Different perspective on "old days"
Posted By: LK on 2009-10-04
In Reply to: Sadly, you are exactly right. - CrankyBeach
I am a relatively new MT, just under 5 years in the field. But I used to be on the other end in the old days, trying to recruit MTs for a hospital and a large orthopedic practice in the late 1980s. MTs definitely COULD write their own ticket back then. We would advertise and rarely even get a single response, there just weren't enough MTs to go around. We were willing to pay whatever it took to get them, and it was a heck of a lot better than what MTs are paid now. And we tried to treat them well to KEEP them. But the field has changed and MTSOs are flooded with resumes. No need to pay well anymore with so many willing to work for peanuts because they are all competing for fewer jobs.
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In the "old days", the machine on my desk that played the tapes was called the transciber. sm
People who type the dictation are called transcriptionists. I realize in this new day and age where people would rather google, spell check and guess rather than look it up in a dictionary or other word reference and actually know the meaning of what they are typing, such things make little difference, but it means something to me. I also have hated the word typist since I do so much more than just copy type.
I know ... pay me and you can call me anything is the predominating theory here. I just have noted that it is usually the Indian-based company that uses the term transcriber.
"Old Timey"
 Just thought this was funny. On MT Daily, a transcription company is looking for a Transcriptionist who isn't an old timey transcriptionist, wants someone who knows computer technology, etc. She must think if we've been doing this a long time, we must be TOO DUMB to know computer technology. Gimma a break, pleeeease!!!
happy "old" TT'er
so, I guess I'm a happy old TT'er (only 1-1/2 years) and am very happy. it's the best I've found after going through a bunch of duds.
That is what I just said. !0 days PTO, period. That includes vacation, sick days and personal days
They should have paid holidays so that you are paid if you take off. Also should inculde extra hours for sick days and personal days.
That annual raise of .002 is kind of a joke especially when at the same time they upped the minimum line requirement from 10,000 lines to 12,000 lines.
OSi just does not have the qualified people in management positions that I wish to work for.
I am glad that you are happy at OSi and all is working out for you. Their dishonesty and the way they treat people just does not work for me.
Of course they can get by cheaply by hiring unqualified people so that is very good for the owners.
to look at it from your perspective...
you ask why the sudden outrage over HL offshoring. It isn't the offshoring that caused outrage. It was the displacement of jobs to offshore personnel that caused a feeling of electricution to those losing their jobs.
There is some personal responsibility in knowing what your company is up to when it comes to offshoring when certain information about that activity is readily available online; however, there are companies that hide the fact that they offshore and prevent under penality of job termination employees communicating with each other in private or in public.
What goes on behind the scenes can be quietly veiled until suddenly the worker bee is cut off from its food supply. Do you blame the bee? Only if it doesn't adapt and move on. Do we ask the bee if it feels hurt about what happpend? Certainly not. It isn't human.
Instead of blaming AAMT, why isn't anyone looking at the board of directors of MTIA? It has a significantly disproportionate number of offshoring CEOs on its board of directors with those individuals pushing for American MT apprecenticeships, with federal funds potentially being covertly diverted to their offshore investments. They sent HL's president to California in 2004 to represent them as the best of the best regarding the issue of offshoring.
People do what they need to do to keep their lives afloat at a particular point in their lives but it is unwise to live the life of an ostrich with heads buried in the sand.
No offense to anyone who lost their job intended. I would feel many negative emotions if I were in your shoes.
Your perspective....
Perhaps you are wrong. We each have our own ideas on MQ so both sides should be equally read for the above person to have a choice. Glad you're happy but I'm not. Will not sugar-coat MQ for anyone - they have a right to know not all is sweet there.
Oh, isn't that a different perspective...sm
RH was the one who got under my skin. Her and I clashed from day 1.
another perspective....
I’ve worked at Precyse more than 6 years now and experienced many changes. They have definitely had their growing pains and going to ASR has most definitely brought more. Let’s face it everyone, everything is changing (some good and some not so good) and it has been this way forever. Manual Typewriters to Word Processors, to PCs; DOS to Windows and now Microsoft Office 2007. Domestic transcription to overseas. Manual typing to Assisted Voice Recognition. Being paid hourly to production. We can either change with the times or change careers. My head is always trying to wrap around something new. What is Precyse suppose to do. Not change keep up. Put It’s foot down and say no. How can they do that and keep competitive and keep in business. They are not an “I don’t care about the MT” company. There are 400 transcriptionists at Precyse now from what I hear and over 700 employees overall. This means that they are providing jobs to 700 people in the USA. I have to defend them. Because of them (and my hard work), I have a roof over my head and food on my table. ASR accounts are not mandatory but I want to learn them to keep competitive. This is the future and it’s not going away. Yes, I’ve run into production problems, ESLs that I just want to cry over, low line counts, system issues, lack of communication and change in managers. But this is everywhere. There have been more times where I can just do my job and do it well, make decent money and feel good about what I do. I’m tired of jumping around. Even though Precyse has big changes going on, they really try to think about and develop the new programs around how it is going to affect the MT. One example is the ASR line rate. On top of the line rate, they also pay a bonus to keep you whole until your average pay is equal to or higher than what you’ve earned on straight transcription. Bottom line, we have to be real about this business. This doesn’t mean you have to just take being treated unfairly. There are plenty of unfair companies out there but I can’t say that Precyse is one of them.
