Only you can determine what is fair pay. Just because companies are paying 4 cpl to edit VR sm
Posted By: Cali-IC on 2007-03-21
In Reply to: What is fair pay for medical editing? - Need Info
does not mean it is fair. It is downright criminal, in my own opinion. It should be more like 10-12 cpl for editing.
What one thinks is fair, the other does not. Only you can determine what you are willing to accept as a fair pay.
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If you arent paying me, dont edit me. Visiting
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It's fair to both companies...
if you're putting in the allotted time that each company requires. In this day and age with the ridiculous amount we get per line, some people may find it necessary to work two jobs. But, as I stated earlier, each company needs to be given equal time -- if you want to work those hours, go for it!
Yes, if you think the companies are not just out for themselves and will try to get out of paying
nm
If the companies are paying for spaces, yes. nm
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I beg to differ. That is what the companies want you to believe. Not all clients are paying Less!
The companies are lining their pockets more and more. AccuStat-Carolinas is not a "good" company to work for anyway. Read the archives!
Totally agree with you. Companies are paying
pittances for this work and it is crummy work - almost impossible to make any money. I believe it is more difficult than MT or QA and the $$ is just not there.
If those companies paid a fair wage, and paid more
all came out equal, people wouldn't feel the need to try to make up the deficit by going for the good stuff. I actually prefer the harder, juicier reports. But I can't make a living doing only that, because the pay is not commensurate with the difficulty. So even though I prefer not to, sometimes I have to pick up some of the easier, more boring 'line-o-matic' reports just to make ends meet. Tell your MTSO to make it work their while, and MTs will stop taking all the easy work away that you obviously would prefer to keep for yourself.
Fair is fair -- relative or not, 1 house or 100.
She's earning income and the only fair, right, just, ethical and LEGAL behavior is to report it wholly.
How do u determine how much of utilities to use?
I wouldn't think u could use the whole amount. I get reimbursed for net service so I can't use that, right?
It should not be difficult to determine
your line rate if you are currently charging by the page. If you like the page rate you are charging, then take a typical line count for one page and divide the charge per page by that many lines. For example, if you charge $5.00 a page and 30 lines is an average line count for one page, then $5.00 divided by 30 equals 16.66 cpl. So if you want to still receive $5.00 per page or thereabout, you would need to charge between 16 and 17 cpl. This is based on a gross line count. Ask if any editing is necessary. Charge a fee for editing based on an hourly rate.
Start at square 1. See if you can determine where the
noise is. Your computer has at least 3 fans in it. There is one near the hard drive, one on the motherboard in front of a little "box", and one on the power supply. You may have more, dependng on type of computer. They are all essential and are not that expensive to replace, but not replacing them can burn up your entire computer. The one on the power supply would require that you change out the entire power supply, but that is not hard to do, either, cost is usually less than $50.
Determine your line rate by adding that 25%
get and don't forget to add in costs of marketing, setting up a HIPPA compliant system, printing, sending/receiving work, travel expenses, trying to mantain a client who wants to lower your line rate because someone else will do it for less and/or suddenly finding the need to get a different client because the own you got decided to use voice recognition and didn't tell you until they no longer need your services....
It's not our job to determine relevance of anything dictated. They say it, I type it. nm
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To determine what kind of port the footpedal
has, look at it. If the wire at the end is flat, then it is a USB. If it is round and has 9 little holes, then it is a serial port.
The newest computers have in the back a USB- and a serial-port. If you have only the USB port and the footpedal has a serial, then you have to buy an adapter and vice versa.
In addition you have then to access your footpedal setting in the computer and set them right:
Click control panel/footswitch setting and choose the right port, USB or serial.
isn't it the posting by the visitors here that determine the web site's profit?
just a curious question.
But it's a timed test to determine your production speed. nm
nm
What are you paying your MTs? If you're only paying 7 or 8 cpl
and expecting extremely experienced MTs, forget it. You're not going to get it. If, however, you're willing to pay 9 or more cpl then you will find what you're looking for. There ARE experienced MTs out there who will work their fingers to the bone IF they are compensated well and treated with respect.
ATT- I was paying $320 for 7000 minutes, I am now paying $175 for 5000 minutes in CA. nm
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That's why we edit it. nm
nm
they should edit their own.
nm
Not only do I edit everything I read........sm
My husband says I "type" in my sleep !! Jeezz.... like 8 hours a day isn't bad enough! 
