I believe this profession is worth fighting for...you work at BK if you want...
Posted By: soon-exMT on 2005-09-15
In Reply to: and when was the last time you used shorthand? - facing facts
So we should just accept everything going on around us, like dumb sheep? What kind of attitude is that?
Answer this, are you supporting your household on being an MT. It does not bother you that in a few years you be making half what you are now, doing some dirty, low-paying job?
You are really okay with that, and think that is not a problem.
Believing in yourself and fighting for what you believe in, is what this country is supposed to be about. That is my opinion.
Listen carefully: It is the sound of the shifting of the tides coming in to divide rich and poor. If it happens, it happens, but I for one will fight it with everything I can.
I am glad I do not have your attitude. I happen to love this job, got in it because I love it, and am going to be sad when it is gone.
So many passion-less people...
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fighting for work
I am currently working as an IC for a company who uses WinScribe. I only work a few hours a night, but I spend so much time during the day looking for work that I am wondering if this transcription stuff is really worth it. I like the doctor's I transcribe for and the company seems pretty nice, but I have a life other than work. If I decide to leave the house for the day, I will probably not have any work to do during the evening. Is this what a lot of companies are doing now? Does anyone know of a good company that will just give me some p/t work without having to be trapped at home all day long?
I know it's work, but is it worth your time?
Or should I have said, what level of frustration can you tolerate - I should have stated in the above post that this is time consuming and can seem daunting, but if you choose to do this, just take one step at a time and choose a chunk of time you will have free, and in the end, you may just have to make the time because our computers are our livelihood and need to keep them in good shape. Then again, you can just hire someone to do it for you; and just a clue, they use a lot of these programs too. But registry issues, of course, that is another issue - a professional would definitely have to tackle that one. Take care!
Wanting PT QA work, is it worth it?
I'm currently a FT MT (many years now) and getting very bored with the work. It's so bad now that I'm finding myself constantly distracted (perhaps too willingly) thus not producing enough lines. I'm more than capable...just bored. I was wondering if doing QA PT would be worth it, on top of my MT work? I just need something to do other than MT work to break up the monotony. I've done QA work before but that was quite a while ago and don't know what the pay standards are anymore.
Worth a shot, but didn't work for me. sm
My inhouse job was outsourced when I left to work at home after 3 years doing the same account and getting rave reviews and raises for my transcription. I applied to the company handling the same account when I saw it advertised. I was told by the company my account was outsourced to that I did not have enough experience. Huh? 18 years total. 3 years on that same account.
I guess it depends if you're still working for the hospital or not. I know that at least around here, the hospitals basically black ball you if you have the nerve to leave their employ.
Hopefully the hospital you mention isn't quite as petty as mine was. They actually started sending the tapes out the day after I gave my 2 week notice and I had absolutely nothing to do but filing for the last 2 weeks. Apparently the hospital policy dictates that there is a grave danger of breach of confidentiality once the employee gives notice.
Give me a break.
Good luck. Hope it works out for you! 
Psych work - my 2cents worth
I have two psch accounts that deal with ADD and children 80%, adults with learning issues, accidents causing cognitive problems or Voc Rehab a lot lately. I start my IC's out on these accounts because they do not demand 24 hour TAT, the reports are long -- 10 to 15 pages however I set up a lot of templates for the tests, history, etc. A standard report of 10 pages with a 2 page letter to the patient takes about 1 1/2 to hours for my IC's to type when they first start and is between 450 to 500 lines. I myself can do a report/letter right at one hour. (35 to 45 minutes of dictation). This is true because I have so many standards set up, etc. Because the doctors gives us 4-5 days to finish the tapes, I pick up once a week on Thurs-Friday and they have to be back to them by Weds (E-mail) and I have them set up as I do, I only charge him 10.5 cpl but that is gross line and I pay my gals 0.75 cpl to start and once I don't have to proof them I go up to 0.8 cpl. I have trained several on this account with very little medical background and they have picked up in less than a month but again I have taken a lot of time to template tests, etc. I have had this account for almost 18 years. Unless there is a lot of complicated work, I don't see where you will need three months training. Also your pay is very low to me, I could see 6 to 7 starting out if you don't have much experience. My gals do not like to give up this account once they get trained on it as they can make close to $30 an hour. But since there is such a long TAT, I demand perfection and there is no excuse for not getting the report done or notifying me that you have had something come up prior to an hour before the report is due back. They do that once and they are pulled from the account. But again, the call is yours, reports are pretty standard and you can make good line counts but you also need to be paid a decent wage. Good luck. Patti
Yes and absolutely worth it. I love to work
outside when weather permits. I don't do it every day because hooking up and unhooking and having to carry everything gets to be a pain, but I do it on occasion. I also like to travel, which is why I got a laptop to start with. It allows me to work in the car or a couple of hours a day wherever we go so there is still some income, but I also have time to enjoy time with family.
