Medical Transcription

Medical Scrubing? Medical Coding? Medical Transcription? Medical Billing? |Everything You Must Know

Medical Scrubbing, Coding and Medical Transcription are all the key processes that help the Health care service provider to maintain the revenue cycle.

The billing process took several weeks to months to complete. It usually initiates when the doctor sees the patient, after the treatment all the record has been converted into the form of codes which later send to the insurance companies to get a claim.

As it is a very long process, In this article, we will break down the details of all these steps which will help you to better understand the medical billing process.

Medical Scrubbing

Medical scrubbing also refers to medical claim scrubbing, in which finding and getting rid of the errors which are found in the claims submitted to the insurance companies.

The errors are most usually found in the coding. In other words, it is the procedure in which the claim is audited before being submitted to the insurance companies.

Reasons Behind Medical Scrubbing

The process of medical billing is very complex; it contains several steps from identification to organizing and utilizing the data. In this process, the first step is to collect the personal details of the patient, the procedure, tests, and treatment he availed during his stay in the hospital.

This process also includes the information about the insurance company which contains the complete detail about the services he can avail of under the agreement and what services are excluded from the agreement.

The insurance companies use some defined sets of code to issue the claim,

For a successful claim, there is a need for proper coding as the process of coding is very complex and the chances of error are also very high.

While there are chances of error the medical claim scribing can reduce the quantity of rejected claims. Which turns into a better cash flow with more successful reimbursement.

Medical Coding

Medical coding is the type of procedure in which all the services and treatment delivered to the patient is stored in the form of codes. These codes are then transferred to the insurance companies by the service providers for a claim.

All this coding procedure is handled by a medical coder whose responsibility is to ensure the accuracy of the bill which is submitted to the insurance company.

Reasons for coding

In medical practice, coding is usually described as the term in which the medical service provider recorded the history of the treatment and services provided to the patient and used it to claim reimbursement from the insurance companies.

This is one view of the broader picture, On the other hand, every day a huge amount of patient data is generated. A medical practitioner Recorded the history of the patient in terms of diagnosis of the disease, possible treatment, and medication. All these records help medical institutions and the government track the effectiveness of the treatment.

Transcription is the manual act in which the translator listens to the voice recording and converts them into written form. It includes a person’s medical history like medical treatment diagnosis and other procedures, it is considered as the patient’s permanent medical health record.

Role of Medical Transcriptionist

There are several tasks assigned to a medical transcriptionist. One of the tasks is to accurately transcribe the information related to the patient’s identification like his name, address, the social security number on medical records.

It is also the responsibility of a medical transcriptionist to check the inconsistencies and accurately use punctuation, grammar, and spelling.

The other responsibilities associated with a medical transcriptionist are to report and collect data and maintain a backup up, collect formulate and generate reports based on statistical evidence.

Importance of Medical Transcriptionists

The medical record generated by the medical transcription is helpful for the physician to evaluate the condition of the patient and use it as a reference to treat coming patients.

This medical record is also used by the support staff and nurses to cure the patient effectively according to the doctor’s prescription.

In some cases, the patient switches the doctor, the records which are generated by the transcriptionist will help the new doctor to better understand the condition of the patient with the help of all the previous records, treatment, and medication given to him. So, he can prescribe the best suitable treatment to him.

On the other side, the transcriptionist also helped the coding team by giving them accurate information about the patient’s history and the treatment he availed during his stay in the hospital so they can use this information to bill the insurance company.

Medical Billing

It is a process in which health service providers submit the claim to the insurance company on behalf of the patient who has been treated in the hospital.

Process of Medical Billing

The process of medical billing is described below:

Patient Registration

The first step in the medical billing process is to record the initial data of the patient including his name, age, home address, and insurance provider. This data is very essential which is used during the building process.

In the next step, the service provider will monitor all the details related to patient insurance.

By analyzing those details the service provider will determine the possible treatment process which is covered in the agreement.

Diagnosis

After collecting all the essential details, the patient will consult with the doctor about his health, and then the doctor will evaluate the condition of the patient and prescribe him the appropriate treatment and medications.

Transcription

The meeting between the patient and the doctor is being recorded to make a record of the patient’s medical history. This has been done by the medical transcriptionist, who will listen and document the medical history of the patient which is not only used by other medical practitioners but also used to generate codes for the billing process.

Coding

In the next step, the patient record has been converted in the form of codes. These codes are generated under the guidelines of the American medical association.

The coders usually used CPT and HCPCS codes, which are then forwarded to the insurance companies to submit a claim.

Claim Submission & Payment collection:

After the coding process, the claim has been transferred to the insurance company, which will process the claim if it is submitted within a specific time limit.

Once all these processes are done then the insurance company will transfer the fund to the service provider.

Need Support?

If you need assistance in your medical billing process, contact us at (888) 598-9181.

