I work for both ... my comparison (LONG READ):
Posted By: Busy MT'ing on 2005-10-21
In Reply to: Spheris - are they as bad as MQ? - cowgirl
HOURS/CLASSIFICATION:
MQ: You have a choice of FT with full benefits -- 39-40 hours producing average of 150 lines/hour minimum; FT with limited benefits -- 39-40 hours with less than 150 lines/hour average but more than 100 lines/hour; PT with limited benefits for 8-16-24 hour schedules all averaging 100 lines/hour.
Spheris: FT is 37 to 40 hours a week, with 10,200 lines required by payperiod's end. PT is 20 to 36 hours a week, production is 5100 lines/payperiod minimum.
OVERTIME:
Both companies structure overtime the same way; averaged in the same manner; requires approval, must be in addition to 40 hours WORKED (PTO, DT do not count).
SCHEDULES:
Both require a schedule with the offer of "flexibility".
TIME:
MQ: Time sheets are used; MTs fill them in manually and submit.
SPHERIS: Galaxy is used -- you clock in and the system punches your time for you. Day's end, you see how much you've worked and allocate your time accordingly (productive time, PTO, meeting with mgrs, etc.).
BENEFITS:
MQ: You see the benefits in the Harmonization booklet. The employee's cost of insurance benefits is assigned by the state you live in (as well as which/if coverages are available to you).
SPHERIS: Med/Den/Vision are offered. Employees all pay the same amount for amount of coverages (EX: All employees wanting EMPLOYEE ONLY coverage pay the same; all wanting EMPLOYEE+ONE CHILD pay the same). It is available to all employees. Cost is not region-specific.
EQUIPMENT:
MQ: Use your own or they will provide. The current rental charges will no longer be effective in January; as well, the internet reimbursements will not either. I don't know if there will be a deposit for those just coming into the company after Jan 1.
SPHERIS: Must use their computers. No rental fee but there is a refundable deposit. You can pay it at once or have it taken out in 6 paychecks. Refunds to you when equipment is returned in good working order.
PTO:
MQ: You see the new PTO offered in the plan and can read online the PTO calculation formula.
SPHERIS: Same type of calculation formula; averaged quarterly and you receive a notice of what your new downtime/PTO rate is and what period it covers. Limit is $20 an hour tops for PTO. Lowest is $7.50. Amount of PTO depends on status and length of service and ranges for FT from 11 days to 21 days a year and PT 2.5 to 7.5 days a year.
HOLIDAYS:
MQ: You can read in the Harmonization booklet.
SPHERIS: Thanksgiving and Christmas are designated holidays. If you are scheduled to work on it, you can take PTO instead. If you work it you will earn double lines those days.
QUALITY:
Both require 98%.
PAY CYCLES:
MQ: Pay WEEK is Su-Sat; pay PERIOD is bimonthly 1-15th and 16th-end of month with paydates on 10th and 25th. Direct deposit available.
SPHERIS: Pay weeks are same as pay periods and are Su-Sat with every other Fridya as paydates. Direct deposit available.
BASE RATE:
MQ: With the new plan, you have your current base rate and it is the same on all work (unless you do part radiology or ASR).
SPHERIS: Your base rate depends on the level of the account you type on. If you type on a really easy account, you will get less pay; more difficult accounts, more pay. Each account level has a new-hire hourly associated with it. Levels go from level 3 to 10 with line rates 0.065 to 0.102. With Spheris, if your production earnings do not add up to at least minimum wage for the hours you worked, they will pay you minimum wage. However, you will not stay with them long if you cannot produce enough to keep you off the minimum wage payments.
INCENTIVE:
MQ: We know that incentive is achieved on a daily basis -- after you produce 1200 lines. Tiered so that you earn incentive ONLY on the lines produced AFTER 1200. It barely puts change in your pocket for mid-range producers. Only rewards high producers.
SPHERIS: Incentive is base on each week's production (Sun-Sat). So you can have a really bad week and only get your base and then next week have a great week and get incentive. Once earned, incentive applies to ALL lines typed and ranges depending on FT or PT status. FT: 5200 lines start at 0.002 and increases up to 7000+ lines getting 0.015 cpl incentive. PT: 2700 lines = 0.001 and increases up to 7000+ lines = 0.015 cpl. Whatever incentive you earn that week is applied to ALL LINES PRODUCED THAT WEEK. Spheris also has special teams that pay higher base rates.
