I don't know when you started a nursing career but
Posted By: nurse turned MT on 2006-04-21
In Reply to: I'm sorry you are tired of it. The truth is. - Sarah
I was more than happy to trade in mine for MT training. I worked as a R.N. for a health system that formed that wonderful alliance, as most have. I found myself working in all 3 hospitals, in 4 different areas. Years ago I worked in ICU and knew my patients and gave them ICU nursing care. The last time I worked in ICU, it was for 1 day, then it was off to a hospital across town to work a med-surg floor for 2 days and then back to ICU again, where I was told my patient had died. I blamed that on no one knowing her case and so much rotation that the patients have been forgotten. I worked swing shifts and weekends and witnessed more and more of my coworkers leaving for nursing homes just to have a half decent schedule, then becoming depressed when the elderly patients they got attached to passed away. I decided to go for what I now call hands on nursing care without really being there and I started working as a MT 4 years ago. I love it!!! Nurses may be paid more but for what in exchange? As for pay and benefits in the MT profession, I never expected benefits for being self employed so I provide my own. I also make more money doing this because I am in charge of my schedule and my work volume. I also no longer have nightmares about the patients I feel I had to abandon to satisfy a bunch of bureaucrats who run hospitals these days. So before you announce how much better nurses have it, become one and try out your skills in any hospital of your choice. Lots of luck!
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I started 18 years ago and gave up a very good career
at a major medical association where I was just starting to move. I was 26, married three years and having my first child. I wanted desperately to stay home with him, but back then, my husband was not making quite enough to keep us afloat.
I just fell into MT when I saw an ad in the paper posted by a local MTSO. I thought, I've worked with doctors before and I know how to type. Well, I failed their test, but they were running an in-house class that cost $100 for six months, and the promise of a job as long as I could pass the test at the end. We had $123 in our savings account, and against my husband's wishes, I invested $100 of it in that course. It was well worth it!
Socially, it was hard at first to be isolated at home with children and work, but it's great now that they are all teenagers. I've always known where my kids were and been there for them when they needed me. I worked part-time for many, many years, and that gave me the chance to relax, not be stressed, go on hikes in the afternoons, or have a paddle in my kayak occasionally while the kids were in school.
I have a bachelors degree from Temple University and majored in marketing. My husband is a CPA, and we'll be married 22 years this January. He is now a partner in a small firm. He gets very good medical benefits and insurance, but no vision or dental plan. I'm sure that if I had worked for 20 years and attended to a career rather than a job, I'd be making six figures these days. I certainly don't make that doing medical transcription! But, I worked hard at raising my kids, and I have three great ones! I've saved bushels of money because I've not had to buy an office wardbrobe, pay train fare to the office, or send my children to daycare.
I have been very, very fortunate in that we no longer need my income to survive, but now I have the time to work full-time, the kids need me less, and I can still be reasonably flexible and unstressed. And, I'm still here when my teenagers need me, even though that's not as often as before. Yes, the industry has changed, but if I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't change a thing!
MT/nursing instead
Absolutely. I agree. I am headed back this semester to finish my nursing degree. I like MT and it's nice to work from home as a single Mom, but the field is going, going, gone. I started about 9 years ago and was able to secure good paying Hospital jobs at an hourly wage. Those days are so gone. I have worked for numerous nationals. Some better than others, but never made the kind of money I did when I first started out some years back before outsourcing to India was the norm. To me the writing is on the wall and hope to be out of the field and into nursing within 2-3 years. It's going to be tough going back to school at nearly 40 but I don't have confidence MT is a viable field for the future any longer.
nursing
I am 39. Will be 40 in September. Starting back to school in 2 weeks for nursing prerequistes. My friend is 45 and she is also starting as well. Never too old. I worried about this too, but with all the outsourcing of several fields (I live in Michigan so auto industry is bad and many are taking buyouts and going back to school in their 40s and 50s!).
