All Things Transcription

Let’s look at outsourcing from a different angle. Many medical transcriptionists refuse to work for an MTSO that outsources. They disagree with outsourcing and see this as a way to have their opinions heard. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this. In fact, I agree with it. Is this helping to reduce outsourcing? If a company is already outsourcing and increasing their profits with it, US medical transcriptionists refusing to work for them isn’t enough to influence them to stop outsourcing.

Is there a group of people who can influence these companies to stop outsourcing? Of course there is, doctors. The doctors are the ones that are supplying the work to the MTSOs. If the doctors stop supplying the work to these companies and make sure to let them know that the reason is outsourcing, I would be willing to bet that it might influence these companies to rethink their positions.

Follow up:

Now, are physicians thinking about this issue at all? How about their office managers? Let’s start with the office managers. The office managers are the ones who do the leg work for the doctors. They are the first ones to field the sales pitches from these companies. They are the ones that search the internet for transcription companies. Their assignment is to find the best solution for the physician’s transcription needs.

When the office manager finds what seems like a good deal, the manager will then pitch the company to a doctor. Unless the office manager has strong personal opinions about outsourcing, this subject will most likely never come up. I’ll make another bet here and say that I doubt the subject comes up at all in most cases. Therefore, the company that can offer the fastest service at the lowest prices wins the contest.

I have seen several transcription companies that are proud to say that they do not outsource. I have not seen any that are up front about the fact that their transcriptionists do not live around here and do not speak English as their first language. You won’t find any bolded type that says “We employ the best transcriptionists available in India!” If I have missed an American company that is upfront about the fact that they outsource, please accept my apologies. I give you credit for at least trying to operate with some integrity.

Let’s move on to the physician now. The physician’s trusted office manager has come up with what seems to be the best solution for the practice’s transcription needs. Unless the physician has specifically stated that he or she will not deal with a company that outsources, the doctor is ready to accept the office manager’s recommendation. After all, the doctor trusted the office manager enough to look into this matter, so he or she is probably not going to even ask if the company outsources. The physician did not care enough about the issue to bring up the subject in the first place. There goes another account that could possibly employ another American.

Doctors are very busy people. I would much rather see a physician that is concerned with keeping up with changes in medicine. However, I think that a lot of them would be upset to know that they are contributing to the problem of outsourcing. Ultimately, this issue is still their responsibility. Perhaps the medical transcription community could shoulder some of the responsibility for informing doctors about this issue.

How do we do that? The next time you visit your doctor, mention that you are a medical transcriptionist and that you are concerned that doctors may not be aware that some MTSOs are outsourcing medical records to countries that don’t even know what HIPAA is. Not only do they not know what HIPAA is, they are not legally required to comply with these laws. That is all you have to do. No long rants about the subject. No accusations or personal confrontation. If you gently inform your physician of this issue, you may find that he is appalled by this and completely unaware that the MTSO he may use is engaging in this practice.

Enlist your friends. Suggest that they ask their physician on their next visit how they handle transcribing their personal medical records. Ask your friends if they would prefer to visit a physician who chooses the cheapest solution or the best solution for this issue. A physician who cuts corners on how they handle their patient’s medical records most certainly could be cutting corners in other areas. Suggest to your friends that they inform their physician they are not comfortable with their personal medical information traveling overseas.

For the doctors, here is what can happen when you outsource your patient records to foreign contractors. Do you really want your patient records to be exposed to this type of blackmail?

Physicians talk to their colleagues. Sometime soon we might wake up and find that by taking this action we have created a firestorm that actually has some influence.