Different perspective - sm
Maybe I am just old and have a different perspective on things, but have you tried talking to your direct supervisor? Sometimes they can help ease things during the break-in phase. If your issues are primarily related to one QA person, possibly this could be salvaged?
My perspective
I absolutely love it...honestly. I don't work on the University accounts, I work on clinics and I love it. We have boatloads of work right now and yes, the OT is mandatory, but only 1 hour a day, more if you want. My supe is the absolute best, communication is awesome...for me, Amphion works well. Coming from my old job, it's like night and day. I've been with them for almost 2 years and love it...
My perspective sm
for what it is worth here.
I have been an IC for years. My taxes as an IC amounted to 18% of my GROSS income last year. I didn't even make that much, but I didn't get to spend a dime beyond my business and personal expenses. As an employee, I'll have help on the FICA portion, which amounted to so much of my taxes.
The last IC job I had, I got 11 cents a line. The account and the software were so difficult, I was lucky to get 800 lines a day (I am doing double that) and I was working 10, 12 and 14 hours a day. The account was almost all ESLs and it was terrible. That is, of course, when I had the work. Increasingly I didn't have the work. I asked for some time off because I had pneumonia, thank you very much and was told you take a couple days, don't bother coming back and I was not asking to be paid, I was NOT going to be paid!
Take the IC job before that. No PTO and I tried for a year to get a darn THREE days off and ended up with 1/2 a day after much whining on my part. They offered insurance...$485 a month for health benefits I could not use in any state nearby, including my own. I called in sick only once in 3 yrs, but was berated for being slow when I was well and truly sick with a fever of 103. Awful.
I took the time to total up benefits, taxes and PTO versus my average lines of 1650 a day at the rate from TT and at the 11 cents a line over 900 lines a day and at the 9 cents a line at 1500 I was doing. Guess what? I am thousands ahead! It is not possible to calculate what the lower stress of affordable benefits, the availability of a sick day if I need it, the relaxed feeling I have knowing I don't have to come up with so much in taxes, will do for my production and general contentment in life. I don't care if it is even money with my ICs, it is peace of mind here.
Another perspective....
when i worked in the hospitals and we were low on or out of work, we had to go do busy work, file charts, etc to 'earn' our pay. Gosh i hated that. Now, working at home, we can run do a load of laundry, go visit a friend, etc., and come back to the work when it accumulates. For me, being at home is my preferred way to travel; no gripe from me!
A different perspective
Niki, your describing Precyse as being a very caring place to work is analogous to being in an abusive relationship. I suppose there are those that like it and that stay because the think they deserve to be abused.
from my perspective
I think they are overhiring for whatever reason. On a daily basis, there is very little work at all. No, there are no benefits.
The answer is, at least from my perspective,...SM
The answer to your final question is, no lower than this. I am saying "ENOUGH" right now. I don't know for sure how it will all play out, but I do know that I'm not just going to stand silently by and watch as the soup kitchens loom larger on the horizon.
I think that, as the qualified MTs move to the more MT-oriented companies, the strength of those companies will grow while the strength of ones that are being left will dwindle. In that scenario, the accounts will eventually have to begin shifting to the companies that are staffed to provide them the service they need. VR or no VR, the reports have to be typed.
And something else that I have been thinking about for a while is this. What happens if we are ever able to put a national health care system in place that will allow everyone to access the health care networks. All of those people out there that currently cannot get the health care they want will suddenly be accessing the system, and many of them with health problems that are now chronic because of not having the financial ability to take care of those problems when they were acute and perhaps easier to deal with. The numbers of people suddenly accessing the health care system will increase 1000 fold, and along with that increase will come an increase in the demand for qualified MTs. For every individual that goes into a hospital, there will be a minimum of 2 reports generated concerning their patient care, i.e., 1 H&P and 1 discharge summary, minimum.
