Quit after 2 years. If I wanted to work 8 hours a day, I would have stayed in the hospital. Seemed
Posted By: adb on 2005-08-03
In Reply to: Okay, how many of you can truly say you still love being an MT?... - curious MT
to be working all day long just to make a decent living. Although, I wanted to be home with my kids until the baby was at least 5, had to breakdown and return to working outside the home, to make ends meet. Just to stressfull trying to make a good living with the rates they are paying now.
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I quit within 24 hours and again after 8 weeks in my nearly 25 years in the biz (nm)
dd
The testing at the hospital I work for takes 2 hours. How else would they sm
know that you are a qualified transcriptionist?
i stayed for 10 years...
Until I started experiencing the same problems that everyone complains about on this board... low work, no work, constant account switches, mysterious messages from corporate about new pay plans, etc., then I was out the door. I have more respect for myself than to put up with that! 
I quit once for 3 years, but then started again. (Quit cold turkey when I did)
Uh, probably for the same reasons YOU stayed for 10 years? nm
@@
Stayed at Vistana time share resort and it was EXCELLENT 5-6 years ago.
I don't know what kind of prices you are going to get at the height of the season but phone Vistana and see what a weekly rate is. They do have shuttle service and lots of activities within the resort itself. There are lots of time shares that have been built since then so check into time share rental. Vistana had two bedrooms and sleeping room in the living area plus kitchen. Whirlpool bath in master. Tennis, swimming, etc. Great place to stay, highly recommend.
PS: I went in the late summer and price for a week was approximately $700.
Just wanted to know number of hours
Interpro did this to me. I got differential for 3rd shift but they wanted me to list hours. I
:+
yes, once I actually quit my hospital MT job and worked for
Wal-Mart and actually made the same amout.
Just got an offer from a local hospital and wanted to run it passed you all before I say yes...
Employee status w/benefits
$13.50/hr with 0.05 cpl incentive fo anything above 1200 lpd and $2.00 shift differential (for 2nd shift which I will be working)
1000 lpd minimum productivity requirement
Work in the office first month for training and then home with hospital provided computer.
Dictaphone EXText Word Client transcription platform
Is this a decent offer? I've worked at the same place in the office forever and haven't actually been out there looking in several years. I tried working for a national part time at one time because I wanted to be working from home, but couldn't see how someone could make a living on 0.08 cpl without working yourself into an early grave, so I gave up the part time job and kept the full time in office job. Now I have a new boss who doesn't know her butt from a hole in the ground and I started looking around and came across this current job and before I jump ship, I want to make sure I'm getting a good deal.
The $13.50 seemed kind of low to me given my years of experience (13 years), but because I was at my other job for so long I maxed out pay wise.
58, AHP/self-taught, trained at hospital 5 years, now with 2 of my own accounts for 10 years, employ
Also worn out 2 keyboards in 4 years. I will never retire. DH will come home some day from work and I'll be slumped over my keyboard. I put in 14 hours a day 7 days a week.
But in transcription, if you are good at what you do, you can do 8 hours of work in 4 hours. So eit
you slice it, both companies will still get 8 hours worth of work out of you.
That is the problem I've been having lately being an MT. Companies want to pay us on production and they set minimum productivity standards, but want us timed in for 8 hours a day. My thinking is, if they want 8 hours of work out of me, pay me hourly with production incentive. If they want to pay me on production and tell how much I have to produce in an 8 hour period, then when I hit that mark, I should be able to call it a day even if I've only worked 4 hours.
Seems these companies want it both ways and it is simply not fair to us MTs. JMO, tho.
At the hospital, I did - only not 39 hours, 40. But I was a paid SM
employee (production only) with benefits. It was always kind of an iffy thing as far as labor laws went, as I was considered an employee, but we did it nonetheless for the whole 2 years I worked there...until the day I did 3000 lines and was chastised because "other people need to work too" meaning the 4 in-house people who sat there on their tails and yakked all day.
