Medical transcription is the process of producing reports from dictation by medical providers of the details of patient office visits, clinical, radiographic and operative procedures, etc. Virtually every encounter a patient has in the medical arena (Hospital, Clinic, individual or group practices etc) is documented in some way. Most providers and institutions have formalized this documentation into the patient's medical record through dictation and subsequent transcription. In addition to typing the report into the desired format, transcriptionists also verify the dictation for accuracy -- both medical accuracy and English-language accuracy -- so that the final report is a clear, medically accurate representation of the encounter between patient and provider.

Medical transcription has existed since the beginning of medical care and research. Ancient cave writings attest to the earliest forms of healthcare documentation. While the medium changed from metal plates to clay tablets, from hieroglyphs on temple walls, to papyrus, to parchment, to paper, and most recently to electronic files, the reasons for maintaining records have always been the same-to record an individual's health care and the achievements of medical science