Bangalore: Medical transcription firms in the country today (Aug 6, 2004) joined together to form the Indian Medical Transcription Industry Association (IMTIA) aiming to set best practices and propel growth of the $ 100 million sector.

"The MT industry is poised to grow at a dramatic pace and in order to ensure that this pace is harnessed and a solid base created, IMTIA has been formed," IMTIA president Suresh Nair told reporters in Bangalore.

Nair, the CEO and Managing Director HealthScribe India, said there were about 350 MT companies in India employing about 5,000 professionals.

"This industry can generate employment to an additional 2,000 people every year," he said.

IMTIA is also aiming to move up the value chain to render services such as electronic medical records, medical coding and billing services, documents imaging, data warehousing and high-end services like radiology.

Nair said the association, would be the NASSCOM (National Association of Software and Service Companies) equivalent for the Medical Transcription industry.