Medical transcription jobs have been growing at a faster rate than the overall economy for many years. It is estimated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics that there are well over 100,000 active transcriptionists employed on a full or part time basis in the United States alone. Some estimate put the figure closer to 200,000. The BLS expects the overall industry job growth to exceed that of most other occupations.
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The next decade will see an increase of about 14% in the MT workforce. In raw numbers that equates to thousands of new medical transcription jobs being created to satisfy the growing demand for health care documentation. This represents a staggering number of new trained transcriptionists in its own right. However, I do not believe that these numbers accurately reflect the realities of the supply demand equation for an industry historically plagued by excess demand. For example, they fail to take into account the fact that literally thousands of the most experienced MT's will be retiring and exiting the industry in the coming decade. These people are part of the aging baby boom population whose movement into retirement promises to create one of the most significant social upheavals in US history. This will result a high concentration of new transcription job openings in the coming decade just to accommodate attrition. This is in addition to the 14% organic job growth forecast by the BLS over the same decade.
The interesting thing to note is that it requires many years of active transcription experience to achieve the level of aptitude and productivity possessed by these industry veterans. It will not be possible to replace these experienced practitioners on a one-to-one basis. In other words, it will require more than one new graduate of a medical transcription school to replace the lost production capacity of one retiring veteran. The industry is relying on improvements in health care documentation technology and a continued reliance on overseas outsourcing to bridge the inevitable production gap.
As a part of the multi-trillion dollar health care industry, the trends shaping the future of medical transcription include a host of demographic, political, and legal factors. These include:
- A growing population.
- A rapidly aging population.
- An increased reliance on healthcare systems to extend life.
- A rapid increase in chronic and age related infirmities requiring acute care.
- A proliferation in the number of malpractice lawsuits - resulting in higher levels of detail in healthcare documentation.
- An increasing reliance on medical specialists resulting in multiple visits to a variety of different physicians - all requiring documentation.
- An increased reliance on electronic information documentation to increase the quality of patient care.
- An increasing ability to successfully treat conditions and prolong life in previously terminal patients.
While some of this demand will be mitigated through advances in technology and a growing reliance on offshore production, the demand for qualified medical transcriptionists in the US is likely to increase dramatically in the coming years.
