do not forget the clients -
Posted By: sick and tired on 2005-09-30
In Reply to: BUT; - CM
They also deserve to be billed correctly. Sad, sad, sad.
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What happens, is MTSOs coddle the clients and let the clients call all of the shots.
Then the MTs get stuck with account specs that are contradictory and confusing.
It should be simple. When an MTSO is wooing a client, the MTSO should present with a copy of the style guidelines they intend to follow or if it is the BOS, let the client know that. It should be made clear that with the exception of report format, the guidelines are not flexible. Either we use apostrophes or we don't. Don't do it one way for one client and the exact opposite for the other client and then hold the MT responsible when she gets confused as to what account she is typing that day!
Forget it
This is not a good situation. Line counts should be verifiable at any given time.
Here's what I always forget to ask...(sm)
I almost always forget to ask if they pay for spaces and ADT info. Luckily, I've never run into a company that didn't. Also, ask about scheduling and hours. You'd be surprised how many companies still try to treat ICs like employees, demanding set schedules even though that's not legal. I always try to remember to ask about holidays - so far everywhere I've worked it's been the policy that if it falls on your regular day, you work it at regular pay. Most companies I've know DO require you to say which days you'll be working, and I do that because I know they have to make sure they have coverage, but I draw the line at telling them WHEN I'll work on those days. Ask if you can work as much as you want or if they have a maximum. One place I worked wanted everyone to do 1500 lines a day, no more and no less. That was weird, but I guess it worked for them. Find out any hidden fees like software licensing, foot pedal if you don't have the right one, etc. Good luck to you! I was an employee for years but now, after finding a good match for me as an IC, I wouldn't do it any other way.
AND DON'T FORGET TO
*
don't forget
the trips to india and the generation of 2.45 million pieces of email
And don't forget
One of the MTs on here posted not too long ago about being given a backup account but, even with the limit of 5 reports per day while on QA, there wasn't sufficient work for her to TRAIN on that account, much less TRANSCRIBE on it.
To the poster who inquired if things had picked up after the 32 MTs supposedly went to their respective accounts, the answer is NO. Nothing changed, still little to no work on many accounts.
Very, very frustrating all the way around, and creating a financial nightmare for many of us.
I suspect it is time to part ways with MDI. If they cannot respect me and their other dedicated MTs enough to let us know what is going on, then I'm afraid I cannot give the respect I normally give all of my employers.
As light as the work is apparently throughout many accounts, I doubt they'll even notice if I disappear.
What a disheartening way to end a previously-enjoyable relationship.
I wish those of you who can afford to try to stick this out well.
For those of you who cannot afford to sit back and wait for things to improve, I guess we'll all jump ship together.
Do you forget?
I still have a dog in this hunt. Maybe you should go and stew some more tomatoes or at least stir them. 
the clients were in NY. nm
s
Maybe not your clients, but many are.
Your clients may be behind the times, but many are not. VR has gotten much, much better, and I've spoken with many, many MTSOs who are moving their accounts over.
The average seems to be about 60% to 80% VR and 20% to 40% transcription. There will always be those you cannot put on VR, but it is growing rapidly.
Not all clients DO know--that's just it!
Yes, some clients DO know, and the almighty dollar is the only thing they think of. But some clients DO care, and they don't know their records are going overseas. They would be apalled if they knew. Come to think of it, so would the patients.
not when the clients have the last say
Do not get me wrong. I do not care for it either, but somewhere down the line, the companies will have to suck it up and so will we. Otherwise, we move to a different field. Unfortunately, that is just the way it is.
Becoming an IC with own clients
How does a person become an IC with their own clients, not working for an MTSO? From what I have read on this board, it seems that is the way to make the most money per line/word/page, etc. so I am thinking about doing this after being an employee for 15 years (with things going downhill now). I would appreciate knowing several things:
1. How do you get the clients.
2. Are there certain types of docs that tend to prefer this situation rather than going to an MTSO?
3. How do you determine what to charge?
4. How can someone get the dictation, type it and return to the doctor without having to pick it up and drop it off?
5. Without QA other than yourself, how does an IC handle blanks? Do doctor's offices tend to get upset with blanks?
6. Is there a particular software system that is better to use when you have your own IC service and want to get work over the Internet and return it over the Internet?
This and any other advice greatly appreciated!
