By Rose B. Palacio
Philippine Information Agency
DAVAO CITY — A medical transcriptionist in this city can earn from P20,000 to P50,000 a month, depending on the amount of work they do.
The MTC Academy, the countrys premier medical transcription education provider, is encouraging students, including graduates of nursing, pharmacy, medical technology, public health and allied medical courses to consider medical transcription work.
The first few medical transcription companies began operations not in Metro Manila, as expected, but in the countryside, said Wit Holganza, chief executive officer of MTC Academy, whose institution is located at E. Quirino Avenue, Davao City.
Gracing the ARENA XI Forum radio program anchored by Josette Olivera and the Philippine Information Agency over DXRP Radyo ng Bayan, Holganza said medical transcription companies have discovered that Filipinos are able to transcribe voice-recorded or hand-written medical reports into text for storage as printed or electronic data.
Data from the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, the countrys largest labor organization, reveals that growth in the outsourced medical transcription services industry is likely to outpace the 25-percent annual growth of the booming call center industry.
The business is expected to surge by as much as 90 percent per year for the next five years. At this rate, the Philippines would have some 120,000 medical transcribers by 2010.
The medical transcription industry earned $70 million last year and is expected to climb to $126 million this year, according to data from the Medical Transcription Industry Association of the Philippines, Inc.
This is projected to grow to $238-million in 2007; $476-million in 2008; $952-million in 2009; and $1.71-billion in 2010.
In terms of jobs generated, the number is still small, with 5,000 Filipinos employed in the new industry as of end of 2005. This is expected to increase to 9,000 by the end of this year.
If the growth projections hold, the total number of Filipinos employed by the industry should hit 17,000 by 2007; 34,000 by 2008; 68,000 by 2009; and 122,000 by 2010.
Another advantage of the transcription industry is that workers can work on flex-time at home if necessary. While call centers work on real time, transcription services work under rigid deadlines.
In developed countries, electronic medical records are the preferred means of data storage, giving medical professionals access to information regardless of location. Because of this, medical transcription is easily outsourced as long as the country where the work is transferred has a sufficient telecommunications network. (PIA XI Dispatch/rbp)
