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Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

The one time I asked for one, they said no. Ask and if they say no, begin looking elsewhere.

Posted By: (NM) on 2005-08-09
In Reply to: Has anyone asked for a raise lately? How do you go about it? Work for a national and have not - HELP!

dd


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same wallpaper as last time you asked
mq logo, aqua background
That's why I asked if it was a one-time thing or a pattern
A one-time slip-up is bad enough, but some people have a "serial cheating" personality that is unacceptable and definitely a deal-breaker.
If it was answered on another forum, let me know. This is the first time I have asked.
xx
Reminds me of the time husband starving and I asked
the PA for the physician about a prescription for Megace to get hubby's appetite back. I was told by him "there was nothing that would work"- told him I could buy marijuana, knew this would increase appetite but illegal- long story short, I changed doctors, asked for prescription for Megace, got it and the appetite was regained. After all the years I had typed on this for cancer patients and also for AIDS patients, knew of what I spoke.
I asked this specific question to a physician 1 time
how do you determine a middle aged person- I told him noticed more women than men, same age bracket, called differently- told me he did by their looks only. I am considered senior by others but the one I really care about most seems to think I look like a spring chick!
I replied this morning and was deleted. I asked if you're spending a lot of extra time on the ex
work.  If so, I see no reason why you can't charge her by the hour for what you do.  It could me maybe $100 a week insted of every 2.  I do think that is a rip-off and you're being taken for your generosity. 
Where to begin?
Brandy,

Where do you live, most importantly? I am a mom to 3, in Georgia, and am currently homeschooling my son in kindergarten. I can give you some tips, if you want, but there is a lot, too much to post here. IF you want more info, post back and I'll give you my e-mail address or e-mail you privately.
Oh, where shall I begin. sm

The *hoopla* about offshore not being secure is absolutely a valid threat. It may have nothing to do with transmission and everything to do with the value system of another group of people though. At least three VERIFIABLE instances of offshore MTs holding medical records for hostage and at least one where the MT threatened to publish the records on the internet if she was not paid, exist. Hardly *hoopla* my dear. I seriously doubt if the CMT will ever become a mandatory credential and I seriously doubt that for several reasons. After nearly 30 years, the AAMT has fewer members now than it ever had. People are leaving in large numbers. I also have it on good authority that the test the offshore MTs take is not the same one given to US MTs. Personally, I don't put someone down for having a CMT, I just have no great real respect for it or the association. I trust I am allowed my opinion. I worked at a local hospital where the transcription supervisor was a CMT and she could not answer one blank when asked! I actually know a lot of CMTs who are not all that.


Maybe it's your attitude to begin with.

Change your tune.  Be sugary sweet when you think someone is being rude to you and see what happens.  Pay it forward.  Give someone a smile or a kind word.  Let someone in line in front of you.  Just do one little nice thing per day and it will multiply.  People are never rude to me.  Everywhere I go, they know me by name because I take the time to be kind to them.  Gas station, grocery store, bank, school, doctor's office.  You might have to fake it 'til you make it, but you can change your outlook and how you perceive the world treats you.  If someone is "rude" to you, blow it off.  Maybe they're having a bad day and it's nothing personal.


To begin with, I would suggest
Paying for your rent/mtg, food and utilities without fail first.

I ended up in BK 13 so I can't help you with a company name but this is what I learned, food and shelter come first.
That's Why I Posted To Begin With
I didn't make the assumption that 'fast typing' was all it took. I still believe that you have to be able to type fast, but I also have 'top notch computer skills' and can learn well. I wanted to know more about training in this field because I assumed training was a necessary evil. One thing I didn't assume was that the folks on this forum were just downright rude!! Not saying you are, just most of the others that replied to my initial post. I am certainly not looking at MT as a way to pay my mortgage or put my daughter through college. Just a way to fill some free time.

Thanks for your post!
You should have a system to begin with. SM
I recommend mining the Productivity Talk forum for tips and a book such as Saving Keystrokes by Rolland. One high producer strongly recommends Easyscript Express by Levin, an old ABC-based ShortHand method that can be used with a keyboard.

When I first started with expanders, in the Ice Age seemingly, there were no forums like this to consult and I just started dropping definitions in without a good system. I've since had to redo everything a number of times as I wanted my Expander to do more and more for me.

As time goes on, you'll also want to abbreviate EVERYTHING for you, which requires system, both because you can't possibly remember thousands of abbreviations but remembering a few rules is easy AND because you need to have a way to enter various terms that seemingly need the same letters.

