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Mar 05, 2005
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ADVERTISEMENT:
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Krypton, one of the oldest Medical Transcription Production Units
in Eastern India is on the lookout for MTs and QAs to expand their
operations in Kolkata. We need quality MTs and QAs. Remuneration
package linked to skill and productivity. Kolkatan's wishing to
return back will be warmly welcomed. A long term mutually
beneficial relationship, is our motto and goal.

Apply in confidence, or walk-in on mar Mar 07 between 10 am and 4
pm:

Krypton Infotech Limited
BF-173, Sector-1
Saltlake
Kolkata-700064
Phone: 33-23592717/ 23592727
Fax: 033- 23598702
email: krypton@...

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TransMahotsav: Annual Transcription Hungama

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Dear Friends,

Many of us have simply adapted to work stress and reconciled by
accepting "that's just the way it is." Some of our colleagues have
been working on changing this mindset and thus was born the concept
of "Trans-Mahotsav" - An all-fun annual mega event exclusive for
the transcription community.

So, let's celebrate! Let's give ourselves a treat!! Let our MT
hearts be filled!!! Let them beat to the rhythm of life!!!! Let's
have fun..... Loooooots of FUN!!!

Trans Mahotsav, the Mega Event with Maha Fun, is the transcription
community's annual event. This is the first celebration and it will
surely be the biggest and best event, with an estimated audience of
more than 1200! TransMahotsav will be held this year in Hyderabad,
at the centrally located Punjagutta office of Transdyne on March
13, 2005.

All outstation participants who register on or before March 11,
2005, will be reimbursed to & fro sleeper class train fare. Please
call Sachin on 094406-26791, for details on this.

And if you thought it was limited to MTs and PRs, you are wrong.
Trans Mahotsav belongs to us and our families and friends too. Be
there from dawn to dusk and have unlimited fun while you win lots
of prizes. There will also be music, game booths, contests, fashion
shows, a disco and lots more.

You have two options - register now and have a great time or regret
until next year! :o)

For program and registration details, see:
http://www.transmahotsav.com/

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To participate in the Coffee Break Quiz Contest, click here now:
http://www.mtindia.org/jobs/
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Ciao!

Dr Amit Chatterjee, SM
Strategist / Founder ~ mailto:amit@...
MT India ~ www.mtindia.org
"The Community of MT Professionals"

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NEWS AND VIEWS :
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1) Philippines co buys KG group's biz

SPI Technologies Inc, a Philippines-based content outsourcing
services provider, is acquiring the medical transcription business
of the Coimbatore-based KG Group in an all cash deal.

Ernest L. Cu, President and Chief Executive Officer, SPI
Technologies Inc, said acquisition of KG Information Services and
Technologies Pvt Ltd's medical transcription business, would help
it to scale up delivery capabilities in India to meet the growing
demand for MT services by US firms However, Ernest Cu declind to
disclose the financial details of the transaction, but said the
deal would be closed in a couple of weeks. KG operates a 270-seat
medical transcription facility in Coimbatore and currently has
about 350 employees operating in different shifts, he said.

"We are buying KG's medical transcription unit purely for the
reason of adding capacity and not for its revenues or clients. If
utilised fully in three shifts, we could employ close to 800 people
in the Coimbatore facility," he added. KG MT unit is the second
acquisition of SPI in India, which earlier acquired the
Pondicherry-based Kolam Information Services in 2003. The latest
acquisition increases SPI's headcount in medical transcription to
over 800 globally. SPI has two facilities in the Philippines
delivering medical transcription services. Medical transcription
accounts for close to 15 per cent of SPI's revenues.

http://sify.com/finance/fullstory.php?id=13686590

2) Indian immigrant sure that his business, Cleveland will succeed

Mehta found Cleveland on a junket and was lured by a promise. He
was among a handful of Indian business leaders to visit Cleveland
during a trade meeting in July 2003. Among his hosts was David Yen,
executive director of the Cleveland World Trade Center, who
promised temporary free office space, market research and other
resources if Mehta came here. "A lot of people promise a lot of
things," Mehta said. So he asked Yen whether he was serious about
these promises. Mehta said that if Yen was indeed serious, he would
begin crafting a business plan around them. Yen, Mehta said, was
almost offended at the suggestion that he might not deliver on what
he said. Yen responded curtly: "We do what we promise." "That
impressed me," Mehta said. Ten months later, Mehta was sitting in a
cubicle on the second floor in Cleveland's Tower City Center - the
free office space he was promised.

Mehta's company, Zodiac Infotech LLC, is a medical transcription
company that primarily takes doctors' dictation and transcribes it
within 24 hours by sending it to India, where salaries and the cost
of living are dramatically lower than in the United States. An
average medical transcription salary here can run $27,000 to
$35,000 annually, while Mehta's Indian transcribers make $1,440 to
$3,600 a year. Medical transcription services in Cleveland, some of
which already use offshore labor, typically charge from 10 to 16
cents per line (some doctors will easily have 8,000 lines
transcribed monthly). Zodiac can afford to charge 9 to 11 cents a
line.

