I'd go for at least $60 a tape; if 600 lines then .10 a line - sm
Posted By: on 2007-08-26
In Reply to: Charging for a full 60 minute microtape... - MT IC question
but I would not go any lower than that. If you can get a sample and do a count that would be the best way of course to figure out a fair rate so you don't get the short end of the stick. Obviously try to use an Expander to its best ability so you can maybe get your time down to 4 hours, which would be a reasonable time to do 60 minutes of work. Plus printing and delivery, yeah, no lower than $60. Think I'd go for at least $72 since you are doing printing and delivery.
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Oops, too long subject line, meant to say on the uncased tape.
We also had one or two real winners who taped things to the tape and then wondered why we couldn't get all the dictation done when the scotch tape tore the cassette tape. Oy vey.
Gross line, also including blank lines because my line rate is so low. It all works out in the wash.
x
If you get 600 lines that is only .03 a line - sm
pretty crappy....I would not take less than $60 for a 60 minute tape
So you do 15,000 lines per week at $.10+ per line?
That's $1,500 per week, or $78,000 per year. How many hours do you put in per week? Do you have a life outside of work? Kids, S/O, hobbies, family, friends? Not being snotty, I just find it hard to believe that anyone can do that many lines without other aspects of their life suffering.
Gross line is actual lines. sm
9 cpl if count is by 65 chars is not too much, IMO, for an experienced MT. If counting by gross lines, 7.5 c on a gross line equals about 9 cpl on a 65-char line, so if they use gross lines, it might sound low per line but it equals out in the end. A gross line is any line on the page. In other words, you can use your finger and count each line on the page that has words on it, and that's your line count. Most don't count blank lines. However, a lot depends on what they are including in that line, regardless. Are spaces included if 65-char line? Does the line count software count formatting changes (such as bold, underline, etc) If so, that will increase total line count. If not, it will decrease it. Gross line is usually a better deal unless the company is using a size 9 font or something or decrease the side margins. 11-12 size font with 1" margins is good with gross lines. The only thing that affects gross lines is the side margins or the font size. With 65-char line, font and margins don't affect it, which is why most go with that now. You take total characters (incl spaces if they pay for them, as someone else said) and divide by 65 to get total lines. Another thing to ask, if they use templates or normals, are the lines in those included? If not, that decreases total line count, too.
It's really hard for someone to say "this is the rate you should ask for" though, because there can be so much variability from company to company as far as what they count as a line. Also, is it clinic or acute care work? If clinic, generally easier and same docs all the time, so even at a lower line rate, you might make more in the end if you use expander, normals, templates, etc. Is there a platform or can you use Word and your own expander? If acute care where you have different docs all the time, a lot of ESLs, clunky platform, no Expander program, etc., it might slow you down so even with a higher line rate, you might not make as much in the long run. Therefore, you have to take all of that into consideration to arrive at what line rate you should charge or ask for ... almost have to adjust to each different company or client, really. For clinic work, 8-9 cents per 65-char line can net some good pay. For acute care, you might want more like 10-11 to get the same pay. Hope this all makes sense!
1500 lines per day? Is this a realistic line
count to be able to make daily in the current MT climate? I have been in MT field for 30 years, with last 10 as QA. I hate it, and can't wait to transcribe again. I am still really fast, never lost my skills thankfully, and can easily hit 1500 lines per 8 hour shift IF the work is there, though. That is the target I would have to hit to even come close to what I am making currently as QA - things are tight on this salary, and can't get much tighter! Do you think most companies have this sort of workload to offer MTs? I used to work for 2 companies 15 years or so ago. Maybe do you think it would be more realistic for me to try to work for 2, or is 1500 lines steadily daily not a big deal? I'm just so used to getting paid hourly, and never having that gut-wrenching fear of running out of work. I don't need benefits at all, so IC is a big possibility. I hope you understand, and I really appreciate your thoughts.  I'm so scared, but have to get out of my current situation at "you-know-where" before I lose my "you-know-what"...  Figured I'd peddle myself off as an MT rather than QA - worry about that down the road at a good company.