Nursing vs. MT
How is it that you make more as an MT than you do at nursing? I was under the impression that nurses start around $20/hour with regular pay raises (something MT is NOT known for, LOL!). Also, can't nurses choose to work in other fields as nurses (consulting, school nurse, hospice, pharmaceutical sales)...? It seems to me that nursing would be more flexible and lucrative???
Nursing School
I never think it's too late to do what you really want to do!. I am an R.N. and can tell you that there is a severe shortage of nurses who really care about the people.
Go to school! Make a difference in somebodys life!
Never too old to go to nursing school sm
When I was at the hospital, there were new grads there in their 50s. Go for it. Plenty of jobs out there in nursing.
That's about the age my mom was went she went to nursing school.
Plus, whether you go to nursing school or not, you're still going to be 41. Why not spend this time following your passion?
u can't outsource nursing, so i'd go with that
x
I went back to nursing school when I was 34
and actually did better than my younger classmates. I think I realized how important it was at that age, much more so than when I was 18. I only worked as a nurse for a few years and then started transcribing. You're never too old to pursue something that interest you. Nursing school is tough but very interesting.
Nursing school for me right now, can't wait to be done. nm
nm
It is not a foregon conclusion that in nursing
odd hours, shifts or days, except perhaps in the latter part of the nursing program that incorporates the practicum. The options that nursing offers to you are far broader than an MT can ever hope for. In Houston, you can even do 3 16-hour shifts over, be considered full time and be off 4 days. You may also want to consider nursing administration, which has a more traditional schedule structure of M-F 8-5. No doubt the schooling and maybe first year or so would be pretty rough, but in the long term, the pay-off will be well worth it.
In terms of your babies, many of us do not have the luxury of even having our children as long as 1 or 2 years. I was a single parent and had no choice but to put my son into day care at 3 months old. Back then, I worked M-F 8-5 in-house jobs, but when he was 9, they started outsourcing and I came home to work. Even then, I still continued him in day care/after school programs for a few more years because he loved it. Being an at-home MT, I was a slave to my office even when he was home and missed out on many a soccer game, birthday parties and all PTA meetings. He is 31 years old now, a great son, my best friend and no worse for the wear.
You are fortunate to have found a calling to follow at this early stage in your life. I say go for it whole-heartedly. You are much, much stronger than you think and your kids are too.
She was probably the nursing supervisor. They still carry
.
I've gone back to nursing.
Found a low-key job in a clinic working 3 nights a week and am just praying it works out for me. I'm still technically with MDI, finding virtually no work available most of the time now, and basically just waiting for the axe to fall.
Does anyone remember DRC (Digital Records Corporation)? It was an AWESOME little company until it got swallowed up by Spheris, lost a couple of major accounts and laid off the majority of its MTs. Having lived through that little fiasco I'm confident I know the direction MDI is headed, and all I can tell you is to be ready.
Good luck to everyone!
I thought about doing that - but then signed up for nursing school instead
for basically the same reasons - cannot be taken out of the country! Enjoy a change of pace. You will be a great bus driver, I'm sure. 
Nursing - the kind that carries a clipboard
They make loads of money - you know the ones; the supervisor type, no hands-on, just carries the clipboard around. We had several of these at the hospital I worked at, and I could never for the life of me figure out what they actually did all day, but carry around that clipboard. My vote is for clipboard nurse. 
I was hired and started in 1 week. That is not a long set-up time. When I started with our local h
I needed to get a physical and go through orientation at the hospital which is only given two times per month. This is a 900-bed hospital, so it cannot be an unusual process. MQ took 2 weeks. KS took 1 week. SoftScript never got me started even after repeated calls and emails.
I have only been with KS for 9 months but would never put them in the same catagory as the others you mentioned. They are the best company I have worked for, and unfortunately, I have bounced around a little in the last 5 years.
