There are several reasons to outsource medical transcription; one of the main reasons is to reduce the burden of non-healthcare related work for everybody involved in the running of the healthcare facility.

The decision making process becomes comparatively difficult when the purchase decision involves availing services rather than a tangible physical product. But is the process of evaluation so different?

What are the usual criteria for evaluation for any major purchase and how does it apply while evaluating medical transcription?

· Quality: Quality is perhaps the most important aspect that is evaluated during the purchase process. This becomes very critical while evaluating services as important as transcription.

· Quantity: This criterion covers two aspects. The quantity that is required and whether the required quantity can be supplied. Again this aspect is vital to a healthcare facility, as in this case the required quantity cannot be predicted and the service provider has to be able to cope with varying needs.

· Right price: Apart from quality and quantity, getting the right price is very important. In case of a healthcare facility looking to outsource medical record creation needs, cost is perhaps the main driver for the outsourcing decision.

· Reliability: In any purchase decision the product/service needs to be reliable. This could mean that the company providing the product/ service should be well established and have the right technology and the right processes in place to provide reliable services.

· Safety: Safety features of the product need to be evaluated before making the final decision. In case of a healthcare facility maintaining safety or security of confidential patient information is mandatory.

· Guarantee: Guarantee for the performance of the product again plays a very important role in the buying decision. In case of a service like transcription the guarantee could be both for turnaround time as well the accuracy levels.

· Ease of use: Nobody likes to buy a product that is difficult to use. This applies very much to a healthcare facility looking to outsource. Using this service should be made as easy as possible without affecting the security and performance features.

· Robust technology: Technology plays a major role in most products/ services. Technology needs to be robust and consistent to ensure the continuity of services.

· After sales service: This is an oft-ignored factor, which turns out to be a glitch after one has availed of products/services. Continued customer care is a vital factor for smooth transition to outsourced transcription services.

· Track record: A good track record/reputation of the company with customers who have purchased the products or availed of the services can provide an additional comfort level.

· Well-developed web site: A well developed website could pretty much cover all these factors. When a healthcare facility looks for options to outsource medical transcription, a well-developed web site can cover all these points and also provide additional information regarding the benefits of availing the services from the service provider.

It can be seen that any purchasing decision tends to follow the same procedure, in case of outsourcing services only the evaluation criteria differs. Medical transcription is a critical function for a healthcare facility and it affects both profitability and the core business of providing quality healthcare. Care should be taken to select a company, which fulfils all these criteria.