have painstakingly input all clients' transcriptions, both old and new, into our EMR software. Our EMR allows you to add, edit, delete records, notes and other attachments. Documents are optionally converted into PDF with electronic signature which can then be e-mailed as password-protected zipped attachments.
Record Conversion & Migration
Our expertise in software development and hardware integration, coupled with our knowledge in the medical field make us the perfect source to convert your paper medical charts and/or WordPerfect documents into a new EMR system. We can provide this service irrespective of which EMR software you use. When it comes to converting your paper-based or other forms of medical records, turn to SpectraMedi for efficient and cost effective solutions.
Total Dictation & Transcription Solution
Do you want to start your own business using our next generation Medical/Legal Transcription solution? Are you the Medical Records Manager in your hospital with hundreds of doctors dictating every minute and transcription support that is unmanageable? Then, you need SpectraMedi's outstanding and complete dictation and transcription management system. To learn more about our solutions and capabilities, read our "products" section.
Apart from providing medical transcription Services, we have developed a host of products and services that act as an aid to Transcription. Our list of products include software components that can effectively handle the data from the moment of dictation to the final delivery of transcribed files to be preserved as medical records. Spectrum has developed software that enables people and organizations to capture voice files, transform them into small digital packages and send them instantly anywhere in the world via the Internet or any other computer network. Spectrum Software Solutions (our parent company) is a fast growing system integrator and software developer. Spectrum is an accredited IBM Lotus business partner and approved Allaire ColdFusion development partner. We have extensive experience in developing applications for various medical/hospital uses. We are also an authorized reseller for various hardware products including IBM, HP, Cisco Systems, BCB and Compaq.
http://www.spectrum.net.in/medicaltranscription.htm
Friday, January 26, 2007
An MT’s secret weapon
It is no secret anymore, MTs are able to do 1000 to 1500 lines per day (eight-hour shift), I even know one who is able to do three times more than that in a shorter period of time and believe me, he is as normal a human as we all are. His secret? No, not his shampoo, it is what we MTs call shortcuts or abbreviations.
When I started training would-be MTs more than three years ago, the question that most of them wanted to know was how a non-keyboardist, as most of them were during that time, can type 1000 to 1500 lines per day in an eight-hour shift. For someone who is new with keyboarding, they find this ridiculous and seemingly impossible. Ridiculous because they would question the accuracy of the report of someone who is typing away with the speed of Flash Gordon and seemingly impossible since they really only have less than eight hours since they still have to take their meal breaks, smoking breaks, powder breaks, bladder breaks, etc. But an MT-wannabee who would want to reach their productivity goals much sooner would have to religiously use the MT’s secret weapon. I sound as if we belong in a secret service. Well we do have special investigative skills and special weapons and we do interrogate (not directly though) our subjects and we keep things highly confidential, so I could definitely say that MTs belong to the Secret Intelligence Service, and if James Bond has a license to kill, then we MTs have license to (help) heal. And if James Bond has a favorite weapon, so do we. It may come in different forms and brands but they all do the same for me, kill those difficult-to-type lengthy words and make it simple ones thereby producing more lines in a shorter period of time.
MTs kill? Well, more like MT skill. Let me show you how.
If an MT was to type the word ESOPHAGO-GASTRODUODENOSCOPY or STERNOCLEIDOMASTOID or SALPHINGO-OOPHORECTOMY (whew!), every time the dictator would mention these tongue twisters in a report, there is always the possibility that you might spell it wrong or it may take you a whole minute to type just one of them. Productive? Definitely not! There is a multitude of words, terminologies and phrases that are such finger-twisters as they are also tongue-tiers that it will frustrate any MT typing them every time. But with the skill an MT should have acquired, and of course the secret weapon that we have, one would have to type only the abbreviated forms of these words and phrases and it will spellout with correct spelling and no faltering when typing and checking any longer as they did before. You can even do this with one whole paragraph or even a whole report given that it is a usual dictation of a dictator like a usual operative procedure or physical examination. Dictators can only use so much terminology for an MT not to make an abbreviated form and make transcribing faster and more accurate. This would mean less time being devoted to checking the spelling as most of the entries would be encoded by the MT themselves.
There are several softwares available. You may search for this through the internet or if you are using a Microsoft OS then your PC has its own capability of programming abbreviated shortcuts. For Windows XP, in your toolbar section, go to TOOLS and then AUTOCORRECT OPTIONS and choose AUTOCORRECT. There you would be able to input your own version of abbreviation forms. Make sure that you use the widely accepted forms of abbreviations and to use abbreviations with no similar word spelling and abbreviated forms that you would be able to use and actually remember. It is much better to continue adding your shortcuts or abbreviations while you are doing actual files for immediate recall of usual terminology and phrases. You can edit or enhance your abbreviations during your free time. Be careful when choosing abbreviated forms for your words and phrases make sure that these are unique and have no other word representation.
For example, to minimize typing a period with the medical abbreviations that we use, like p.r.n. or b.i.d. everytime, I used prn2 to spellout p.r.n. or bid2 to spellout b.i.d. Take note that bid is a word as it is, so I added a 2 after the word “bid” to differentiate this to the actual word “bid” when typing it. Choose abbreviations that you will recall whenever you hear the words or phrases.
These are just some of the words and phrases I use for transcription:
tp the patient
hpn hypertension
wn well-nourished
ctab clear to auscultation bilaterally.
aaox3 alert, awake and oriented times three.
pe PE
pe2 physical examination
pe3 pulmonary emphysema
pe4 pulmonary edema
hos hospital
hosj hospitalization
TIP: If the abbreviation has a number of other different meaning, just keep on adding a number after each abbreviation giving importance to the most commonly used abbreviations by assigning them the first few numbers and take it from there.
Remember, you will be the one to use these abbreviations, so make sure you use abbreviations that will suit your style and needs, and of course, that you will remember. Keep using them for recall and in no time you will be happily transcribing your way to the bank with your productivity!
When I started training would-be MTs more than three years ago, the question that most of them wanted to know was how a non-keyboardist, as most of them were during that time, can type 1000 to 1500 lines per day in an eight-hour shift. For someone who is new with keyboarding, they find this ridiculous and seemingly impossible. Ridiculous because they would question the accuracy of the report of someone who is typing away with the speed of Flash Gordon and seemingly impossible since they really only have less than eight hours since they still have to take their meal breaks, smoking breaks, powder breaks, bladder breaks, etc. But an MT-wannabee who would want to reach their productivity goals much sooner would have to religiously use the MT’s secret weapon. I sound as if we belong in a secret service. Well we do have special investigative skills and special weapons and we do interrogate (not directly though) our subjects and we keep things highly confidential, so I could definitely say that MTs belong to the Secret Intelligence Service, and if James Bond has a license to kill, then we MTs have license to (help) heal. And if James Bond has a favorite weapon, so do we. It may come in different forms and brands but they all do the same for me, kill those difficult-to-type lengthy words and make it simple ones thereby producing more lines in a shorter period of time.
MTs kill? Well, more like MT skill. Let me show you how.
If an MT was to type the word ESOPHAGO-GASTRODUODENOSCOPY or STERNOCLEIDOMASTOID or SALPHINGO-OOPHORECTOMY (whew!), every time the dictator would mention these tongue twisters in a report, there is always the possibility that you might spell it wrong or it may take you a whole minute to type just one of them. Productive? Definitely not! There is a multitude of words, terminologies and phrases that are such finger-twisters as they are also tongue-tiers that it will frustrate any MT typing them every time. But with the skill an MT should have acquired, and of course the secret weapon that we have, one would have to type only the abbreviated forms of these words and phrases and it will spellout with correct spelling and no faltering when typing and checking any longer as they did before. You can even do this with one whole paragraph or even a whole report given that it is a usual dictation of a dictator like a usual operative procedure or physical examination. Dictators can only use so much terminology for an MT not to make an abbreviated form and make transcribing faster and more accurate. This would mean less time being devoted to checking the spelling as most of the entries would be encoded by the MT themselves.
There are several softwares available. You may search for this through the internet or if you are using a Microsoft OS then your PC has its own capability of programming abbreviated shortcuts. For Windows XP, in your toolbar section, go to TOOLS and then AUTOCORRECT OPTIONS and choose AUTOCORRECT. There you would be able to input your own version of abbreviation forms. Make sure that you use the widely accepted forms of abbreviations and to use abbreviations with no similar word spelling and abbreviated forms that you would be able to use and actually remember. It is much better to continue adding your shortcuts or abbreviations while you are doing actual files for immediate recall of usual terminology and phrases. You can edit or enhance your abbreviations during your free time. Be careful when choosing abbreviated forms for your words and phrases make sure that these are unique and have no other word representation.
For example, to minimize typing a period with the medical abbreviations that we use, like p.r.n. or b.i.d. everytime, I used prn2 to spellout p.r.n. or bid2 to spellout b.i.d. Take note that bid is a word as it is, so I added a 2 after the word “bid” to differentiate this to the actual word “bid” when typing it. Choose abbreviations that you will recall whenever you hear the words or phrases.
These are just some of the words and phrases I use for transcription:
tp the patient
hpn hypertension
wn well-nourished
ctab clear to auscultation bilaterally.
aaox3 alert, awake and oriented times three.
pe PE
pe2 physical examination
pe3 pulmonary emphysema
pe4 pulmonary edema
hos hospital
hosj hospitalization
TIP: If the abbreviation has a number of other different meaning, just keep on adding a number after each abbreviation giving importance to the most commonly used abbreviations by assigning them the first few numbers and take it from there.
Remember, you will be the one to use these abbreviations, so make sure you use abbreviations that will suit your style and needs, and of course, that you will remember. Keep using them for recall and in no time you will be happily transcribing your way to the bank with your productivity!
MT is for me, is it for you
Is Medical Transcription For You?
You can usually find these ads in huge billboards along EDSA and the classified ads section of your favorite broadsheet almost every Sunday, the promise of earning BIG amount of money working at home as an MT. But is it true? Are people making P50,000 to P70,000 a month in medical transcription? The truth of the matter is, YES, there are some people who are indeed making good money in medical transcription from home. But what the ads fail to inform us is that before they became home-based MTs, they were previously employed in a corporate setting and earned the quality and productivity one needs to be able to work from home. Quality is by far the foremost requirement in any MT company, but what they also fail to divulge is that you should be able to do a certain number of lines before you can confidently say that you can earn as much as these home-based MTs. For example, if you are only able to do around 350 to 400 lines and would want to work at home, you think that these lines are enough for you to earn let’s say P50,000? Think again! Your lines per day may not even be enough to pay for your DSL connection, computer maintenance, electricity, and other daily expenses. You need at least 1000 lines a day, six days a week before you can confidently claim to earn what an experienced MT is earning in a home-based setting.
Another factor to consider is how often you are able to work as a home-based MT. We must always put in mind that working at home is STILL WORK. You still have to turn in an equitable amount of time to be able to earn. Cooking, laundry and taking care of the baby amongst other chores at home is not part of your working time and should be planned well so as not to affect your turn around time and productivity. In a corporate setting, if you do not feel well and would have to absent yourself from work, you just have to inform your office and file a sick leave (if you still have leave credits) and still get paid. But in a home-based setting, if you get sick and unable to work, you don’t get paid and what’s more, if you are a habitual procrastinator your account might not last long with you and leave you with no work at all, what then? Also, MT work is seasonal in that it varies in terms of health-care utilization whatever the weather. What if your account has a high utilization only during their summer season, what of the other times? Where does that leave you?