I was hired and started in 1 week. That is not a long set-up time. When I started with our local h
I needed to get a physical and go through orientation at the hospital which is only given two times per month. This is a 900-bed hospital, so it cannot be an unusual process. MQ took 2 weeks. KS took 1 week. SoftScript never got me started even after repeated calls and emails.
I have only been with KS for 9 months but would never put them in the same catagory as the others you mentioned. They are the best company I have worked for, and unfortunately, I have bounced around a little in the last 5 years.
I was hired and started in 1 week. That is not a long set-up time. When I started with our local h
I needed to get a physical and go through orientation at the hospital which is only given two times per month. This is a 900-bed hospital, so it cannot be an unusual process. MQ took 2 weeks. KS took 1 week. SoftScript never got me started even after repeated calls and emails.
I have only been with KS for 9 months but would never put them in the same catagory as the others you mentioned. They are the best company I have worked for, and unfortunately, I have bounced around a little in the last 5 years.
new career
I have been transcribing over 10 years and love it, but with the industry robbing us blind and using us I have been making less and less each year. I am in my mid 40s and hate to be thinking of going back to school, but I think I have to. I have always done office work but it is lower paying and I hate being stuck in a cubicle all day. I like the medical field but do not think I am cut out for nursing. Does anyone have any ideas that are decent paying in the medical field that do not takes years to earn a degree at? I looked at ultrasound tech, but I have to investigate this further, not sure if there are any schools in my area.
Trying to be optomistic.
When I went to school for this MT career
What happened? I barely clear $30,000 a year in this field working for a national. I'm in debt up to my eyeballs. Someone please help me.
I was told to think of it as a career.
/
been in this career for almost 2 months
Basic rate of pay that I have been seeing is 7-8 cents per line for IC and thats basically what it is set in stone at. I would be told that in some cases before even sending a resume and giving them my experience.
That is crazy, considering you can be paid that much as an employee. I agree about the taxes also.
Why would you have to give up your career?
If you can't get your job back, apply for a remote job - most companies are more concerned with *if* you can do the job (which will be apparent if you test well). As to a two year lapse in work record? Who says you have to be that precise with your dates?
You don't have to go to Career Step
I smell something a little fishy here. Are you advertising for Career Step? I repeat if you are already a transcriptionist, then you can apply for online jobs. It does not take a certificate from Career Step. I have been offered many jobs online, and I do not have a certificate from Career Step or any other training program. 
Career Step
Just to clarify about Career Step, the cost is nowhere near $5000. It is in fact, between $1500 and $2000 the last I knew. I do not work for them, but graduated a year ago and they did prepare me for acute care MT work. (After 9 months I am making about $20,000 a year, working 2 IC jobs for a total of about 40 hours a week).
Career Step
CS has been a dream for me. With their training, I had 7 offers for at-home MT employment within 2 weeks of graduation. It is a hard course, and the final exam has a 50% fail rate, but it really prepares you for the real world of MT. If it wasn't that hard I think I would be dead in the water. If you want to learn more, they have a forum for people who have questions about joining at http://careerstep.groupee.net/eve/forums/a/frm/f/6960008433
and their website is www.careerstep.com. Before joinging, I checked them out with the BBB and called them probably 20 times with questions. They were very helpful and have a shiny record with the BBB. Also, they are one of the few schools approved by the AAMT, as you can see from the AAMT website. They are also a lot cheaper than most places. Hope that helps!
Career Step
Career Step is legit (and I don't get any $$ for recommending them). The course is self-paced and allowed me to work from home right after graduation. The website has all the cost info. on it.
Career Step
If I knew then what I know now, I would not have attended Career Step. I would have attended MTEC or Andrews.