Don't know the average, but I get 13 cpl to edit VR. nm
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Mine really is 2 - because I EDIT!
:)
EDIT? Since when did we have the education
that the physician does and where do you draw the line??
Edit Dictionary
Click on Tools, Options, Spelling & Grammar. On the Custom Dictionary window, select CUSTOM.DIC then click Dictionaries (to the right). When Custom Dictionary window opens, click Edit. Find the word you added and delete it. Save the file.
Depends on if doing 100% edit or not.
if you have to listen 100% and you have bad MTs, then it will be hard to get.
I'm sorry that you have crappy QA. I wish I had you to edit. sm
A good QA will not do that. Where are you working that you have such bad QA personnel? I'm not wanting to go to that company, lol.
Hope it gets better and you get helpful mentors.
Can expanders help if you mostly edit
reports rather than transcribe? That is what I do the most of.
You may be able to edit faster than
transcribe, but you are still doing twice the amount of lines for the same pay. After some time, the VR will start to recognize more terms and require less input. At that time, you may not be needed at all on those accounts, or you will be asked to accept less money. Time will tell!
Who better to edit reports
than a doctor? It's a nice thought and I'd love to have a doctor as my QA person! Unfortunately, editors aren't paid very well. Most make less than $20 per hour. The whole medical transcription industry has taken a major hit in pay thanks to off-shoring and AHDI (aka AAMT - which was supposed to be pro-MT, but instead is pro-greedy business owner). Also, voice recognition has cut our pay. Sometimes it even takes longer to edit a poorly worded voice file, but we are paid 3-4 cents per line.
If we can fight the off-shoring of all confidential patient information/medical records and cuts in pay for VR, the pay might eventually return - but I doubt it.
I don't know but I try to be fair, but I can tell you
that I have had some management jobs that required 25 years of experience plus QA experience and MTs with less than 15 have applied and I had to tell them that it was not enough experience. That was hard, but they did not know what all was involved. I have had people get bent out of shape about it, but to be honest, I had my orders specifically from a company and nothing less would suffice, plus it was posted clear as day.
Also, there have been situations where people did not have resumes--yes, can you believe that? They said they had less experience yet they did not have it in a resume.
I think many do not understand what a recruiter has to look at and what we deal with.
still not fair
I understand how you feel, I too am in the same position. Its like you want to do a good job with quality work and once you prove that to whatever company you might be working for instead of appreciating your high skills they treat you like a door mat and start sending you all the work that none of the others want to do. We lose time doing bad reports/dictators just like any other MT and just because we can get through it with no blanks or it having to go to QA is no reason to give us all of the bad dictators/reports because its not fair and it doesn't make me feel appreciated what it makes me feel is used. I get no extra for doing these type of reports back to back to back even though we are supposedly working from a pool and the MTs who don't want to do these bad reports/dictators just keep zipping along. ITS LIKE THE BETTER YOU ARE THE WORST DEAL YOU GET AND ITS NOT THAT I MIND DOING IT (because I do want to keep my job) BUT WE HAVE TO DO IT JUST BECAUSE ITS TOO DIFFICULT FOR SOMEONE ELSE WHO MAKES THE SAME cpl BUT THEN END UP MAKING A HIGHER LINE COUNT BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T HAVE TO DO THE BAD REPORTS/DICTATORS.
There should be some kind of way to be compensated when you are put in that kind of position but right now there isn't and you just do it because its your job. I have been in a situation lately where 95% of my work is from the list of bad dictators to be aware of and I am so frustrated. If there was some kind of compensation for say a multi-specialist Transcriptionist or ESL transcriptionist then it would make the situation so much better and there would be less resentment all the way around, I think that is something most companies should think about.
Of note I am not complaining, not whining, and not venting but just saying.
That is not really fair -
It is not as easy for some of us. I have gained 30 pounds in the past year from just sitting and emotional eating. Once you get down on yourself about it - well that makes it worse. A terrible cycle. Has anyone tried hypnotism?
Fair enough. I see what you mean.