Not worth it if you work your fingers to the bone and then never get paid
Good luck
I have work...16 hours' worth every day, 6 days a week no less. nm
nm
This is our profession -- a profession which is dying, I might add. SM
So I should get a hobby so I won't care, like you? A hobby isn't going to pay the bills. I can't afford a hobby because in addition to working for a living, I also have to study in a different career field in my spare for fear that eventually transcription will be strictly an offshore operation!
Just keep fighting the fight..... I remember...
seeing one of those earlier Star Wars movies, maybe the first one, and some guy next to me had a little about 2-1/2 to 3 with him. That kids are TERRIFIED, keping asking "what's that Daddy, why's he doing that Daddy, DADDY DADDY!"
Have people lost their brains? Kids can't process all this stuff. Let them watch Thomas the Train or Little Bear and let them be kids.
I'm fighting a super Wal-Mart
I'm in the process of fighting the planning/building of a super Wal-Mart down the street from where I live, which is out in a rural neighborhood, about 4 miles from town. I liken this incredible increase in Wal-Marts across the US as very similar to what is happening in the MT world. Wal-Mart gets something like 80-85% of their merchandise from other countries--it's just like outsourcing! Think of all the jobs that have been lost to this in our country.
I understand what some of you are saying about not having the money to pay a few dollars more on whatever it is that you want to buy, but it's no different from transcription! Those who are outsourcing the transcription to foreign countries are very similar to what Wal-Mart does with its suppliers.
Where does this leave our country? It's certainly scary for the future of our children in the United States.
Are your military members fighting for your
x
Fighting fatigue after 4 hours
When you work 3rd shift - it is even worse. But getting up and stretching works - don't nap because you won't wake up till morning!
Fighting Fractured English
Blanks are not your problem. Poor dictators are.
It has become a standard in the industry to make the problems of an ineffective dictator and make it an MT problem.
This is not and was never an MT problem. We are required to transcribe in English, and the oral work coming in needs to meet an acceptable English standard.
I've been in the business for 15 years, and frankly I am sick of it. Having exhausted every other resource to resolve this problem it is now time to fight back and sue these companies and the facilities who have made this our problem.
We are TRANSCRIPTIONSTS, not TRANSLATORS OR LINGUISTS. If we are required to translate, they need to cough up the average salary of an interpretter which by the way is $200,000 a year. I dare say none of us are making that as MTs. The time has passed when someone else's disability directly impacts our paycheck when it is not our skill in question. Enough is enough.
If you or anyone else is interested in pursuing this stand up with me and make your voices heard. Send me an email. I will keep your information confidential. The industry will never change as long as we continue to allow them to abuse us.
NO MORE SWEAT SHOP LABOR. THE FREE RIDE IS OVER. IF THESE COMPANIES AND HOSPITALS WANT IT TRANSCRIBED IN ENGLISH, GIVE US A MINIMALLY ACCEPTED ORAL ENGLISH TO TRANSCRIBE.
Your insurance company's adjuster should be fighting for you.
You're entitled to the cost of repairs to your vehicle, payment of ALL medical bills and out-of-pocket expenses like gasoline for trips to doctor, pain relievers, and lost wages since you've taken time off work due to pain and doctor's appointments. Do not agree to settle until you are certain that you are back to 100%. Gather up all receipts, bills and wage stubs to send copies as demand for payment.
