The CMT supports offshoring of American jobs.
Posted By: nm - Skeptic on 2009-02-23
In Reply to: Certified MT, Is it worth getting?? - WS
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Offshoring of American jobs
Medical transcription is only a small segment of what is being offshored today - accounting, billing, call centers, BPO's, manufacturing, legal research, medical imaging reading,etc. In the greater scheme of things, many other occupations are all struggling with the same issues as we are in our industry. The American economy is changing rapidly. Infrastructures are being sold out to foreign interests. Now that's a scary thought. This is all pushing the largest segment of our population, the middle class, out down to the poor segment of our society.
Whether we like it or not, our challenges are pushing us to a mixed economy, and maybe, just maybe, that's a good thing. You look at countries like France, Sweden with their socialist structure. The advantages are readily apparent - heathcare for all, a pension for all when one retires, and if you are lucky to have a job, you can'ta be fired. The disadvantage is the high tax rate - 50-60%. Then we have our US structure - capitalism. We are the greatest nation in the world, and yet, shamefully, we have no universal healthcare. Yet, we are free to start our own business with little government interference. But the last decade has sadly shamed us with corporate scandal after corporate scandal. At the bottom of all this is sheer greed. So what's the answer? Now, corporations run our country, and we are selling our infrastructure to foreign interests. It's like our guts are being pulled out. What will we look like in 20 years? If we don't get fresh blood in our government that truly will work for the good of the middle class, China will own us in 25 years. In order to address the challenges we all face in different occupations in our country, we are going to have to move toward a mixed economy - some capitalism, and some socialism, which is what we are beginning to see.
I will never work for another company that supports offshoring to overseas countries
As posted above, I have worked for a foreign company. The company had some US MTs working for them and IMO, they were using us to cover up. I think we should personally stick together and stop the nonsense of our US reports going overseas. I do have one question for those who support the Indian companies and any company that offshore overseas...where is your medical information going? Have you thought for one minute that maybe your own SSN and address, etc, might be going overseas?
American Public is who needs to be informed, not those perpetuating the offshoring!
I don't think it's whether the higher-ups at medical facilities know or care that's important. Frankly, we see it every day that senators don't pay taxes or sell public off seats, etc. So why would hospital administrators, congressmen, or anyone else who has been actively involved in sending records overseas or even allowing this to happen, even care!?
You know who would care? THE AMERICAN PEOPLE! The people whose SSNs, addresses, etc., is floating around India! People think their information is safe by the HIPPA laws, but they don't have a clue that their most private information is less safe than ever. You all are arguing over whether medical personnel know that their information is going overseas, and I think you are wasting precious energy focusing on the wrong problem.
If people stood up and put their money where their mouth is, not going to doctors or facilities who sent information overseas, THAT would make a difference! I can't believe that I keep hearing President Obama talking about creating new jobs, when he's clearly not interested in keeping jobs here or moving jobs back that have been taken away. I'm sorry..but is he seriously suggesting that out of work MTs work rebuildiing our nation's highway system? To me, it's just another way to cover up the real hard facts of how companies are shipping overseas and building other counties' economies while attempting to look like he's giving American something new and fantastic (new jobs).
When I see buildings being built in my area by non-union trades, the union can band together and picket or at least put up a sign to let people know that it's a nonunion building. But us MTs seem to be so scattered and individual, it feels hard to band together. I think if we can just be cohesive, really get our thoughts together and target this thing, we can make a difference!
***Sorry if this is rambly and not grammatically correct. I was a little hot and bothered here!  Thanks for letting me vent.
OFFSHORING JOBS
Would also recommending sending it as a CC to all your state's congressional delegation.
american jobs
Since this country was founded, there have always been displaced workers due to either a better way of doing thing, being replaced by technology, and/or finding a cheaper source of labor.
You can't expect the President to understand and identify with every American worker's jobs which have been outsourced. He has to worry about the collective, not the selective. He has a myriad of things on his plate.
