Suppose you’re a medical practitioner and you want to make patient notes. Usually, you speak into a voice recorder, and you enter the information into the patient’s notes later.
You transfer the voice notes to paper or a digital file before adding them to the patient’s notes. Instead, why not employ a medical transcription service? Because you’re much too busy seeing your patients.
Transcription rates are pretty much standard across the industry. Typically, transcription pricing starts at around $1/minute and can reach more than $3/minute. Alternatively, average pricing rates per line range from $0.07-$0.09. However, you’ll find the cost of transcription services depends on the quality of the finished product, typing speed, and the company policy.
However, medical transcription isn’t just about writing patients’ medical notes. You might be a practice manager, a partner, or a director. If so, you can have an inspection report or even meeting minutes typed into an archivable document. It’s all about letting the medical transcriptionist take over the mundane job of professionally typing up your voice notes while allowing the medical practitioner to do the important work.
Topics
What do transcriptionists do?
Medical transcriptionists specialize in using voice recordings to produce written records, either as a hard copy or as a digital file ready for inclusion into the patient’s notes. Sometimes, as in the case of meeting minutes, two or more people are talking. In that case, each speaker must identify themselves and their name listed on the file together with what they said.
There is a variety of information that might need transcribing, such as:
- Patients’ notes.
- Procedure description for billing purposes.
- Medical meetings.
- Management meetings.
But, they all have certain facts in common. The information is confidential, contains medical terminology, and uses standard medical abbreviations.
Therefore, the transcriptionist must understand the medical terminology and the processes involved with medical billing. And must not pass on any medical or financial information to anyone else. A reputable medical transcription service company will always adhere to all Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) legislation.
How Much Does Medical Transcription Cost?
Many medical establishments find that it’s easier and less expensive to outsource transcription to a contractor than to use existing employees. Your current staff will probably have other work and won’t have time to give the transcription their full attention. Even if you employ a specialist, you’ll find it hard to keep them fully utilized for an entire week. And, you’ll have to pay their salary and benefits while they’re doing nothing. Therefore it’s much better to hire a contractor when you need voice transcription and pay them a fee for doing the work.
Outsourced medical transcription companies charge using a variety of methods.
Per-minute
Typically, audio files containing in-depth specialist information and voice recordings containing multiple speakers often need more work than just straightforward transcription typing. Therefore, expect to pay by the duration of the voice file, in minutes. Usually, these rates range between $1.50 and $3 per minute.
Per line
Many doctors only want a few lines transcribed, so pay between $0.05 and $0.15 per line (about 65 characters per line). The rate depends on the volume of work you provide, turnaround time, the type of information, and many other factors.
Per page
If your job is larger than a few lines or you want letters written, expect to pay per page.
The rate per page for this type of transcription service ranges from $5 to $15 per page. Remember that a standard typed page is around 350 words, and a part-page might cost the same as a full-page or pro-rata, depending on your contract.
Other billing methods
Other non-standard projects might not follow standard medical transcription rates. Jobs such as meeting minutes and urgent work will be billed as agreed in the contract between the transcription company and the clinic. Furthermore, although most transcription work is in the form of a digital file, you could require a paper output, so expect to pay extra. This work can include the following additional costs:
- Paper.
- Printing time and consumables such as ink.
- Report binding.
- Specialist photography, graphs, charts, and diagrams.
Top 11 Best Medical Transcription Services
The following are specialist transcription companies that adhere to HIPAA legislation. They aren’t ranked in any particular order except alphabetical. Therefore, a company further up the list does not mean it provides a better customer solution. Before deciding on a certain company, do further research to compare their profiles and choose whether their solutions suit your purposes.
1. Acusis
Acusis uses TQM and Six Sigma quality management tools to guarantee a 98% accuracy on all transcripts. Furthermore, they use their bespoke algorithms to produce medical transcription process analyses, including data security and workflow.
AcuMobile, their mobile-based dictation App, helps medical staff access a voice recorder from any web-connected device, which then submits the file for transcription.
Acusis’ output is compatible with many off-the-shelf commercially available EHR and EMR records systems. So, it’s easy to incorporate information into your existing medical records.
This company knows about technology and uses it to benefit their transcribers and your practice.
2. Athreon
Athreon provides a range of speech-to-text and cutting-edge cybersecurity solutions. Moreover, the company uses a combination of AI and human skills and expertise. A few of their specialisms include translation, medical transcription services, telehealth, and cybersecurity. They can guarantee that your practice’s data remains safe while giving you control over your transcript from start to finish.
The company’s quality assurance is out there with the best, automatically transferring their high standards to your practice’s data security processes.
3. Aquity Solutions
Aquity solutions are probably one of the best high-volume medical transcription services around. They have clients worldwide and process about 300 million minutes of voice files every year. Moreover, they use transcriptionists here in the US and elsewhere in the world to cope with their high volume of work. But, just because they are a big company doesn’t mean they ignore the small guy. They are flexible when dealing with small companies. And, can adjust their pricing and service quality depending on your budget and what you want them to do.
4. DoctorDocs
DoctorDocs has been operating for almost 20 years and knows exactly how to give their customers what they want. Each medical practice has an allocated medical transcriptionist team. Therefore, they become familiar with each doctor or nurse’s speaking mannerisms and regional accent. This feature reduces the editing time needed when misunderstandings and mispronunciations occur. The teams also have their own quality assurance standards and editors that check every transcript for accuracy.
The company’s software archives every document and automatically logs every person who has accessed each patient’s file and when.
This company’s quality assurance stands out among its competitors.
5. DrCatalyst
DrCatalyst is a top medical transcription service company used throughout the US. In addition to document transcription, the company also provides general administration services for medical practices. Such services include:
- Marketing.