All things considered, at the end of the day, what is important is you got into this career because you liked it (I loved it!) and not because of its false promises of earning big.
After all these brouhaha about earning big and being trained for just four months or so . . . what now? Do you now know how it feels to work as an MT? Are you having a difficult time with MT work because you have to listen to this mumbling and fumbling dictators day in and day out, eight-hours a day, six days a week? Do you feel very tired at the end of an 8-hour shift just sitting down and transcribing away on the computer? Were you able to achieve your quota for the day? What about your quality? You think you could do this work at home now? On your own?
Me? I know I can, that is why MT is for ME. What about you?
You can usually find these ads in huge billboards along EDSA and the classified ads section of your favorite broadsheet almost every Sunday, the promise of earning BIG amount of money working at home as an MT. But is it true? Are people making P50,000 to P70,000 a month in medical transcription? The truth of the matter is, YES, there are some people who are indeed making good money in medical transcription from home. But what the ads fail to inform us is that before they became home-based MTs, they were previously employed in a corporate setting and earned the quality and productivity one needs to be able to work from home. Quality is by far the foremost requirement in any MT company, but what they also fail to divulge is that you should be able to do a certain number of lines before you can confidently say that you can earn as much as these home-based MTs. For example, if you are only able to do around 350 to 400 lines and would want to work at home, you think that these lines are enough for you to earn let’s say P50,000? Think again! Your lines per day may not even be enough to pay for your DSL connection, computer maintenance, electricity, and other daily expenses. You need at least 1000 lines a day, six days a week before you can confidently claim to earn what an experienced MT is earning in a home-based setting.
Another factor to consider is how often you are able to work as a home-based MT. We must always put in mind that working at home is STILL WORK. You still have to turn in an equitable amount of time to be able to earn. Cooking, laundry and taking care of the baby amongst other chores at home is not part of your working time and should be planned well so as not to affect your turn around time and productivity. In a corporate setting, if you do not feel well and would have to absent yourself from work, you just have to inform your office and file a sick leave (if you still have leave credits) and still get paid. But in a home-based setting, if you get sick and unable to work, you don’t get paid and what’s more, if you are a habitual procrastinator your account might not last long with you and leave you with no work at all, what then? Also, MT work is seasonal in that it varies in terms of health-care utilization whatever the weather. What if your account has a high utilization only during their summer season, what of the other times? Where does that leave you?
All things considered, at the end of the day, what is important is you got into this career because you liked it (I loved it!) and not because of its false promises of earning big.
After all these brouhaha about earning big and being trained for just four months or so . . . what now? Do you now know how it feels to work as an MT? Are you having a difficult time with MT work because you have to listen to this mumbling and fumbling dictators day in and day out, eight-hours a day, six days a week? Do you feel very tired at the end of an 8-hour shift just sitting down and transcribing away on the computer? Were you able to achieve your quota for the day? What about your quality? You think you could do this work at home now? On your own?
Me? I know I can, that is why MT is for ME. What about you?
MTIAPI gears up its promotion in US market
The Medical Transcription Industry Association of the Philippines (MTIAPI) sustains its active promotion of the industry and the association in the US in its recent participation in the 78th American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) Convention and Exhibit in Denver, Colorado, and Trade Mission in Chicago. Eight medical transcription companies represented MTIAPI where they met American hospitals’ health record managers, medical transcription service providers and vendors offering latest technologies. In its second year at AHIMA, the association achieved its main objectives of establishing stronger branding for the Philippines and linkages with relevant international association. MTIAPI was ably supported by CITEM, BOI, FTSC and CIDA’s PEARL2 Project.
The three-day event at the Colorado Convention Center was participated by Health Records, MS Global, People Support, Pilipinas Data, Rapid Data Services, SPi, Transkripsyo and Total Transcription Solutions, Inc., where more than 300 Health Information Management (HIM) professionals were entertained at the Philippines/MTIAPI booth and met at the forum.
Trade shows are ideal venues to get contacts but sales are not readily generated as constant follow-ups are required. One US Medical Transcription Service Organization (MTSO) met during the show, visited the Philippines the other week to meet with selected MT companies. The MTIAPI expects more leads to come as members’ directory were distributed and a video on the Philippine MT industry ran daily at the booth giving visitors a glimpse of the growing MT industry in the country. The MT forum was attended by US Medical Transcription Industry Association (MTIA) president Sean Carroll, American Association of Medical Trancriptionists (AAMT) executive director Peter Preziosi and SPi’s COO Dave Woodrow as resource speakers.
AHIMA is the premier association of health information management (HIM) professionals. AHIMA’s 50,000 members are dedicated to the effective management of personal health information needed to deliver quality healthcare to the public. It holds an annual national convention of its members where new skills and best practices are taught especially now that health information management is called upon to lead the US health-care industry’s transition to the electronic health record system. It is in this event where developments in coding, transcription, speech recognition and health management systems are launched.
In Chicago, the MTIAPI was represented by yours truly at the Philippine BPO Forum organized by the Philippine Trade Office at the World Trade Center Chicago. Visits to ambulatory clinic, hospice, rehabilitation center and hospitals were made in the Greater Chicago area. These ambulatory centers and hospices do not actually require direct MT services as nurses handle the health monitoring, medical supervision, therapeutic activities of outpatients and send their reports to doctors. However, opportunity arises for companies offering electronic health record system as most of them still maintain manual health records of patients. Important to note is the assistance of Fil-Am doctors and nurses in arranging the mission’s appointments. Our Filipino medical practitioners in the US serving as directors in hospitals and clinics as well as officers of doctors’ associations can be tapped to promote the capability of Philippine firms to provide medical transcription services.
The MTIAPI will continue marketing the Philippines as ideal offshore destination for quality MT services in fora and exhibits to provide such benefits to its members, now totaling 70 companies consisting of MT service organizations and MT training institutions. The association and DTI are planning to organize a trade mission to the Philippines where hospital administrators, officers of medical associations, MT service providers will be invited to see for themselves outsourcing opportunities in the country.
The three-day event at the Colorado Convention Center was participated by Health Records, MS Global, People Support, Pilipinas Data, Rapid Data Services, SPi, Transkripsyo and Total Transcription Solutions, Inc., where more than 300 Health Information Management (HIM) professionals were entertained at the Philippines/MTIAPI booth and met at the forum.
Trade shows are ideal venues to get contacts but sales are not readily generated as constant follow-ups are required. One US Medical Transcription Service Organization (MTSO) met during the show, visited the Philippines the other week to meet with selected MT companies. The MTIAPI expects more leads to come as members’ directory were distributed and a video on the Philippine MT industry ran daily at the booth giving visitors a glimpse of the growing MT industry in the country. The MT forum was attended by US Medical Transcription Industry Association (MTIA) president Sean Carroll, American Association of Medical Trancriptionists (AAMT) executive director Peter Preziosi and SPi’s COO Dave Woodrow as resource speakers.
AHIMA is the premier association of health information management (HIM) professionals. AHIMA’s 50,000 members are dedicated to the effective management of personal health information needed to deliver quality healthcare to the public. It holds an annual national convention of its members where new skills and best practices are taught especially now that health information management is called upon to lead the US health-care industry’s transition to the electronic health record system. It is in this event where developments in coding, transcription, speech recognition and health management systems are launched.
In Chicago, the MTIAPI was represented by yours truly at the Philippine BPO Forum organized by the Philippine Trade Office at the World Trade Center Chicago. Visits to ambulatory clinic, hospice, rehabilitation center and hospitals were made in the Greater Chicago area. These ambulatory centers and hospices do not actually require direct MT services as nurses handle the health monitoring, medical supervision, therapeutic activities of outpatients and send their reports to doctors. However, opportunity arises for companies offering electronic health record system as most of them still maintain manual health records of patients. Important to note is the assistance of Fil-Am doctors and nurses in arranging the mission’s appointments. Our Filipino medical practitioners in the US serving as directors in hospitals and clinics as well as officers of doctors’ associations can be tapped to promote the capability of Philippine firms to provide medical transcription services.
The MTIAPI will continue marketing the Philippines as ideal offshore destination for quality MT services in fora and exhibits to provide such benefits to its members, now totaling 70 companies consisting of MT service organizations and MT training institutions. The association and DTI are planning to organize a trade mission to the Philippines where hospital administrators, officers of medical associations, MT service providers will be invited to see for themselves outsourcing opportunities in the country.
Profile of Philippine medical transcriptionists
The Philippine medical transcription market is one of the fastest rising business process outsourcing (BPO) industries in the country today. It is a part of the top 10 priority growth sectors under the IT-enabled services.
This industry is largely driven in part by its highly skilled work force known as medical transcriptionists, though, more appropriately called as medical language specialists. Now, looking at the numbers and their profile, it is absolutely dynamic how this group of individuals drives this multibillion-dollar industry. I will divide them demographically by gender and age, educational background, medical transcription experience and company tenure.
These figures and categories would mean different things to various people, but more important, I hope to shape an image of the newest type of world-class workforce that Filipinos should be proud of. Starting off with their age, this is generally composed of very young professionals with over 80 percent not more than 30 years old.
It’s a predominantly female environment with over three-fourths of the entire medical transcription population. Though most of the transcriptionists are with medical background, more and more people with no medical background but with strong English foundation and proficiency excel in the industry.
Considered one of the fastest growing sunrise industries, it is evident that the current workforce has no more than two years in experience and company tenure of at least one year. These parameters are a positive indication for would-be medical transcriptionists that they are still a part of the pioneering batch that would cement the Philippines in the medical transcription map.
Now, if one would ask, what do I need to have to become a world- class medical transcriptionist? First and foremost is a well-trained MT brain—something you acquire after being trained by a good methodology, exposure to different work types, various degrees of difficulty of dictations and significant experience in a corporate production setting. Adding to that, one has to have a well-tuned ear, technological savviness, proofreading skills, full understanding of the AAMT style guide, and familiarity with MT productivity tools, patience and keenness to detail—characteristics that are essential in producing accurate transcripts on time, all the time. In a nutshell, these things can all be gained through proper training and significant working experience in a corporate production setting.
The Philippine Medical Transcriptionists are a new breed of world-class Filipino workforce, who, without leaving the country, can definitely contribute in the country’s economic growth. Given these, well, what can I say—a true testament of what Filipinos can truly accomplish and achieve in the local and global arena.
This industry is largely driven in part by its highly skilled work force known as medical transcriptionists, though, more appropriately called as medical language specialists. Now, looking at the numbers and their profile, it is absolutely dynamic how this group of individuals drives this multibillion-dollar industry. I will divide them demographically by gender and age, educational background, medical transcription experience and company tenure.
These figures and categories would mean different things to various people, but more important, I hope to shape an image of the newest type of world-class workforce that Filipinos should be proud of. Starting off with their age, this is generally composed of very young professionals with over 80 percent not more than 30 years old.
It’s a predominantly female environment with over three-fourths of the entire medical transcription population. Though most of the transcriptionists are with medical background, more and more people with no medical background but with strong English foundation and proficiency excel in the industry.
Considered one of the fastest growing sunrise industries, it is evident that the current workforce has no more than two years in experience and company tenure of at least one year. These parameters are a positive indication for would-be medical transcriptionists that they are still a part of the pioneering batch that would cement the Philippines in the medical transcription map.