I've been fighting back for 30 years.
It hasn't done one bit of good. The AAMT sold us out a long time ago and when the computer came into being, it made it way too easy to ship everything offshore. At least years ago when we used a typewriter, you had to work in house. Now everything is about faster, faster TAT and hiring people as cheap as possible to get the work done. I have always said that if they could get trained monkeys to do this job and pay them in bananas, they would. They don't give a rip about the MTs and they never have. 
As long as we have our health and our mind, we have a fighting chance.
I guess it is like the lady on T.V. said, the secret to happiness is appreciating what we have in life. I want so much more but also, I have had so much less that I have to remind myself I am actually doing okay, relatively speaking. And everything is relative. And, as Einstein said, "the unexamined life is a life not worth living" and so we owe it to ourselves to review our lives and makes necessary changes. Compromise when it comes to others within a household is necessary. Time for a family meeting, maybe? I give you two thumbs up for having created a family. You did something I couldn't do!
Look at the pot calling the kettle black - I am not fighting wth you. I more mature than that. sm
Besides everyone has their own opinions. Glad I got to see yours.
Had it both ways. Send it back the cheapest way and eat the cost. You don't want to be fighting f
x
I want our brave men and women fighting in the Middle East to come home safe and sound. sm
Imagine the Christmas their families are having. I am so grateful to them all.
Welcome to the profession. Get used to it.
x
Consider another profession?
To standardize testing you have to have every single company use one lone resource. What if company A is more concerned with ESL skills, company B is more concerned with oncology, and company C would like to know whether you rock at op notes? How do you standardize testing to cover every area that a given employer might want to concentrate on?
Definitely a profession. This is a
you will get a lot of pessimism and negativity. I definitely have made tons of money in my own business. Sounds like low self-esteem on the posters below, unhappy, depressed.
This is not just in this profession but
all over. I sat and waited on a call yesterday (my off day) regarding a piece of property I have up for sale. No call at all. I really hate to leave a message on a recording because most of the time you are ignored. Times have changed and not for the good. I think the majority of my family including my mother and my grandmother who are deceased would probably be shocked at today's life as we live it.
which profession
would you let us know what you decided to do? I'm wondering what I want to do next.
re: which profession
Dental Hygiene...usually takes 2 years but have to do it part time so I can still earn a living so is taking me 4 - I'm more than halfway done though, so can't complain...
our profession
 This is old, but has anyone read this?? I must research further what the final outcome was. While I totally agree with what they are doing and why, I totally DISAGREE with their final recommendation for standardizing line counts. VBC is not the way to do it.
You ask anybody in any profession
They will say they are worth more than they are being paid. That's the way it is everywhere. I make good money sitting at home. My local hospital pays their transcriptionists 9.40/hr. Big deal! I'll rather stick with a MTSO any day.
Our profession/New job
About three weeks ago I began a position with a local health care company (transcribing for local acute care hospitals but part of a national chain).
We are not really transcribing, at least not by my definition (21 years of experience). Rather, we are recording medical ShortHand (abbreviations [even in DIAGNOSES section], shortened medication names, slang, contractions, etc.). On the one hand, they claim they want you to type it verbatim (no expansions, additions, etc.), yet OTOH they say to delete redundancies, repetitions, etc., which is hardly verbatim. We are not allowed to expand, add to, or correct ANYTHING except number and tense dictated by ESL docs, who comprise about 60% of the dictators. In addition, certain dictated terms are to be abbreviated (e.g., "emergency room" transcribed as "ER").
The supervisor had the gall to look me right in the eye and deliver a harangue about how these are "legal documents, and we have to transcribe EXACTLY what they say." (Conveniently disregarding the bit about deleting redundancies and the other "allowed" changes.) So ALL of my previous employers, AAMT, etc. did it wrong, and THEIR crackerjack legal department is smarter than everyone else?!  Don't think so. Cutting costs is the game they're playing; everyone can see that.
