Medical transcriptions is it!

With the prospects of medical transcription (MT) becoming a multibillion-peso industry in the next few years, more local companies are throwing their hats into the ring.

Three companies, the Friendly Alliances and Media Expressions (FAME), DigitizeData.com Inc. (DDCI) and the Manila Adventist Medical Center (MAMC), are closely collaborating to achieve professional excellence in MT, eyeing to compete with other MT companies in the world.

Medical transcription is the accurate and faithful translation from oral to written form, using the doctor’s dictation, a patient’s medical records which may include his/her medical history, clinical and laboratory diagnosis, surgical records, treatment and out-patient follow-ups.

According to FAME chairman Jose Cesareo Rillo, MT is highly in demand in the United States because of their law mandating full documentation of the medical history and consultations of all patients. This is required for insurance claims and as a reference in the event of malpractice suits. The US, Canada, England and other countries can no longer cope with the volume of their MT requirements and are outsourcing the job to other countries, like India and the Philippines.

Methods

According to Leonardo de Ocampo, DDCI chairman, there are three methods of outsourcing. The first is the use of audio cassettes and delivering them via courier to the transcriber. The second is the so-called 1-800 method where doctors would have to dial a toll-free number and dictate their reports.

The third method, which is the most convenient, fastest and most economical, utilizes the technology of the World Wide Web, specifically the Internet and e-mails, to outsource medical dictations for transcription and documentation.

De Ocampo explains that the FAME-DDCI method uses the third one, involving portable dictation devices for file capture, compression software for efficient file/data handling, secured Internet transmission for distribution, and specially configured hardware and programmed software to ensure confidentiality.

"We hope that with these technological advantages, we will be a key player in the MT industry worldwide," Rillo says.

He adds that it all started with a vision to be a world-class company rendering multimedia services, specializing in medical transcription. "With the tie-up with DigitizeData.com and support of the MAMC, this vision (will) likely (become) a reality," he says.

De Ocampo is optimistic too that local companies, particularly the FAME-DDCI-MAMC tie-up, can get a fair share of the overseas MT market. "American clients are quite happy with the work of Filipino transcriptionists, that they generally sign up after the two-week trial period we are offering," says De Ocampo.

Standards

Vince Fragante, general manager of DDCI, gives assurances that their experienced transcriptionists and superior technological infrastructure would ensure that the quality of their reports would always meet, if not exceed, the standards of the American Association of Medical Transcriptionists (AAMT) while meeting a 24-hour turnaround-time or TAT. "We have imposed stringent requirements on ourselves to make sure we meet the highest standards of MT," he says.

Both Rillo and De Ocampo are confident that the meticulously designed FAME-DDCI technology has long-lasting and sustainable competitive advantages over other MT companies, as follows:

• Systems architectural superiority (Hardware and connectivity installed);

• Designed for scalability, customer confidentiality and flexibility;

• Information technology capabilities (experienced IT professionals);

• Designed by an IBM senior architect who has an MS in Computer Engineering from Duke University in the US and has worked with Fortune 500 companies; and

• Strategic alliance with Manila Adventist Medical Center School of Medical Arts.

The MAMC, noted for the board-topping graduates of its school of medical arts, will be in charge of offering a course on MT and providing FAME-DDCI with highly trained and competent transcriptionists. The MAMC is part of a worldwide chain of renowned hospitals and health care facilities run by the Seventh-Day Adventists.

"This collaboration is in line with our mission worldwide to provide excellent services to help improve the healthcare industry," says Dr. Bibly Macaya, president of MAMC, which has been in the forefront of delivering personalized services with a holistic approach to all its patients.

Expertise

The FAME-DDCI-MAMC tie-up is backed up by its Medical Advisory Board (MAB), which is composed of virtually the who’s who in Philippine medicine. "This lends medical expertise and insights ensuring accuracy and high quality of our services," says Rillo.

According to the group’s projections, if the Philippines can just get a 10 percent share of the market, this will amount to more than P50 billion in a few years. The Board of Investments has declared the MT industry as a pioneering industry because of its prospects to generate billions of pesos. Local companies going into it are given tax holidays and other tax incentives, especially in the importation of highly dutiable hardware and software, for 10 years.

