Transcription Service Blog by Transcription Institute

Medical transcription (MT) is the process by which medical records such as patient history, consultation, pathology and other reports dictated by doctors and other medical professionals are transcribed from audio to text format. The medical transcriptionist is the person who transforms audio medical reports from the original dictated form to the written form as either a soft copy or a hard copy. Medical transcriptionist is responsible for creating the written records. Therefore, it is obvious that he must be very careful while transcribing it.

Medical transcription is the primary mechanism for a physician to communicate with other healthcare providers who access the patient record to advise them on the state of patient’s health and about past and present treatment of the patient.

Areas where MTs should be careful

Medical transcriptionists translate dictated medical reports into printed formats. Working with physicians and other health care professionals, transcriptionists are responsible for the accurate and timely completion of medical reports including history, consultations, pathology and operative reports, chart notes and correspondence.

It is very important to have a properly formatted, edited and properly reviewed medical transcription document. If a medical transcriptionist accidentally typed a wrong medication or wrong diagnosis, the patient could be at risk. It is both the doctor and medical transcriptionist should ensure that the transcribed dictation is correct and accurate. The doctor should speak slowly and clearly while dictating medications or details of disease and conditions and the medical transcriptionist must possess hearing acuity, medical terminology and good reading comprehension in addition to checking references when in doubt.
Accuracy is of prime importance and speed is always secondary to accuracy. A Medical transcriptionist should constantly update himself by researching latest medical tools, medical language and equipments, so that he will provide the best results to medical professionals and medical companies.
Medical transcriptionists have to look up every single word, whether English or medical till they are 100% certain. MT requires correct spelling of all terms and words, correcting medical terminology and occasionally dictation errors. All transcription reports must comply with medico-legal concerns, policies, procedures, and laws under patient confidentiality.

Sometimes while dictating, doctors may make mistake or may give contradicting statements due to slip of tongue and it is up to the transcriptionist to be alert to all such issues and correct such mistakes done by the physician.

Medical transcriptionist is responsible for creating medical records. So it is obvious that he must be aware of medical terminologies and he should be careful that medical records prepared by him should follow medical transcription standards. Some of these standards are AHDI (Association of healthcare documentation integrity) and MTIA (Medical Transcription Industry Association).

According to Wikipedia, “Transcription is the conversion of spoken words into written language, including the conversion of handwriting, or a photograph of text into pure text. Transcription can be various types – medical, legal, musical, audio or creative. Transcription can be taken up as a career. There are many Transcription Companies and agencies which require transcribers. One can work from home which is en emerging field known as Home Transcription.

One can pursue a career in Court Reporting. There are several different methods of court reporting. The system can be learned at special school or through stenography courses offered at college and universities. With a bit training, a career in court reporting and transcription can open a new field of work. Once trained, employment is obtained through either a court reporting firm with a variety of clients, or directly through a court system where the court reporter is usually considered a government employee. Court reporting firms are located across the world and offer variety and some flexibility as to the kinds of work available.

Medical Transcription is another lucrative and challenging career. Medical transcription means to transcribe the medical records that have been dictated by Doctors. It provides analysis, progress reports, chart notes, physicals, histories, and even letters. A Medical transcriptions bridge the Medical Records between a patient and a Health Care Professional. Medical Transcriptionists must have the knowledge about medical terminology, physiology, anatomy as well as medical record keeping. Medical transcripts are employed in medical centers, hospitals, clinics, radiology and pathology clinics, insurance companies, medical and diagnostic laboratories. They could also be employed by speech therapists, audiologists and counselors. A medical transcriptionist can also make money as a home based professional. A Transcription training program adds to one’s credentials.

A career can be made in Electronic reporting. There are schools which teach electronic reporting, done with digital recorders or stenomasks.One may be employed in media houses. It is a common misconception that freelance Internet jobs including transcription jobs from home can be part time jobs only.Transcption jobs can be done full time and it is not impossible to earn $30,000 to 50,000 a year.

To have a good career in Transcription, one should have a sound knowledge of English, sensitive listening skills, sharp vision and typing speed and accuracy with basic computer knowledge. One should enjoy reading and have good grasp of basic grammar and spelling. There are many benefits attached to this career but at the same time it requires a lot of hard work and perseverance. This is a growing field and not showing the signs of slowing down. One keeps on learning new things at every stage.