Excerpt from a typical report looks like this: Wrote scrip for vanco 100, patient also to take aspirin 81 and will return next week. I don't think .... [blah blah blah]
AAMT taught me to create a complete, coherent, grammatically correct document that doesn't look like alphabet soup. Needless to say, I don't feel good about what I am creating and HATE THIS JOB!!
I'm just curious if this is happening elsewhere. With all of the emphasis on "cutting costs," I have to think that it is.
Thanks for listening to my splenic venting. 
A - No future in this profession.
Get a 4-year degree and open up your options.
Is our profession drying up?
I'm an independent contractor and have just lost an orthopaedic clinic account to EMR. Also, I've been sending out hundreds of letters for new accounts, and I'm hearing nothing back!
Is our profession (clinic work) drying up? This is getting very scary!
Could someone either (1) comfort me with "it's not true" news and there's more than enough clinic work out there to go around, or if you find that it is, indeed, drying up, write back and tell me of your experience.
Thank you `` Nancy in Alpharetta, Georgia
Good for you... and for our profession.
x
Find a new profession!
You never told us you had another job as a fortune teller! PUHLEEZ - your crystal ball is nothing more than an average bowling ball!
Stop trying to stir up trouble!
MT Dying profession
I don't agree with you. I'm betting that MT is good for MAYBE 5 more years. Maybe. Thinking they won't perfect VR is only fooling ourselves....they will. I wouldn't recommend MT to anyone looking to enter the field. Money better spent on something with a better future but what that would be, I don't know. Seems everything that can possibly be offshored is being offshored. Maybe we should move to China Then we can be sure to have jobs seeing nearly everything in the U.S. comes from there anyway. Or maybe, the way things are going we had all better learn to like rice, cuz that's probably all we'll be eating before long.
Regarding MT being a dying profession...
I have actually read in numerous places that MT is a job with future opportunity, in light of the baby boomers beginning to get old and sick. That's going to supply us with a lot of medical reports for a very long time. As for voice recognition taking over...I'll believe it when I see it. I know an MR who does VR and I've seen the gobbledegook that it comes up with. Eventually all these companies will realize that they were sold a bill of goods by these VR vendors, but because they've invested so much in this technology, they're going to stick with it until the bitter end. Just my opinion of course. Finally, outsourcing. I'm pretty confident that something will happen that will put the kybosh on sending private medical records off to Calcutta for transcription. I think that practice will also stop eventually. I could be totally wrong and maybe I'll have to put away my rose colored glasses, but for now, that's my prediction.
MT Dying Profession
Sad when you work for a company that you thought was great and all of a sudden the work is yanked away and you sit with nothing yet you see the company advertising multiple times. When you look at what many posters say, that seems to be one major problem with this profession. The companies have no loyalty to transcriptionists. The best places to work are small local services, if you can find them. I don't recommend to anyone who asks me that they get into this profession. I used to, but not any more.
MT dying profession
I totally agree, Dano. They have absolutely no loyalty to MTs OR QA for that matter - we are nothing to them. I don't feel like a respected professional who is rewarded for her expertise and hard work anymore; I feel like a factory worker in an assembly line (no disrespect to those who work in factories, BTW)who just has to pump out the work as soon as possible - it's all about numbers to them. That's why in addition to working in this field, which I have been doing for 10 years (and would have quit by now if I could!), I am going back to college to get my degree in dental hygiene. I can't wait to get out of here. Used to make good money - no more. Used to be respected -no more. They only want cheap labor. Anyone looking to get into this profession - don't be fooled by the lies - do something else!
definitely NOT a profession...criteria are...sm
criteria for a profession are extensive college required, also person's work autonomous. Separate body of knowledge required for work. Think of lawyers. Extensive college, they work independently, i.e. they don't have supervisors, editors, etc., and law has its own body of knowledge. Even nursing is on the edge as far as being a profession, not quite autonomous enough. MT certainly doesn't fit the definition of profession.
There's a difference between a profession and a job.
Dictionary.com states that a PROFESSION is, "An occupation, such as law, medicine, or engineering, that requires considerable training and specialized study."
That means MT, being that most MT's have no post-secondary education, or at most bare minimum "MT school" training. O-net on-line (occupation information network) states that 14% of MT's have a bachelor's degree or higher.
