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18 Sept 2004

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Will the MTIA stand up, on its own feet???

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Dear Friends,

BBC Hindi Service is running a program on the career prospects and job
opportunities for MTs in India. The third episode was broadcast on Saturday
at 6.30 am, in the program 'Aaj ke din'.

For those who missed the program, you will find it uploaded here:
http://www.mtindia.org/bbc

Back to basics, here is a complaint and demand for jury trial, filed at the
US District Court, California against Medquist being sued for fraudulent
billing practices... You can download the original document from our site -
it is a .pdf copy of the original summon...
http://www.mtindia.org/Medquist%20Complain.pdf

What does MTIA think on this, as "MedQuist Inc." is listed as "BMP
Supporting Companies 2003-2004"

Also what does the MTIA do against a member company (the biggest), which has
not abided to its "Code of Ethics?"

This is from the MQ's earlier press releases:

<The company said it has accepted the resignations of its chief financial
officer, Brian Kearns, and chief legal officer, John Suender.

The billing review, conducted for MedQuist's board of directors by Debevoise
& Plimpton and Pricewaterhouse-Coopers, found MedQuist's billing method
caused some clients to be charged more, and some less, than they would have
if the line-counting method called for in contracts had been used.>

Please note both the above named are defendants in this case.

Medquist, by its own internal review (which process took over eight months
and led to a NASDAQ delisting on June 16) has accepted that it had indulged
in incorrect billing methods. The point here is, that it has not in anyway
stated its intention to reimburse clients who have been charged more - or
implement a transparent verifiable method such that the client can audit for
past bills.

As per the Medical Transcription Industry Alliance Medical Transcription
Billing Method Principles, to which Medquist is a signatory, I quote:

<Verifiability: A medical transcription billing method should be subject to
verification, with such verification being available to parties to the
transaction.

Definability: A medical transcription billing method should accurately
define all measurements and be free from definitional ambiguity.

Measurability: A medical transcription billing method should allow for
complete understanding of the formulas used in its calculation and result in
a clear and concise invoice.

Consistency: A medical transcription billing method should be generally
reliable and consistent in its application.

Integrity: A medical transcription billing method should be fair and honest,
resulting in invoices that accurately reflect and charge for service
rendered.

As these Principles are born from reasonable business practices, one should
assume that any billing method which can be questioned in the context of
these Principles, may not be as sound as method as one that cannot be
questioned.>

From Medquist's own "internal assessment" none of the above principles were
adhered to. Moreover, in this present class action suit the plaintiff
specifically claims that Medquist and its employees, by acts of commission
(besides omission) hindered any verification process by the plaintiff.

Will the MTIA stand up, to clean the industry's image?

Regards,

Maj (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) Indian medical transcription fuels Acusis expansion push

Acusis LLC believes that India will become the hub of medical
transcription - and it's throwing its money behind the claim. The company
has already established a foothold there with an investment of $20 million
and plans to rapidly expand its operations in the next few years.

"Certainly, we will continue to invest in India aggressively," said David
Iwinski, president and chief executive officer of Acusis. "We are 100
percent dedicated to India." Iwinski said that the company will add an
additional 300 people and a fifth office by the end of this year. A sixth
office may be ready by the end of 2005 or early 2006.

The company's chief operating officer, K.B. Anand, said that the medical
transcription outsourcing industry is growing very rapidly in India. From
its start in 2000, Acusis has focused only on India. "From the very first
day, we were deemed to be an India establishment," said Iwinski. Contrary to
the general belief, it is safer to do business with Indian offices, he
added. "If you look at the track record, the leaking of information through
U.S. companies is much greater than companies in India," Iwinski said.

http://www.indusbusinessjournal.com/news/2004/09/01/SouthAsianConnection/Indian.\
Medical.Transcription.Fuels.Acusis.Expansion.Push-713068.shtml

2) Nasscom to Audit Security of Data

Nasscom, the Indian information technology industry group, is preparing a
security audit of its 860 member companies, in an attempt to allay rising
fears in the US and UK about customer privacy and data protection.

India's rapidly growing IT sector exports more than $12.5bn (?10.3bn, £7bn)
in software and outsourcing services, mostly to North America and Europe.
Around three-quarters of Fortune 500 companies now use Indian IT services.

But with credit card processing and insurance and medical record management
increasingly performed in India, Nasscom believes IT companies must pay more
attention to protecting sensitive customer information.

"Our industry is an increasingly important part of the global supply chain,"
said Sunil Mehta, vice-president of Nasscom. "India has to be more proactive
on security, data protection and privacy laws."