One tip just to jump you off: Some systems start two-word phrases with the first two letters of the first word and the first two or three of a second word. However, if you look up "lesions," say, in a medical dictionary, you'll see immediately that starting with three letters of the describing/adjective word and two of the noun (i.e., cocle for cochlear lesion and corle for cortical lesion) would serve you much better. Although if you gaze over just at the ones that start with intra- you'll realize more system than that is going to be needed for more complex terms. I personally start that prefix with "ia" to differentiate from ones that start with inter- "ie". Best wishes.
ADD vs. MT - Let the Battle Begin
Have you tried setting a timer for 20-30 minutes, then giving yourself permission to get up from the desk (setting the timer again for 10 minutes or so), wander around, surf the web a little (on a different computer if you can, it will help keep the surfing bug separate from the MT'ing bug), then when the timer goes off again, go back and set it again for 20-30 minutes and start typing again?

These days, I'm working in bed from a laptop due to back and wrist issues that don't play well with conventional desks, but in some ways that actually helps keep me focused, because it's such a pain in the neck to get up and walk away... I still struggle with wanting to surf while typing though - a problem I never dreamed of having back when my shiny new computer was an IBM PS2 or something like that - where the floppy drive held less information than my cell phone does today!

Good luck!
Does it have 3 letters, begin with an M?
If so, I'm there too...Ain't life grand???
The rules for Op notes are a little different. You may begin a....sm
sentence with a numeral; so, you would never spell out cc for blood loss, IV fluids, urine output etc. In the indications section, if a sentence starts with a number e.g. "Three days ago the patient" or "One day prior to surgery, I spell out the number. Otherwise, in the body of the report or in the headings, I use the number.
Don't get excited. You should have provided it to begin with. nm
x
The head set worked to begin with so
if it was in the wrong hole would it have worked in the beginning?  Because it worked until I downloaded the pedal software.
How do you begin to come up with a line rate..
to pitch to a new account?  Been working for others as an IC, now contemplating approaching an account on my own.  No clue how to not hang myself and selling out at too low of a rate vs giving a quote that's too high and will make them back off quick.  Would it be a good "rule of thumb" to take what you make as an IC on someone else's accounts and add .05cpl?  From what little I've gathered over time, that's about the ballpark of what the MTSO gets paid per line for the account vs what the IC gets paid to do the typing.  Does this sound about right to those of you who have experience with this?  Tks
I promise you - I begin work at 7:00 p.m. - I'm only PT, and my day always begins with
stat, H&Ps, consults, etc! I love it!
When they have me working mornings I am getting special procedures, ops, caths, and don't like it one bit! Maybe 2nd shift would work for those who just can't see themselves working from 11 to 7. Good luck!
Nope. It was a small account to begin with.
The work never went anywhere.  The company has not lost contracts.  I'm not being "phased out" either.  The workload simply doesn't suit my needs any longer.  I can do it in my sleep, so I'd like more work that's more challenging.
I would never begin a sentence with an abbreviation, for one thing. nm
x
I begin my day, every day, with a nice 2 to 3 mile walk with
This gives me time to think, alone time, fresh air and of course exercise. I love to walk and it seems that since I began doing this I am less stressed out. Have you had your thyroid checked??? Just wondering if that could possibly cause hair loss. I wish you the best.
Was taught in my program that all those eye words begin with
s
That is assuming they could even understand the dictation to begin with.
I would love to see the doctors having to listen to dictation.
Utilize the speed typing engines and begin
storing in their favorite phrases so that a few letters will bring them up. I am working for several physicians. Took me a few months to get all the words into speed typing mode but now that I have, the time I spend typing is cut in half.

Never type a word larger than 4 letters.

chest pain - cp

pneumonia - pnea

atelectasis or infiltrate - aoi

so on and so on - whatever works for you. This is how to make money these days, high production. And the speed typing engines lessen change of typos and other erros.


Okay. Where do I begin? I need some advice! My husband is in real estate. sm

               He owns 5 houses (rents 4), and just closed on a house on Friday that he needs to "flip" really quick! Basically, it's a 30,000 profit IF he sells it quick! We've never bought a house to flip before, but have purchased them for rental property and to gain the equity. Okay. I'm spoiled. Very spoiled. Or you could call it blessed! We are both Christians with good jobs. I only work part-time and then we live off of his salary and the 700 we make in rent that is extra after paying ALL the mortgages. But we are in a real bind now. We have renters who owe us 2 months of rent, well now 3 months of rent! They won't take our calls, you know the rest of the story!  This house that my husband bought on Friday cost us ALL of our cash because we had to put some down and then pay closing costs (close to 4,000!).  So now, for the first time, we are broke (NO cash flow whatsoever now). And I'm struggling over here! I mean, we can't even go and get ice cream tonight.  I'm really questioning our decision to purchase this house.