Put the blame where it belongs and which you so eloquently wrote about in your letter: Corporate Greed, plain and simple. A handful get to be the haves and the rest of us get to be reluctant have-nots who don't know how to fight back.
As long as eveything revolves around money for these cretins, let's hit them in the pocketbook. If you take insurance with AIG, cancel it. Don't shop at WalMart, whose inventory is 90% Chinese. So what if it is cheaper. You are helping this by supporting it. Try to buy American as much as possible. There are web sites that will give you listings of companies which still make domestic products. Support companies that stay in the US and boycott those who offshore or have greedy b*stards running the show.
We really have so much power and we don't know it. Case in point: The Alabama bus system crumbled under the boycott from the black riders when Rosa Parks was arrested. We can do that, too. We don't even have to organize. We can singly just boycott what personally gets under our skin. As long as money talks, let it also talk for The Everyman.
We have become lazy and complacent, and that is when this kind of stuff is allowed to happen.
Why do you want American MTs to lose their jobs?
That's what will happen if we get a "union" and try to convince employers that they have to conform to "union rules" and "union wages". They'll just find even more people overseas who are happy to work for peanuts. Unionization will not benefit the American MT at all. The same with licensure. Some people just work for small clinics doing one type of work. If everyone has to pass the AAMT CMT test (which is what AAMT means by "licensure"), people who only know one type of work won't be able to pass. If you have to have the license to work, they will lose their jobs. What good would that do anybody except AAMT, which would get all those exorbitant fees for taking the CMT exam? None of these ideas will benefit American MTs. They're all obviously part of AAMT's campaign to outsource all MT work in this country. AAMT does not work for us; they work for the MTSOs who are making big bucks by outsourcing our jobs overseas.
Loss of American Jobs Poem
You may not think this is very grand.
But it is written so even a President can understand!
Where are our jobs?
Where have they gone?
Are they over here or over there?
Are they behind a chair?
They are not over here.
They are not over there.
They are not behind a chair.
Are they on a train or a boat or a plane?
Are they in England, France or Spain?
They are not on a train or boat or plane.
They are not in England, France or Spain!
HOORAY! HOORAY!
They are in Bombay!
Where people work for little pay!
In China and in Mexico too!
Where it costs ten cents to make a shoe!
Corporations say they have the need
To cut budgets and save money, indeed!
Though most of us would call it greed!
Corporations pay our Congress well
So Congress will do whatever they tell.
GATT and NAFTA so no tariffs there will be!
So corporations can import and export anything for free!
They have sold us out (the American worker) its true.
Our government and corporations too!
So if you are feeling blue,
Because there is no job for you
And you are unemployed for another day,
There is something you can do.
Find a flag and wave HOORAY!
Since "patriotism" is the call of the day!
Loss of American Jobs Poem
 Thank you so very much for this very poignant assessment of what's going on in our beloved transcription arena. Just by our persistence in "keepin' on, keepin'on" we shall succeed. Onward and upward!
hey... irritating maybe, but this is the PRICE for keeping American jobs
why are we whining about this? We keep talking about our jobs being outsourced, well guess what... this is the same thing. We have to pay a higher price to speak to an American. That sucks and sounds ridiculous but the fact remains American workers demand more money, just as we as MT's do over people in India. I don't have a problem with it, maybe cause I see it from their side. I for one cant STAND talking to people from another country and honestly NEVER get the problem fixed with them. It sucks to pay more, but it is worth it, for them and for us.
wrist supports
Does anyone recommend a certain kind of wrist support to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome? It looks like there are so many to choose from.
