Three words.. FEAST OR FAMINE..

• Any MDI MTs doing eScription - LouLou
  • They better not be hiring.. - ..that's all I can say !
    • SECOND THE MOTION!!! NM - Gotta be honest
  • Great company, low escription volumes but.. - MDI-FL
  • Three words.. FEAST OR FAMINE.. - Gotta be honest..
    • Sorry, not awake yet - LouLou
    • Any MDI MTs doing eScription - LouLou

The messages you are viewing are archived/old.
To view latest messages and participate in discussions, select the boards given in left menu

The nature of the transcription business, from personal experience, is feast or famine, with usually not much in between.

In other words, learn to get while the getting is good so you're prepared for the leaner days and can carve out a decent average for yourself in accordance with your budget and paycheck you have to make to pay your bills. You DO have a personal budget and know the income you need to pull in on a consistent basis, right?

Having said that, if you're with a company for several weeks, and there is little to no work at all, that's when you begin sending out resumes and executing Plan B (you DO have Plan B, right? And C and D if necessary, right?). Cycles are expected. A consistent bare trickle that never picks up, is not. That means the company has really bad personnel management skills or is losing accounts and unable to pull any new accounts in, and so it's time for you to consider your options because things are not going to change.

If this is really your situation, then you should a) notify your current employer that you're scaling back to part time or per diem (and provide them with the times you will be available) and b) get another job ASAP to make up for it. I know a few MTs that work for more than one company, part time, and between the two pull in a nice paycheck. It's smart, especially if neither of them have guaranteed work for you to fill a full-time schedule and make a full-time paycheck.

Remember, you're working for YOU, not your employer. And you should have high expectations from yourself to meet your own needs instead of relying so heavily on other people, whether they send you a paycheck or not. :)

The nature of the transcription business, from personal experience, is feast or famine, with usually not much in between.

In other words, learn to get while the getting is good so you're prepared for the leaner days and can carve out a decent average for yourself in accordance with your budget and paycheck you have to make to pay your bills. You DO have a personal budget and know the income you need to pull in on a consistent basis, right?

Having said that, if you're with a company for several weeks, and there is little to no work at all, that's when you begin sending out resumes and executing Plan B (you DO have Plan B, right? And C and D if necessary, right?). Cycles are expected. A consistent bare trickle that never picks up, is not. That means the company has really bad personnel management skills or is losing accounts and unable to pull any new accounts in, and so it's time for you to consider your options because things are not going to change.

If this is really your situation, then you should a) notify your current employer that you're scaling back to part time or per diem (and provide them with the times you will be available) and b) get another job ASAP to make up for it. I know a few MTs that work for more than one company, part time, and between the two pull in a nice paycheck. It's smart, especially if neither of them have guaranteed work for you to fill a full-time schedule and make a full-time paycheck.

Remember, you're working for YOU, not your employer. And you should have high expectations from yourself to meet your own needs instead of relying so heavily on other people, whether they send you a paycheck or not. :)

After working for a hospital medical records department for over 15 years, which I know realize was a cushy job and not the norm, and now working for 2 services and still not making enough money, I'm curious to know if anyone else is struggling financially because of the constant feast or famine syndrome.  I realize that on my FT job, they basically want transcriptionists available 24/7 even though you clearly have set schedule, and being available 24/7 is probably the only way to make your quota with the ups and downs in the work.  Unfortunately, I have 2 jobs, 2 children, a dog and a significant other and really can't be strapped to this computer day and night...not to mention I need to eat, shower and sleep....

How is one to survive?  Should I be working 3 jobs? I need help.

I know that is tough to get used to, but even when you have your own accounts, the workload can wax and wane. It can also change overnight.  I have my own accounts that wax and wane.  You can never really count on anything being absolute in this field.  These companies can only offer you what they have because it depends on the dictator and how much work there is at any given time.  Almost any company will tell you this if you haven't already experienced the same.  It is unfortunate, however, this field does require some flexibility.  I guess that may come with more years of experience and being in the know upfront that nothing is forever.  A lot of time these larger companies only can sign 3-5 year contracts.  I am an IC (not for Transcend), and when there is a need, boy the e-mails come sailing through asking can I help, but when the work is low, my e-mail is dry.  Adapting and adjusting is all part of this field for sure.    

P/S:  I was a employee at one time for Transcend, but I do believe they are offering contracts at this point to IC as I did see a recent post. 

I work part-time with a daily number of lines to complete, no set schedule.  My work is usually pretty steady, but over the holiadys when things slowed down, I decided to get another part-time job.  I ended up in direct home sales.  I make more money at it than I do MTing and I get to set my own schedule.  I usually do 2 shows a week, averaging about $150 to $200 per show.  The shows take about 3 hours in total and the computer work is about an hour or less. 

It also gets me out of the house and gives me a break from my kids.  I will say that I'm pretty fortunate that my husband has a M-F 8-4 job, so he's able to be home with the kids on the evenings I do these. 

I keep a separate checking account for my business and it's really neat to watch it grow.  I'm saving the money for a rainy day (or famine) and when I get to a certain amount, we're putting in a pool.  I'm halfway there already.

No way would I stay attached to my computer.  If things are slow, I put that time into my new business and work on getting new shows booked or party games or invitations.  There's always something productive to do. 

Hello-- I do know for a fact that the company is legit, as I live in the same city as the company. Dont know much about pay, although I do remember that they pay by the dictated minute. Hope this helps!

That would be Belleville, IL.

is not the best. Any poor MTs coming from MQ have been beaten to death by now - they don't need another company that is not THE BEST. Let's see - what was I being tactful and leaving out? It takes 4-ever and a day to actually start - criminal background checks - yeah, I know, no big deal, but still creepy - physical exams, and plenty of other hoops - probably a month to get started. Computers were garbage and platform was down often, though none in my account received 1 cent of downtime pay. Platform antiquated and also allowed for prime cherry picking. As a newby, I used to watch the good work get sucked right out of my pool from my coworkers. Backstabbing galore, office politics, no supervision whatsoever. Pay was on the low side, but was told it was due to how great hospital accounts were - not really. MTs expected to adhere to a strict schedule - quality of work was poor as we got hospital leftovers from inhouse staff. DR also has had run-ins with the labor board and were found guilty of whatever it was they were caught doing. So, yes, let these comments scare you - check the company board archives - always lots of negative about DR. In fact, this is the first time I have ever read positives, so I honestly suspect its their recruiter trying to snag some newbies. DR was even posted about just last week - go thru pages and search for them. Good luck to you! Definitely not a good replacement for MQ. If you're close to the breakdown point, as I was when I left MQ, DR is likely to push you right over the edge.

and suggestions.  It means a lot to me.  I'm a pretty optimistic person, so I believe something better will come along...but it feels good to share my frustrations with those of you who have been there, done that, and got the T-shirt!

I better go to work!  Have a great weekend everyone and Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there.

Just Me

I most times start with Google and then make sure it is spelled correctly by looking it up in the medical dictionary.  I also use a Word Book that just gives medical words but no definitions.  That helps to narrow things down sometimes too. 

I'm wondering why the above poster said to get Ortho Words.  Is that a must for all types of specialties in your opinion?  I don't have one but would get one if it is helpful.   I do Radiology so you would think that would be good for me anyway.  Think I'm going to go to Amazon.com right now and order one.