Now, if one would ask, what do I need to have to become a world- class medical transcriptionist? First and foremost is a well-trained MT brain—something you acquire after being trained by a good methodology, exposure to different work types, various degrees of difficulty of dictations and significant experience in a corporate production setting. Adding to that, one has to have a well-tuned ear, technological savviness, proofreading skills, full understanding of the AAMT style guide, and familiarity with MT productivity tools, patience and keenness to detail—characteristics that are essential in producing accurate transcripts on time, all the time. In a nutshell, these things can all be gained through proper training and significant working experience in a corporate production setting.
The Philippine Medical Transcriptionists are a new breed of world-class Filipino workforce, who, without leaving the country, can definitely contribute in the country’s economic growth. Given these, well, what can I say—a true testament of what Filipinos can truly accomplish and achieve in the local and global arena.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
The professional MT
Medical transcription has been in the Philippines for more than a decade now but it has only been gaining recognition these past few years. That’s due to the fact that more people are starting to become aware of its earning potential. Other than the financial possibilities the medical transcription field offers, people like me, who has been in this industry for quite a while now, are seeking for the recognition of medical transcription as a profession.
A professional medical transcriptionist (MT) is not just someone who has been certified and knows all the ropes of the trade. It is important that they also know how to work, dress and live the part as well. MTs tend to dress themselves down since most of them work in a production facility. An MT environment is, more often than not, set in an informal mood, but MTs should also put into mind that their attitude towards work reflects their level of professionalism. This is very apparent by way of the MT’s behavior towards work—those whom we call “clock watchers” versus those who have no qualms about staying on and finishing the job; those who dress like they are going to a hoedown versus those who are dressed projecting a professional image. Guess who among those described above will be considered and evaluated for the next promotion.
If the company you work for does not have any dress code, you can establish your own by making sure you always wear appropriate clothing for the office. Good taste does not have to be expensive. Wear comfortable but appropriate shoes so as not to damage your pedal and ruin your immaculately pedicured toes and put a strain to your Achilles heel. The way you dress will surely affect your attitude and behavior towards your work and most definitely result in good if not excellent performance.
What if you work from home? If you work from home, certainly a less formal clothing can be an option but dressing up will surely make you feel better about yourself and your attitude toward your work rather than just being in your pajamas the whole day.
A person who would like to project a professional image should always reinforce their attitude with good behavior such as speaking in quiet and professional tones and avoid discussing your transcribed file in public where anyone can overhear you.
No matter how professionally dressed one may be, using vulgar language and boisterous laughter always projects a negative image. Abide by the company policies and procedures and deal with problems through the proper channel and not through hearsay. Our interaction with the other departments in the company or to our client will help enhance our image as health professionals. How we see ourselves is often influenced by what others think of our work and us. Project a professional image and others will reciprocate the same professionalism that you demonstrate. Be proud that you are a medical transcriptionist, not everyone can be one
A professional medical transcriptionist (MT) is not just someone who has been certified and knows all the ropes of the trade. It is important that they also know how to work, dress and live the part as well. MTs tend to dress themselves down since most of them work in a production facility. An MT environment is, more often than not, set in an informal mood, but MTs should also put into mind that their attitude towards work reflects their level of professionalism. This is very apparent by way of the MT’s behavior towards work—those whom we call “clock watchers” versus those who have no qualms about staying on and finishing the job; those who dress like they are going to a hoedown versus those who are dressed projecting a professional image. Guess who among those described above will be considered and evaluated for the next promotion.
If the company you work for does not have any dress code, you can establish your own by making sure you always wear appropriate clothing for the office. Good taste does not have to be expensive. Wear comfortable but appropriate shoes so as not to damage your pedal and ruin your immaculately pedicured toes and put a strain to your Achilles heel. The way you dress will surely affect your attitude and behavior towards your work and most definitely result in good if not excellent performance.
What if you work from home? If you work from home, certainly a less formal clothing can be an option but dressing up will surely make you feel better about yourself and your attitude toward your work rather than just being in your pajamas the whole day.
A person who would like to project a professional image should always reinforce their attitude with good behavior such as speaking in quiet and professional tones and avoid discussing your transcribed file in public where anyone can overhear you.
No matter how professionally dressed one may be, using vulgar language and boisterous laughter always projects a negative image. Abide by the company policies and procedures and deal with problems through the proper channel and not through hearsay. Our interaction with the other departments in the company or to our client will help enhance our image as health professionals. How we see ourselves is often influenced by what others think of our work and us. Project a professional image and others will reciprocate the same professionalism that you demonstrate. Be proud that you are a medical transcriptionist, not everyone can be one
Training for work scholarship in medical transcription
Medical transcription is one of the top 10 priority growth sectors of the government. The Medical Transcription Industry Association of the Philippines (MTIAPI) has signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) in implementing the Training for Work Scholarship Program (TWSP) to increase and fast track the intake of qualified medical transcriptionists in the country.
The country is being faced with two types of gap—quantity and quality. The presence of such gaps hinders the industry’s growth in the capability to handle large volumes of work, consequently creating an uphill battle for the Philippines as a whole to accommodate new projects and investments.
TWSP provides a free finishing course for medical transcrip-tionists. The course is intended for beginners in medical transcription who have already undergone entry-level MT courses but still need a few more weeks or months of training to be considered a near hire of a Medical Transcription Service Organization (MTSO). This is the government’s response to some of the concerns raised by MT business owners that the limiting factors are first and foremost, sheer number of MT workforce, and second, quality of the work done by the current neophyte MTs. The TWSP envisions that the additional 160 hours of training should be able to improve the skills of beginner MTs and prepare them for actual production work.
Implementing guidelines
1. The MTSO-MTIAPI member with in-house training or the training provider ensures that its organization has a TVET certification/registration with Tesda to qualify for the availment of the training voucher.
2. The MTSO-MTIAPI member submits to MTIAPI list of names of “near-hire scholars,” using Form 1 (personal information sheet) and Form 2 (list of near-hire scholars) on a batch-by-batch basis.
3. MTIAPI submits the duly filled up and signed forms to the Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPAP) for processing.
4. BPAP issues corresponding number of “PGMA Training for Work Scholarship Certificate” (see sample) to MTIAPI according to the number of “near-hire scholars” the MTSOs’ submit.
5. MTIAPI validates and records the number of training vouchers issued by BPAP and releases these vouchers to the MTSO-MTIAPI member.
6. Upon receipt of the vouchers, the MTSO-MTIAPI member schedules the training and conducts the training to the “near-hire scholars.”
7. Upon completion of the training, the MTSO in-house training/training provider submits all documentation requirements to support billing or issuance of statement of account for immediate processing of payment by Tesda. The following are the documentation requirements:
a. Tesda enrollment report
b. Tesda terminal report
c. Billing statement (listing down all the names of the scholars for the batch)
d. Tesda portion of the voucher
e. Tesda employment monitoring form 05-011
8. Tesda issues payment directly to the MTSO in-house training/Training provider upon completion of training of scholar. Tesda pays the MTSO in-house training/training provider directly after five working days after submission of billing.
9. Effectivity date of this project is May 1, 2006, until December 31, 2006, or until all allocated training vouchers for MTIAPI has been consumed, whichever comes first.
http://www.manilatimes.net
The country is being faced with two types of gap—quantity and quality. The presence of such gaps hinders the industry’s growth in the capability to handle large volumes of work, consequently creating an uphill battle for the Philippines as a whole to accommodate new projects and investments.
TWSP provides a free finishing course for medical transcrip-tionists. The course is intended for beginners in medical transcription who have already undergone entry-level MT courses but still need a few more weeks or months of training to be considered a near hire of a Medical Transcription Service Organization (MTSO). This is the government’s response to some of the concerns raised by MT business owners that the limiting factors are first and foremost, sheer number of MT workforce, and second, quality of the work done by the current neophyte MTs. The TWSP envisions that the additional 160 hours of training should be able to improve the skills of beginner MTs and prepare them for actual production work.
Implementing guidelines
1. The MTSO-MTIAPI member with in-house training or the training provider ensures that its organization has a TVET certification/registration with Tesda to qualify for the availment of the training voucher.
2. The MTSO-MTIAPI member submits to MTIAPI list of names of “near-hire scholars,” using Form 1 (personal information sheet) and Form 2 (list of near-hire scholars) on a batch-by-batch basis.
3. MTIAPI submits the duly filled up and signed forms to the Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPAP) for processing.
4. BPAP issues corresponding number of “PGMA Training for Work Scholarship Certificate” (see sample) to MTIAPI according to the number of “near-hire scholars” the MTSOs’ submit.
5. MTIAPI validates and records the number of training vouchers issued by BPAP and releases these vouchers to the MTSO-MTIAPI member.
6. Upon receipt of the vouchers, the MTSO-MTIAPI member schedules the training and conducts the training to the “near-hire scholars.”
7. Upon completion of the training, the MTSO in-house training/training provider submits all documentation requirements to support billing or issuance of statement of account for immediate processing of payment by Tesda. The following are the documentation requirements:
a. Tesda enrollment report
b. Tesda terminal report
c. Billing statement (listing down all the names of the scholars for the batch)
d. Tesda portion of the voucher
e. Tesda employment monitoring form 05-011
8. Tesda issues payment directly to the MTSO in-house training/Training provider upon completion of training of scholar. Tesda pays the MTSO in-house training/training provider directly after five working days after submission of billing.
9. Effectivity date of this project is May 1, 2006, until December 31, 2006, or until all allocated training vouchers for MTIAPI has been consumed, whichever comes first.
http://www.manilatimes.net
Work opportunities in medical transcription
My attention was recently called by some of our colleagues in the industry who had an opportunity to visit a forum on medical transcription. There were quite a number of questions on whether this career is worth spending money to invest in training. Having started as a medical transcriptionist myself after working in a hospital as a nurse and a short stint in teaching clinical nursing, I would like to share my thoughts on some of the questions posted.
Are there really good opportunities in MT?
The demand for medical transcription will continue to increase as the demand for health care rises. Medical transcripts are the source documents and “proofs of work done” to meet US federal and state requirements by medical practitioners, and the basis of patient medical management.
India, Philippines, Pakistan and other countries continue to service US health-care facilities as the demand for electronic conversion of medical records increases by 15 percent to 20 percent every year. The Philippines has, in fact, recognized its potentials by leveraging on the people skills and sophisticated IT infrastructure. There is an apparent dearth in the number of qualified people to do the job. Currently estimated at 6,000 to 7,000, the number of medical transcriptionists needed by the country is forecasted at 100,000 by year 2010.
Is training required to be an MT?
Those who have relegated medical transcription to the “clerical” classification have a basic misunderstanding of the knowledge and skills required for this profession. Although medical transcription is performed using a keyboard—it is not a keyboarding skill. It is a language skill. In order to properly translate and document patient care records, the MT must employ the knowledge of English grammar and usage, understanding of basic anatomy and physiology, disease processes, laboratory medicine, and pharmacology in order to select and use appropriate terminology, since there are many sound-alike words in the medical language. Knowledge of business technology and computer operation is also important. Listening and researching skills are also critical components in the learning process.
The above are the competencies required of a medical transcriptionist. While it is true that people with medical background may have a better chance of learning the competencies, let me share with you the current trend.
Big bucks . . . are they real?