See, we had no idea UNTIL closing (honest to God), just how much it was going to cost! So, we couldn't back out of it. We were thinking 2000 on the high end.  I completely flipped out when the attorney told us how much we needed to write a check for!!!!


 


We've gotten a couple of calls on the house, but obviously no takers. My husband went straight from the attorney's office to the house to put up for sale signs in the yard! It's a cute house. We just need someone to buy it ASAP!


So, if you've ever wanted to meet the people on the Carlton Sheets infomercial - here we are!!! yes, we've made a lot of money in real estate, but there are huge, gigantic RISKS! You could go for the gutso (like we did and buy all these houses) and you could lot a lot if it doesn't work out. The loan we got on this new house is a type of loan I've never heard of before. It's just a "quick" loan where you need to pay it back pretty quick in the hopes that you will make the 30,000 in equity that the house did appraise for.


What do you do on a budget? What do you do when you are so broke you can't even buy ice cream for the kids? I want to cry now, even though I know some of you out there have zero sympathy for crazy folks like us...Well, I need some ideas on food.  What's cheap to make and cook? I put 30.00 in my SUV last night and that will have to last me until the 15th!


To all of you who struggle every week like this, my heart goes out to you. It truly does.  Now I know what it feels like to live in desperate need every day.....


They're not thrown to the dogs when they had no work to begin with!
nm
every question asked on here could be documented in some book. So? cant a question be asked?
x
Not anymore. For some time now, I've been working 32 hours and am considered full time to receive
p
Okay, you asked for it

Multivitamin - prenatal (as directed by GYN dr, I'm perimenopausal)


flaxseed oil (1,000 mg) once daily)


Chromium picolinate (500 mcg) one daily


B-150 vitamin one daily


Green Tea capsule (315 mg)  one daily


Calcium, magnesium and Zinc (combined tablet)


I can skip a few days and can really tell it. My energy level really decreases.


 


 


 


How many of you get asked how to get into it?

I have people I do not know that heard from someone that I work at home and want to know what it takes to get into it.  Until this discovering this board this year, I would tell them that I lucked up into the job.  I worked at the hospital and because of a sick child I was allowed to go home to work aftering working in a clinic setting for four years and hospital for two years.  I also tell them it takes a lot of discipline to work and not do other things that needs to be done around the house.  I don't mind explaining to them.  I give them the pros and cons.  What I can't understand is why do they think they can call me during working hours and keep me on the phone with questions?


Have you asked her vet?
Thats strange. I'm not sure why, i wouldn't think its a disorder in anyway. Have you asked the dog's vet? That might be your best resource. Is being around the father new for her? It may just be that she is still adjusting to the new person in the house or her new environment. Once she becomes adjusted, I'm sure she will be fine. But Anyway I would ask the vet- they would be the best, most reliable & accurate resource.
Again, I do not believe she asked you anything!!!!!
nm
I asked the same ?
a few earlier posts as I am in the same boat. I am leaning towards the local job which is pretty much the response I got from other people. The reason being that I would have the same dictator over and over and can use macros/expanders to work less time and earn more money which sounds good to me.
Thank you. That's all I asked. nm
.
Well since you asked here's.....
I would never have anyone treat my neck if I were having problems like you have. One wrong move and you could get paralyzed.

I've seen 3 chiropractors over the years and only 1 was worth a toot. The other 2 were just out for money - trying to see how much they could get me to come in so they could make the money. The only good one I found works out at my gym and has a reputation for being an honest guy - and that was my opinion as well. He helped me when I had some lower back problems and I'd go back to him in a nannosecond for that if a problem arose again.

Make sure if you see one that you ask friends, family, neighbors, etc for recommendations of someone who's reputable.

The biggest quack I saw was right after an automobile accident when I had a muscle spasm in my shoulder from where the seat belt grabbed me and the lunkhead thought he saw the equation of automobile accident + another driver's fault = tons of money if he kept me coming in. Clue #1 he was ruthless was on the first visit he was wanting to know who my attorney was and insisting that I needed one. Good jiminy crickets - it was just a muscle spasm!
I have asked him about why?
He says, he loves her. He said it doesn't matter to him if she is a lesbian. He loves her and her kids. The kids are not his either. He simply likes what she has to offer him. He is constantly in fights with her other lovers who lives with him and her also. HELP
I would have, had I been asked. sm

My mother, God bless her, was adamant in her wishes to be placed in a nursing home when the time came so that she wouldn't be a burden on any of us, although we all would have taken her in.  She took care of her mother who was very ill for a long time and she told all of us that she did not want any of us to take her in because of what she went through.