Med-Miles provides complete medical billing solutions to its clients, from charge entry to payment posting to clean claim submission. We assure you faster reimbursement for an active course of your revenue cycle.

Medical Transcription Services- Proactive To The Needs of The Healthcare Sector

Hospitals and medical offices using old transcription techniques have to rely on paper-based charts, containing a patient’s history and treatment. Many errors have been known to be caused by this like, writing incorrectly deciphered by office staff, nurses or insurance companies. Leading to costly and dangerous mistakes.

Medical practices have two primary options when it comes to medical transcription. They can hire an in-house team of transcribers, or they can outsource transcription to a third party. Accurate notes are essential for ensuring a patient receives the best care and treatment they need.

To Handle these notes in a more professional and easier way and to keep those notes from getting lost, companies outsource their Medical Transcription Services.

In-house transcription has some benefits, many medical providers find outsourcing medical transcription services is the more effective option.

Outsourcing and In-House Transcription-Comparison

According to reports as of 2018, of the 58,000 people who worked as medical transcriptionists in the US, 23% of them worked as in-house physicians, 21% worked in hospitals, and one-third were employed by companies that provide administrative and support services, such as transcription companies.

Working in-house, transcriptionists are responsible for listening to a recording made by a medical provider, interpreting and studying the recording and transcribing it.

Nowadays, changes in technology have made the use of speech recognition software more common. Now, a medical provider is likely to dictate a note that is automatically transcribed by the software.

A medical transcriptionist will review the typed-up note, comparing it to the original recording. They will make any changes or corrections needed to the transcription to ensure it is accurate.

Working with an in-house transcriptionist has a few benefits. For example, an employee at the practice will become familiar with a doctor’s way of speaking, making it easier to transcribe notes.

They will also be easy to reach if there are questions or concerns about a particular transcription since they are likely to be in the same office. A medical practitioner can also train transcriptionists to meet his/her standards and to always follow privacy rules and laws.

An in-house transcriptionist performs other tasks in the office as well. Other than transcribing notes and documents, a transcriptionist might be expected to act as a receptionist, greeting patients who arrive for appointments or answering the phones in the office. Some also handle medical billing, order office supplies and perform other administrative tasks.

However, multitasking throughout the day can prevent a person from performing their transcription duties with focus. Feeling like they need to rush through transcribing, leading to inaccurate notes. Keeping medical transcription in-house can also be more expensive for a healthcare provider.

If the practice or hospital has hired a person full-time, it will need to pay the employee’s salary, whether there are documents to transcribe or not. The practice will also typically provide payroll and pay unemployment insurance taxes for any employees it hires to do transcription.

Outsourcing Medical Transcription Services Benefits

Charting Made Simple

Dictating medical notes has become easier as technology has improved in the past decade. Smartphone apps and handheld digital recorders have played a huge part in saving time and money on the administrative paperwork. A physician can now simply enter notes into a device and be ready to see the next patient in a matter of seconds.

The oral notes will be typed out and proofread for errors. The physician would get back the notes within 24 hours and can fill them with ease. With medical transcription, there is no need to search for lost files and waste time.

Increase In Accuracy

Your medical transcription services provider will offer you several levels of quality control to make sure that there is no occurrence of incorrect medical terms.

Companies can also avail the services of a trained transcriptionist for a specific medical specialty like neurology, cardiology or dermatology. Such transcriptionists can assist you with your individual requirements. With outsourcing, comes the freedom from employing several in-house resources for quality control.

Save Money

Numerous costs are involved in hiring a person to provide in-house transcription. Including the time and money spent advertising for a position, time spent reviewing resumes and time spent interviewing candidates. The average company needs more than 40 days to fill a vacant or new position.

Once the transcriptionist is added to the team, your company needs to pay them even if there aren’t notes or documents to transcribe. That is one reason why many medical practices that use in-house transcriptionists usually have their transcription team perform other roles.

In the case of outsourcing medical transcription services, you only have to pay for the material you have transcribed. If your practice doesn’t see patients for a week or so, you don’t have to worry about continuing to pay the salary of a person who doesn’t have any work to do.

No Equipment

Setting up and maintaining in-house transcription typically requires the purchase of equipment and software. If your team will transcribe documents from recorded voice files, they will need a way to easily playback as well as start and stop those files.

Using speech recognition software in-house also usually requires the purchase of equipment, such as the software itself and a microphone and recorder for doctors to use when making their notes. Along with investing in the equipment, you will need to spend time training your team on how to use it.

Outsourcing medical transcription services, all the equipment and software are kept off-site. You won’t have to purchase it, store it or worry about continually updating it

Why Med-Miles?

Transcription companies like Med-Miles offer medical transcription services to fit every type of need. With scalable options, medical transcription can be customized for any practice of any size.

We even offer one-time medical transcription services. It’s time your hospital transformed your unstructured notes into tidy medical reports. Find out more about the medical transcription services offered or feel free to call us at (888) 598-9181 or mail us at info@med-miles.com.