Offshoring to India...Offshoring.
nm
I wear wrist supports,
and with the wrist rest attached it puts my fingers/hands/wrists at an angle that isn't comfortable for me.
wrist supports like crafters
use, i.e. women who do a lot of crochet work have some elastic stretch wrist supports. I used them once when I was pretty new to typing 8 hours at a time when my hand muscles were weak and my fingers had a mind of their own. I haven't used them for years, but I did like them. I thought to try these out http://www.scriphessco.com/itemdetail.asp?cat=313106&MENU=313106&item=705+0002 Also note that pain in the hands can be caused by pressure on the ulnar nerve (right under the elbow at the forearm) eventually, which can be relieved by using a down-feather filled pad you can make yourself (not goose feather, but actual goose down). I know one gal who had her ulnar surgical relocated.
There are other things to look out for, like pain in the hips, lower back, neck, shoulders, ....
Keep track of me via E-mail if you like.
There are various forms of back supports
you can purchase for your chair, or check with your physician for chair types.
slinging insults supports her theory
you know. The OP made some plausible, even if offensive, statements. However, I am ashamed at your comment and even more offended by it.
Spellex already supports Office 2007
I just recently got a new computer and it came preloaded with Vista and Office 2007. I went to Spellex's website and they had the Office 2007 version already available and I believe it was $40 for the upgrade for current customers. Hope this helps :)!!
Punjab is in India - she supports outsourcing. nm
x
Anon, I notice you are very critical to anyone who supports SS or the other
done anything personal to you or are you just stirring the pot?
Are the $30 lumbar supports from Office Depot
nm
Make sure the platform you are transcribing in supports these, many these days
do not.
I would like to hear about personal experiences with lumbar supports
nm
Please don't flame me, but I'm glad somebody eats meat. That's how my husband supports us,
cutter. I do think that everyone has the right to make the choice whether to eat meat or not. Some days I want meat really bad, and other days I can do without it. I'm glad that I live in a country where I can make the choice for myself and everyone else can make their own choice, too. 
he is not American on what was an American site
What we post, jobs posted, and those who are posting jobs have no way of knowing it is off shore because he is hiding it - what a great way to get more of our jobs - not sure why this does not bother you. But as an American it bothers me
supposed to be, after people lose their jobs, they are forced to take part-time, lower-paying jobs..
with little to no benefits. service jobs. where are you going to work in a few years, when Medical Transcription is replaced by technology? McDonald's, Walmart? you really going to like that?
Several jobs on Monster & CareerBuilder for inhouse office jobs down there through an
s
I did 3 jobs for a while about 3 years ago, you burn out quick, I was doing 3 MT jobs though...after
10 months I cut down to 2 as I don't like to have all my eggs in one basket. But I am considering going down to 1 in September for my sanity, its a good steady job so financally it should not be an issue. I have 2 right but have not worked the 1 in about 3 weeks due to some problems at their end, supposed to learn a VA account but not sure if I want to pursue it right now or not, they are waiting to hear from me at this point. I still have a lot going on with chemo, etc. so am mulling things over. But if you have a full-time day job, then I would just go with 1 part-time MT job at night, unless 1 is during the week, and the other weekends only, then of course you will be working 7 days a week, very tiring I know. I have been working 7 days a week for 3 years now but I do slack off now and then of course to recharge and get sleep etc. But burnout happens fast and I doubt you want to lose your day job so be careful. Good luck.
Two jobs very common, 3 jobs not unheard of.
x
Offshoring
Just remember YOUR elected representives allowed this offshoring to happen. Nothing illegal thanks to the politicians is happening when work is shipped offshore while allowing Americans to lose jobs while increasing taxes.
This is all the fault of the greed and power of the politicians and the corporations. It's not about an Indian worker who has been offered a job and can't lose their accent to please the consumer.
As far as contacting you in a few years when our jobs are overseas, they are shipping them out daily. Where have you been? Check OSI, Precyse, etc. They all offshore some outright and some undercover.
I don't have problems with the workers. I have problems with the government allowing this to happen and the corporations who cut costs while cutting quality by shipping work out of our country.
Keep you eye on your enemy and it is some Indian who is trying to keep a job to make a living.