SHIFT DIFF:
MQ: 11pm-7am = 0.01 and 3pm-11pm = 0.005
SPHERIS: 4pm-8am CST daily = 0.005.
NO WORK AVAILABLE:
MQ: This is not specifically addressed per se; however it is not listed under downtime definitions at all. I doubt MQ ever pays for no work situations.
SPHERIS: Has a policy: "MTs will not receive compensation for "No WOrk Available" situations. If an MT runs out of work, the MT should immediately notify their Supervisor or follow th eout of work situation guidelines for their team."
Hope that helps.
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I work and do not have time to read such long posts, do you?..nm
nm
A bit long, but please read, at least, the end if you are up for an experiement
I have used Expanders from the start, and I would say they help overall. However, as time has gone by I have discovered better ways of putting them together, so I have ended up changing many I had already created along with the endless making of new ones. (Some of this due to discovering which key combos are easier for me in regard to finger dexterity and some due to overlapping use of the Expander pattern I started with.)
I think you might actually be better off since you have learned more about transcribing before creating any.
I did read a funny and interesting thing on here a few months ago though. Someone said they stopped using their expanders and were getting a higher line count by straight typing. I was really tempted to try it for a day to see what would happen but never did. It would be kind of fun if we all tried it for a day (or even half a shift) to see the range of results.
Anyone game for that?
I can't read for long in the car or do crafts because I get
motion sickness, but I've worked from coast to coast without having any issues. My issue is my DH and the radio. My DH thinks he is going to die if he doesn't have his music and I'm turning the volume down and 2 minutes later he's turning it up again.
But the help file is so long and boring to read.
I know about linking and hiding the suggestion window. Other than that, I don't know many semicolon or Ctrl functions. I put hospitalization in as hosn. I wish somebody would teach a Shorthand Expander class or come up with an in-depth book going over specific SH features. The other expander books I bought were lame.
I didn't read your way-too-long post, but...
did you type all that out, or copy and paste from somewhere, cause if you typed it all out...you need to get a life and quick!
Long, informative read - Merck vet manual (sm)
http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/71600.htm
Help! Long shot, but if you're near Redding, CA, please read
I'm desperately in need of a Dictaphone pedal. Mine randomly quit working this morning, I need to work today and tomorrow, and I can't find one in any stores here. My employer's Fedexing me a new one that will get here Monday. If you have one that I could borrow until Monday, I'll come pick it up, and I'll bake you one of my famous apple pies.
Best post I've read in a long time.
I tend to go back and forth with my feelings about this profession. In the mornings I am glad I do not have to get up, get ready and go to an office. Many times in the evening, after I have during the day and still have work to do, I feel like stuffing it all. Many times I am disheartened when I get my paycheck, but I am glad to be getting one, while my sister worries about getting laid off from her manufacturing job. MT has advantages and disadvantages.
How long would you say it takes to get a decent grip on them. I do have samples already I have read
over and they arent hard but I havent heard the voices yet.
Oh, my. That's the funniest thing I've read in a long time.
AHDI: Solving the world's problems, one foreign MT at a time.
ROLFMAO
IC sets their own hours. As long as the work is done by the deadline, you decide when to work.
Thanks for the comparison..
They sound one in the same.
A little comparison.
Option A: National: Two hours of emails, faxes, unpaid headers, using expander. Total income $9.60 in two hours.
Option B: Small MTSO: One hour of straight typing with only one researched name and address. No emails, no faxes, paid headers, no expander. Total income $20.00 in one hour. I just wish they had more work!!!!
Comparison
I think there are some variables here. Our company went to VR and there are some who are making more and some less. I am one of those who is making less, but I made a good salary to begin with and am a fast transcriptionist. If you do a lot of editing when you do straight transcription and put in lots of punctuation, and edit A LOT, changes are VR is not going to work for you. I love it, but then again, it all depends on what platform of VR your company uses.
what a perfect comparison
If I had pictured you as anybody that would have been the perfect choice, quirky, funny and cute in the boy next door way.
that is a ridiculous comparison!
dogs, birds, cats, etc are all different animals that required different diets and have different needs. You can't even compare 1 dog breed to another b/c every breed has its different needs, so that being the case, how can you possibly compare dogs to birds?? That is just ridiculous.
