Medical Transcription
Medical Transcription is where a healthcare professional, such as a doctor, dentist or nurse, dictate voice recorded reports which are then converted to a text format of some description. Such a procedure is also carried out in other sectors including legal.
Previously, a medical transcription company would set up their client with basic equipment including a tape recorder and microphone. They would start the recording device and speak into the microphone to dictate the info that is to be transcribed. The company offering the transcription service would pick up the recordings previously made, transcribe them, and send back in the specified format to the client.
Using speech/voice recognition technology, it is possible to store their dictations as a digital voice file which will then be converted to text. This is known as digital dictation.
The role of carrying out the transcription is known as a Medical Transcriptionist (MT), who will carry out their work using a Medical Transcriber. As opposed to handwritten notes, they will convert the dictated medical record into a typewritten format.
When a patient pays their doctor a visit, they will chat to them about their medical history as well as any current symptoms – the doctor will make notes on these. Once complete, they will then use a voice recording device to dictate the notes taken. In turn, this will be sent to a central point at the hospital/surgery where it will be picked by the MT, they will then convert this to the required format ready when the doctor next needs to refer to it.
More often than not such services will often be outsourced. When this was first done, there were concerns for quality and privacy though these days a number of dedicated digital dictation experts are able to offer medical secretaries who possess a skill set which covers a wide range of medical disciplines.
Accuro are digital dictation experts offering transcription services including medical transcription, dictation and typing.