I'm sure they do tell their clients to sm
hide it from the MTSO, just like the MTSOs hide the fact that their clients' work is being generated by VR.
Do you think clients don't already KNOW about VR? That they are sm
being sold it at every AHIMA conference they go to? Being cold-called by companies doing VR already? That doc don't get info about it at their little retreats and conferences?
It's better to be proactive and have VR sold as part of an MTSO's offering (with MTs doing the editing) than being undercut by other VR-only companies.
forget Transcend
They run out of work constantly. I ran out of work on my first day of training.
Don't forget a pulse!
MQ also requires that, just so they have a warm body pumpin' out those reports for "instant TAT"....
Forget it - i see now - w/o having a set schedule!!! (nm)
zzzz
FORGET THE RAISE
Was there 2 years and asked, did not receive!!! Worked LOTS of HOURS and holidays and weekends for them (still kicking myself). I am glad Focus is working out for you. You would have to be in the minority though. Communication is TERRIBLE. If you are F/T and a real producer, you are constantly emailed, IM'd and even called while you are out shopping after a long day to Please log back in even as an IC!!! Their cpl is not good at all but couple that with the way they count their lines (very questionable), you cannot survive on their cpl pay.
I agree with you, but don't forget (sm)
Back in the when you and I learned transcription at a teaching hospital, we had something right there in the room with us to say to, Could you listen to this for me? That is a HUGE plus. When they tell you what it is, and you can go back and LISTEN AGAIN, that has a lot to do, I think, with how we learned. Just getting back a gazillion blanks from QA, just isn't as good a learning tool as listening again. Of course, that's just really not done anymore, so......Guess they will just have to find their own way to learn. The thing is, a lot of people (and not just in this profession, but in all professions) nowadays do not want to take the time to learn anything hard or learn it correctly. They just want to get through it and collect their paychecks. Sad.
Forget management
It is not worth the hassle. There are good companies out there who pay fairly.
Tell them okay, hang up and forget it. Let them
x
Forget about what the ad means JUST RUN AWAY! nm
xx
Forget MQ, try TransTech
nm
Forget MQ try Axolotl!!
You will not believe the difference!!!
Answered above. Just forget it.
xxxx
forget the ones I work with...
Most of the hospital radiologists I type for are pretty good overall. Then you have the ones that NO MATTER WHAT, they are GOD and they will dictate the way they want to. Some will take it into consideration and, maybe the first few days are better. Then right into their old habits again. Therefore, blank here, blank there, long blank down here.
Don't forget the other 42% they don't mention! nm
xxx
Forget Chronicle and I don't
even know why they would be hiring. There is never any work anymore.
Don't forget to turn them in to the IRS! nm
//
don't forget the extras
I get 10 cents per 65 VBC line for MT with shift and weekend differentials, $17 for QA, plus 9 paid holidays, 15 days vacation per year, and 5 paid sick days per year. This is as an employee, full time. Also get company paid life and dental for myself.
Don't forget the cherrypicking
that is rampant and never addressed. We might as well ALL throw jobs back that we don't want to do because they kill our line count. Here's a news flash, especially for P.S., who is one of the biggest cherry pickers there is, anybody can see what you're doing when they click history. This is also being documented and there are reports printed every so often that shows every person who cancelled a job. You people sicken me. Do you think you are more special than the rest of us and can just throw back the junk for us to do? Well enjoy it while it lasts. If it were up to me, your days would be filled with assigned jobs by everybody you throw back. Once there is enough documentation, you will get yours.
Here's another thing they can forget about:
Proofreading. Let India do it, if they're such hot bargain employees.
Forget the business. Sometimes sm
there are allowances to be made. Also, again, your situation has nothing to do with the OPs situation.
I bet if you could have bumped that girl for her vacation (if you had a union, etc) you would have done it in a heart beat and never thought twice because you would have been entitled to it.
you are either a very bitter, miserable person OR an MTSO with a problem.
Don't ever forget that .. this board and you
are covered by FREEDOM OF SPEECH. See link below.
No worries !!!
if my salary is $ 100,000.--, I would all forget about
ham sandwich and alcohol, etc....
BTW, with the right 'connection' foreigners can get everything, over there, so I have heard.
IC - FINDING CLIENTS
Do you have to pick up tapes and deliver the hard copies with your accounts? I used to have an account where they would dictate into my Sony system (a special system that allowed docs to dictate from their phones, pause, rewind, make changes, etc), and then I would just e-mail the completed work back at the end of the day for them to print out in the office.