How about 1 cent a line being cheap. That equals only $10. for 1000 lines which
is really not an incentive to work either. Why not make it more like time and a half, i.e., if you normally make 10 cents a line when you would get 15. They could even offer 1/4 pay incentive so you could make an extra $25 to work a holiday but the $50 would certainly make me think more about working a day when I usually wouldn't. Yes, it would cost the company more but I'm sure more people will be working that weekend for such an "incentive."
what is the .065 cents per gross line equivalent to in 65 character lines?
Would it be about 8 cpl 65 characters or higher?
Line rate isn't the only factor -- your lines/hour average is key, too.
Even at 7 cpl, keeping about 275 lines/hour average keeps you at $19.25 an hour and that is $40,000 a year.
It is a myriad of factors involved. You have to have the knowledge, be decisive, self-sufficient and very focused. Then, you need to negotiate as high a base rate as you can and look toward the incentive plan to increase your paycheck.
With our incentive, it was not worth it if I couldn't hit high lines in a day. So, I changed my schedule to hit those lines.
I am tired after my work days but having the 4 days a week off and a good income makes it worth it for me. It allows me to spend my days off doing things I want to.
Chars aren't counted in gross lines. If you have a 4-line paragraph...sm
you have 4 gross lines, no matter how long or short the sentences are. A heading on it's own line is 1 gross line. A signature on it's own line is 1 gross line. The date at the top of a document on it's own line is 1 gross line. Anything on a line going from margin to margin is 1 gross line, no matter how few or many characters, or if there are spaces or not, even if there's only 1 character on that line like 'A' for instance. Does this help? :)
Paid hourly, req'd 1000 lines, anything over 1101 was 0.04 cents a line
//
Two companies, both 65 char lines including spaces, one pays 0.10/l and the other 8.5/gross line. n
x
The phone line has to support DSL signals. Most rural lines don't due to distance from central of
x
65 character line versus gross lines versus pay by word
I am checking into other options for transcription. Can anyone tell me how to compare all of these types of lines & also payment per word? I know companies use different scales, so I wondered how they compare. I have been paid on a 65 character line with spaces, but I may be making a change in the future - don't want to get burned.
Thank you in advance!
Tape - sm
I just saw some down the street from me, it was yellow with black letters saying "CAUTION".
There is a tape
and available at most Home Depot or Lowe's stores. Bright yellow with black lettering. Used it on our home when we had a major disaster so no one would fall in major holes in our yard. Worked well.
tape
A few years ago I was shopping for Halloween goods and in a store like I-Party they have that tape for Halloween - try one of those stores. I bought some years ago for a mummy and coffin for front yard. Just an idea.
that is why I tape them
I'll watch them while I iron, etc. Then I don't feel so guilty for "just watching TV". Plus you can zip through the commercials.
The one I used did not use tape
Sorry, I don't remember make or model, it was a while ago. But I would dial into the hospital's dictation system. That was where the voice files were stored. I had to have a dedicated phone line with unlimited long distance for the C-phone.
I too used to tape the tape together (sm)
You might lose a bit of dictation where you are taping it together, but I was usually able to salvage most of it. Good luck! :)
A gross line is anything on a line is a line. A line set at 65 characters means it sm
has 1-inch margins on each side. The maximum number of characters on that line would be 65 and that includes spaces. If there is 1 character on that line it is a line.
A standard 65-character line usually consists of 65 characters with spaces unless, of course, the employer does not pay for spaces and then it would be 65-characters without spaces.
Anyone know how to erase tape with...
a Lanier transcriber? Bought it on ebay and do not see an erase function.
TIA,
Dawn!
Tape erase
A lot of people also have disabled the erasing mechanism so that tapes cannot accidentally be erased and have to manually erase them. I have always done that to prevent it after my first accidental erasure. Other than allowing the tape to play forward without background noise, to tape over what is there, no answers here and have been using tapes for 15+ years. A manual eraser cost is cheap.
