Medical Transcription Industry back in action ????

It was almost a cottage industry in the 90s, only to lose steam in 2000. 

But if you thought the medical transcription (MT) industry in India is history, think again. 
Latest studies reveal that it is raring to take off yet again. And this time, the future is well chalked out. 

When it took off in the 90s, anyone with a little space and enterprise opened an unit in their living room. 

Unfortunately, the boom didn't last and hit rock bottom in 2001. The reason: Too many entrants, lack of entrepreneural skills and knowledge of industry and security issues. Many small players opted out. 

But since 2004, the sector has slowly but steadily worked its way up. Now, it generates revenues worth $195 million. The figure is expected to go upto $647 million by 2010, according to ValueNotes study. 

In fact, the study found that at present, India-based MT vendors employ around 18,000; by 2010, the numbers will go up to 52,000. A Nasscom study released last month too confirms this northward move of the Indian MT industry. It says India has 120 to 150 MT companies which earn an annual income of $220 to $240 million. 

According to experts the industry will witness further consolidation with large American MT service organizations eyeing smaller Indian offshore vendors 

Experts say there has been a systematic ramp-up and a steady flow of business from the US to India which is our largest market. 

If things go this way, the industry will see good times again.

What Books Should a Medical Transcriptionist Own?

Hello! Welcome to my blog! Every medical transcriptionist needs to have a good collection of reference materials close by. Today, I was researching what books a medical transcriptionist needs to own. I learned that reliable reference materials can really make the difference when you are in "down time" and trying to beat a tight deadline. It is amazing how many different reference materials there actually are available for MTs to use! Although I found a variety of answers, there was still one basic recurring response: a grammar and style guide, an English dictionary, at least one complete medical dictionary, at least one drug index, and a diverse collection of specialty books are essential to own.

So, before you start your own medical reference collection, take the time to research what books are available to you. Also, take the time to research places to buy these books. A good place to start is by checking your local library for book sales. I was lucky enough to learn about one such book sale through the "Friends of the Library," which is an organization that holds an annual book sale open to the public. There is a great collection of used medical reference books to be picked up here for a fraction of the cost you would spend on brand new books, and the money raised is all donated to your public library.

Military Spouses and Medical Transcription

Today, I was reading about one of the latest topics in the news; medical transcription and its impact on the lives of military spouses. After having spoken with a few women whose husbands are in the military, I can definitely understand how medical transcription would be an excellent career choice for them. One of the biggest complaints these women had was that they could not use their college degrees very readily because of frequent relocations, which equated to frequent job changes as well. With medical transcription, however, this would not be a problem because they could maintain the same accounts wherever their families might be relocated.

An article on Media-Newswire had this to say: "The departments of Defense and Labor are collaborating with the AHDI and the Medical Transcription Industry Association to promote the medical transcription field as a viable career for military spouses. "

I am glad to see so much cooperation between these organizations. The men and women who serve and protect our country rearrange their lives so that we can live ours with freedom and respect. It is refreshing to see respect for them and their sacrifices through this collaboration

What Do You See?

"What we see depends mainly on what we look for."

-- Author unknown.

What do you see when you look at a medical report you have just transcribed? Does everything look accurate? Sometimes first appearances can be deceptive.

While I was completing my online Comprehensive Medical Transcription course from the University of Central Oklahoma, I learned a very useful trick for viewing what I had transcribed with a new pair of eyes. Listening to the dictation a second time while carefully proofreading makes errors in word usage stand out like red flags. I realize that the experienced MTs reading my posts will already know this. However, if you are still in training or new to the field, this trick might make a difference for you.

One of my professional goals is to help educate other MTs while I continue to learn more myself. I have found that no matter how much knowledge I have gained, there will always be far more to obtain. Experience is often one of the best teachers, so I hope to broaden my field of view by learning from the experiences of others as well.

The Eyes Have It

Medical transcriptionists spend several hours a day staring at their computer screens. This can lead to eye strain and other visual problems over time. That is why it is important to take preventative measures to ward off unnecessary visual disabilities.

Short breaks can help alleviate or lessen symptoms of eye strain and other visual problems caused by staring at a computer monitor for long periods of time. Practice moving your eyes to distant objects periodically or closing your eyes for a moment or two. Another thing to try is adjusting the brightness of your monitor to a more comfortable level. Adjust the distance you sit from the monitor and its angle to lessen the glare on the screen. Consider purchasing a glare-reduction filter or adjusting the lighting in the room you are working in. A little prevention can go a long way; especially over time. So, try putting these practices into use and see the difference for yourself!

Medical Transcription Industry back in action ????

It was almost a cottage industry in the 90s, only to lose steam in 2000. 