Having the right knowledge, skills and attitude is really important especially when a person is starting in the medical transcription field. Attitude makes a lot of difference. Aiming for the gold mine is not bad if you have all that it takes to deserve it. It is true that medical transcriptionists may earn around P20K to P30K month, maybe more, but I am quite sure these people did not achieve this overnight. All jobs begin as difficult until such time that the ears are used to deciphering difficult accents before considering the work easy to average. Becoming productive in doing such accounts requires a significant amount of discipline, patience, practice, practice and practice. Quality precedes quantity as they say.
Is there an age limit?
While it is true that some medical transcription companies would prefer younger professionals, medical transcription does not prescribe any age limit for as long as the minimum skills are met. One advantage of a younger age group is having a better proficiency in computer operation. On the other hand, the older generation has a better grasp of the English skills compared with the younger age group. Some retired professionals train as medical transcriptionists not to be employed, but to learn the technicalities of how to set up or market the business.
Medical transcription is a difficult, stressful work, but is challenging and fascinating. The income possibilities are good, but only after a significant investment in training and experience. Of course, add the fact that career advancement is indeed fast paced in this industry. My advice to all frustrated graduates is to keep on practicing transcription and never lose the skills you have learned during training.
http://www.manilatimes.net
Are there really good opportunities in MT?
The demand for medical transcription will continue to increase as the demand for health care rises. Medical transcripts are the source documents and “proofs of work done” to meet US federal and state requirements by medical practitioners, and the basis of patient medical management.
India, Philippines, Pakistan and other countries continue to service US health-care facilities as the demand for electronic conversion of medical records increases by 15 percent to 20 percent every year. The Philippines has, in fact, recognized its potentials by leveraging on the people skills and sophisticated IT infrastructure. There is an apparent dearth in the number of qualified people to do the job. Currently estimated at 6,000 to 7,000, the number of medical transcriptionists needed by the country is forecasted at 100,000 by year 2010.
Is training required to be an MT?
Those who have relegated medical transcription to the “clerical” classification have a basic misunderstanding of the knowledge and skills required for this profession. Although medical transcription is performed using a keyboard—it is not a keyboarding skill. It is a language skill. In order to properly translate and document patient care records, the MT must employ the knowledge of English grammar and usage, understanding of basic anatomy and physiology, disease processes, laboratory medicine, and pharmacology in order to select and use appropriate terminology, since there are many sound-alike words in the medical language. Knowledge of business technology and computer operation is also important. Listening and researching skills are also critical components in the learning process.
The above are the competencies required of a medical transcriptionist. While it is true that people with medical background may have a better chance of learning the competencies, let me share with you the current trend.
Big bucks . . . are they real?
Having the right knowledge, skills and attitude is really important especially when a person is starting in the medical transcription field. Attitude makes a lot of difference. Aiming for the gold mine is not bad if you have all that it takes to deserve it. It is true that medical transcriptionists may earn around P20K to P30K month, maybe more, but I am quite sure these people did not achieve this overnight. All jobs begin as difficult until such time that the ears are used to deciphering difficult accents before considering the work easy to average. Becoming productive in doing such accounts requires a significant amount of discipline, patience, practice, practice and practice. Quality precedes quantity as they say.
Is there an age limit?
While it is true that some medical transcription companies would prefer younger professionals, medical transcription does not prescribe any age limit for as long as the minimum skills are met. One advantage of a younger age group is having a better proficiency in computer operation. On the other hand, the older generation has a better grasp of the English skills compared with the younger age group. Some retired professionals train as medical transcriptionists not to be employed, but to learn the technicalities of how to set up or market the business.
Medical transcription is a difficult, stressful work, but is challenging and fascinating. The income possibilities are good, but only after a significant investment in training and experience. Of course, add the fact that career advancement is indeed fast paced in this industry. My advice to all frustrated graduates is to keep on practicing transcription and never lose the skills you have learned during training.
http://www.manilatimes.net
MTIAPI conducts seminar on Medical Transcription
The Medical Transcription Industry Association of the Philippines, Inc. (MTIAPI) successfully conducted its first Capability Building Seminar on Medical Transcription a December 8, at Philippine Trade Training Center, Pasay City. The seminar, aptly titled as Making your MT Business Work—Employing the Best MT Practices to Maximize Business and Profit, was organized by MTIAPI through the assistance of the Board of Investments and the Philippine Trade Training Center, both under the Department of Trade and Industry. The seminar was offered for free, exclusive to MTIAPI members.
Around 68 representatives from MTIAPI member companies, invited guests from partner government agencies, and the academe took part in the event. Relevant topics in the areas of quality assurance, pricing, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), recruitment/training, marketing and an outlook of the US medical transcription industry were discussed during the whole-day activity. The topics proved relevant and helpful especially for start-up companies needing some hand-holding by more established members. It provided helpful insights, tools and valuable information that would indeed help small-scale businesses maximize their operations’ efficiency and guide them in dealing with the clients. The industry leaders and members continuously commit to jointly work together in promoting the country as a global choice for quality medical transcription outsourcing by US clients.
Among the industry experts who shared their insights as resource speakers include Fred Kumetz (E-data), Juanloz Botor (Textswitch, Unlimited, Inc.), Juan Ramon Garcia (E-Scribir), Malu Florendo (MS Global Outsourcing) and Rodella Perez (SPi). The audience learned a lot from the all-out sharing of the featured speakers’ views and practices. The participants are also looking forward to MTIAPI’s future activities.
http://www.manilatimes.net
Medical transcription market: - What is out there and what we can offer
Defining your niche market based on current company capacity and ability to expand, skills inventory of your transcriptionists and editors and technological adaptability is just half of your marketing plan. The other half is marketing your strengths and distinct advantage over the large market of transcription providers.
But before discussing this, let’s see what are we up against in the outsourcing arena. The first is a continued biased perception to outsourcing, second is an existing protectionism attitude and lastly is the requirement for a track record or client list.
The continued bias for outsourcing is slowly being hurdled by the Philippines through its continued excellence in providing quality work and customer support. This perception issue is part of their protectionism attitude and thinking that work being outsourced can never come into par with work done in the US though continued efforts in improving our English proficiency is slowly transcending this thinking. Requirements for track record or client list is generally required for larger accounts and initially you can go into mutually beneficial partnership with larger and more established MT companies or start building your own track record by getting individual doctors from referrals.
Now in marketing your service, it is important to create self-differentiation, to offer uniqueness in the service you offer. The more common vantage points being emphasized in marketing efforts are quality of work, efficiency in turn around, cost effectiveness, work type specialization, ASP transcription and record management platform, and HIPAA compliance. Often self-differentiation starts from the very name the company markets. This will play a large role as potential clients search through the web using key words that they feel they want for the service that they expect. Part of your marketing requirements would be an informative website that contains basic information of the service you are providing. Providing a unique profile would ultimately define your distinct advantage with the other providers. A good website also allows prospective clients to send a file or two to you for actual testing and a comprehensive contact information on how the clients can get in touch with you. Remember that whenever you place a phone number make sure somebody answers the phone and not some recorded voicemail which is not appreciated by clients. Then advertise your website on other related sites where potential clients usually browse through. These are normally medical association official websites, medical organizations, etc. Subscribe to search engines like Yahoo, MSN and Google to increase webpage hits through related searches. Having covered your online presence, you also need to develop other marketing paraphernalia such as brochures and leaflets as well as audiovisual presentations and promotional materials to hand out during your marketing runs on conventions, seminars or related functions where potential clients attend which essentially mean foreign marketing trips to the US. These can also be sent directly to potential clients that you generated either through personal referrals or cold leads that you want to pursue.
Now having all these peripherals ready the first objective is to be able to present your service and establish a relationship with a potential client. Try to gauge the type of service they need and what is important to them. Remember not all clients are looking for the cheapest service available in the market. Some clients value HIPAA compliance, others efficient turn around time and the most common is impeccable quality of transcribed reports. When you have a feel of what they want then impress on them these aspects of your service plus the other added value they will receive from your service.
The final step is to get them to try your service because this will be the most tangible assessment of the client of the type of service you are offering. There are no clear cut guidelines as to the number of files or length of dictation you should receive for testing, but generally it should be anywhere between 10 to 20 files or at least 30 minutes’ worth of dictation. This will give you enough leverage to measure up your own skill and capability to deliver without having to invest a lot of your production time and resources.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
A little reading....A lifetime of profit
Language stripped to its basic essence is not just a means to communicate. More rudimentary than this is its evolutionary advantage. It is what makes man the highest living being of all. Through the course of history, language has been polished, refined and cultivated much like any other aspect of culture and society.
Words form the framework of language and ultimately of communication. This makes it a powerful tool. Medical transcription is essentially a medium of communication. The medical transcript is a link between the doctor and the patient, the patient and the hospital, the patient and insurance companies. A bridging of sorts takes place.
Medical transcription also involves listening acuity, thus making it not only a written form of communication but also a heard form of communication between the physician dictator and the medical transcriptionist. It is imperative therefore that between a good pair of ears there is an alert and deductive mind. Words will not convey a message unless there is a connection and coherence among them.
What is most helpful to medical transcription is a good fund of words, a “treasure house” if you will, where all the shining, glittering goodies are not gems but words. Although in reality there is no direct conversion of words to a specific monetary value, they are wise areas to invest in. How does one invest in words? Simple. READ. Will reading make one a better medical transcriptionist? MOST DEFINITELY! There is nothing that stimulates the mind more than reading. Any reading material, terse or lengthy, as long as intelligent, is a source of a wealth of words. But don’t just read for reading’s sake. Enjoy it and learn from it. For every new word that you encounter, look it up in the dictionary. Know its meaning and pronunciation. Remember the spelling. Use it in a sentence during a conversation. If you cannot remember the meaning, use the thesaurus to find a synonym. The thesaurus, after all, literally means “treasure house.”
For instance, the word “nervous” is synonymous with “agitated,” “panicky,” and “anxious.” A dictation about a patient suffering from generalized anxiety disorder would feel any of these. The dictation may not always contain all, but word association and synonyms and antonyms would help you with your hindsight. You can actually second-guess what the doctor is going to say. Although it is not allowed that the doctor’s words be supplanted with our own, that word you could not decipher from the dictator could be solved by foraging through your memory bank. The more impressive your vocabulary is, the better you will be at anticipation.
Therefore, feed (nurture and nourish) your mind. Do some extra reading (perusing and probing). Befriend (associate and fraternize with) Roget and Webster as well as their Internet counterparts. Investing in all these little extras will, in the long run, amount to a huge advantage not only in medical transcription but also in other areas where communication and proficiency are crucial. Allowing your eyes and mind to immerse in the company of words is personally and professionally enriching and empowering. If you are already doing it, then you are on the track to reap its rewards, if not, then today is the best day to starthttp://www.manilatimes.net
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Medical Transcription School Finding The Right One
Finding the right medical transcription school may be the most important decision you will make in your career. This may seem like a bold statement - especially since, at first glance all medical transcription schools look pretty much the same. But nothing could be further from the truth. There are really only a few medical transcription schools that are truly competency-based. That is, schools that prepare you to get a job upon graduation.
Oh, don’t worry, there are plenty of “diploma mills” out there. The problem is that in this business, a diploma is not what matters. The only thing that matters is whether you can perform the work. And the only way to learn to do the work is to enroll in a top-flight medical transcription school. Taking shortcuts on a fast track to a diploma is a total waste of time and money. Too many people find this out the hard way — and it is a very costly mistake, indeed.