I like it! Most sites having to do with career changes - sm
seem to be geared to high-powered professional types, or computer geniuses. We're in such a NICHE, (or is that just a nice word for 'RUT'?), and our skills are specialized. Also, quite a few of us have been doing this for 20 or 30 years, and have specific problems with changing careers because we concentrated all our energies into MT. I, myself, lack the BA Degree so many places seem to want, even for lower-paying jobs. I only got as far as an AA Degree, and it's in Art. Totally useless. So, currently looking not too far down the road to my 60s, the thought of going back to school (which for me would mean all the way back to high school math, chemistry, etc.), just doesn't seem to make a lot of sense. Still, I have to eat..........
Career Steps
Everyone seems to want to hire Career Steps people. I went to Ashworth Career School online. I thought I was doing fine there, I liked the convenience of the course and the low monthly payments. But, they are not very recognized by MT companies.
Career Step
My sister took this course 3 years ago and was hired as a graduate. I was able to view this course and was very impressed with it and how it prepared the students. There is a lot of practice dictation starting from beginner to advanced, working your way up. Another good school is M-TEC. When I helped my sister research what companies were looking for in graduates, these were the 2 schools that always popped up as being recognized by companies that hire graduates.
I went to a local business school and worked on site at a hospital/clinic for 5 years before working from home.
Career decisions
I've done nursing and I am here to tell you all that it is not as easy as it looks. The money might be great, but it is so frustrating and exhausting, especially when you are right there on the front lines, so to speak, dealing with life and death right up close working in a somewhat dysfunctional medical system.
If you are young and energetic or just energetic at any age, it might be a viable solution to study nursing. For me, like some others, working from home, at home, is my top priority.
Through the years, I have noticed that many of the really happy MTs are those who do not have to depend on their MT jobs to pay their main bills, but may do medical transcription work part time to supplement their income. No, I am not discounting those who do it full-time and are very successful and really love it; I'm sure they do exist.
However, the suggestions made in this thread make total sense to me, kind of like having the best of both worlds. Now, the challenge is to find that perfect part-time MT job, as well as a really good career with a promising future, doing something else.
career change
ultrasound and radiology tech schools are pumping out a lot of students every year with not enough jobs to go around (have friends who are recent candidates who cannot find work). what is really in demand is occupational therapy tech and physical therapy tech and of course nursing. good luck with your decision.
I am hoping to start a new career with a new
company this year. Working on the resume now! I am so tired and burned out with my present employer and so unhappy doing QA. I want to transcribe again, or QA with a more professional company. Not too much to ask for, right? But change is hard. I hope I don't wimp out.
Worst experience of my career.
//
Career board dried up?
Have companies stopped posting on the Careers board? I assume work hasn't dried up in the two months I haven't been on here?
It's time to fine a new career.
nn
They do get a fee for all who actually enroll in career step.
My god, and you stayed in this career while failing
the only one to blame as I can't imagine why you would think that summation of your career any step of the way was a success. Per your description, sounds like nothing worked for you after a year or 2 at best. I've been in the biz the same length of time and experienced the complete opposite of your story. I would never have endured what you have endured, as I would have had the common sense to realize that the job was not cut out for me or vice versa. You have thrown your entire life away on this industry, and yet came back again, and are on here bitter and spewing hatred at complete strangers to you. Honestly, you need to re-evaluate - read your own life story and take some accountability, realizing that you should never ever have stayed in this industry. You have nothing to show for it, have lost everything per your own claims, so please reconsider and have the back half of your life mean something - anything, whatever is important to you. Obviously this industry is not suited to you. Please don't lump us all in with your experience. I can't imagine many MTs have suffered as you have - why would we? We would find a new line of work ASAP and move on with our lives, not sacrifice them as you have. I can't even feel sorry for you as a reader - none of your story makes sense as to why you have persevered - its just a sad meaningless synopsis.