- Billing.
- Appointment booking.
- Other administrative services.
They provide a flexible service to suit the level of help your practice needs. When producing medical records, you supply the voice file. Then, they transcribe and deliver it directly to your EHR system.
Overall, they are a great company to use if you need other medical admin services besides transcription.
6. Faber Transcription
Faber Transcription offers great budget-conscious medical transcription rates. They can afford to do this because they specialize in quick turnaround without skimping on security or quality.
7. Mediscribes
Mediscribes provides medical transcription services for all types of medical practice, from single doctor practitioners to full-scale hospitals. You can easily upload voice files to the cloud and access your transcribed files from the web whenever you want. The system is easy to learn and simple to use, unlike some other web-based tools that need experts. Their options are flexible and perfectly scalable, so you only pay for the services you use.
8. Med-scribe Information Systems
Med-scribe is well-established, highly regarded, and one of the top medical transcription services available. They provide a fast, accurate and reliable service, complying with all the HIPAA requirements. You can customize their skills to suit your practice, meaning you only pay for what you receive.
They have a range of online tools, allowing the customer to view many features over the internet. These include viewing editing choices and tracking orders. Furthermore, if the document requires an official signature, the physician can sign it online.
9. Same Day Transcriptions
Same Day Transcriptions offers an excellent medical transcription service combined with good value for money. The company is flexible, convenient, and has a very fast turnaround time reflected in their choice of name. However, you can customize the turnaround time and their other services to suit your company’s requirements.
As well as being good at their job, they also hold National Institute of Health (NIH) certification and approvals from the Institutional Review Board (IRB).
10. Transcription Outsourcing LLC
Transcription Outsourcing LLC provides HIPAA and CJIS compliant services so you can be sure that all your confidential information remains secure. The company encourages you to personalize the transcription process to suit your practice’s needs and supports you throughout the process. The company’s system allows their customers to view, edit and print the archived records, and you can sign documents electronically.
11. World Wide Dictation
World Wide Dictation has been in the business of providing medical transcription services since the 1960s. They offer to transcribe a digital file from voice recorders or phone-based media into an accurate wordprocessed file using the World Wide Dictation system. They also provide a secure and complete archive that clinics and hospitals can access online at any time.
This company knows exactly what to do to provide any medical practitioner with typewritten notes from a digital audio file.
Medical Transcription Service Benefits
No matter if they are large or small, medical practices of every specialty need accurate and comprehensive records. Here is why you may want to consider medical transcription services for your practice.
Reduce company overheads
Employing someone in-house to transcribe medical records can increase company overheads drastically. First, you go through the recruitment process, followed by a period of training. Then, you supply a workstation, computer, and the specialist software necessary to add and edit medical records. Finally, you must pay their salary and benefits even if you don’t have any transcription work for them to do. In contrast, you pay a contractor a set and agreed-on price to do a specific job. And, they don’t get paid until they do it to your satisfaction.
Accuracy
You could rely on voice recognition software to provide the voice to text. Unfortunately, machines will not be sufficiently accurate to provide proper medical records. In fact, it’s downright dangerous. A professional medical transcriber knows the meaning of the technical words and can use them in context. After they’ve completed the first draft, an editor inspects the text to ensure that the voice recording has been correctly interpreted and transcribed. They might go through this process many times before it’s correct because you can’t always guarantee that someone speaks clearly.
Quality assurance
Overloaded medical staff members don’t work as effectively or as accurately as we would prefer. All reputable medical transcription service companies have quality assurance processes to ensure their output is consistently good.
Medical specialists
Medical transcription companies employ people whose specialism is medical transcription. You don’t have to rely on an in-house low-grade administration assistant to type the records. The people you are working with are professionals who know what the words mean and the importance of writing text correctly.
Most transcription companies employ transcribers who work within a medical specialty. This feature is essential for good quality records. It will be very difficult for you to hire someone competent in many different specialties. So, it’s better to leave this to the experts.
Fast and accurate work
Medical transcriptionists can work fast and accurately because they do this work all the time. Most companies provide a 24-hour turnaround and can produce the text even quicker for an additional price. Moreover, it usually takes a professional about 2 to 4 hours to transcribe a voice file lasting one hour. Just imagine how long it would take an unskilled admin assistant.
Free up medical staff to do medical work
Medical practitioners work in their specialty to help others. To do this requires them to talk to patients and diagnose their illnesses. However, many doctors and nurses spend more and more time in front of a keyboard updating medical records and keeping up with the mountains of paperwork. Out-sourcing this admin work is the only way, so medical staff can return to their patients and earn money for the company.
Advantages of Outsourcing Medical Transcription Services
Apart from the obvious solution to remove unnecessary admin work from medical staff, outsourcing medical transcription services is the way forward.
Your medical staff uploads the digital voice file they have dictated into their phone. The transcriptionists take the file and convert them into either a printed format or a digital file that could either be a wordprocessed document or inputted directly into the patient’s EMR or EHR. And you can guarantee that the records are accurate and concise.
Furthermore, using these services will save you money too. Typical medical transcription rates for work such as patient records and letters are much less expensive than the valuable time wasted during a highly paid medical practitioner’s working day.
Next Steps
It makes sense to outsource medical transcription work to third-party contractors. These professionals are skilled in using specialty medical vocabulary and know the context in which to use them. They also free up the doctors and nurses in your practice to see and diagnose more patients. So, you save money by allowing the medical staff to do what you employ them for, thereby allowing them to see more patients and generate more income for the practice.
If you are interested in finding out how much professional medical transcription costs are for your practice, complete the form at the top of this page. You will receive 2 or 3 quotes from reputable transcription companies able to provide this service.