Patti
Tape eraser
You might wish to invest in a tape eraser; the one I have is from a company by the name of Geneva. The device consists of some strontium-ferrite magnets in a housing; just pass the tape through the housing and it is erased. The part number and description are as follows:
Audio cassette / mini-data cartridge eraser QM-230
Phone: 1-800-328-6795
Hope this helps.
Do you have a tape transcriber, or does it have to be
voice files? I have some practice dictation minicassette tapes here that I'd be willing to send you. As for the voice files, you could try Google searching. I typed in "medical transcription" practice sound files download but don't really have time to search through the results. I don't even know if there's anything out there.
tape her or get it in an e-mail or IM, something
x
try barricade tape
or cordoning tape, but I didnt find much on that
To MTs who transcribe via tape- SM
I found great, low-cost software that allows you to convert tapes to digital files (MP3, WAV, WMA, etc.). Check out www.dak.com ! Your PC needs a sound card and a line-in connection (usually next to your line out to plug in your headset or speakers), as well as a tape player and an actual line that plugs from your PC line-in to your tape player. Think they call that line a male-to-male or male-to-female or something like that (got my line from www.martelelectronics.com). Use Dak to convert your music cassettes, too. Hope this helps!
P.S., I'm an MT, not from DAK 
The end of the tape becomes detached
from the spool and is no longer winding outside the case/housing. It is all wound on one spool. Our office manager has been able to repair some by taking the tape apart and reattaching to the spool, so we can get some of the info off of it, but by handling the tape, etc. it distorts it to where we can't hear some of what was dictated and we lose some notes. Thanks! I will suggest one of those brands.
I never got rid of my tape-player or my -sm
typewriter. You just never know what sort of disaster could come up in the future, where those things would be a real life-saver. And amazingly, PCs never increased my daily work output. It actually DECREASED a bit once we went to PCs.
One tape about 2 hours.
or make templates.
Broken tape
HELP! I have had a microcassette tape break. Any ideas on how to fix it (if possible!)?
Thanks!
fixing tape
I had that happen quite a few times - take a very small piece of scotch tape and splice the pieces together- cut the scotch tape as narrow as the cassette tape is so that it will line up on the rollers. You will lose the dictation at that spot - probably a sentence or so - but it's better than nothing. On mine, I had to pry open the cassette case because the ends were inside. If you end up having to do that, pry it open carefully. Hope this helps.
Scotch tape
Try putting a little scotch tape over the letters. You can rewrite them with a fine sharpie.
I have 2 tape accounts.
I love it! It is so cut and dry. I throw the tape in and start typing. You may save time so people think by going digital, but it takes time to upload and download voice files. I just find that throwing the tape and typing is just simple! Of course, I'm a simple person.
In answer to your question, yes I think you may have something there as the tape doctors do not want to go digital because they like doing things simply. They don't want a lot of hassle, and yes, I do believe there are physicians that still like the old method. Some do not think that digital is very user friendly.
The other problem with digital is there needs to be someone in the office doing the uploading, which mean the physician is paying them to do that. With the tape, the doctor puts it in a folder with his patient list at the end of the day, and then leaves it for me. The only thing required by the office staff is the copying and mailing when I bring the work back usually anywhere from 3-4 days later. They do not require 24-hour turnaround, which is great. But, if they do need a note, which happens very rarely, I can simply fax it over to the office.
I am quite content with my tape accounts and the other thing I like is the networking. I can network with the office staff and feel like a movie star since they don't see me every day. They usually stop what they are doing for a friendly quick chat, which is very nice. I have business cards that I carry just in case someone mentions to me that so and so is looking for a transcriptionist.
Broken tape. sm.