Unfortunately, most people who make that mistake become completely discouraged and disillusioned and just give up, assuming that there is no real opportunity for a career in medical transcription. When the reality is that there are hundreds of unfilled medical transcription job vacancies every day of the year. Right now the medical transcription industry is literally begging for new talent. But medical transcription companies need people that can produce, not people that require a lot of handholding and mentoring.
Oh, don’t worry, there are plenty of “diploma mills” out there. The problem is that in this business, a diploma is not what matters. The only thing that matters is whether you can perform the work. And the only way to learn to do the work is to enroll in a top-flight medical transcription school. Taking shortcuts on a fast track to a diploma is a total waste of time and money. Too many people find this out the hard way — and it is a very costly mistake, indeed.
Unfortunately, most people who make that mistake become completely discouraged and disillusioned and just give up, assuming that there is no real opportunity for a career in medical transcription. When the reality is that there are hundreds of unfilled medical transcription job vacancies every day of the year. Right now the medical transcription industry is literally begging for new talent. But medical transcription companies need people that can produce, not people that require a lot of handholding and mentoring.
What is Medical Transcription
Every time a patient is admitted to a hospital, or is seen in an emergency room, or has an x-ray - anytime there is a patient interaction with a medical professional, doctors dictate (record a voice file) information for a medical record or document.
The medical transcriptionist is the key person who "transcribes" medical information (converts reports from dictated form to written form) to be produced as hard copy or sent to storage in a computer system.
As long as people get sick, injured, or visit medical personnel for other reasons, there will be a job for medical transcriptionists. Medical transcriptionists must know medical terminology thoroughly, must have a command of English grammar, and be efficient with technology, especially the keyboard! Transcriptionists must be able to work independently, know how to research unfamiliar terms and phrases, and be conscientious workers with a good eye for detail.
At Career Step, our emphasis is on preparing you, as a student, to become one of the highest-quality transcriptionists in the industry. There is a strong and growing demand in the industry for excellent transcriptionists. As a Career Step student, you will develop the skills necessary to produce a polished medical document and step into your career with a quality company on graduation.
http://www.careerstep.com
The medical transcriptionist is the key person who "transcribes" medical information (converts reports from dictated form to written form) to be produced as hard copy or sent to storage in a computer system.
As long as people get sick, injured, or visit medical personnel for other reasons, there will be a job for medical transcriptionists. Medical transcriptionists must know medical terminology thoroughly, must have a command of English grammar, and be efficient with technology, especially the keyboard! Transcriptionists must be able to work independently, know how to research unfamiliar terms and phrases, and be conscientious workers with a good eye for detail.
At Career Step, our emphasis is on preparing you, as a student, to become one of the highest-quality transcriptionists in the industry. There is a strong and growing demand in the industry for excellent transcriptionists. As a Career Step student, you will develop the skills necessary to produce a polished medical document and step into your career with a quality company on graduation.
http://www.careerstep.com
Why become an MT
Medical transcriptionists enjoy many benefits, including:
1. Train at home to work at home
2. High demand = High income
3. Growing Market = Job security
4. Flexibility
5. Quality time with family
6. No daycare costs
7. No commute
8. Finish training quickly - Set own pace
9. Comfortable, home-based career
10. Rewarding, interesting work
People become motivated about medical transcription for many different reasons; they become MTs so they can work from home, earn great income, avoid long commutes and costly daycare, have job security in a growing market, or enjoy more quality time with family. Whatever your personal reasons for looking into medical transcription, know that Career Step is your best resource for training, assistance, and support to prepare you to confidently step into a new career as a medical transcriptionist.
Career Step encourages prospective students who may have questions or concerns about becoming a medical transcriptionist to speak one-on-one with an MT from our Office of Admissions & Enrollment by calling toll-free: 1-800-246-STEP (7837) (8am-7pm MST). You may also search for answers to your specific questions on this website.
Sample Case Study - "Common Concerns": One mother of three recently related how she put off enrolling in her online course because she thought she "typed way too slow to be a good medical transcriptionist." At the time she wasn't aware of the rapid improvement most students gain in their typing speeds after they enroll in Career Step's training, which includes a keyboarding improvement unit developed expressly for students who want to improve their typing speed and earnings potential.
Don't let unreasonable worries or concerns hold up your progress towards graduation from Career Step and placement in a rewarding new career; get the answers you need and get started today!
1. Train at home to work at home
Career Step offers quality training that teaches the skills necessary for you to work successfully from home as a medical transcriptionist, using advanced home-based technologies and support. You will learn how to utilize the latest in Internet, remote support, networking, and telecommuting technologies.
Career Step's curriculum prepares you to work at home. We conducted a survey a few years ago across the United States and determined that approximately 83% of all transcriptionists work at home. Unless you have had the advantage of working from your home, you cannot imagine the FREEDOM that such a lifestyle gives you!
Imagine nobody looking over your shoulder. Imagine no limit to your potential. Imagine working a little harder--and making a little more money. Your hard work does not go to pad someone else's pocket! And you don't have to sacrifice what matters most for a great career!
2.High Demand = High Income
In 2002 the U.S. Department of Labor found, "Medical transcriptionists had median hourly earnings of $13.05... The middle 50 percent earned between $10.87 and $15.63. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $9.27, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $17.97."
However, Career Step graduates can earn much more! Some of OUR GRADUATES have averaged between $40 and $50 AN HOUR! Within a short period of employment, MOST of our graduates MAKE MORE THAN $20 AN HOUR!
3.Market Growth = Job Security
The demand for Career Step's trained, at-home medical transcriptionists is at an all-time high and growing! According to the U.S. Department of Labor, "Demand for medical transcriptionists is expected to increase due to rapid growth in health care industries spurred by a growing and aging population."
The U.S. Department of Labor projects 30.3% growth in the number of medical transcriptionist positions between 2000 and 2010. Their report also says, "Contracting out transcription work overseas and advancements in speech-recognition technology are not expected to significantly reduce the need for well-trained medical transcriptionists domestically."
Career Step has been honored as a "Utah Top-100 Fastest Growing Company" 5-Years in a row, as demand for quality graduates grows each year!
4.Flexibility
Career Step enjoys favorable name recognition nationwide, which allows our graduates to seek comfortable employment arrangements.
Medical transcription offers a variety of work and compensation options, many of which can fit your unique needs or situation. You can customize your hours, schedule, etc. with your employer upon graduation. This allows you control over your own life and freedom to do the things you love. If you're a morning person, you could get up early and work in your pajamas! Or whenever is best for you.
When you have the FLEXIBILITY of working at HOME, every day can be different if you want. And any time that you spend typing, you can put a few MORE DOLLARS in your pocket!
5.Quality time with family
Working from home as a medical transcriptionist provides you with the opportunity to earn great income at home, so you don't sacrifice family time and the things that mean the most to you!
6. No daycare costs
If you are like most people, you likely get up early every morning, get dressed, and leave your children in the care of friends, relatives--even total strangers--who you hope and pray are capable, compassionate, and kind. While you go off to a job you don't particularly like. And then the MAJORITY of what you make goes to PAY FOR DAYCARE! The same daycare you would rather not be using in the first place. Because no matter how much you like your daycare center, nobody loves your children as you do. Nobody delights in their achievements, is as patient with their antics, or cares as much about their development as you! Simply put: There's NO SUBSTITUTE for YOU !
Maybe you've already given all that up and now you do stay at home with your family. But you CAN'T MAKE ENDS MEET! You're missing out on essential income, barely getting your bills paid every month, but what if you could HAVE IT ALL? Your family and an INCOME—even a rewarding career?
Enroll in Career Step's medical transcription course to achieve the FREEDOM to be the parent you want to be!
7.No commute
Maybe you've grown accustomed to waking up every morning to drive off to a job you may not particularly like. Perhaps, you have to fight traffic to get there, maybe even sit in gridlock for hours. (That's not at all stressful, right?) All to go and make nowhere near as much money as you're worth. You're overworked and underappreciated. You may have to put up with ridiculous office politics and have somebody constantly looking over your shoulder. Only to get back into your car and spend a chunk of your salary on the gasoline your car burns while you drive home.
There is a better way! Home-based MTs work for top companies and enjoy a rewarding career without the headaches. MTs don't waste time and money commuting to and from work!
8. Complete Training In Relatively Short Period
Most careers require years of schooling and an expensive college degree or advanced degree to earn a reasonable income. Career Step provides you with the opportunity to study at home for a comparatively small investment to prepare you for a rewarding career in a fast-growing industry!
As a Career Step student, you will set your own pace! If you can grab A COUPLE OF HOURS A DAY, five days a week, you can complete your training in just FIVE TO SIX MONTHS, or LESS. If you require more time, your enrollment period lasts for one year, following which extensions are available, if needed.
9.Comfortable, home-based career
Working at home means BEING at home. You can be there for all the important events in your children's lives! When you work at home and set your own schedule you can plan in that quality time that you otherwise wouldn't have. When your work is done you can take your kids to the park, to sporting events, to visit family, to do nothing!
With the flexibility of working at home every day can be different. You won't have to worry about expensive daycare, long commutes to the office, or spending money on a fancy wardrobe. You get to spend your time and money on the thing that really counts... your FAMILY!
10. Rewarding, interesting work
As an MT, you will play a key role in creating accurate medical documents. As such, you will become a medical language specialist, meaning you will learn many fascinating things about science, human biology, physiology, the medical industry, and other interesting subjects.
Like most MTs, you will enjoy your work. It goes by fast, and with computers getting faster and better all the time, you can almost treat your work like a game--except instead of earning points and a higher score you can make more money! The more you type, the more money you will make!
1. Train at home to work at home
2. High demand = High income
3. Growing Market = Job security
4. Flexibility
5. Quality time with family
6. No daycare costs
7. No commute
8. Finish training quickly - Set own pace
9. Comfortable, home-based career
10. Rewarding, interesting work
People become motivated about medical transcription for many different reasons; they become MTs so they can work from home, earn great income, avoid long commutes and costly daycare, have job security in a growing market, or enjoy more quality time with family. Whatever your personal reasons for looking into medical transcription, know that Career Step is your best resource for training, assistance, and support to prepare you to confidently step into a new career as a medical transcriptionist.
Career Step encourages prospective students who may have questions or concerns about becoming a medical transcriptionist to speak one-on-one with an MT from our Office of Admissions & Enrollment by calling toll-free: 1-800-246-STEP (7837) (8am-7pm MST). You may also search for answers to your specific questions on this website.
Sample Case Study - "Common Concerns": One mother of three recently related how she put off enrolling in her online course because she thought she "typed way too slow to be a good medical transcriptionist." At the time she wasn't aware of the rapid improvement most students gain in their typing speeds after they enroll in Career Step's training, which includes a keyboarding improvement unit developed expressly for students who want to improve their typing speed and earnings potential.
Don't let unreasonable worries or concerns hold up your progress towards graduation from Career Step and placement in a rewarding new career; get the answers you need and get started today!
1. Train at home to work at home
Career Step offers quality training that teaches the skills necessary for you to work successfully from home as a medical transcriptionist, using advanced home-based technologies and support. You will learn how to utilize the latest in Internet, remote support, networking, and telecommuting technologies.