To those against offshoring...
Have you noticed that anywhere you call, whether it be the phone company, the gas company, the insurance company, you get someone foreign on the phone. Oh yes and do not forget Microsoft and other computer related companies. I realize this cuz i get so damn mad because i can't understand what they are saying to me and they don't understand what i am saying to them. Now I noticed the post below about Earthlink and I am wondering...all of you who are against this..what are you going to do about the fact that the computer company that creates most of the software you use has places in other countries..your gas company..you insurance company, etc. etc. etc.? I, too, do not agree with offshoring, but I do not think there is REALLY anything we can do about it. Not working for companies that do it, yes thats a start, but what are you going to do about the rest of reality and everyday living? Just curious to opinions on this. I am not flaming..just concerned.
Offshoring - don't be too sure.
Look at history....work will be outsourced whether we like it or not. What happened to the steel, printing, shipping, automotive, and many other manufacturing efforts is happening to transcription. While we may produce a better product, if it can be produced cheaper somewhere else it will be. Sometimes MTSO's are forced to look at other avenues because they can't hire and maintain TATs. Clients want their costs reduced when it is already at rock bottom. Transcriptionists want higher pay and the profit margin isn't there to allow this. The transcription business has changed and will continue to change. After all....the only constant in life is change. The offshore MT is hungry and willing to give up just about anything to put food on the table. They probably don't argue, call in sick, complain or quit without notice. They don't bad mouth their employer. They just want to work...much like American workers decades ago. Take heed. I'm in the same boat and don't want to see it happen, but there are many factors that result in change. Transcriptionists are by nature not an organized group. We are mostly solitary and therefore have no voice or at least not one loud enough to be heard. We're all on production. We don't have time for such things. There is no large group lobbying for us. There isn't enough money in transcription anymore to have lobbyists and that is how...regardless of our protests...change happens...silently. People in India and other countries will learn to transcribe. It's only a matter of time. For myself, I am just going to try to do the very best job I can every single day and hope it is appreciated and know that I am not adding to the problem. Actually....I need to get back to work.
A - As soon as I tell them my pay has gone down about 40% since the offshoring (sm)
they are no longer interested in entering this field. In fact, their mouths about drop to the floor.
Having another American MT is not going to save another American job. They will send their work offshore if you are living next door and can do a 4-hour turnaround, just because the price is lower.
I'm getting out also, only doing part-time now and probably won't be doing part-time much longer.
offshoring
Don't know about this company, but there are companies that offshore and lie about it. Know this for a fact. I work for one.
OSi Offshoring - sm
If you are an employee of OSI, you should be able to access that article from the employee web page, try going back to about April or so...it should still be there, where it was originally posted. Read it for yourself and maybe then you'll believe it.
Offshoring
Ah, thanks for clearing that up for me. All this happened before I started. New employees are probably not aware of it, like me.
I probably got myself on the $hit-li$t now, but that's okay for something I did today to see any reaction. It wouldn't be the first time I've been on the list and probably won't be the last.
I will stay, though, as I really do like working for them...and I like the work..
OSi Offshoring
Ah, thanks for clearing that up for me. All this happened before I started. New employees are probably not aware of it, like me. This breaks my heart.
I probably got myself on the $hit-li$t now, for something I did today to see if there was any reaction, but that's okay. It wouldn't be the first time I've been on a list and probably won't be the last.
I will stay, though, as I really do like working for them. I like the work, and really don't have much of a choice anymore.
I think if these companies are going to offshore, they should send the work from the ESL's that can't speak English correctly. That work should be easy for the offshore companies for them to do. 
Offshoring
I just wonder who these big businesses think is going to buy their products/services when all the jobs are in foreign countries. Not only that, when there are no jobs, or only minimum wage jobs, who's going to pay the big fat salaries of our idiot politicians? Heard on Lou Dobbs the other night that while the minimum wage remains stagnant, the senate voted themselves a hefty $30,000 raise!!!! Doncha wish we MTs could "vote" ourselves that kind of raise? Or maybe we're not so greedy and we'd settle for a fraction of that.