In my opinion, VR is wasted in the hands of anyone that cannot produce the finished product without someone else stepping in and polishing it up. In the hands of the right people, VR will indeed accomplish what everyone ideally hoped it would. The individuals developing it will still realize their profits, and the technology will increase production and accuracy more than substantially, if it's in the right hands. In my opinion, we're the ones that should be using it. If doctors think they want to use it, that's fine. Just don't come to me and ask me to fix it for you. If you want to do it, then do it. If you want me to do it, then back off and let me do it. What if we all take that stand right now and say "ENOUGH." Where does that leave companies like Transcend and MQ/Philips with the expense of their research and investments to account for. Think it through everyone. What will they be forced to do if we refuse to play ball with them on this issue. Do you think they will just throw the technology in the trash? I don't. I do think taking such a stand will put us back in the driver's seat where we belong. We're the backbone! We're the ones that produce the product they market. Don't help them learn how to do it without us.
definitely, current perspective is
what I am looking for. I wanted to know if the company has changed any and whether they are the same, better, or worse. I would really appreciate any information anyone might have for me. I did get an e-mail from them yesterday. A request for rehire has been sent in my favor.
a slightly different perspective...
My story: I started a week ago with sneezing. At first, I thought it was allergies because we took DH's truck for a long drive (the one he takes the dog to the shop in). But after 2 doses of Benadryl and 6 hours later, still sneezing. The sneezing started up again the next day and by the third day I was coughing. The coughing got worse as the week went on and it got to the point where I was gagging on the mucus. I self-medicated with OTC stuff -- Robitussin, Mucinex, etc. By Sunday, I was on the couch the entire day. My body hurt, my ears hurt, I had chills, still coughing and sneezing. Finally on Monday, I called my doc and made an appt for that afternoon.
My doc did a thorough exam on me and told me that what I had was more than likely viral and that antibiotics would do me no good (I'm old school, I say give me the Z-pack and send me on my way), but not this newbie. He gave me an inhaler. We have 3 of those in my house already and told me to continue with my OTC stuff. I paid my copay and left.
Needless to say, the next time I get sick, I'll wait until I'm dead to go to the doctor's because I'm sure it's just a virus and we can't really treat a virus. Maybe that's the prob with the workload. People aren't going to their doctors because the doctors aren't doing much to help. Save your money and wait it out.
Precyse - a different perspective..
As someone who has worked for two major national companies in my career as an MT, I have experienced the worse of the worse. Been at Precyse for 1-1/2 years and I have found them to be an absolute wonderful company to work for, very caring and eager to fix what needs fixing. Yes, they are not perfect company.....Yes, there have slower times of the year that I have needed to flex my time. That is nothing new for me in this profession. In the 20 years as a Transcriptionist I have learned to expect such highs and lows for work and to adjust my schedule to compensate. Yes, I have worked on some difficult accounts with Precyse, but patient's whose reports are dictated by those difficult dictators deserve to have their reports done in a professional and accurate manner as well. It is a good thing that there are MTs who are willing to do them. The MTs at Precyse that I have talked to are VERY happy to be here and also have many war stories to tell about other companies they have worked for. I am glad I work for a company that cares about its employees and offers a great environment to work in, as well as some of the best benefits in the business. If you look hard enough, you are going to be able to find ex-employees who were not happy at Precyse for some reason, I happen to not be one of them!
One Supervisor's Perspective
There's a certain natural tension between the need for reports to be complete and the need for MTs to be productive. This means making a reasonable effort to resolve blanks and ambiguities, but no more. There is an obligation to the client and patient, not only to deliver this report (the one that you're transcribing), but also those that are waiting in the queue behind it.
Dictation being what it is, some blanks are inevitable. Sometimes you just need a second set of ears (the way we used to hand our earphones to the person next to us and ask what's this guy saying?). As a supervisor I was much happier helping my people resolve blanks than being scared to leave them and making poor decisions.
That doesn't mean, however, that I didn't sometimes see blanks that undoubtedly should and could have been resolved by the MT. For instance, I would see a blank early in a report due to a somewhat mumbled phrase that was dictated more clearly later and correctly transcribed, but the MT did not connect the dots with the earlier blank. Or, I would see a blank for an unusual (but clearly pronounced) medication that I found in 5 seconds in the drug reference that we provided to MTs. Or, I would see a blank for hypo-/hyper- such as hypoglycemia/hyperglycemia that was unclear, but the accompanying value made the choice obvious. We hired only very experienced MTs for my accounts, and they should be able to resolve an ambiguity in a sentence such as The patient was extremely hyp?glycemic with a blood glucose of 26.
