Medical transcription: A necessity or luxury?

To assess whether medical transcription is a necessity or luxury one needs to look at the history of medical transcription and the role it plays in the provision of quality care and the profitability of a healthcare facility.

·        Evolution of medical transcription: Medical transcription is process of creating records of patient-healthcare professional encounter. Creation of records of the patient encounter has been around for a long time. Over time medical transcription has evolved from its’ early stages due to the advance of technology and the Internet. The various stages of evolution that medical transcription has gone through are as follows:

Ø     Hand written notes

Ø     Dictation-shorthand-typing on the manual typewriter

Ø     Dictation- recording on tapes- transcribing on manual/electronic typewriter.

Ø     Uploading dictation on the computer system, downloading, transcribing and uploading finished files and then transmission back to the healthcare professional through the use of Internet.

·        Role of medical transcription: Medical transcription has always played a behind the scene role in the form of an essential support to the process of healthcare.  Medical transcription plays an important role in the following:

Ø     Recording the patient-healthcare professional encounter

Ø     Referrals/ tests

Ø     Statutory requirement

Ø     Insurance re-imbursement

Ø     Evidence in case of litigation

Ø     As part of patient medical history.

One can see that medical transcription plays an important role in the core business of a healthcare facility and its’ profitability. It would be considered a necessary service rather than a luxury.

How can this necessary function of medical transcription be made economical and efficient?

Medical transcription can be made economical and efficient by outsourcing to a professionally managed medical transcription company, which needs to be evaluated on the following:

• Quality/accuracy: Quality of the transcribed document refers to the percentage of accuracy in the transcribed document viz. a viz. the audio files.  Accuracy level assured by the medical transcription service provider should be as close to 100% as possible

·        Turnaround time: Turnaround time refers to the period between uploading the audio file to the time when the finished record is made available to the healthcare professional. A turnaround time of 24 hours with quicker turnaround time options for STAT reports would be considered reasonable.

·        Data security: Security of confidential patient data is an important consideration. This becomes even more critical when the data is transmitted back and forth. Any prospective medical transcription service provider needs to be critically evaluated in terms of the measures taken by them to ensure security of data.

·        Price: Cost savings per line of transcription is perhaps one of most important considerations for outsourcing medical transcription needs. The pricing provided by the medical transcription service provider needs to be reasonable and the terms of pricing should be easy to understand.

·        Volume flexibility: It is not possible to predict the volume of patient inflow. Therefore it is not possible to predict the volume of medical transcription work required. A medical transcription service provider needs to be evaluated on the basis of their ability to cope up with varying volumes and factors like weekend and holiday transcription requirements.

·        Right use of technology: Technology plays an important part in the medical transcription process. It can make the process simpler, quicker and safer by providing easy methods of capturing dictation, uploading files, downloading completed records and even for archiving of patient records. Tracing the information required can be made easier through the use of technology. The medical transcription service provider should be evaluated on the use of technology in the medical transcription process.

·        Billing methods: The billing method used by the medical transcription service provider can have a direct impact on the profitability of the healthcare facility. The billing method needs to explained at the beginning of the process. The billing method should be evaluated to ensure that it is, verifiable, definable, measurable, consistent and fair & honest.

·        Success stories: Success stories or testimonials of satisfied customers can give the added comfort to the decision making process.

TransDyne offers medical transcription with an accuracy of above 99%

TransDyne assures a quick transcription turnaround time of 24 hours with an option of 4-12 hours for STAT reports.

TransDyne ensures security of data during the transcription process by securing technology, processes and people.

TransDyne offers a reasonable and fair price for transcription services by charging 10 cents per line, which is calculated by using the character line pricing method.

TransDyne maintains a large, well-trained team of medical transcriptionists, which enables them to cope with varying volumes

TransDyne offers medical transcription services by using the latest technology that is advanced and easy to use.

TransDyne uses the character line billing method that is verifiable, definable, measurable, consistent and fair & honest

TransDyne has the testimonials of their success stories in transcription, available for viewing on their website.

To know more details on how TransDyne can ease the medical transcription process, click here