A 2-day strike will not hurt patient care
Posted By: - see message on 2007-06-12
In Reply to: boy - mt
it will give the physicians something to think about when they have to hand write their STAT H&P for patient's surgery tomorrow.
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OR, instead of being funny, it could hurt patient care.
nm
Probably something in patient care, maybe CNA. sm
They make about as much as I am making and with benefits on top of that at the hospitals around here.
Do you think patient care will suffer any?
will treat the laptop like it is you, and ignore you, the patient.
I think the average patient would care and
would think, 'Wow, they sure don't know English.' And what about all the abbreviations a lay person woudl certainly not understand.
where did you get the idea we were involved in patient care?
We are typists with a specialized vocabulary. If we were doing this for NASA, it would not make us rocket scientists.
I am neither advocating, nor participating in, low quality - I do the very best I can with the experience, knowledge, and tools that I have. The fact that employers do not want to pay me enough to survive, thus making my trips through *QA* a little more thorough, ensures that I will get through reports as absolutely expeditiously as possible.
My bottom line is MY survival. Good luck with altruism - it doesn't buy much at Safeway.
vent on failure in patient care
My husband took my son to see the doc for a tetanus shot after he stepped on a nail. I'm always transcribing and couldn't go there myself. After coming home from the doctor's office, my son and husband tell me that his foot was never even looked at by even a nurse, let alone the doctor. My son got the tetanus shot, and the paperwork said "do not give if a fever is present." Woops, they didn't even take his temperature. Rather than looking at his foot to determine if it was infected, they just asked my son if it was infected. I called the office totally irate, and they reduced the charges from $88 to $7. Wow, didn't expect that. It's a crying shame that we're a society so hung up on paperwork and billing (HIPAA, etc.) that a doctor or nurse would not even take the time to actually look at a patient's wound. What's really ironic is that very day I transcribed a report where the doctor states the patient shouldn't self-medicate with vitamins and supplements. So, we're not smart enough to determine what vitamins and supplements to take, but we are expected to determine whether or not we have an infection?
just like quality care for the patient is going out the window-nm
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Anything an MT can do when you have grave concerns about patient care?
Is there anything at all an MT can do when you have grave concerns about the care a patient is receiving? I know the answer to this is probably no, but I am so completely frustrated with my one of "my" doctors right now. I know that one of his patients is not receiving the proper care, and I am really worried for this patient. I wish I could contact the patient's mother and let her know my concerns, but I know that is not allowed and I would be fired for doing so. I know that I'm not anywhere near as smart as a doctor, but my son has the same condition that this patient does and I know that the patient is not receiving the proper care or even the correct diagnosis. It is hard to go into all of the details for confidentiality reasons. I just know, 100% sure, that this patient deserves better care than he is receiving.
Sometimes the virtual world that we work in is great, and other times it really stinks. If I were working in the doctor's office I could gently share my concerns (maybe I would still be fired but I could give it a shot). Here in this virtual world where the doctors don't even know I exist I can do absolutely nothing.
I'm just so frustrated at the doctor and so very worried for this patient.
ONLINE nursing program? Do you not care about the patient's well being?
/
I agree that if it hurts the patient's care you should speak up.
s
And all this time I thought the bottom line was patient care. nm
nm
Could your hubs become a patient of a home health care agency and then you could work for them
s
The hosptial administrators aren't interested in safe patient care.
I venting as a patient! No doctor cares if I live or die--could care less in my eyes!!!
Study found that electronic health records did not boost patient care. sm
Link to article on yahoo news stating that electronic health records fail to improve care, study says.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/records_dc;_ylt=AsT2t1nasUEaoOxgIsyoMUOs0NUE
Putting patient versus The patient (sm)
When did this "rule" come about? I've been an MT/Editor/medeical records tech/ART for 30 years - Never, ever was I told to put that. You cannot make the sentence be "The patient sent to Radiology" but you can put "Patient sent to Radiology."
Thats just insane.
Let's go on strike.
Bombard the board of directors with our complaints. We need to be heard!
Go on strike???