Career Step's curriculum prepares you to work at home. We conducted a survey a few years ago across the United States and determined that approximately 83% of all transcriptionists work at home. Unless you have had the advantage of working from your home, you cannot imagine the FREEDOM that such a lifestyle gives you!
Imagine nobody looking over your shoulder. Imagine no limit to your potential. Imagine working a little harder--and making a little more money. Your hard work does not go to pad someone else's pocket! And you don't have to sacrifice what matters most for a great career!
2.High Demand = High Income
In 2002 the U.S. Department of Labor found, "Medical transcriptionists had median hourly earnings of $13.05... The middle 50 percent earned between $10.87 and $15.63. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $9.27, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $17.97."
However, Career Step graduates can earn much more! Some of OUR GRADUATES have averaged between $40 and $50 AN HOUR! Within a short period of employment, MOST of our graduates MAKE MORE THAN $20 AN HOUR!
3.Market Growth = Job Security
The demand for Career Step's trained, at-home medical transcriptionists is at an all-time high and growing! According to the U.S. Department of Labor, "Demand for medical transcriptionists is expected to increase due to rapid growth in health care industries spurred by a growing and aging population."
The U.S. Department of Labor projects 30.3% growth in the number of medical transcriptionist positions between 2000 and 2010. Their report also says, "Contracting out transcription work overseas and advancements in speech-recognition technology are not expected to significantly reduce the need for well-trained medical transcriptionists domestically."
Career Step has been honored as a "Utah Top-100 Fastest Growing Company" 5-Years in a row, as demand for quality graduates grows each year!
4.Flexibility
Career Step enjoys favorable name recognition nationwide, which allows our graduates to seek comfortable employment arrangements.
Medical transcription offers a variety of work and compensation options, many of which can fit your unique needs or situation. You can customize your hours, schedule, etc. with your employer upon graduation. This allows you control over your own life and freedom to do the things you love. If you're a morning person, you could get up early and work in your pajamas! Or whenever is best for you.
When you have the FLEXIBILITY of working at HOME, every day can be different if you want. And any time that you spend typing, you can put a few MORE DOLLARS in your pocket!
5.Quality time with family
Working from home as a medical transcriptionist provides you with the opportunity to earn great income at home, so you don't sacrifice family time and the things that mean the most to you!
6. No daycare costs
If you are like most people, you likely get up early every morning, get dressed, and leave your children in the care of friends, relatives--even total strangers--who you hope and pray are capable, compassionate, and kind. While you go off to a job you don't particularly like. And then the MAJORITY of what you make goes to PAY FOR DAYCARE! The same daycare you would rather not be using in the first place. Because no matter how much you like your daycare center, nobody loves your children as you do. Nobody delights in their achievements, is as patient with their antics, or cares as much about their development as you! Simply put: There's NO SUBSTITUTE for YOU !
Maybe you've already given all that up and now you do stay at home with your family. But you CAN'T MAKE ENDS MEET! You're missing out on essential income, barely getting your bills paid every month, but what if you could HAVE IT ALL? Your family and an INCOME—even a rewarding career?
Enroll in Career Step's medical transcription course to achieve the FREEDOM to be the parent you want to be!
7.No commute
Maybe you've grown accustomed to waking up every morning to drive off to a job you may not particularly like. Perhaps, you have to fight traffic to get there, maybe even sit in gridlock for hours. (That's not at all stressful, right?) All to go and make nowhere near as much money as you're worth. You're overworked and underappreciated. You may have to put up with ridiculous office politics and have somebody constantly looking over your shoulder. Only to get back into your car and spend a chunk of your salary on the gasoline your car burns while you drive home.
There is a better way! Home-based MTs work for top companies and enjoy a rewarding career without the headaches. MTs don't waste time and money commuting to and from work!
8. Complete Training In Relatively Short Period
Most careers require years of schooling and an expensive college degree or advanced degree to earn a reasonable income. Career Step provides you with the opportunity to study at home for a comparatively small investment to prepare you for a rewarding career in a fast-growing industry!
As a Career Step student, you will set your own pace! If you can grab A COUPLE OF HOURS A DAY, five days a week, you can complete your training in just FIVE TO SIX MONTHS, or LESS. If you require more time, your enrollment period lasts for one year, following which extensions are available, if needed.
9.Comfortable, home-based career
Working at home means BEING at home. You can be there for all the important events in your children's lives! When you work at home and set your own schedule you can plan in that quality time that you otherwise wouldn't have. When your work is done you can take your kids to the park, to sporting events, to visit family, to do nothing!
With the flexibility of working at home every day can be different. You won't have to worry about expensive daycare, long commutes to the office, or spending money on a fancy wardrobe. You get to spend your time and money on the thing that really counts... your FAMILY!
10. Rewarding, interesting work
As an MT, you will play a key role in creating accurate medical documents. As such, you will become a medical language specialist, meaning you will learn many fascinating things about science, human biology, physiology, the medical industry, and other interesting subjects.
Like most MTs, you will enjoy your work. It goes by fast, and with computers getting faster and better all the time, you can almost treat your work like a game--except instead of earning points and a higher score you can make more money! The more you type, the more money you will make!
Medical Transcription in the Era of EMR
EMR has revolutionized the healthcare industry in recent times. Many experts felt that EMR & Voice Recognition would totally replace Medical Transcription - however; the industry soon realized that transcription has certain advantages over point & click charting and many physicians preferred to dictate notes rather than document the data at the point of care themselves.
Advantages
Advantages
- Corresponds intuitively to the physician's usual method of working. Dictation remains the most intuitive and least time-consuming means of data entry.
- Physicians can dictate anytime, anywhere using PDA, Dictaphone or telephone at their convenience.
- Providers need not change the way they practice just to accommodate an EMR. EMR can interact with transcription service so that transcriptions can be attached directly into the patient's electronic medical record, if such a facility is provided by the EMR vendor.
- It requires minimal training for physicians.
- Provides expressive power to describe patient's condition and other health related events.
Leeds hospitals to outsource transcription to India
Hospitals in Leeds are the latest medical trusts facing major losses to outsource medical transcription work to India to save nearly one million pounds a year. Around 60 specialist posts are to be abolished as part of the outsourcing. Hospitals in Leeds are reported to be facing debts of 84 million pounds. Several other hospitals in Britain have already outsourced such work to India.
Dave Prentis, general secretary of trade union Unison alleged serious mistakes had been uncovered at hospitals, which had already tried sending work abroad.
Leeds East MP George Mudie said: ‘I am very worried about the security of sending patient information overseas especially as we know that hackers can get into anything on the internet.
‘Also medical secretaries are highly trained in their areas. If there are any queries, they are usually in the same building as the doctor to be able to check. That can’t and won’t happen if the person typing is in India or anywhere else.’
Medical secretaries at St James’s and Leeds General hospitals earn around 20,000 pound a year. Similar work is undertaken in India for as little as 44 pence an hour.
Dave Prentis, general secretary of trade union Unison alleged serious mistakes had been uncovered at hospitals, which had already tried sending work abroad.
Leeds East MP George Mudie said: ‘I am very worried about the security of sending patient information overseas especially as we know that hackers can get into anything on the internet.
‘Also medical secretaries are highly trained in their areas. If there are any queries, they are usually in the same building as the doctor to be able to check. That can’t and won’t happen if the person typing is in India or anywhere else.’
Medical secretaries at St James’s and Leeds General hospitals earn around 20,000 pound a year. Similar work is undertaken in India for as little as 44 pence an hour.
Dont leave be medical transcriptionists Arroyo to docs
FOR frustrated doctors and medical students eyeing a nursing career overseas, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo offered an alternative she says should keep them home.
“I’d like to make special mention to frustrated doctors, don’t leave medical school because medical transcription (is here),” Arroyo said at a roundtable discussion in Malacañang on Thursday.
The discussion focused on the CyberServices Corridor, one of the super regions Arroyo unveiled in her State of the Nation Address last July. Medical transcription is one of the services delivered by the CyberServices Corridor, which will run from Baguio in the north to Davao in Mindanao.
A growing number of doctors continue to study nursing and seek employment abroad, especially in the United States.
But Rainero Borja, chairman of the Business Process Association of the Philippines, said medical transcription offers lucrative salaries ranging from 12,000 to 50,000 pesos a month.
Contrary to commonly held notions, medical transcription does not offer only low-end service, Borja said.
For example, he said, transcriptionists are also needed in operating rooms to help doctors document the procedures. These are then included in patients’ records.
"That's why the transcription should be super accurate," Borja said. “So there are opportunities,” Arroyo said. “So those studying in medical schools shouldn’t lose heart.”
There are currently 50 medical transcription firms and 13 schools in the country. In 2005, estimated revenues from medical transcription reached 70 million US dollars.
“I’d like to make special mention to frustrated doctors, don’t leave medical school because medical transcription (is here),” Arroyo said at a roundtable discussion in Malacañang on Thursday.
The discussion focused on the CyberServices Corridor, one of the super regions Arroyo unveiled in her State of the Nation Address last July. Medical transcription is one of the services delivered by the CyberServices Corridor, which will run from Baguio in the north to Davao in Mindanao.
A growing number of doctors continue to study nursing and seek employment abroad, especially in the United States.
But Rainero Borja, chairman of the Business Process Association of the Philippines, said medical transcription offers lucrative salaries ranging from 12,000 to 50,000 pesos a month.
Contrary to commonly held notions, medical transcription does not offer only low-end service, Borja said.
For example, he said, transcriptionists are also needed in operating rooms to help doctors document the procedures. These are then included in patients’ records.
"That's why the transcription should be super accurate," Borja said. “So there are opportunities,” Arroyo said. “So those studying in medical schools shouldn’t lose heart.”
There are currently 50 medical transcription firms and 13 schools in the country. In 2005, estimated revenues from medical transcription reached 70 million US dollars.
Monday, January 22, 2007
The To 10 Reasons to Become a Medical Transcriptionist
10. Quick entry
Many lucrative professions require extensive training and advanced degrees. Other jobs in the medical field can take eight or more years of grueling, expensive schooling to begin.In medical transcription, you can begin your work in a year or less, avoiding huge debts and student loans. Some employers require no training, especially not if you already have good English skills and some experience in a medical field.
9. Contribute to society
As a medical transcriptionist, you can contribute to society in many ways. In addition to the economic contributions you'll make to the overall economy, experienced medical transcriptionists become well-versed enough to catch errors or even act as patient advocates. Medical transcriptionists can see inconsistencies and correct them as well. By quickly returning transcripts to hospitals, private practices and individual doctors, medical transcriptionists can ensure fast patient care in the medical system.
8. Work from home
While the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 70% of medical transcriptionists still work in hospitals or physicians' offices, medical transcription is becoming increasingly popular as a work-from-home profession. The convenience of a home office appeals to some people on its own virtues, while parents may value the opportunity to stay close to their young children and still support the family full time. No matter what the reason, if you're looking to work from home, you should seriously consider medical transcription.
7. Excellent pay
While compensation methods may vary, almost all medical transcriptionists enjoy excellent pay, even in entry-level positions. According to (http://medtrans4u.com) DJS Enterprises, you can earn as much as $50,000 to $80,000 a year as a medical transcriptionist. If your pay is production-based, as you gain more experience and dexterity in medical transcription your salary will steadily increase. If you're looking for a job that can really support your family working from home, medical transcription may be for you.