Of course its my career - has been my entire life
That's what makes no sense about this rant above me. She recounts 30 years of her life as an MT and how horrible its been, all the failings, and how it has ruined her life since nearly day #1. Per her own words, she blames everything, from her blood pressure to her endometriosis, blames her divorce, missing out on her son, blames everything on MTing, yet she has done it for 30 years and now is back at it again. She claims over and over to have failed at literally every aspect in her life she felt worth mentioning, blaming it all on MTing, yet here she is an MT. What part of that makes sense to you? We're to feel sorry for her?? I've been in this business 30 years and have been a success. I've had a zillion trials and hardships and battles, but my career is a success, or I would have gotten the heck out of it when it became a disaster. If that doesn't make sense to you, which obviously it doesn't, then there is no reason or sanity with which you can be approached. Substitute MTing for any career - if you are failing at it, and you've lost everything in life due to that career, why are you still doing it? That's a big question, because the blame is not on the career, its on the person. Nobody else to blame but yourself. Period.
I think it's a good career policy to always have a
(nm)
Switching career paths
I switched paths a few years ago, but backwards from you. I am an LPN, but went back to school for medical transcription. I have an autistic son who is 15 now. I left the workforce when he was diagnosed at 2 years old. About 4 years ago, he was getting more independent and I wanted to go back to work. My dilema was the child care issue and that is why I chose to study for something that would allow me to work from home.
I also had been going through personal issues with my marriage and know where you are coming from and how difficult this decision is. I still work from home doing transcription because balancing the costs of working outside of home (travelling, food, wardrobe, child care, etc.) against the benefits being at home, it has worked out for me better to stay at home. It was really important to me to be the one to provide care to my son and to be flexible enough for the day-to-day things that usually come up. My advice would be to really decide what is most needed and important for you right now, and go from there... and weigh the cost of both.
I tuck a little bit away each pay ( whatever I can manage) and claim my utilities and anything I can as expenses on my taxes each year.
Good luck with any decision you make.
new career for some of you younger folks
I have been helping my son investigate career options and discovered that dental hygienists make 62K a year after completing a mere two-year program.
I guess one must ask oneself if they are squeamish about cleaning out other people's mouths, but I think I could get over it pronto (if I was younger) knowing how this profession has gone down the spit sink.
New career for some of you younger folks
A good field to get into is physical therapy, OT or speech therapy or physical therapy assistant. They make good money in my area. I note ads for them all of the time especially in sports medicine.
Career Step is $1320 or $1560
x
For career changes, here is a fun site, some stuff is free sm
http://www.quintcareers.com/career_change.html
If they use MTTEST by Career Step - Don't bother...
...just like Career Step's program, MTtest is GREATLY flawed. And the potential employers don't bother to review this or your testing. If an employer lazily uses MTTest (and is recruiting people to buy Career Step's scam terrible training program), I don't bother. Even if you get it right, the module is flawed and will likely say you got it wrong. Don't waste your time being insulted by same.
Companies that actually send you dictation to transcribe are the best to test with. They test your true knowledge/ability, not through a flawed and inadequate multiple choice module that's sole purpose is to recruit people to Career Step.
Just my 2 cents... :O)
Ditto - it would depend on the career being offered
But I'm looking at other option now, because something with dependable, steady money is something I dream of now.
I've been pondering a career change too
For about the last year now, I've been thinking about going back to school to become a teacher. I'm just not sure the pay would be worth the cost of the education. I love the idea of summers off and starting out at about 35K in my area. I think in terms of hours/pay, it is the only job that would give me my current freedom but at a little better salary.
I can't really answer your questions, as I'm still trying to figure out the answers to my own. The only advice I have to offer is, if you're going to go back for nursing -- go for the RN. You'll make much more money and you may as well do it all at once and get it over with.
I do think that MTing from home will eventually become a minimum wage job. I just don't know when that will be. I know I can't make it on my MDI income alone, but I have a husband and 3 kids and I may not be working as much as others.
I worked for this company and it was the worst experience of my career.
I would advise you to search the archives on this board. You will be able to make your own decision based on that info.
Have you tried ads on Monster Jobs and Career Builder w/your experience? nm
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