Study of automatic speech recognition and transcription in the US, began in AT&T’s Bell Labs in 1936. At that time, most research was funded and performed by Universities and the U.S. Government. It was not until the early 1980’s that the technology reached the commercial market.

Medical transcription, is a professional service that converts voice-recorded reports, as dictated by doctors or other healthcare professionals, into text format. This data is used to keep records of patients, and can be accessed at any time, by an authorized healthcare professional.

The advent of the computer age has allowed medical transcription data to be stored on powerful computer servers. Patients medical records can then be accessed online by an authorized person, who could be any where in the world. These days, there are many medical transcription companies that offer their services to health clinics, healthcare facilities, hospitals, the individual sector, laboratories and doctors. Given the strong demand, people who are interested in making a career for themselves in this field can undertake a training course in order to become qualified medical transcriptionists.

Qualifications may be achieved by enrolling in an institution that follows the syllabus designed by the American Association of Medical Transcription, or AAMT. This is available in vocational schools and colleges. Online programs are also available for those who do not have access to a vocational guidance center.

Students, are required to learn standard medical terms, in order for them to be able to transcribe all medical reports including, autopsy reports, clinical notes, consultation notes, discharge summaries, laboratory reports, psychiatric evaluations, operation reports, and referral letters.

Qualified transcriptionists must be competent and maintain high standards, as medical transcription services must provide their customers with error free transcripts, otherwise the misinterpretation of doctors reports or clinical notes could have detrimental consequences and legal implications.

Due to a high standard of literacy in the English language, which is spoken as a second national language, the Philippines, is positioning itself as a world leader in the field of medical transcription. Their long alliance with the US ensures that the average Filipino is capable of readily understanding slang terms, commonly used by Americans. This attribute, together with the country’s low labor costs, makes the Philippines an ideal place for accurate medical transcription services to be located.

MT services that are being performed by Filipinos include various reports such as, cardiology, chiropractic, emergency room, gastroenterology, general Surgery, internal medicine, maxillofacial surgery, physical medicine, plastic surgery, radiology and general surgery reports.

Most MT companies need to provide a toll free number, digital recorders, computer dictation systems, computers and a server. The line of communication must be secure and hack proof, so that information about patients does not fall into the wrong hands. This is achieved by using hardware that is HIPAA compliant secured with 256 bit AES encryption.

Medical transcription is a viable industry that is continually being developed, and as more improved software programs become available, it will continue to provide an essential service for medical practitioners world wide.

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