Offshoring
Is there any way you can share as there are others of us who suspect this also and maybe it's the same company. If not, that's understandable too.
Offshoring
Keystrokes does not!
MQ OFFSHORING
I need some Positive Proof that offshoring is occurring.. .will help in our hospital's fight against outsourcing all of us.. thanks
Offshoring
There was an article on the internet quite some time ago where a MQ bigwig admitted to MQ offshoring. I have posted on here before regarding offshoring, tell all your family and friends that when they go to the doctor, they need to tell him/her they do not want ANY part of the their medical record being offshored, including transcription. You have that right as a patient. My family and friends know. Unfortunately, none of us have been to the doc lately.
offshoring
I agree. I am also wondering where they are making out on this deal. I have lost 5 Docs due to outsourcing to India. They are not making out in the end. They just think they are. It is such a shame that the US Transcriptionist is the one that are suffering because they do not know what they are doing. Maybe they should have asked one of us to do the math and we could have showed them that they are not making out. Also, you have to take in consideration that all these people's(patient) records are going over to another country. I bet they would have something to say about that. It is such a shame that someone thought they were going to save a buck and did not do the math, and now we are the ones that are being hurt.
 
Offshoring
I too have been affected by offshoring, and whether we see some advantage or not, it is here to stay, and will eventuallly grasp more than half our work in this country. In my experience, I too am amazed at how much doctors will put up with this poor quality work. I personally know of, and have seen large medical offices, radiologists, large clinics, send their work to India, and put up with their error rate as if it were an acceptable part of the equation. BUT, if an American Transcriptionist put out an inferior report, we would most certainly get that pointed out immediately. I watch with amazement at how much those clients are willing to put up with all because they are paying 6 to 8 cents a line. AMAZING. I know of one radiologist who sent his work to India three years ago, kept one transcriptionist in his office to edit. Three years later, she is still marking all the reports in red ink. She has confronted him with the red-marked reports under his nose, and told him how much he is really paying for the reports as she spends her whole day editing. He won't look at her in the eyes, ignores her comments as if she were not in the room, and goes about his business - three years later! I have been told by CFO's that this is only a transition period, that eventually, the Indians will get it right, and it will be worth the hassles, as this makes "good business sense." We all need to realize that right now is the time to be smart and start training in some other field because even if it takes the Indians 10 years to "get it right," this offshoring has dropped the American wage to a paltry low.
No Offshoring
This may have been asked in the past, but I am pretty new to the board. What nationals do not offshore their transcription? I am currently an in-house transcriptionists, but I am looking to do some at-home transcription on the side. I do not want to support any nationals that offshore. We need to keep our jobs in the US!!!!!
Offshoring
Yes post a list, and I for one will write..as that will be so helpful.. can you post addresses also?
because that is offshoring
and nobody wants that.
Say something against offshoring and see how
x
offshoring
Excellent letter. You've inspired to start writing my senator too.
Offshoring going away too?
Hi all;
Offshoring may not be the problem. All of the local med facilities here are moving to EMR (Electronic Medical Records) and releasing ALL of the transcriptionists, both in-house and contracted. Truth be told, we are more than a little worried over this. Has anyone else seen this move in their area? Is there a way to 'cash in' on this move to EMR? Thanks.
so does offshoring. nm
xx
Aside from offshoring
Regarding a post down the list a ways ... what about the EMR software that the president might be pushing for? - I think that is probably a bigger threat. Shouldn't we write about that as well?
From below: "Basically just wondering if we should write to Obama regarding keeping the same systems in place and just putting the electronic files now dictated together (rather than specific software for the docs to do their own).
We could mention that we don't want to lose our jobs."
again, offshoring.
nm
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