This is a joe-job, plain and simple.
here's some dict def's, i think it IS a profession.
noun: an occupation requiring special education (especially in the liberal arts or sciences)
noun: the body of people in a learned occupation
Word origin info is available.
Wow, maybe you are in the WRONG profession then, you think? nm
New MTs entering this profession
I don't think it is so much about MTs being all for themselves.
Virtually every newbie needs a great deal of QA support. It is costly. The first urgency of this field is turn-around-time. Slowing down TAT because all of your reports have to be QA'd costs. Having to stop and give you feedback so you don't continue in the same path slows QA down ... again, TAT suffers and this costs. Newbie work needs the QA because quality is the 2nd urgency of this business.
So, it's not your coworkers fault. Not really the MT service companies' fault either. This is the nature of this very competitive business.
It's always better for newbies to go to work inhouse in a hospital and get their experience before working from home. You have to be really self-sufficient to work from home and make it profitable for both yourself and your employer.
Defined by profession
I have never met so many people quick to judge and I realized that these folks must be defined by their profession which is really sad. Really sad. What's even worse, is like you said, they obviously need respect from others to feel satisfied by what they do. I made no assumptions in my initial post. Sure, I can type, would it have been better had I said I can't type for a darn but want to do MT??? Sheesh. I thought it was more important that I stated my computer skills in general are top notch.
I am not looking for something to make a living at. I already have a career that I love and am passionate about. Was just looking to find out what kind of training I should do, or if I should even do training, so I can do something involving computers from home.
Every job, like you said, has those that think they are better because of this skill or that skill that you don't have. I may be an engineer, but I'm a young female in an all male industry. Talk about fun earning respect with that! But I'm not defined by my choice of profession. I love what I do and that's all that matters to me.
Gee...isn't that the profession YOU signed up for as well?
Constantly correcting mistakes?
I would like to retire in this profession too
but fear for my job's safety. I unfortunately think the bottom line for a lot of these hospitals and doctors is the $$ and nothing more. They want to save money and don't care about the quality of the reports any more. I hope I'm wrong but I don't think so.
Not just in the medical profession
I've seen the same thing with executives and non-execs in many fields. I've had to listen to dead space, too, and yes, it's a waste of my time. Unfortunately, there are lots of time wasters for everybody, and after the post on turnabout is fair play, I can't seem to have such animosity about it. I can speed the dead space up and chat on the board or do some of my correspondence, etc while I'm listening to the dead space.
This is why MT profession is in bad shape
For some reason, some MTs think since they work from home they can do the job "their way." This in turn, has caused the MTSO to impose such strict requirements regarding TAT, daily line counts, etc. Remember - they DO have to meet the obligations of their clients.
There are truly some great MTs that really require a flexible schedule, etc, but these "no-show, no-brain" MTs are ruining a good profession for the rest of us. I admit, it is hard to test for MT companies especially when the tests are long, but I can't blame them a bit - at least it weeds out some of the airheads.
I am not a MTSO and never have been. But, because of this situation it is hard for me to find a decent job because of the need for a flexible schedule and because I am not a fast/high line producer.
This godforsaken profession has no
nm
Wrong profession?
I know there was a post about this yesterday, but I did not want to taker hers over. I am just wondering if I can really do this. I have been doing this 3 years and have been at the same company. I just got back 5 reports this morning that just have me almost in tears. Granted, some of my mistakes were stupid and should not have been made. But, others that were sent back to me I really have issues with. Some of the "mistakes" were not typing "Jane Doe" in the report instead of typing "the patient," which directly goes against my account instructions. Also, was told not to expand an abbreviation in the diagnosis section because my account is verbatim. I just do not agree with this!!!! Plus, had different instructions on the same thing. The QA is totally inconsistent, and let the QA manager know what I thought of some of their changes.
I do think that I am a good MT. I have a new position starting with a great company soon, and I just want to know that I really can do this!!! Any advice??
This is the only profession that the older
you get the less money you make. I hate it too and looking to get out!!
MT is a dying profession??
Hmm...
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