| Outsourcing medical transcription work to | | | | quality check personnel, Philippine-based service |
| offshore service providers has proven extremely | | | | providers still offer significant savings compared to |
| effective in reducing overall transcription costs of | | | | U.S.-based transcriptionists. To illustrate: |
| individual health practitioners, clinics and hospitals. | | | | - A Philippine-based transcriptionist earns $280 per |
| Organizations who outsource their work to | | | | month |
| offshore transcription providers save anywhere | | | | - The support costs (salaries of editors, quality |
| from 40 to 70 percent of the cost compared to | | | | assurance specialists, admin, office costs, utilities) |
| doing the transcription in-house, or utilizing | | | | are more or less equivalent to effectively $300 |
| U.S.-based medical transcriptionists. | | | | per transcriptionist |
| The other important advantage is that aside from | | | | - Assume that the medical transcription service |
| the cost savings, there is the important aspect of | | | | organization marks up by around 30%, therefore, |
| a significant increase in quality of transcribed work | | | | you add another $174 per transcriptionist per |
| because of the multiple editing and quality | | | | month representing profits of the service |
| assurance steps built into the processes of | | | | organization. |
| offshore transcription providers, unlike U.S.-based | | | | - Combine the three items and you get a figure |
| individual transcriptionists which are primarily | | | | of $754 per transcriptionist per month cost, |
| one-person operations. With outsourced | | | | significantly lower versus U.S.-based costs. |
| transcription, you have an entire transcription | | | | - Compare this $754 per transcriptionist per |
| organization servicing your needs: transcriptionists, | | | | month cost for outsourced transcription with the |
| editors, quality assurance specialists, efficient | | | | $2,600 per month salary of U.S.-based medical |
| organizational processes. | | | | transcriptionists, and you get savings of $1,846 |
| The cost savings are possible because of the | | | | per transcriptionist per month, or 71 percent in |
| availability of highly-skilled, low cost medical | | | | potential savings! |
| graduates in prominent outsourcing destinations | | | | The forecast U.S. medical transcription spending in |
| such as India and the Philippines. Based on a salary | | | | 2010 is around $16.8 billion. Currently, only 40 |
| survey report for medical transcriptionists | | | | percent of U.S. transcription work is outsourced |
| conducted by Payscale, the median salary for | | | | to offshore providers. Outsourcing the remaining |
| hospital-based medical transcriptionists is around | | | | 60 percent transcription work to offshore |
| $31,287 per annum, or approximately $2,600 per | | | | providers represents a significant cost savings |
| month. In contrast, the average salary of a | | | | opportunity. Outsourcing this remaining 60 percent |
| medical transcripionist in the Philippines, based on | | | | of the work to offshore providers, therefore, |
| an online salary survey conducted by Jobstreet, | | | | represent possible savings equivalent to $6.2 billion |
| the leading online job portal of the Philippines, is a | | | | per year ($16.8 billion x balance 60% outsourced |
| maximum of $280 per month! This is 89 percent | | | | x 60% cost saving). Outsourcing transcription |
| cheaper compared to the salaries of their U.S. | | | | work, therefore, is a significant opportunity for |
| counterparts. Even if you factor in the supporting | | | | reducing U.S. healthcare costs. |