That will just give them more reasons to ship the work all overseas because those people are so "grateful" to have the jobs. The company won't be hurting, but we will when we don't have any money coming in to pay the bills.
on strike
All I know is about 10 years ago, I made what I considered "good" money working for a small company (for a year). THEN, the company was bought by a corporation (which shall remain nameless) and our salaries dropped by 1/3 to 1/2 -- and there was just a helpless feeling of not knowing what to do about it. What do you do when it's a take it or leave it attitude? I always wondered if it is so cheap to do work overseas, what isn't any of that savings coming back to the American MT. Give us a raise with all that savings. I also wonder why they act like they think it is considered a benefit of the job to work at home. Look at all they must save on having us do that. None of us have raised a fuss, so they can get away with just about anything. What does AAMT exist for?
strike
I can't agree more. It is the large corporations like MQ who have the reputation of hiring MTs at a very low line rate, hire more MTs than they can provide work for and then still have the nerve to overbill the clients. Go figure.
on strike
You are so right in all that you say. I've been a rad trans for 30 years and I've watched the pay scales go down instead of up. I truly wish there were something we as a group could do to fight the corporations. And to add insult to injury, some companies advertising for rad trans are paying by the report! Anybody who does transcription and gets paid per report is only encouraging this trend. Yes, I know, you have to work to live but if everyone stopped working for places like this and held out for a better position, we might all be better off. Pay per report is a slap in the face. I work for a teaching hospital on the west coast and often times transcribe 10-12 page neurointerventional reports. And I'd be farther ahead to get paid $1.50 for the report? Give me a big fat break.
I'm in for a 1 day strike
I'm not unhappy with my job - but am disgusted with what has happened to transcription. If we can get enough involved - I do believe that it would have an affect or is it effect (LOL). Let those making the money figure that one out for a day.
so when are we going to go on strike?
nm
strike
There's nothing selfish about demanding a living wage, and there's certainly nothing selfish about organizing your fellow employees so that they can all reap the benefits of a living wage as well. If we let the current troubles beat us into submission, and then we let the good times lull us into submission...when exactly *do* we ask for what we need?
20 years as an MT - now I am on strike...sm
After 20+ years as an IC I have seen my salary go down, down, down! Not because my speed has decreased, no, it has in fact increased dramatically due to the availability of shorthand programs. No, my salary has gone since the inception of AAMT and their "standards" and practices. The organization that was going to help MT's become more respected has done the opposite. Yes, there were doctors out there who initially thought of me as a "typist" but I quickly showed them the difference between a typist and a "medical transcriptionist" (medical language specialist). Some of them were unwilling to pay for the difference, but most were pleased to pay a bit more for someone who knew when he was making a mistake and was willing to call and get it right. Today, however, the large MT companies have driven the IC out of business. They offer 4-hour turn around at ridiculously low rates. Many of these companies outsource to India, Pakistan, the Philippines, etc. Some of the outsourced work is done perfectly. Most is not. I am hearing this from office managers who cannot convince the business owners that it is "cheaper" to have the transcription done correctly the first time rather than have more time (money) spent doing QA.
Most of my work has been for large radiology clinics. Conglomerates that own upwards of 100 to 200 radiology clinics across the country own these clinics. The bottom line with management is the "bottom line". Their bonuses and hefty salaries are dependent on keeping costs down...therefore cheap transcription is a "must".
Finally, the reason for the steady decrease in salaries for MT's is the availability of cheap foreign and (yes!) American labor. MT's in this country are becoming more desperate and accepting the lower line rates. Yes, of course you need to in order to pay for food, etc. However, if ever there was a time for us to organize a "strike" this is the time. It will never happen, however, because we are too busy just getting by. And where has the AAMT been during this time (in particular the last ten years when salaries have been eroding the fastest)? They have been telling us the "proper" way to do transcription. In the "good old days" if we did not transcribe correctly we were fired. If we used poor grammar, we were fired. That simple! Meanwhile this group (AAMT) purporting to be working to benefit MT's has instead been working to benefit themselves. They benefit themselves by touting their CE courses and the need for us all to become CMT's, that we can only do through their courses and their tests. None of which are free.