I just broke my dictation tape while rewinding it. Should I try to open it and put it back on the wheel. Any ideas. I has three days of dication on it. Thanks.
if you need to cut it, you can tape it back together.
nm
mangled tape
I was able to take the cassette apart to get the tape inside unmangled, but now I'm trying to figure out how to roll it back up as tight as I can so it doesn't happen again, and I don't know how to do that. I have a few feet of tape hanging out and I can't roll it tight by hand unless I want to spend days on it, and it still may night be tight enough around the spool. The tape is intact so I don't think I need any splicing. I'm think right now this is just ridiculous that I'm having to do this and yes, the doctor is technotarded. He kept erasing his dictation accidentally on the digital recorder so went back to using cassette tapes.
tape broke
Did you hear me scream? I guess I'll cut and tape and try it from there.
mangled tape
A company I found on the web called audio-restoration.com repaired a tape for me. The cost was $25.00. The doctor's office paid for it because it beat having to redictate 1-1/2 hours of dictation. It took about five days to get the tape back.
Do you have a tape in the machine?--sm
If there is no tape with dictation, there would be nothing for the machine to indicate. My Lanier has a counter but is not this model. This site has info on the 210--http://www.transcribesolutions.com/lavwmicama2.html
Hope this helps.
Aaahhhh, now I get it. Gross lines vs. Character lines. I guess I've just been conditioned to
think in terms of character lines. One of the perils of working as an IC for somebody who defines what a line is versus owning your own company and defining it yourself. After working for someone else for 15 years, maybe it's time to bust out on my own.
erase tape update
See below, don't want to rewrite the entire thing but it did all work out. Basically I had put the envelope and tape from one day in a different spot due to being in a hurry and the other one the doc did not hand in as he was going on vacation. So when both were gone, I thought I had erased them and handed them back in. When I told the doc that I thought I had erased one and he grinned at me and gave me the tape, he told me to include some extra charge for the time I spent looking for the tape -- so it did all work out. God just threw me a curve to tell me to slow down. I averaged 2500 to 3000 lines per day last week and that was with one doctor on vacation. So just hurried, hurried, hurried. Thank you to all of you for your support, it really helped me in a tme of need. Patti
Patti
Also many offer $30 for a 60 minute tape -sm
so if 600 lines you get a whole .05 a line, WOW!! I have only seen 1 I was remotely interested in doing so far, but have not bid on any as yet, doubt I ever will.
All the different colors of correct-tape!
Sure does bring back memories. I remember sitting at my Selectric in my basement when I was a newbie back in 1975 crying my eyes out because I had just finished a 3 page report and the doc wanted me to insert a paragraph at the beginning of the report! There was no "memory" back then and the whole thing had to be retyped just to add one paragraph! I remember them fondly, but am much happier with my computer! Thanks for the walk down memory lane, though!
Oh no! Tape missed part ....
I have Desperate Housewives and Grey's preset to tape every week. Wasn't thinking with the Super Bowl that Grey's would start late. The tape cut off right after Dr. Burke sent everyone out of OR except for 2 other people. He had just told the EMT that her hand was keeping the man from bleeding out and the bomb squad was coming. Then <poof> that was it! What happened next? Anyone, please? Thanks.
I don't think anyone is saying give up a tape account but
I think what started this whole thing is a person asking about how to go about getting a new account, picking up tapes, how much to charge for paper or whatever. In that case, I think OP should research the options out there and start with the approach to go digital first, then accept a tape account only if you have to. Of course you don't give up an account. No way. Never. Ever.
Re: Going rate for tape tx/delivery
The only advice I can offer, since I have never been in business for myself, is to state where you live. Rates can vary by region.
If you mean one side of a mini tape
For my private mds, each side of a tape yields approximately 500 lines, takes me no more than 2 hours to do a side, sometimes 1-1/2 hours if I'm a speed demon and take no breaks!! 
huh? even if you speed up tape you'll
albeit, if the OP does speed up tape, she'll make those lines quicker!
Broken tape memories
One of my docs about 15 years ago broke a tape and he spent more time putting the tape back together than it would have been if he had redictated. Another time, the same doc walked in my office and handed me the tape while I was running a finished tape through the little erase box and I immediately took it out of his hand and erased it right in front of him. I almost died. He always dictated on half speed to get more on a tape. What would you have done if you did that?
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