Yep, I bailed. :-)
When the kids started school I wanted a job in my home town. A hospital clerk position (sm)
came open. You started compiling charts, making copies, etc. Then I was promoted after a few months and began learning transcription and did that part of the day. Then a few months later they taught me coding and abstracting and I did that part of the day. It was a great learning experience to learn things from the bottom up. Needless to say, I am an old dog here who has been doing this more than 25 years now.
When the kids started school I wanted a job in my home town. A hospital clerk position (sm)
came open. You started compiling charts, making copies, etc. Then I was promoted after a few months and began learning transcription and did that part of the day. Then a few months later they taught me coding and abstracting and I did that part of the day. It was a great learning experience to learn things from the bottom up. Needless to say, I am an old dog here who has been doing this more than 25 years now.
quit 4 years ago
I tried unsuccessfully to quit about 10 times, but I wasn't really mentally ready to quit. I was smoking 1 pack to 1-1/2 packs per day when my now husband told me he wanted me to quit smoking. That was all the motivation I needed. I quit cold turkey. When I first quit, I carried around ink pens and pencils and held them just like a cigarette to keep my hand busy, and I kept lots of Lifesavers and gum with me at all times. I set aside the money that I was used to spending on cigarettes and instead used it for a vacation. I'm just like a little kid--the reward system works pretty well for me, so I just set little rewards along the way for myself so that I would stay smoke-free. Even now, I stay away from situations where I will be tempted to smoke because I still have cravings. Quitting is hard to do, but you can do it! Just focus on your specific reason for wanting to quit, and you will get there. Good luck!
I quit them years ago when they came out with ....
the TWS system. Prior to that I made a LOAD of money, very good pay. I'm talking the mid 90s. Then came TWS which was develope with one purpose in mind (I am convinced).... to rip the MT off as far as line count goes. That's the only reason they EVER come up with new software or platforms IMHO, to make more money for them and less for you. I had to leave. I couldn't abide by it.
Quit for 1.5 years and was....sm
Gained 30 lbs., BP went up, retained fluids, blah, blah. Smoked for so many years, I'm just not sure it's worth it. I know that sounds foolish but feel the damage is done anyway. Why be miserable???
I must say, I work long hours, sometimes 12-14 hours a day.
I thought it was important to mention that. However many hours it takes to get the work done is what I do. Some days 12 hours, other days 6 hours and sometimes 14 hours. So, I guess there really is no easy answer.
I quit doing that years ago. It has never been worth it to me. SM
I think, though, that one reason is this. I worked for 15 years on a hospital platform that had NO spellcheck, NO NOTHING. I had to learn to proof as I went along. It gave me the terrible habit of backspacing when I make an error - something I've not yet learned how to avoid - I'd really like to type and have the spellchecker catch the errors because I think I'd be more productive, but it's turned into kind of like a facial tic, something involuntary!
I would never relisten to anything - unless it's something that gave me trouble while I was doing it - and when that happens, I leave blanks, go back to the first and listen.
I quit for several years and started again.....
I'm a moron. I hate it and I hide it from my kids. It stinks.
I quit in 1997...almost 10 years!!!--sm
I quit with the help of a subliminal tape which advertised being able to quit in three days with the aid of the tape and diet. I quit in one day and never looked back. I cannot seem to find that product any longer (dang!) but wish I could. I wish my mother would quit too. she returned to smoking after not having smoked for five years, the very day my dad died...he was not even cold yet and she had a cigarette in her hand! He had kept her from smoking because she had had a stroke prior and he wanted her to live. He died from esophageal cancer complications. I detest the smell...it makes me ill...and I can't stand being around people who do smoke because they smell like an ashtray too, as well as their clothes, hair, house, and car. it is gross. no offense to those who do, I just don't want to be around it. good luck to those who want to quit! by the way, nicotine is addicting, but it is not that chemical that keeps you going back...it is the other *drugs* they put in it to KEEP you addicted...almost like heroine. cigarette junkies. no one will control my life and death that way! JMO.
Quit 10 years ago because I ended up in the
hospital with an asthma attack. If you have asthma, you will not smoke. The way I did it was very short term use of the patch and 13 months of a low dose of Paxil. It kept me from having panic attacks from not having a cigarette. You probably know that there is more nicotine in all brands now than there was ten years ago.
I just quit this morning after 1.5 years...