No, I am not an AAMT hater. I hate the hypocrisy of the AAMT. I hate the fact that experience counts for naught in this field. I hate the fact that the moment corporate America realized that medical transcription was an income producing product mostly male executives realized that they could take over with large companies, offer work at a much lower price than an individual could, and force the medical Transcriptionist to work at the prices they foist on us. That is what I have seen over the past twenty years.
Don't bother flaming me for telling you what I have seen. Most of the flamers will be from large corporations or IC's who have accepted their fate. Yes, you are making good money typing thousands of lines a day at a few pennies each line. Yes, you pay your bills doing so. I am not putting you down for doing so. What I am saying is that over the past 20 years the medical transcription field has changed (been hijacked by large corporations) and as such the bottom line is "how cheap can we get the transcription done". Such is corporate America. Get it done cheap or someone else will get the contract.
So, what am I suggesting? I don't know for sure. Perhaps there is no answer for most transcriptionists other than to accept their fate. As for me, I am lucky enough to have an income so that I can go on "strike" until I find a job that pays me what I am worth. Or, until I go back to school to find another career! Which is the most likely course of action a lot of us will be taking no matter how much we love what we were doing.
If you have any useful insights I would love to hear them. Flamers will be ignored.
Let's start with a one-day strike!
That will show them who makes the money. All the degrees in the world won't help if they can't transcribe. They want to cut the throats of the very people who slave to make the money for them. I think if we all agreed on a one-day work stoppage, they might get the message. If not, next time, 2 days. Just a suggestion. I don't know if it would accomplish anything, but we would get out point across!
I thought a strike would be more beneficial
but that has to be done by most everyone in order to work.
Tell you what - you strike and I'll make my
x
Are you ready to strike (with no income)
Is anyone willing to strike when an agreement is not met (higher wages, etc)? I doubt it. Most are living paycheck to paycheck as it is.
I hate to be a pessimist, and this will be my last post on this subject, but sad to say most of us can't even get along on this board, do you really think we could come together to form a union?
There was another post about someone trying and no one showing up. I guess they had to stay home and type... Good luck though... I truly mean that..
ABSOLUTELY I'm ready to strike!
MT's would be hard to unite, but that doesn't make it impossible.
ASR strikes again. When does the linguist strike??
This is what ASR put: AP lateral and oblique x-rays elected vision were obtained.
What doc actually dictated: AP lateral and oblique x-rays of the left 5th digit were obtained. 
Strike at this time is selfish
I think that during this hard time for the country, anyone who is going to strike, ie. kick and scream till they get what they want, are being selfish. There are SOOOO many unemployed right now and sooo many more running the risk as well. I understand not wanting to take cuts, etc. but face it people, that is what a lot of people in this country are resorting to because they have no other choice. Many, I am sure, would be HAPPY to have a job...and these people want to quit working till they get their way? And these people are the people who preach about patient care? - just my opinion
Have you ever been part of a hospital strike sm
I will tell you that I first-hand saw that out of a varied group of workers, the MTs were the FIRST and ONLY work group to cross the picket line to scab themselves for the money.
I didn't, but it was me and 2 other people out of 25 who stayed out. That is the reason unions and strikes do not work for transcriptionists. We have a majority who will sell everyone else down the river to put more money into their own pockets.
I laugh at the comedy board not at a strike.
then get off of the porch. You call this OP venting? Cut me a break. Sounds more like a cry for help. Why don't you all find a new profession instead of wanting everything handed to you on a silver platter. I find no humor in compromising patient care because someone wants to have a b***ch fit!!! 
A macro shortcut requires that you strike 2 or more keys. nm
nm
Strike in Pakistan slowing down offshored work here. Just another example of offshore
:+
Lot's of people work for cheatin companies. They bide their time and strike when they can.
As for me, I have joined a class action law suit on behalf of shareholders and MTs. Double whammy. Not too dumb. By the way, don't you have some managing to do or are you on duty all day to try to make MTs think MQ is AOK and everything else going on around them financially is just a figment of their imagination. 