Mehta has been working in the United States for years; he just
hasn't had a local presence. The 4-year-old company employs 140
full-time employees in India and serves more than 100 physicians
and five hospitals across the country. It has one-man sales offices
in six other states.

Some Indian transcription companies think building a local office
may backfire. "This industry is all about costs," said T.P.
Prabhakaran, chief executive officer of Pradot Technologies Private
Ltd., one of the larger medical transcription firms in India, which
employs two people in the United States. "When we are selling to a
customer, the primary motivation is to cut down the cost only if we
operate out of India." When asked if he would consider expanding
his local presence, Prabhakaran said: "No. Absolutely not." But
Prabhakaran also said medical transcription companies rarely see
success quickly. Getting clients in the Midwest isn't the problem,
he said. It's the doctors. "Generally, physicians are conservative
about adopting new technology," Prabhakaran said. "That would apply
to the East Coast or whatever."

Early success or no, Mehta has already kept his promise to become a
Cleveland cheerleader. "They're starting to spread word about us,"
Mehta said of his two customers. "They're saying to their
colleagues, 'You should try them out.' "

http://www.cleveland.com/newcomer/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/business/110422996\
0215720.xml

3) Frank W. Lavelle Named President of MedQuist Inc.

MedQuist Inc. announced that it has named Frank W. Lavelle as its
new President. Mr. Lavelle will report to Howard S. Hoffmann, who
will continue to serve as Chief Executive Officer.
Mr. Lavelle most recently was President, Enterprise Sales &
Marketing, Customer Solutions Group at Siemens Medical Solutions.
He has held many senior positions including President & Chief
Executive Officer of Siemens Medical Solutions Health Services
Corporation and Senior Vice President, North American Customer
Operations for Shared Medical Systems prior to its acquisition by
Siemens. Mr. Lavelle will join MedQuist on March 8.
Mr. Lavelle replaces Greg Sebasky who has served as MedQuist's
President since February 2004. Mr. Sebasky has been asked to return
to Philips Medical Systems, where he formerly held a senior
position, to take on new executive responsibilities. Mr. Sebasky
will remain at MedQuist for a brief transitional period to ensure
that critical knowledge is transferred and that the positive
momentum which the company has enjoyed over the last few months is
maintained.

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/050302/nyw141_1.html

4) Tax protester gets wish, is indicted

Rose and his wife run a medical transcription business. Since they
don't operate internationally, he said, none of the money they've
earned from it is subject to the income tax.

For years, Larken Rose has chosen not to pay federal income taxes
and challenged the government to do something about it. His Web
site even includes a letter that starts: "Dear Federal Government,
PLEASE PROSECUTE ME." Last week, his wish was granted. Rose and his
wife, Tessa David Rose, were indicted by the U.S. Attorney's Office
for failing to pay income taxes over five years on $500,000 in
income. If convicted, they face up to five years in prison and a
fine of $125,000.

Rose, 36, said this week he was excited about a trial because it
could give him the chance to expose the federal income tax system
as "the largest fraud in history."

http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/113-03022005-457367.html

5) Healthy results from IT investment in Healthcare

Wanting health care costs to go down is a lot like talking about
lousy weather and the playoff performances of Minnesota's pro
sports franchises: Everybody wrings their hands, but the weather
vane keeps spinning and the scoreboard totals are depressingly
correct.

But in health care, at least, solutions that look promising are
emerging. The recent federal government report, "The Decade of
Health Information Technology," issued to coincide with formation
of a national private-sector consortium (the Health Information
Technology Leadership Panel), estimates that if patient records
were in electronic form, 10 percent of the nation's annual health
care bill -- $140 billion a year -- could be saved.

The reality piece is where it gets sticky. According to a New York
Times story by way of the Gartner Group, health care investment in
information technology (IT) is slow and minuscule: Only 13 percent
of the country's 6,000-plus hospitals currently use any kind of
electronic patient record system. Meanwhile, the $1.5
trillion-dollar health care industry spends on average $3,000 on IT
investments for each worker. That compares with $7,000 per worker
in private industry and almost $15,000 in banking.

Hospitals and clinics argue that the dollar and time costs of
investment are significant barriers to making the much-needed
change. But those comparative investment figures seem to be asking,
"What's more important, your money or your life?" And that's
disturbing, because the federal report makes clear that health care
IT benefits don't stop at mere cost savings, they extend into
quality care and longevity. The benefits shown by one
physician-owned clinic system in central California (Visalia
Medical Clinic) that switched to an electronic patient data record
are worth noting for our health care institutions:

http://www.startribune.com/stories/535/5274029.html
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All original content of this newsletter is © Copyright 1998-2005
Mediweb Infotech Pvt. Ltd. All cited articles are copyright of
their authors and/or respective publications. Please feel free to
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as long as it is left intact with all links unchanged and this
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Thank you for your interest in MT India!

The MTIndia Team
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