But if you thought the medical transcription (MT) industry in India is history, think again. 
Latest studies reveal that it is raring to take off yet again. And this time, the future is well chalked out. 

When it took off in the 90s, anyone with a little space and enterprise opened an unit in their living room. 

Unfortunately, the boom didn't last and hit rock bottom in 2001. The reason: Too many entrants, lack of entrepreneural skills and knowledge of industry and security issues. Many small players opted out. 

But since 2004, the sector has slowly but steadily worked its way up. Now, it generates revenues worth $195 million. The figure is expected to go upto $647 million by 2010, according to ValueNotes study. 

In fact, the study found that at present, India-based MT vendors employ around 18,000; by 2010, the numbers will go up to 52,000. A Nasscom study released last month too confirms this northward move of the Indian MT industry. It says India has 120 to 150 MT companies which earn an annual income of $220 to $240 million. 

According to experts the industry will witness further consolidation with large American MT service organizations eyeing smaller Indian offshore vendors 

Experts say there has been a systematic ramp-up and a steady flow of business from the US to India which is our largest market. 

Fun While Doing Transcription.

Fun While Doing Transcription.

We are working in the profession of Medical Transcription and like other profession it also has highs and lows. Although this profession puts you through a lot of challenges but some times it is hilarious that you will really enjoy to work in such profession. On a day-to-day basis we deals with various doctors from different specialty, some doctors you find as interested to really work upon whereas on the other hand there are some you will find them as boring. There are certain instances that really make Medical transcription profession as a joyful profession rather than a tedious one.

One day while transcribing a report I comes across a report where doctor said “Hey, I am telling you not to touch that. Why, don’t you listen to me.” That was instruction to his son not to the MT. That became joke of the day.

In an another medical transcription report doctor dictated “The patient is 29 years of age and had more than 200 sex partners.” That become discussion topic among Medical Transcriptionists.


Sometimes what happens while dictating a report, in the background you listen to a song that you will find to your liking.

The next instance that I have experienced myself while working on a medical transcription report was simply unbelievable. While dictating a report, the doctor started talking to somebody and I thought that he might be talking to somebody in the house or in the clinic, but when the conversation finished up, the doctor was actually working with his/her the dog and giving it a bath. This really sounds very interesting to me and I shared this experience of mine with everybody.

Sometime while editing the reports in every company editors comes across the phrases that makes them laugh and at the same time they feel pity over the medical transcriptionist as they type such things that are sound and look alike. For example, “The patient was having some light snakes in the evening”, but it should be, “The patient was having some light snacks in the evening”, so these phrases really make you laugh.

One interesting case an editor can really come across while editing the reports is linked with the vital signs of the patient and in most of the cases it is related to weight of the patient as the transcriptionist some time writes the weight as 2500 pounds or like that, so that is really next to impossible as the doctor might have dictated it as 250 pounds.

In American there are different doctors from different countries throughout the world, while dictating they are really not able to speak some words in English then they dictates such words in their mother tongue, and these type of cases mostly happens with the doctor who are coming from India especially from Punjab as some time they speak certain words in their Punjabi decent that a person fails to make up what the doctor has dictated as transcriptionistor editor might be from Punjab or not.

Happy Mother's Day!

Today is Mother's Day, and that made me start thinking about all of the information I have read, such as posts and articles on the internet that are written by women who began a career in medical transcription so that they could stay home with their children.

Actually, I first heard about medical transcription from one such woman when I was a child. Her name was Melissa Grigg. She was a wonderful, creative, highly intelligent and devoted mother, mentor, and medical transcriptionist. Melissa Grigg was my aunt, but she was more like a second mother to me. The discussions we shared about medical transcription and the medical field helped to shape my interest in pursuing this career myself.

Medical transcription is not an easy career, and neither is motherhood. However, they are two of the most rewarding decisions a woman can make in life. Happy Mother's Day to all of the women out there making the difference as medical transcriptionists and mothers!

What Do You See?

"What we see depends mainly on what we look for."

-- Author unknown.

What do you see when you look at a medical report you have just transcribed? Does everything look accurate? Sometimes first appearances can be deceptive.

While I was completing my online Comprehensive Medical Transcription course from the University of Central Oklahoma, I learned a very useful trick for viewing what I had transcribed with a new pair of eyes. Listening to the dictation a second time while carefully proofreading makes errors in word usage stand out like red flags. I realize that the experienced MTs reading my posts will already know this. However, if you are still in training or new to the field, this trick might make a difference for you.

One of my professional goals is to help educate other MTs while I continue to learn more myself. I have found that no matter how much knowledge I have gained, there will always be far more to obtain. Experience is often one of the best teachers, so I hope to broaden my field of view by learning from the experiences of others as well.