Critics of outsourcing to India say western consumers have inadequate legal
protection from the abuse of data handled in India. Meanwhile, Indian IT
executives fear incidents of data fraud or a privacy breach could cost
millions of dollars in lost contracts.

In response, Nasscom is preparing an industry-wide security audit before the
end of the year, managed by firms such as PwC, Deloittes, and Ernst & Young,
that would assess security practices among IT services companies.

Nasscom will hold a conference in October with the IT Association of America
on fighting cybercrime. This will be followed by a UK meeting in November.
"Post 9/11, security has become an important issue. It won't go away.
Security breaches will occur, security standards will evolve," Mr Mehta
said. "We hope to be significant players driving the development of these
standards."

http://www.nasscom.org/artdisplay.asp?Art_id=3168

3) Business people share a new school of thought

FreeMarkets Inc. co-founder Glen Meakem is trading his corner office for the
classroom -- figuratively speaking. Following the sale of his company to
Ariba Inc. in July, Pittsburgh's top Internet entrepreneur has undertaken a
new challenge -- to infuse the education system in Western Pennsylvania with
free market principles.

And he's not alone. Pittsburgh-based start-up medical transcription company
Acusis Inc. donated $100,000 earlier this year to charter school operator
Propel Schools and laid down a challenge for others to follow suit. Acusis
Chief Executive David Iwinski is the chairman of a group called Friends of
Propel, a growing support network for the nonprofit group seeking to
establish a network of charter schools in the region.

Iwinski, whose company employs about 20 in Pittsburgh, but about 650 in
India, has a good perspective on the threat to American economic
competitiveness from the developing world and the need for education
improvements to keep America at the vanguard of economic change. In India,
he said, "The intensity of the commitment to education is extraordinary.
Those folks have been watching us and learning."

http://pittsburghlive.com/x/tribune-review/business/s_250883.html

4) Certification programme for BPO candidates soon

National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom) is in the
process of finalising a Common Certification Programme for prospective
employees of the BPO sector in the country. "We are in the final stages of
deciding on what the tests should assess. While hard skills are easy to
identify, soft skills are a more difficult proposition. Hence, we are in
close contact with HR figures in the industry and outside agencies. We
should be able to rollout the first phase of the programme by the end of
this year," said Kiran Karnik, president of Nasscom.

"We are currently in the process of defining what exactly is needed from the
candidates. The next challenge would involve actual working on the content
for the tests and implementation of the same," said Karnik.

"The ultimate objective is to take the tests online and make sure they are
accessible to as many people across the country as possible. We are looking
at the possibilities of ensuring the identity and security of these tests
and are working towards a not too expensive and efficient way of getting the
tests online," said Karnik.

http://www.nasscom.org/artdisplay.asp?Art_id=3283

5) India's offshorers boxing clever

DR Roy D'Souza is busy turning scans of abdominal sections into one detailed
three-dimensional image, which will allow surgeons at a top US hospital to
assess the patient's kidneys from all angles before a scalpel is wielded.
"Cutting edge, worldwide," the radiologist says proudly browsing through
images on a $100,000 work station in a silent, pristine office.

Wipro, an Indian company which earned more than $1 billion last year
servicing the software needs of Western firms, started offering remote
radiology only recently. Client numbers are small - so far. However, with
the West's ageing population, ever-spiralling medical bills in the US and
NHS queues in Britain, D'Souza's boss, TK Kurien, president of Wipro Health
Sciences, has dreams: "This could be as big as IT - who knows?

Clinical Process Outsourcing (CPO) is just the latest buzzword in a
technological revolution in which telecommunication advances mean services,
not just goods, can cross international borders. And while everyone's heard
of Indian call centres, the talk in the subcontinent is now of the offshore
back-office going upmarket: legal research, actuary calculations, tax work,
movie special effects, equity analysis and architectural drawing. And all
for a fraction of Western salaries.

Guiding Solutions has just launched a legal transcription outsourcing
service, with six law firms in Scotland so far signed up, to send digitised
dictation files to India via a secure link. The processed letters, pleadings
and deeds can then be returned, ready for use the following morning.
Ahmed rejects suggestions such work is necessarily plagued with
cross-cultural errors, such as those recently highlighted by the British
media in outsourced medical transcription services. "In our experience such
problems are exaggerated. Initially, there were some problems but this was
always in the names, so we ask that whenever there is a name the client
spells it out."

NASSCOM vice-president Sunil Mehta says that the numbers remain very small
for the higher end work. But he says the time is right for expansion. He
adds: "There has been a growing acceptance of India's credibility and
ability."

http://www.sundayherald.com/44641

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Thank you for your interest in MT India!

The MTIndia Team
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