I didn't mean to imply going straight for .12--lol! And I see what you mean by "demanding." I didn't mean that either, but I should have been clearer about what I DID mean. I do mean that the OP has SOME control over the situation--maybe not total control, but some control. As ICs we need to remember that we are in business for ourselves. We ARE a business, and we need to act accordingly. I'd be looking for another client as well. No need to put up with that!
I can't say I do, very fair here.....
No sideburns, no moustache, a few hairs under arms and not much leg hair either. I'm a freak! LOL!
3 cpl isn't fair for ANYTHING!
k
Seems more than fair, to me! nm
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fair
I think that your employer is being harsh, but I do believe that by the end of a year 1200 lines a day should be possible, especially with your background. Of course, if you are working with extremely difficult doctors that may be different. I have what I consider to be a very good account with few ESL and most doctors are very clear, and was able to produce up to 1600 lines a day with relative ease if I actually typed 8 full hours at about 6-8 months. I had no medical experience, but I did have writing and editing experience, along with two college degrees. In part, I think it's the ability to use Expanders as tools efficiently that makes that possible. Are you able to use online resources well? Do you have a good drug reference on your computer with a flexible search tool? Do you have an Expander that you are using to advantage? In order to be productive at the rates people expect these days, I think all of the above are a necessity. I also think that even with experience as a medical secretary some training is needed in order to get up to speed as an MT. In fairness, it sounds like you just jumped right into the job, and that must be difficult. Good luck!
fair
There is a world of difference between a good Expander and using auto correct. An expander will show the possibilities with a few keystrokes, whether you know the words or not, and often as soon as you see a new word you will know it is what the doctor is saying, even in a new specialty. They usually include a very complete medical dictionary, some give the possible words with any letters typed in order, not necessarily having to spell it correctly at the outset, like a mini wild-card search function. With auto correct you are only able to get what you put in yourself for expansions. I would say that using an expander during my training was what made it possible to become proficient quickly, above all else. If you can, try one of the commercially available products before leaving. It can make life SO much easier as you learn.
what is fair
I worked for a small rural hospital and we (3) were on call 24/7/365 and rotated carrying a pager on weekends plus working on Sundays.
That isn't being fair
Whoa there - my husband has a terminal disease and we usually end up hitting a 0 tax bracket because of medical expenses (we file long-form and itemize). We spend well over $700 per month on co-pays for drugs every month and then when he has to get certain IV drugs as out outpatient, our drug bill hits over $2000 for that month. Why should my family be penalized when I work my butt off seven days a week, 365-days a year? I pay in a huge amount of FICA and Medicare taxes each year. Until my husband became ill, we paid in a huge amount of federal income taxes every year. We also have two chldren in college and we are allowed to deduct some of their expenses we pay out of pocket. And, yes, we usually qualify for some Earned Income Credit, but not near what you mention. My family can use the extra money just as much as any other family and I don't think we should be penalized because of exorbitant medical bills that place us in a 0 tax bracket.
That's not fair --
I never said I have common sense!
Seriously, sometimes the most obvious things can be right in front of me, and I miss them completely. I might be slow to get some things (although I am highly intelligent; doesn't make sense to me), but once I do 'get' something, then that's a completely different story. Some day I'll tell y'all about all the other common sense things I shouldn't have needed help with --- but did.
{;-)
Is if fair to ask
a company what the average line counts of other MTs on same the account are? I know there are others who feel this particular account is hard to make a decent line count, so I would like to know what the average is. Otherwise, how do we know if their expectations of us are fair? 
Seems fair to me. sm
As long as accounts are consistent 1200 is a very reasonable expectation.
I would think 1 would be fair, it probably would
not scare them away.
Excuse me but isn't your job to edit reports?
What would you rather spend your day doing???? If you are an editor I would think editing would be your job!
Couldn't think of anything intelligent to say, so you edit?
What a dimwit!
Edit Script, my first time doing VR
 What is the average line count some of you get with VR??? Any suggestions this is my first job without straight typing?
I'm well aware we edit..but someone on here stated
How the heck do you edit a typo??
nm
Question for folks who QA/Edit
I'm an IC QA person for a company who uses Editscript. I spend precious time writing down job# and calculating the number of lines for each report. Is this system not capable of tracking the number of reports I edit or the number of lines?
Seems like the employer would prefer a software that tracks this info so they can ensure that the IC's are billing accurately. Any opinions on this?
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