Initially, I felt I have written enough about Medical Transcription
(MT) to make some readers aware of this emerging job opportunity.
On
second thought, new developments made me write more on it and give
an update.
Well,
here’s the good news. Five State Colleges and Universities in
Eastern Visayas sent a trainee each to an MT Trainer’s Training
that started last Monday, July 31, 2006 at the Total Transcriptions
Solutions, Inc. in Quezon City. These are the Leyte State University,
the Southern Leyte State University, the Eastern Samar State University,
the Palompon Institute of Technology and the Naval Institute of Technology.
The training will last for two and a half months (or until mid –
October).
By
November, these schools will be offering short courses (lasting only
4 months) on Medical Transcription that are expected to attract graduates
of nursing, medical technology, physical therapy, mass communication,
education and even non-graduates who are fluent in English or to be
more specific - anyone who can understand and encode (on a computer
keyboard) English words. (There is no need to speak in an American
accent since this is not call center job.)
While
a majority of the MTs in the Philippines are from the medical field,
a growing number (around 20 percent) come from other fields, according
to Myla Reyes, President of the Medical Transcription Industry Association
of the Philippines when she gave an orientation to state schools and
private schools in Tacloban City last May 2006.
It
is expected that the other 6 state universities and colleges in Region
VIII will also send their participants to a Trainer’s Training
in November this year or January next year.
Thus,
I find it very satisfying to have been part of this effort to create
opportunities for high-paying jobs for a lot of capable individuals
in this region.
By
this time next year, we should have several hundred MTs trained and
employed. That should be reason enough to be happy.
The
next step will involve being recognized nationwide and even worldwide
as a source of competent MTs. A marketing mission to the U.S. can
be organized for the middle of the next year to get clients for MT
Companies in Eastern Visayas.
We
can establish our niche in MT, so to speak. We can do it by 2008.
It
is possible to be known as such. That’s how confident we can
be.