What does it hurt you if this is
on the word board? Nobody is forcing you to read the post, and especially to reply. If you can't be nice, butt out!!! What a rip!!!
I would be hurt too (sm)
But I would not let them know it. When FD rolls around would not do anything for your DH and I would 'play-down' the birthdays of the older children when they come around... Sounds like this might not be the first time and time they tasted their own medicine... don't hold onto the hurt or anger - let it go for your sake and you don't need to be mean - but at 18 and 21 they are old enough to take responsibility for their behavior!!
I don't think it would hurt
The same thing happened to a friend of mine who questioned the company after failing her test. There was a glitch in the computer, and she got hired!
Can't hurt to ask.
When I first started hospital stuff I did H&P and DS and then added in the OP notes and then every other type of note under the sun.
Kinship care versus foster care/adoption
Having been placed in a position where I now have custody of my 3 YO granddaughter and going through the legal system, I sought an online network of relative caregivers for children. I would encourage you, especially since you are in Georgia, that if you take any children into foster care with the idea of adopting them, there is federal law that requires the state to take certain actions in a specific time frame. When a child is removed from it's bio parent(s), the state is required to investigate any possible relatives who can take the child before foster care is considered, but even before that, reunification with the parents is the priority. Once a child enters the system and is in the system for 15 out of any 22 months, the state is required to find permanent placement for the child.
The problem with this is that there are case workers who may favor a foster family and do not seek out relative care. I have a good friend in Georgia who had to fight all the way to the state level to get custody of her grandson after the child was placed from the hospital into a foster care home with the promise that the foster parents would be allowed to adopt. She has now adopted her grandson, but it was a long, hard battle to get the state to admit their own interests were placed above those of the child and/or family.
If you get a child placed through the state, please make certain there is not a relative who wants that child before you get your hopes up. The courts are now favoring return of children to relatives even after a child has spent years with a foster family who hoped to adopt them.
States get bonus federal funds by complying with the time lines and being able to close the case, so some states place children in foster care because it is easier than trying to locate relatives.
Didn't mean to go off on a tangent, but I can't imagine my sweet bella going to someone outside her family.
I got spanked when I was a kid and it never hurt me.
Then when I had children (they're grown now0, they got spanked, too, and it never hurt them. It usually was a last straw, but sometimes it was necessary, and they are none the worse for it, either. However, each of us is entitled to our own opinion and entitled to raise our children the way we see fit as long as we raise them in a loving home. 
My neck does hurt too...but...
my wrists usually get super sore when I STOP typing, I guess from not using them so much. If I take a weekend off, I am in severe pain with them, usually the brace works or taking ibuprofen, but now the brace doesn't fit. Thanks for your help!! I have actually thought about trying acupuncture, someone I know did that and they don't have any back pain at all after some sessions, supposed to be covered by my insurance too. Thanks again for your help!
I have the Panasonic behind the ear one, but they hurt.
Waaaaa. I'm looking in to those big ones like we used to use in the 70's with our stereo systems. Does anyone use them?
Whatever. Nothing to hurt and I'm not ashamed.
But it doesn't hurt to try!!!
nm
It certainly can't hurt anything to call, but...
He may think swallowing water caused it, but I bet he was yelling and having fun and got hoarse. If he's not sick by the time you're reading this, he's just fine.
Try a new keyboard -it can't hurt sm
Sounds like common sense but it was something I had not thought of before. I have been using the Dell standard keyboard since I got my new PC 2 years ago-have always used whatever keyboard that came with my new PCs. My hands were starting to hurt so I tried a Kinesis-didn't work. Too long of a learning curve for me. That's on the back burner for when I have more time. So I bought a Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000 on sale at Walmart for 20 bucks last week and my production has gone up 20% just in that little time. It seems the keys are lighter and I don't have to push as hard on them.
It couldn't hurt
I get paid by the page. I actually can make more money per hour doing tapes than I can as an MT, it's just unreliable. I've gone almost a month without tapes a few times.
I would think some do, wouldn't hurt to
send them out to them too.
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