... at the pay you mention. But it was a good education. Good luck!
Ack!!! Sorry just realized you wanted packs and not years, but still the same method.
/
I quit 2-1/2 years ago cold turkey
after smoking about 40 years. It was one of the hardest things that I ever did. To this day, I still want to smoke. I am really relating to feeling like you lost your best friend because that was the same thing that I said! I wish you well because it is hard to stick to it. One thing I did want to tell you is that you can get support from the American Lung Association (or was it the American Cancer Society). Anyway, they have people who can counsel with you, send you literature, can possibly hook you up with a local support group, plus they follow up with you to see how you are doing. The more I think about it, I think I contacted the American Cancer Society 1-800-227-2345 or www.cancer.org. Good luck! If I could quit, anybody can!
I too gained (30 pounds) when I quit 2 years ago. sm
What worked for me is the CORE weight watchers plan (no counting of points). It is amazing how much you can eat and feel satisfied. It is really not a diet but more a way of eating healthy. It isn't Atkins or South Beach, as you get to eat carbs such as ww pasta, potato, brown rice etc. It is very healthy and satisfying. The weight just fell off of me 2 to 3 pounds per week. I decided I couldn't see my self 'dieting' or counting points for the rest of my life, but I could live with eating healthy. This plan is the BEST I ever tried, and believe me, I tried them all. Good luck with losing the weight. It is great that you are smoke-free now.
I tried Relacor, it didn't work because I wanted it to work without
my trying to really lose weight, i.e., dieting.
My true belief is that any product will not work unless you TRY yourself. I had 20+ lb loss with Metabolife (sp?) and really felt more energy.
BUT, I truly believe if I don't really try, nothing will work to make me lose weight. Please know, I'm right there with you and wish there were a magic pill that could make the lbs just shed away.
I did child abuse reports for 2+ years then quit.
I did a report on one kid, just learning to walk, who had the little feet stomped on by mom's significant other. That was the beginning of the end for me with that job. Of course mom kept significant other and lost the kid.
I had to get up and walk away and go back to it.
I honestly do not know HOW you got through your report.
I've tried to quit 6 times in the past 6 years but
always went back to it. The longest I've quit was 3 weeks. My mom died from COPD and she had smoked from age 16. She really enjoyed smoking and although we kept trying, couldn't get her to quit until she was on 24 hour oxygen. She told me if she couldn't enjoy anything in life (smoking), why live. She died 3 months later.
I started smoking at 13...you know, the "try it, you'll like it" phase. We both tried to quit when I was 19 but we only lasted a day. There was only cold turkey then.
I've tried the patch (3 weeks off cigarettes), cold turkey, herbal meds, hynosis (only lasted 5 hours), you name it. I've used all the suggestions possible to no avail.
With a cigarette dangling from my mouth, I told my boys never to start smoking because they'd never be able to quit easily. Two took my advice, one didn't. He also tried to quit smoking but failed. He was on Wellbutrin for it.
My husband started smoking at 8 while working in a coal mine. He quit cold turkey 19 years ago. He was smoking almost 4 packs a day and one day he got so disgusted with it, he just threw them out the window of the car. Never touched one since and smoke from other people doesn't bother him.
He told me you really have to have the willpower and just get disgusted enough to quit. There's no other way. I guess I just don't have that willpower.
IC sets their own hours. As long as the work is done by the deadline, you decide when to work.
Guess that means my husband is doomed....quit 15+ years ago (46 now)--GF had lung cancer
so either cancer will get him (his dad had bladder cancer, doing fine now but it did recur and lost his kidney about 10 months ago)...figure either cancer or cirrhosis will get him (drinks 8-12 "light" beers a day...for over 20+ years). So can you say semi-young widow?? (39). Naw....he will probably live forever, which is good.....lots of longevity in his family despite the cancer. Good.
I quit too after 10 years. Loved Healthscribe, can't make ends meet with Spheris. NM
#5 by the skin of my teeth and with more hours than it took 5 years ago.