I posted a comparison...
within the last week here on the Main Board (MTSO ratings) that shows how the clients of some of the top MT companies who offshore rate the quality of both onshore and offshore transcription. There really was not a big difference, according to those clients, between the quality of both.
Cents pay comparison for VR editing
Non-VR (IC) at 10 cents/line x 200 lines/hr. = $20 / hr.
VR editing (IC) at 5 cents/line x 400 lines/hr. = $20/hr. (a 0% increase)*
Non-VR MTSO charge at 15 cents/line x 200 lines/hr. = $ 30/hr.
VR MTSO charge at 15 cents/line x 400 lines/hr. = $ 60/hr. (a whopping 100% increase)
If you deduct the $20 to the MT from $30, MTSO still makes $10 per hour per MT.
If you deduct the $20 to the MT from $60, MTSO now makes $40 per hour per MT.
(of course these figures do not include MTSO overhead and other costs)
*Note: VR editing requires MTs with extensive experience for detecting and correcting errors.
Looking for conversion/comparison chart sm
I'm getting paid gross lines right now and my company is going to be using new software which will use 65-char lines. I'm looking for some sort of chart that shows the difference in $.
Any help will be gratly appreciated.
Thanks 
office lighting comparison
Everyone's talking about the compact fluorescent lighting saving hundreds of per year in energy costs. That's swell, but I have tried using these bulbs in my office, and the lighting is not at all adequate. In my experience, the CFLs do not come close to light output of incandescent (standard) bulbs. I'd have to buy extra lamps with CFLs to equal the amount of light I need and can get through standard bulbs. I have my office lights on for 10+ hours a day. I turn them off when I take a break, of course, and at the end of the day. However, my power bill is through the roof already, as Ameren has dumped another rate increase on Illinois.  So: Need the best lighting option for the lowest price possible. Any ideas?
Wow, I did a line count comparison...sm
what one of my accounts paid me for and what my other account would have paid me for with their counter and only came up with a 15% difference. A 50% difference is pretty hard to stomach. I have no ideas except for some really crooked software.
...that's as long as you do this work. nm
s
How long do you need to work as an MT...
to be considered "seasoned"...my Editor called me seasoned and I have been at it since October of 2006. I cracked up!!!
As long as QA is up to par, that could work - sm
but in past experience I've had to deal with some pretty shady QA people. In one case, the *rules* changed almost daily, so you were damned if you did, and damned if you didn't: a lose-lose situation. With regard to TAT, I've been given warnings about work being out of TAT, when it was already out of TAT when it was given to me. So even though the reports were typed within minutes, I was still *warned* about being out of TAT. Finally, I've had QA people *correct* words, changing them from being spelled correctly, to being spelled incorrectly, and we had no way to appeal this. Then, when review time rolled around, we'd see the *mistake* (made by QA, not by ourselves) reflected in our reviews & our pay scale. Worst of all, we had one QA-person once that used to arbitrarily add or remove ENTIRE SENTENCES from reports that we had typed correctly, or change punctuation in such a way that it changed the meaning. We had no recourse against that, either. Since those QA problems directly affected my ability to get a bonus, or even to earn a living, needless to say, I left. So if *punishment* is going to go along with what QA finds on reports, then QA has to be almost above reproach. With the peanuts that editors & QA are being paid these days (along with the rest of us!), getting top-quality people can't be easy. Also, in order to keep QA *honest*, and not promote greed on their part (at the expense of MT wages), the QA people should probably be paid on salary or hourly, NOT on production.
how long did you work for them?
I have never had any problems with her.
As long as the work gets done, and . . .
all MTs have enough work, I don't see whay anyone, including the MTSO OR the other MTs, would care.
Great comparison! Just like dogs, we have to train our men!!
It might take years, but it does pay off in the end!  Been training mine for 30+ years now, and he's about halfway there! But I would sure boot his butt out if he cheated - and he knows it!
My comparison of homeschooling to MTing at home.
"A full-time job isn't finished in 3 hours (like the abbreviated day many homeschoolers boast about). It's about being there on time, sticking to it even though you may not feel like it, and getting along with people you may not care for, and avoiding those who are not good for you."