I wonder if the clients are leaving
because they are being sold and that is why I have no work? I can't wait until they make the announcement - then I will know if I need to pack up and leave.
If you are seeking clients, there is not
NM
Are their clients aware?
If I were a client of theirs, I would look for someone else to do my transcription. If I were a patient of this client and if I found out that the client knowingly supports this sort of crap, I'd look for healthcare elsewhere. Heck, docs come a dime a dozen!!!
It all comes down to the customers--that's US!!! The American citizens who trust that our medical records are (1) kept confidential and (2) are done correctly IN THE USA!!!
There should be a way to inform the customers of HIS's clients. First and foremost, we, as customers, as Americans, need to boycott the physicians first--the ones who are sending American money overseas!!! There are PLENTY of other docs out there who support the USA and want to keep the work at home. They'll gladly take my money!
Persnonally, I don't want my medical record entrusted to overseas folks who, for the most part, hate us to begin with. They barely speak a word of English and they certainly do a pathetic job at trascribing. I've seen the damage these folks can do to medical records.
I think that we should boycott MDs who are paying HIS to transcribe for them.
If we don't stand up for ourselves now, what's next????
Too bad they mislead their clients about it
That is what is so rotten about the whole thing, the hospitals think the work is all being done in the US when it is not.
RE Acusis Buy-Out, What About US-Only Clients?
Something does not add up here, because many of the bought-out company's current clients vehemently refuse to work with anyone who outsources. Won't they drop new company outright and have to look for a new MT provider?
But your own clients bring many of your own
x
*Stealing* clients
You can steal things, but you can't *steal* a sentinent being (client) who chooses to go with you because you offer better service/better price or any combination of the two. Said client can walk away from you, too, if you don't deliver. What company does not try to lure clients from a competitor?
If the severance is minimal, you can easily get another job, and you really believe the company would come after you, then maybe foregoing the severance would let you rest easier even if the clause wouldn't stand up in court. If you really believe the company would come after you, do you want to spend time and money in court, even if you win?
stealing clients
I partially agree, but when a person uses insider information about a client's setup, preferences, etc. IMO that is stealing. You're using privileged information in an inappropriate way. So strictly speaking, a person hasn't stolen the client, but they stole the information they needed to get the client's business.
Clients at fault?
I really think it varies from client to client what is expected as far as unpaid fussing. Some expect the moon and the stars (looking up the ordering physicians on huge databases instead of passing us that demographic). I don't understand why a company would agree to contracts like these with the clients - they know no production will result from it!
TT has just taken on several HUGE clients
That is the reason for the ad
What goes around will come around and eventually your clients
They see that all the other doctors are hardly paying anything per line for it and they'll expect you to adjust your rates accordingly. This is precisely what happened in my area. All the doctors started thinking they should get bargain-basement prices because they could use the threat to send it offshore. So wallow in the green while you have it, at the expense of your offshore workers (and hey, if they're truly so great, why not pay them US rates and really do something really noble to improve their lives?)
You might be helping the economy in third-world countries (they'd starve w/o you?! Get over yourself!) but you are INDEED helping to lower ours here. You can justify and deny that all you want, and frankly, I don't care that you sleep at night. The fact that you are here defending your stance so vehemently tells me you know deep down.
You can also claim there are no good workers here, but you're wrong. We just don't work for MTSOs with your attitude. And guess what? There ARE plenty of doctors that DO care where their work is being done. You might have found a few who don't care (if you truly told them), but that's not par for the course in most places, my dear. Most ESL clients are the most adamant that the work be done here because the US MTs are the only ones who could clean up their grammar!
I can name 5 more on that list who are NOT clients of theirs. nm
nm
Most of the clients don't allow their work
to be sent offshore because of privacy issues, Americanism, etc. The CLIENT decides.
some clients want those apostrophes
The two docs I edit for want those apostrophes there and you can find just as many reference materials that DO include them as don't.
I agree this is nothing that is going to affect patient care, but bottom line - you have to give the client what they want.
MTSOs cannot pay more than they get from clients
If the clients are only paying 10-12 cpl, you cannot expect them to pay you more than 8 or 9.
The only way to get decent pay is to get our own accounts and cut out the MTSO.
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