As I dealt with blanks turned in by my team, I sometimes had to address issues of inattention to context, lack of skills with reference materials or Web search methods, carelessness and yes, sometimes downright refusal to take even a brief amount of time to check a spelling. I also sometimes had to deal with things like Expander errors, which occur due to inattention and/or the method that an MT uses to name her short forms (and in some cases, creating far too many short forms of questionable productive value).
However, I dealt with issues like these on an individual basis and only when I was satisfied in my mind that I wasn't misconstruing the situation. In doing so, I found that most of these situations were opportunities to help an MT improve her skills or her understanding in some way and very few were cause for some sort of corrective action. In other words, in my experience the vast majority of MTs take enormous pride in the work they do and the skills they bring to the dictation. By contrast, a much smaller percentage of physicians exhibit that same level of care in their dictation, and to me that meant giving the MT the benefit of the doubt.
I was also keenly mindful of something else, which is that my connection to the dictation system might be better than what the MT had, so that what might be clear to me on reviewing the report could well have been less so when she transcribed it. The phone system is such that we go through many different switches and circuits between here and there, and these connections can be quite different even between the same two locations on different phone calls. You might call the system in Tampa from your home in Chicago, and one time your call could be routed through Atlanta while the next time it goes through Dallas. Knowing this, again, the benefit of the doubt must go to the MT.
So, I looked for certain patterns of behaviors, not one-off incidents. I produced for many, many years and have never forgotten the challenges of dealing with that tension between leaving no blanks and the corresponding responsibility not only to this job, but to the job behind it. You can't lay down any rules about this. You can only help your people have the best skills possible in doing rapid and effective research, in using the context of the report to help resolve ambiguities, and then you encourage them - yes, ENCOURAGE them - to leave a blank when they have made a reasonable effort rather than to believe that filling in anything is better than leaving a blank. The supervisor should be the MT's resource of last resort - the backstop, so to speak. It's the patient and that report that matter most, and getting it right is more important than who fills in the blank.
from tax perspective, do you feel that IC or employee is better?
do you make less being IC or do you have write offs that compensate for this? thanks for any info. Just starting as an IC and not really sure this is the right decision for me.
Wrong! That's just your personal perspective.
I'm very happy there. My manager works with me. I'm making more money this year than the previous years. I have PTO and insurance.
I think it's a great place to be!
I guess it's a matter of perspective
I didn't see it so much as a job wanted posting as it did not seem directed at those that hire, but rather as a person saying she was looking for a job, citing her skill set, and providing an opportunity for anyone who gets a referral bonus to refer her. Although it may be a case of potayto/potawto, I didn't look at it in the same light as I would have had she posted her resume.
Thanks for the perspective. I guess I'm doing as well as I can expect to.
nm
Of course it's good to get a current MT's perspective
.
good perspective, I thought of this too when sm
I posted yesterday, thought this may be happening, i.e., helpless situation for supervisor who prob. relies on so-called expertise of that worker, perhaps does not know medical transcription herself. It is a concern your name/work record being ruined.
Thanks to sychedelic for that perspective on my 15.00 a month..
You are exactly right, I was wondering if there were any more that were paying a fee. Can understand you point of view on the licensing fees and it is great to have the IT support that we get on this account. Again, thanks for toning this conversation down a bit :)
You bill 30 days behind, and they snail mail it so it's late - about 40 days from invoice
No way jose - they even messed up their direct deposit payments
That puts it into perspective - and 16 an hour stinks!
x
Actually, this is an interesting and thought-provoking perspective ...
nm
I'm curious from your perspective, who has a good platform and why? sm
I see you posting regularly and I'm curious what you think Wbmdx could and should incorporate to make Enterprise better. Thanks.
Thanks for this post. I love a new perspective on things.
I've always felt that the women libbers helped the need for 2-income families, but you are right - I hadn't thought about the single women and women who wanted to work not being able to get decent jobs or decent pay. We still have a long way to go to break the glass ceiling, but women can be anything they want to be these days with regard to career, and we have the women libbers to thank for that most definitely. I am very grateful for all their efforts. I just wish that it was easier to be a SAHM these days...whatever the reason - economy, government, libbers, greed, etc. While I do feel they played at least a small role in it, the good they did outweighs the downfalls. I appreciate your input. It has given me a new perspective on things. Thanks!