Rillo and De Ocampo reveal that the FAME-DDCI-MAMC tie-up is targeting American, British and Canadian healthcare companies. With state-of-the-art technology, it is dedicated to providing complete, confidential, accurate and punctual transcription work with a turnaround time (TAT) of 24 hours.

Both Rillo and De Ocampo promise that the technology they are utilizing is what the Medical Transcription Industry of America (MTIA) is recommending. The MTIA is an organization that deals with the advancement of the medical transcription industry in the US. A conference was held on Oct. 14, 2001 and some of the points discussed were the following:

• Using portable dictation devices to improve physicians’ productivity;

• Capitalizing on the developments in the Internet to improve the delivery mechanisms of transcription service companies;

• Developing application service providers (ASPs) to spur development and improve economies of scale; and

• Exchanging the transcription outsourcing option.

Technology

De Ocampo says their technology has complied with these requirements. He adds that Medquist, the industry leader in medical transcription with a market capitalization of over $1 billion, reported in its presentation to its investors about its planned shift to the technology already being used by FAME-DDCI.

The system that was developed enables clients to send picture and voice files together. Thus, in coming up with a final transcribed document, transcriptionists can incorporate received pictures along with the transcribed notes. It also has a dual mode of data retrieval information that can be retrieved either via the e-mail or the Web.

To ensure confidentiality, De Ocampo explains that they use the standards of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to ensure the security of dictated records. These include the following:

• Encrypted transfer of data at every stage of the process;

• Proprietary encrypted transfer protocols for dictated voice files;

• 128-bit encryption for the transfer of completed files; and

• Unique usernames and passwords.

The Data Protection Act of the United Kingdom and the HIPAA standards for the US show the need to protect individuals’ right to protect their "sensitive" data.

Rillo and De Ocampo give assurances that their technology considers confidentiality in every stage of the production process. Their workstations have the following features:

• No disk drives;

• No readily available printer access; and

• Sealed CPUs.

Their programs also provide the following features:

• Limited Internet access;

• Only return-back-to-sender e-mail feature;

• No post-delivery editing service;

• HIPAA standard security for both modes of data retrieval;

• Encrypted e-mail; and

• Secure website.

Cost factor

Rillo believes that a major advantage which they offer is a lower cost for better-quality service. "This is important since the healthcare industry worldwide is under pressure to lower costs and increase service standards," he says. "Thus, outsourcing to the Philippines provides healthcare services abroad a win-win situation," he adds. Historically, the first option for outsourcing MT work was India, which has pioneered in MT long before countries like the Philippines did. But because of its political problem (with Pakistan), this has led Western healthcare companies to either seek back-up facility outside of India or pull out their operations altogether, especially after discovering the proficiency of MT done in the Philippines.

De Ocampo says MT is a dynamic industry with the key players forced to continually come up with improvements in their systems. "The field of medicine is highly dynamic too. New terms, procedures and medicine are constantly being added to the field’s vocabulary. This dynamism has given rise to the need to specialize. Medical transcriptionists will increasingly find it difficult to be jack of all trades," explains De Ocampo.

De Ocampo adds that they have developed SAM (Superior Assistance Module), a program which assists the company in keeping track of the skills and competencies of its transcriptionists. "By focusing MT on specific areas of medicine, expertise is constantly being developed in-house," he says.

The FAME-DDCI-MAMC Executive Committee is composed of a balanced mix of well-respected medical specialists, administrators and seasoned business and marketing executives whose respective track records vouch for their competence, dependability, integrity and passion for professional excellence.

It is composed of Rillo as chairman, with the following as members: Macaya, De Ocampo, Fragante, Dr. Rebecca Castillo, Rosemarie Arenas-Ong, lawyer Gregson Castillo and Dr. Rafael Castillo. Its medical advisory board consists of 49 highly respected authorities in various fields of medicine.

Despite their advanced technology, Rillo and De Ocampo say that their quest for professional excellence continues so they can offer the best MT services possible, and establish long-lasting relationships with all the people they deal with.