6. Job security
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the job outlook for medical transcriptionists is definitely positive. The medical transcription field is expected to grow at a faster than average rate through the year 2014. This indicates that medical transcriptionists will have plenty of opportunities to find steady work, even if they work at home on a freelance basis for at least another 8 years.
5. Job satisfaction
While job satisfaction may vary from job to job and person to person, if you enjoy being able to visibly track the progress you've made in a day, medical transcription can bring you a high level of job satisfaction. As your completed medical reports pile up, you'll be able to see how much you've accomplished.
4. Set your own hours
Most of the medical industry operates 24 hours a day. Many hospital and at-home medical transcriptionists are able to set their own hours at any time to accommodate their families or other commitments. No matter when you're able to work, there's a medical record waiting to be transcribed.
In medical transcription, you can work when it's most convenient for you.
3. Comfortable work environment
Whether they work in a hospital, a private office or from home, medical transcriptionists enjoy a comfortable work environment. Noise levels are low, safety risks are minimal and strenuous labor is negligible. In medical transcription, you'll enjoy a comfortable office and dedicated work station to transcribe. And what could be more comfortable than working in your own home?
2. Transferable skills
Medical transcriptionists acquire many transferable skills that they can use in other jobs if ever they want to leave the industry. In addition to a basis in the medical field, transcriptionists learn skills that could apply as a court reporter or an administrative assistant. Transcriptionists also develop their English skills, which can be useful in all types of positions that involve writing and editing. Whether medical transcription is a step on your path or your dream job, the skills you learn can improve your overall career outlook.
1. Rewarding work
Why do people become doctors? The vast majority of the people who endure 8 or more years of schooling and incur substantial debts and student loans to become doctors do so because they love to help people and to cure them of their illnesses. Every member of the medical field helps in this endeavor. What could be more rewarding than to contribute to the speedy treatment of people who desperately need your help?
If these ten things sound like characteristics you're looking for in a job, look into medical transcription. You can learn more about medical transcription from books, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and other materials online.
MT gains popularity as career option in Nepal
With the increase in qualified potential, Medical Transcription (MT) Industry, comparatively a new business in Nepal employing thousands of youth, has gained popularity in Nepal’s bid to contribute to economic prosperity, according to experts.
MT is an IT-based industry for quality patient documentation and countries like Nepal are a very good locale for outsourcing workforce from here due to the availability of a large mass of English-speaking and computer-literate youth, the experts said on Thursday at a seminar organised by Nepmed International, a MT company in Kathmandu.
Speaking at the seminar, Cecily Tuladhar, executive manager of Nepmed said that as in the US the entire healthcare industry is based on insurance and detailed medical records are needed for processing insurance claims, Medical Transcriptions are in high demand there, and Nepal has immense potential to meet those requirements.
Gyanendra Tuladhar, chairman of the company spoke on the potential of the MT industry to contribute to the economic prosperity of Nepal by employing thousands of youth in a sector that requires little capital investment but yields high foreign currency returns.
He added, "We are here not to produce MTs but to generate future editors, supervisors, managers and potential MT business entrepreneurs."
Though exact data is not available, there are eight-10 MT centres, with 30-40 Medical Transcriptionists in each centre, in operation providing their service to their US-based clients.
MT is an IT-based industry for quality patient documentation and countries like Nepal are a very good locale for outsourcing workforce from here due to the availability of a large mass of English-speaking and computer-literate youth, the experts said on Thursday at a seminar organised by Nepmed International, a MT company in Kathmandu.
Speaking at the seminar, Cecily Tuladhar, executive manager of Nepmed said that as in the US the entire healthcare industry is based on insurance and detailed medical records are needed for processing insurance claims, Medical Transcriptions are in high demand there, and Nepal has immense potential to meet those requirements.
Gyanendra Tuladhar, chairman of the company spoke on the potential of the MT industry to contribute to the economic prosperity of Nepal by employing thousands of youth in a sector that requires little capital investment but yields high foreign currency returns.
He added, "We are here not to produce MTs but to generate future editors, supervisors, managers and potential MT business entrepreneurs."
Though exact data is not available, there are eight-10 MT centres, with 30-40 Medical Transcriptionists in each centre, in operation providing their service to their US-based clients.
Heartland Information Services, Spryance, Inc., Merge
Heartland Information Services has merged with Spryance, Inc., forming one of the premier offshore transcription providers in the United States. Spryance shareholders will fund the purchase of Heartland Information Services from HCR ManorCare. The new combined company will be marketed under the Heartland Information Services brand.
Headquartered in Boston, Spryance provides transcription service to more than 175 hospitals and clinics across the country, utilizing 1,200 MTs in India. Heartland’s corporate headquarters is located in Toledo, Ohio, with work centers in Bangalore and Delhi, India. By combining companies, the new Heartland will have over 2,500 medical transcriptionists providing service to over 200 hospital and clinical customers.
Dennis Paulik, General Manager of Heartland, will become the President and CEO of the new combined company. Raj Malhotra, CEO of Spryance, will become Chairman of the Board of the combined companies. Joining Mr. Malhotra on the board will be Gene Barduson, Chairman and CEO, Alteer, Inc., Dennis Byerly, former CEO Third Millennium Healthcare Systems, Inc., Mahendra Patel, formerly with DEC, David Beecken, Partner, Beecken Petty O’Keefe & Company, and Thomas Schleisinger, Partner, Beecken Petty O’Keefe & Company.
“Combining the two companies creates synergies that will add value for customers,” says Dennis Paulik, President and CEO of the new Heartland Information Services. “For example, Heartland provides industry-leading quality and customer support and Spryance provides capacity and scalability.”
“The Spryance investors, led by Beecken Petty O’Keefe & Company and International Finance Corporation, provide the financial strength and resources for the new Heartland to grow rapidly,” adds Mr. Malhotra, Heartland Information Services Chairman of the Board.
Poor Medical Dictation Can Put Patients' Lives In Danger
Doctors are putting their patients in danger with medical dictation so bad that professionals can't even understand them, according to a Problem Solvers investigation.
Medical transcriptionists said they have been dealing with sloppy physician records for years. A transcriptionist transcribes the doctor's diagnosis and treatment for the patient's medical record. Holfeld reported that sometimes, transcribing becomes an impossible task. "We should be held accountable for quality, but it's difficult to be held accountable for quality when the challenges on the dictation are pretty overwhelming," medical transcriptionist Brenda Hurley said.
Hurley is a former president of the Florida Association of Medical Transcriptionists. She and her colleagues are joining a national campaign to expose the potential side effects of bad dictations. "If it takes multiple levels of quality assurance review, it's going to take longer to get back to the patient's chart," Hurley said. Joyce Peck was just days away from kidney surgery when she met with us two weeks ago. She caught a mistake before her surgery. "Potentially they could have taken out the wrong kidney and then I would have been left with no kidneys," Peck said. "I caught it," Peck said.
"One place it's left kidney and the next place it's right kidney," Peck said. The diagnosis of a renal malignancy -- cancer -- was caught in a radiologist's apparent flubbed dictation. "Whew," Holfeld said. "What did you think at that point?" "I didn't know what to think -- who was right?" Peck said. In fact, MRI scan confirmed it was the right kidney and not the left. Peck is recovering from kidney surgery. She shared her story as a personal public warning.
Caught up in net
THE cost-saving initiative of out-sourcing medical notes to India for typing is facing major problems. An internet link used to transfer patient information from Lister Hospital to India has failed to meet the needs of East and North Herts NHS Trust, both in terms of speed and capacity. The Trust had hoped to save as much as £1million by axing 15 medical secretary posts and outsourcing their work. However, a medical secretary from Lister said: "After the medical secretaries were made redundant it was discovered that the NHS server for the typing to be sent over the internet to India could not cope with this system. Medical secretaries are being told that the typing will be kept at the Trust for us to type, as done in the past."
Danny Mortimer, the Trust's director of human resources, said: "Like any project of its size, there will always be initial teething problems."
"Nationally the NHS is experiencing problems with this link, both in terms of its speed and capacity of transfer of information across the internet. Contingency plans are being considered locally by the Trust, including using a separate, secure link to the internet for the medical transcription service until the problems affecting it are resolved nationally. The Trust has introduced the medical transcription service because it knows that it will save money, while at the same time providing a consistent, high-quality service. This is proving to be the case already, although more work remains to be done."
AAMT and Prometric announce the launch of the ‘Registered Medical Transcriptionist’ Credential
New International Credential to enhance training & career prospects for young Indian medical transcriptionists
American Association for Medical Transcription, in association with Prometric, announced the Registered Medical Transcriptionist (RMT) credentialing exam – a newly developed global ‘level-1’ credential in the arena of Medical Transcription. This program is aimed at helping the existing talent pool to scale up and meet the global standards and quality benchmarks. The two organizations also announced a special ‘India price’ for AAMT’s existing Certified Medical Transcriptionist (CMT) exam.
Medical Transcription is a booming industry with exponential growth prospects and opportunities for committed players. While globally the industry potential is around USD 30-33 billion, in India it is around USD 300 million. Currently, there are around 18,000 medical practitioners in the country and this is expected to almost double within the next 2-3 years.
Career Path in Medical Transcription
Previously, the lack of globally recognized programs in this domain hampered the evolution of proper talent and career prospects in the industry. With the introduction of RMT, a level 1 exam, on top of the existing CMT exam offered by AAMT, both of which are globally accepted credentials, it will now encourage students as well as existing MT professionals to acquire knowledge and brace up their skills in the field. This will not only help them to perform better while on job, but will also open a whole new world of opportunities and offer long-term career prospects for them.
Headquartered in Boston, Spryance provides transcription service to more than 175 hospitals and clinics across the country, utilizing 1,200 MTs in India. Heartland’s corporate headquarters is located in Toledo, Ohio, with work centers in Bangalore and Delhi, India. By combining companies, the new Heartland will have over 2,500 medical transcriptionists providing service to over 200 hospital and clinical customers.
Dennis Paulik, General Manager of Heartland, will become the President and CEO of the new combined company. Raj Malhotra, CEO of Spryance, will become Chairman of the Board of the combined companies. Joining Mr. Malhotra on the board will be Gene Barduson, Chairman and CEO, Alteer, Inc., Dennis Byerly, former CEO Third Millennium Healthcare Systems, Inc., Mahendra Patel, formerly with DEC, David Beecken, Partner, Beecken Petty O’Keefe & Company, and Thomas Schleisinger, Partner, Beecken Petty O’Keefe & Company.
“Combining the two companies creates synergies that will add value for customers,” says Dennis Paulik, President and CEO of the new Heartland Information Services. “For example, Heartland provides industry-leading quality and customer support and Spryance provides capacity and scalability.”
“The Spryance investors, led by Beecken Petty O’Keefe & Company and International Finance Corporation, provide the financial strength and resources for the new Heartland to grow rapidly,” adds Mr. Malhotra, Heartland Information Services Chairman of the Board.
Poor Medical Dictation Can Put Patients' Lives In Danger
Doctors are putting their patients in danger with medical dictation so bad that professionals can't even understand them, according to a Problem Solvers investigation.
Medical transcriptionists said they have been dealing with sloppy physician records for years. A transcriptionist transcribes the doctor's diagnosis and treatment for the patient's medical record. Holfeld reported that sometimes, transcribing becomes an impossible task. "We should be held accountable for quality, but it's difficult to be held accountable for quality when the challenges on the dictation are pretty overwhelming," medical transcriptionist Brenda Hurley said.