DANG! And that's why I got into medical transcription. LOL I didn't want to work fulltime or stick it out in an office. And that whole getting there on time thing, oh, I've never been good with that one.
What a dumb comparison - apples & oranges
Geez. A lot of people can't spell, and they sure as heck don't belong managing a QA department for medical transcription - correcting other people's mistakes!
that should read "and NOT my work pc."
Anyone work for publishers? Please read...
I'm very seriously looking into working with one of the medical context publishing companies. I would be so delighted to talk or e-mail with anyone who works with these companies -- what do you do, what time frame are you working in, how does it pay, is it steady work are just a few questions I have.
Please e-mail me.
Thank you.
How long would you continue to do work for someone sm
when your check didn't come when it was supposed to? It is a week late now, saying it was mailed when supposed to be mailed to the correct address but i have not received it yet. I now already have 2 weeks worth of pay supposed to be on next check. At what point would you not do any more work until receiving payment? I have worked for this small MTSO for about 10 months now and never a problem before. Just leiry as the more I type, the more income i am wondering if i will receive. Not idea if it truly wasn't mailed or if lost somewhere in the mail.
Not long ago nothing but complaints about no work at MDI-FL.
x
They think they don't care how we get the work as long as SM
it gets done and doesn't cost them anything. That's what they think. If you can't do it, they'll get somebody who will. 
How long ago was this? I know MPWord to work quite well for me.
k
you won't be working until you die. You won't have work that long.
x
If you work for a bad company long enough, believe me
.
I agree. As long as you have the work
option to give work to another IC. I has a client that used other ICs. Just because I transcribed for one physician didn't mean I could expect to receive all of their work. Being an IC is being your own boss, not your client's boss to tell them who the can and cannot contract with. JMO.
your computer will work as long sm
as your generator is running. High speed cable would work if you have that outlet hooked up to the generator. Usually a generator is not hooked up to the whole house unless you have a "whole house" automatic generator. If the power is on and the cable is not out, you can work.
Anyone using DirectTV- what are the pros and cons in comparison to cableTV? nm
nm
I have the most recent version of Corel WP, but it pales in comparison to (sm)
Microsoft Office Small Business 2000 (MSWord, Excel, Outlook, IE5.0. ) This software works as flawlessly as the day I purchased it. Patches never required. No hang-ups or crashes. The only alteration I have made to it, is that I am running the most current version of IE. However, most of the time I use a tabbed browser for my web experience.
.
Psychiatric work or long reports
Does anyone work for/know of any companies that are hiring for psych work or any other long reports like memory disorders, or compensations? I have three years working with these and acute care. I would like to find long reports to do all the time.
Please write to my e-mail address
Thanks!
Oh well, as long as it gets our work out of India and back to us
I would go back to the office in a second for decent money and affordable benefits.
Editing at home is tough. No comparison to the office, and much, much harder
than transcribing at home, especially with kids. Wish I could help, but I can totally sympathize with you!
I read the story and they interviewed people who work in the
Luis Vuitton store. They said they had 3-4 of the debit cards used just that day. Other high end stores were reporting they were being used in there as well. One guy on tv was interviewed and said he was unemployed yet he was going to buy a car. That means he'll probably have no insurance, probably no license. Every single taxpayer is paying for these unemployed, young "disabled" people with a bunch of kids who have chronic back pain or <insert whatever disorder here> to go shopping and not for needed things like food and diapers.
that should read "they ended up sending all the work"
x
I did work three jobs for quite a long time. Then it dawned on me that
(1) I was always tired (2) I was never finished working (3) It wasn't worth it.
I quit EDiX, and I quit my hospital job, and I've never looked back. I usually have what money I need. I work about 5 hours a day plus a small weekend job recently that's no more than 10 op notes.
I'm a long-time Monrovian. Wouldn't work anywhere else. nm
nm
Will DQS work with dial-up (short-term). How long
nm
I won't work for a company that requires me to pay long distance
After getting reamed over by one MTSO who verbally promised to pay my unlimited long distance bill and didn't. I have no use for long distance because I use an inexpensive calling card or the Internet.
LOTS of work here, playing catchup all day long and still not there.
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