3 years for hospital sm
but it was from home and they don't really know me.... i've been working IC from home for over 12 years and so it's not likely I will go to a hospital at this point to work
7 years, last 5 at the same hospital. nm.
x
Have a hospital I work for and they consistently change work types and do line counts. (sm)
Management just doesn't understand in order to crank out the work you need to be proficient by typing the same accounts. Go figure, they just don't get it ??
At my hospital, even 25+ years ago, you were required SM
to type 1100 per day. That was with NO spell check, NO expanders. Nothing. Everybody typed a lot more than that.
I think the trouble that you describe must have something to do with working on some company's lame platform. I work in Word, I make my own expanders, my own everything, and work 5 hours a day, if I have 150 minutes to do. That is about 2000-2200 lpd. It is not a problem, because I do what's fastest for ME. The people at the hospital do some kind of merge thing and put everything in their system.
Working on a platform that is designed for anything other than MT will only cost you money. They make these systems to help coding, discharge, everybody but us. I'll never, ever do it again. I'd rather work at Wendy's -- Just kidding! Just kidding! Don't get THAT started.
29 years, 16 at hospital, 4 as IC, 9 w/national
with the most lucrative income as an IC, although it sucked having to be responsible for accounts 7 days/week with no reliable backup subcontractor(s) for 2 of those years as an IC.
No, I got my credential 30 years ago, didnt keep up hours. couldn't afford to. so now I'm ju
but like i said, cant take away my knowledge.
Nope. If I wanted to work outside the home, it certainly would not
be typing of any sort.
My SIL's mom also wanted to work from home cause she was *bored*. nm
y
if they stated they wanted her to work from home
they should have included all the other "but" and "if" and not made working at home sounded like it was going to be permanent whent they gave her the option. It is their duty to include the details. The boss is just leaving the door wide open to whatever he or she wants to do whenever it suits her. Too many prima donnas out there on both ends! 
the hospital I work for already has started to implement this and lessen our work
I see it every single day... they are going to EMR... meaning the doctors simply use a template already in the computer and check boxes or something... The doctor's office i GO TO actually does this too. This is why it creates tech jobs to create those templates and takes AWAY MT jobs because the doctor is no longer dictating, they are just pushing little buttons or checking boxes straight into the computer.
Personally I still think that is more time than the doc wants to take but whatever, i dont see how generic charts are good, what happened to detailed information...
But this is definitely how i see it going along. Maybe not everywhere, but plenty of places are going to go to this, it's all about saving money now isn't it???
I worked for a hospital at home for 4 years. sm
We had to work set hours. My advice is allow youself 1/2 hour for lunch, and at least two 15-minute break periods. Work 2 hours, take a break, work 2 hours, take a lunch break, etc. Otherwise, you may find yourself having back, shoulder and hand problems. Working 9 hours may seem like a drag, but not being able to work at all is even worse. Remember, if you were working on site, you would not only have to work 8-1/2 hours, but would have travel time on top of it. Just my experience.
Aeron chair - never would use any other. About eight years ago my hospital
bought all of the transcriptionists Herman Miller chairs and we always say we are taking them when we leave. Yea right, BUT, I would buy one even if I had to pay for it over time. It is so worth it considering we sit all day. It is made of some kind of a nylon mesh that gives to your body weight and is always comfortable. There is tons on line about it. I love my chair, I love my chair, I love my chair.
24 years MT, 7.5 years with the same hospital nm.
x
28 years, 9 years at 1 hospital..sm
9 years at one hospital, 8 years with 2 services, then went out on my own (11 years ago) and got a bunch of surgeons and I moonlight on weekends for a national (9 years with national).
If I knew what I know today, with how the MT business has gone down $$-wise for us over 20+ years, if I had my druthers and could start over again, I would have stayed with CODING/BILLING instead of MT work (though I love MT work) as billing/coding is still lucrative in this country....
just my 3 cents
32 years, 18 years at hospital...
7 at Medquist, 7 at Spheris. Starting at Transtech Medical tomorrow.
They better soon get some work or everyone will quit anyway. This is getting ridiculous. There is no
doubt they have some agenda with all this continuous hiring and no work.
Years ago, I used to get a $25 gift card from the hospital I worked for.
I haven't gotten so much as a card in recent years.
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