Hurley is a former president of the Florida Association of Medical Transcriptionists. She and her colleagues are joining a national campaign to expose the potential side effects of bad dictations. "If it takes multiple levels of quality assurance review, it's going to take longer to get back to the patient's chart," Hurley said. Joyce Peck was just days away from kidney surgery when she met with us two weeks ago. She caught a mistake before her surgery. "Potentially they could have taken out the wrong kidney and then I would have been left with no kidneys," Peck said. "I caught it," Peck said.
"One place it's left kidney and the next place it's right kidney," Peck said. The diagnosis of a renal malignancy -- cancer -- was caught in a radiologist's apparent flubbed dictation. "Whew," Holfeld said. "What did you think at that point?" "I didn't know what to think -- who was right?" Peck said. In fact, MRI scan confirmed it was the right kidney and not the left. Peck is recovering from kidney surgery. She shared her story as a personal public warning.
Caught up in net
THE cost-saving initiative of out-sourcing medical notes to India for typing is facing major problems. An internet link used to transfer patient information from Lister Hospital to India has failed to meet the needs of East and North Herts NHS Trust, both in terms of speed and capacity. The Trust had hoped to save as much as £1million by axing 15 medical secretary posts and outsourcing their work. However, a medical secretary from Lister said: "After the medical secretaries were made redundant it was discovered that the NHS server for the typing to be sent over the internet to India could not cope with this system. Medical secretaries are being told that the typing will be kept at the Trust for us to type, as done in the past."
Danny Mortimer, the Trust's director of human resources, said: "Like any project of its size, there will always be initial teething problems."
"Nationally the NHS is experiencing problems with this link, both in terms of its speed and capacity of transfer of information across the internet. Contingency plans are being considered locally by the Trust, including using a separate, secure link to the internet for the medical transcription service until the problems affecting it are resolved nationally. The Trust has introduced the medical transcription service because it knows that it will save money, while at the same time providing a consistent, high-quality service. This is proving to be the case already, although more work remains to be done."
AAMT and Prometric announce the launch of the ‘Registered Medical Transcriptionist’ Credential
New International Credential to enhance training & career prospects for young Indian medical transcriptionists
American Association for Medical Transcription, in association with Prometric, announced the Registered Medical Transcriptionist (RMT) credentialing exam – a newly developed global ‘level-1’ credential in the arena of Medical Transcription. This program is aimed at helping the existing talent pool to scale up and meet the global standards and quality benchmarks. The two organizations also announced a special ‘India price’ for AAMT’s existing Certified Medical Transcriptionist (CMT) exam.
Medical Transcription is a booming industry with exponential growth prospects and opportunities for committed players. While globally the industry potential is around USD 30-33 billion, in India it is around USD 300 million. Currently, there are around 18,000 medical practitioners in the country and this is expected to almost double within the next 2-3 years.
Career Path in Medical Transcription
Previously, the lack of globally recognized programs in this domain hampered the evolution of proper talent and career prospects in the industry. With the introduction of RMT, a level 1 exam, on top of the existing CMT exam offered by AAMT, both of which are globally accepted credentials, it will now encourage students as well as existing MT professionals to acquire knowledge and brace up their skills in the field. This will not only help them to perform better while on job, but will also open a whole new world of opportunities and offer long-term career prospects for them.
Friday, January 19, 2007
Work At Home Doing Medical Transcriptions
The evolution of Medical Transcription over the past few years has opened up new vistas of career opportunities for so many. Nowadays many people are known to earn a good living for themselves in this field. One must introspect within himself before pursuing a career as a medical transcriptionist because though it offers good money and flexible timings in addition to the facility of working from home, it demands a great deal of understanding of procedures and requires formal training before commencing work. The understanding of medical terminology is required to so an effective job. The terminology pertains to anatomy, pharmacology, diagnostic procedures, treatment assessments, etc.
The first thing to understand is what exactly is medical transcription? In the course of their work, doctors and other healthcare professionals dictate the recordings of various things including physical examination observations, the history of the patient, operative reports, referral letters, discharge summaries, observations of the imaging data and so on.
A medical transcriptionist would then listen to these recordings and transcribe them into medical reports, correspondence, etc. The person would need to listen to a segment of recording, pause, key in what is said, playback to check, before moving on to the next segment. Often some editing is required to correct grammar and improve the clarity.
The transcribed document is then sent back to the health care provider for his sign-off who reviews it for accuracy. These documents are needed as a part of the patient's medical history records and in some cases his insurance records.
Many private institutes, education programs, colleges and vocational schools offer post-secondary training in medical transcription, sometimes as distance education courses. But these formal, certified degrees do not ensure a complete understanding of the job. Often a year of practical knowledge or a home-study course is needed to pick up the necessary practical knowledge for a transcriptionist's job. Medical transcription work does call for certain skills and mindsets. Apart from basic computer skills, you must have an eye for detail. One also needs excellent listening skills and grammar skills. Apart from this good typing speed along with the recording is also important. Working from home demands that you be comfortable about working alone and meeting deadlines.
The job profile includes working in hospitals, laboratories, physician's offices, firms offering transcription services, government medical facilities and so on. There is work on an individual contract basis too. Or you could work from home and you'll find that many employers offer work-at-home facilities for transcriptionists. Working from home requires some mandatory equipment like a computer with a medical spellchecker, printer, a transcriber and some medical reference books. A word expander utility is also available which avoids the work of actual typing. With ample experience a transcriptionist moves up to supervisory positions which include editing work, teaching and consulting.
The demand for medical transcription services is likely to keep growing owing to the growth in health practices and hospitals and the need for standardization of records. Every person entering the medical transcriptionist profession should carefully analyze the pros and cons of this field before venturing into it. Although the job is demanding and requires training, medical transcription provides a rewarding and fulfilling career if you're up to it.
Medical Transcriptions
Medical transcription is the process in which people accurately and rapidly transcribe medical reports and records that are dictated by doctors and other medical practitioners. These include medical and physical reports and records, operation reports, clinic notes, office notes and so on. Medical transcriptions are done by converting telephonic conversations into electronic text form. Medical transcription is an information technology enabled service. This type of transcription requires people who have specialized skills and can use information technology for converting voice recordings of the doctors. This information in converted into written documents that mention the patient's medical history and all the medical advice given to them.
Individuals who transcribe this information are called medical transcriptionists, who are well versed with all the medical terms and are specialists in translating medical data in any language. The transcription covers all the important information that the doctor gives the patient. Generally this information is recorded on a tape, and then transferred hand written or typed for future reference. Transcribers use several types of word-processing systems that help in interpreting information.
Medical transcribers require good listening and language skills. They should be able to concentrate and grasp all that is said in the conversation to make an effective document. Apart from these characteristics, they also need to have knowledge about computers and most importantly medical knowledge.
Many doctors and physicians prefer to hire medical transcribers as this simplifies their workload. This not only helps in locating patients' files easily, but also helps local doctors to view medical documents that can be sent across to other doctors.
With the Internet revolution and help from medical transcribers, doctors can send the patient?s files for a second opinion to other doctors around the world. These reports include operation reports, discharge summary, cosmetic surgery records, and even dental reports.
Medical Transcriptionist Training
The importance of the medical transcriptionist can never be overestimated. The reports that they document can make the difference between right and wrong treatment. A small error can lead to bad or even fatal consequences. Thus, formal training becomes a necessity for them.
Employers generally choose to hire transcriptionists who have done their post-secondary training in the field, which is offered by community colleges, vocational schools and distance-learning programs. Though not always obligatory, the completion of a 1-year certificate program or a 2-year associate degree is recommended. These courses may include anatomy, medical terms and legal issues involving health care documentation, and grammar and punctuation of the English language. Most of these programs offer supervised on-the-job training. Transcriptionists, who are already attuned with medical jargon from prior experience as a medical secretary or a nurse, become adept through training and refresher courses.
The American Association for Medical Transcription, or AAMT, grants the voluntary designation of Certified Medical Transcriptionist (CMT) to students who pass a certified examination. The constant evolving of medicine requires the medical transcriptionist to frequently update his or her skills. Every three years, CMTs must produce continuing education credits for recertification.
Apart from understanding medical lingo, it is imperative for transcriptionists to have competent English grammar and punctuation skills. Also, familiarity with computers and word processing software will come in handy. Normal sharpness in hearing and attentive listening skills are crucial, too. Applicants are sometimes required to take pre-employment exams, with employers generally preferring those with experience.
With certain experience, medical transcriptionists can elevate to administrative positions, editing, home-based work or teaching. With supplementary training or education, transcriptionists can become health information technicians, health information administrators or medical coders.
Medical Transcription Jobs
Medical transcribing means interpreting information of medical records that are dictated by healthcare professionals and physicians. This information includes analysis, progress reports, history of the patients and even letters. It is observed that a lot of legal actions are taken against doctors. Hence, it is wise to keep records of every interaction between the doctor and the patient. These records are also viewed at the time of reference or for taking a second opinion in case of an incurable disease.
It becomes very difficult for the doctors to keep records of every patient and hence, a medical transcriber is appointed. An individual who performs medical transcriptions is called a medical transcriber. Medical transcribers record voice conversations that take place between doctors and the patients, and then convert them into written documents.
Medical transcription is becoming one of the most recognized careers in America. There are many colleges, schools and institutions that offer courses for students who want to take up medical transcribing as a profession. The courses in these institutions follow the syllabus designed by the American Association for Medical Transcription also known as the AAMT. Individuals, who have a strong understanding capacity and are looking forward to a successful career in medical transcribing, should enroll into these schools or colleges. People who have past out of a reputed institute as medical transcribers take the opportunity to work in big hospitals with leading doctors.
A medical transcriber, who has graduated from a renowned institute, gets jobs very easily. People who have family obligations can take up medical transcription as a home based job. There are various sites that offer a good packages and work can be done at the person's own convenience. Many individuals also prefer to work with hospitals as it gives them a better experience and the necessary exposure. This is also the case with medical transcribers who work with leading doctors at their clinics.
While choosing a job, medical transcribers must keep in mind that there are various avenues open and choosing the right job will help them grow.
Online Medical Transcription Courses
There are many courses that are available online for medical transcribers. As the subject of medical transcription is very vast, the courses are also varied. These courses can be taken at the comfort level of the student as they can be done from home at their own convenience. There are a lot of institutes that offer higher continuing education that have an affiliation with reputed institutes. The institutes that provide medical transcribing courses online also offer certificates upon the completion of the course. If people want to take up a medical transcribing course and cannot find an appropriate one, online schools provide the freedom of obtaining a degree by sitting at home. All that a person needs to do is browse through various online sites and find the apt course.
A good online school offers courses similar to those of regular schools. Courses in medical terminology, physiology, ethics and anatomy are offered. There are other training schools that have laboratory tests and medical procedures, and teach how to transcript the format. Learning to transcribe in medical terms takes time and people who want to get into the profession of medical transcription have to get used to the medical terminologies. Online training courses do not make any false promises and teach what is mentioned in the syllabus. These online schools promise job placements as soon as the students finish the course.
If choosing to learn online individuals must prepare themselves as the courseware is not easy and requires a lot of commitment. The main aim of these online schools is to provide the best training to the students just like the regular schools.
Before individuals choose to register online for medical transcription courses, they must be confident, focused and should be willing to perform to their best ability.
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