Thanks for that info. You seem to have a balanced perspective on the situation. There have been a
lot of drastic changes in the workplace in general, not just MT. Those changes have been a long time in the making. The agenda in the US has been top dollar for corporations with very little respect for workers, and this has happened right under our noses to a certain extent. Inch by inch the rug has been pulled out from under the majority of Americans, but we are a strong, resilient lot and we will recover and hopefully be smarter. I have great faith now that we have new leadership. I honestly didn't think we could make it happen, but the people stepped up and woohoo!
Maybe she/he works 14 hour days/7 days a week? nm
x
Would that be 5 business days or 5 regular days?
So when are we going to be paid this time around since you're so knowledgable?
Sorry, but for some of us a day or 2 actually makes a difference.
Most want 20 hours over 5 days, but it could be more, or it could be spread over 4 days. nm
s
Correction - TH has 5 PTO days 1st year/10 days 2nd yr
x
Axolotl within 30 days. Transolutions in 60 days. NM
xxx
It is true. Any job has its good days and bad days.
Perhaps you'd like to just keep your old job and try this one out. Just because a poster here is crabbing about it, or even if as in the past there have been negative posts, odds are that there are very happy people who don't even post or know that this board exists. As Alice says. Everything is relative. The fact that this company is hiring and pays may be a place which is a blessing. As opposed to digging ditches on day labor for example. Or somebody might prefer digging ditches. This is just an example. Sometimes we who are employable, even though we don't make as much as we used to in this business, or as much as we would like to, we still if working at home do not pay for gas to go to work, career clothes, deal with office politics, have to look at a boss who writes us up if we are a minute late, etcetera. I don't make half as much as I used to, but I don't send my 3 children to day care which by the way saves us money. SO I remind my husband I am worth that in addition to my salary if I had a job outside. No job is perfect. I am not even sure if Focus is any good or not, I have not worked there. But if one poster says there are good days and bad, I say that is the most honest answer you are going to get anywhere, and if you need a job badly, how is it to hurt trying it out, until you know for sure for yourself? THanks for listening. But sometimes this board gets to be a bit much with the agendas of people railing on other people like the OP here who just wanted all opinions instead of just one side. Balance is always great. And, if things seem lop-sided, then it is a good thing to seek out both sides. IMHO.
I think they would. Those are good days for 10-hour days. sm
I have a set schedule but it is Tues-Sat and it works well for me. It wouldn't hurt to ask!
90 days is correct. 3 days off 1st year, 10 during 2nd.
nm
Were the 2 days weekend days? sm
They expect everyone to work a weekend day. Their definition of team player is to actually work 6 or 7 days a week. One might consider it if the pay was there & she gave out some decent work. It is the ideal place to work if you are a workaholic with no life.
11 days is more than you would get inhouse...usually 10 days.
We have the convenience of working at home and yet you want MORE than what inhouse positions offer?
Ask if those are calendar days or biz days too nm
x
90 days
...so I'm not eligible yet, but that was the first good thing I heard about the...that their pay was about average, benefits were great.
I can't give specifics yet, so maybe someone else can help with that who already has it, I just didn't want you to feel ignored!:)
Re: A few days ago...
It was not a few days ago. It was weeks ago. They've gotten everything straightened out. I've posted in defense of this company before. They are compassionate, they are very helpful, and are all about finding ways to make us be able to do better as MTs and QAs. I love this company and hope to be there for a long time to come. Those of you who have no personal knowledge of the company need to not post in response to people who are asking legitimate questions. We hire newbies that have no experience and give them a chance. Unlike so many of the 'great' companies out there that everyone spends every day worrying about. We are onboarding more and more accounts by the week and are growing tremendously. I highly recommend this company. Good luck to any of you who decide to apply.
That's what they want... we have 60 days sm
to find another job and we can give them 1 days' notice and they'll consider it a lay-off, otherwise if we leave with no notice, they will give us bad references.
We all have those days
It seems like I have days like this a lot lately. Isn't this job fun?
Five days for me. sm
have not yet started, just heard yesterday, but sounds good so far. Hoping this will be my last carnival! lol!
90 days
Diskriter benefits start after 90 days of employment. I have been with them since July 2006 and love it here.
It's been eight days now
And still no answers.
Despite their many good points, I disagree about the benefits. I think they are awful and very dependent on circumstance beyond the MT's control. I think they're only good for people who have been with them for a very long time and are allowed to stay on a primary account. I thought I was alone in this and even began to doubt my own abilities or chalked it up to my aging until talking to some other MTs who felt the exact same way; that every time they got good at anything their work was switched to something unfamiliar, keeping their production and wages down, and benefits next to nil. I've heard three MTs complain of this and wonder how many others there are.
yes, same here, last few days.
am getting concerned...did they overhire?
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