She lived on her own until she was almost 80, despite failing health and my dad having died 15 years before.  When the time came that she knew she didn't have much longer she insisted on the nursing home and stayed there for a short time until she passed away and was buried next to my father on what would have been their 60th wedding anniversary.


I took in my grandmother (my mom's mother) for 3 months back when my mom and dad wanted to go to their winter home. It was hard, as gram was so sick, and I found myself at times wishing I hadn't agreed, but it was one of the best experiences of my life taking care of my grandmother and I'm glad that I had that time with her.


Would I have taken my mom in if she had asked?  You betcha.  In a heartbeat.


Been asked before
When will that buzzing noise stop.  Am off of here until it does.  I  know that this has been asked before but it has been 3 days since it has started.   Driving me nuts.  Will try again next week to see if it has stopped. 
I think I asked for too much...sm
I applied for a FT position with a large hospital in my area.  I have 7 years experience doing the "basic four".  On the online application it asked what I would want for a salary and I said $17.00 p/h.  Then, when I thought about it, I wondered if I had asked for too much and maybe they wouldn't even contact me.  I looked up the median income for my area and for working in a large hospital it said $25,000 to $29,000.  So, any advice?  Should I reapply with a lower demand?  I figured if I gave them a higher number they would have something to work down from, but I think I went too high.  I would really love to get back into a hospital and away from working from home.  So....should I reapply?  Any advice?  Thanks in advance!
This is asked so often; wish there was a way to have a
nm
I should have asked for more lol
They didn't blink at $26. lol. Oh well, next time I'll know to charge more. I'm excited to be doing this project though.

There are a lot of "closet" Montana gals around here. :-)
Someone asked me to do that once -

I had almost forgotten - it was the worst thing I ever got into - and I have done textbooks and all kinds of MT.  You couldn't tell who was who, some was not audible.  Total nightmare. 


Yes but you asked for her to tell you.
You can't fault her for knowing your dx when it is her job to type it up.
I asked my doc...
and she had no idea who did her transcription?! I think a lot of doctors are completely clueless, as their office managers/hospital set all of this up and the docs just sign the notes when they come in.
I asked here because
I felt I could get some sound opinions, but unfortunately, there is always someone who thinks you are doing something wrong. I am a single mom, have raised her without any help from her father or anyone else, have worked for 30 years as an MT and a large chunk will go to my church. I respect and value the opinions of fellow MTs (the majority of them) and I thought that was the purpose of this board, to ask for opinions and help when needed. I do know enough to speak to a financial planner but I wanted opinions on how I should handle the work situation.
Only asked for them once..

... several years ago after losing our first child I asked for all records from during my pregnancy.  He was missing half his heart and somehow it wasn't noticed on any of the 3 ultrasounds I'd had.  Also, I went in with my water broke 8 days after my last ultrasound and it wasn't in my chart that day, which I thought weird/unacceptable.


Found out they did not see the half of his heart but just wrote it off as being at a bad angle along with me being overweight. 


Nothing that could be done about it after the fact, but I just had to know what happened and how such a thing was missed.


OK I THINK I asked this but anyone using a MAC

to work as an MT?  If so, does it work seamlesssly with WORD?


When I get a new computer, I'd really like to toss PC for good. 


 


I get asked how to become an MT a lot. .
The RN around the corner from me called me a couple of months ago and said that she wanted to ask me about that "little" job that I do at home. After biting my tongue, I just told her I went through a good medical transcription program that took about 13 months online, and the pay isn't that good at first. She said that she shouldn't have to take any classes because she was a nurse and knows how to type. I told her if she thinks she doesn't need any training to go ahead and apply. I gave her a list of companies and haven't heard from her since. Most people I have talked to just want to start working and think it is easy. I was a medical technologist for 20 years and most people thought all I did was draw blood. I figure this is along the same lines and don't really bother any more to explain what I do. They don't really seem to care anyway.
I would think that someone had asked for more --sm
work and that it had to come from somewhere..you. This happens, a lot, unfortunately.
You asked sm

ChartScript and Careflow:  Terrible stuff, slow demos, weird font attributes.


MedRiteXL:  It is okay.  The demo screen puts you through a lot and there are not multiple ways to search for something.  You can look up old reports, but that is a bit slow and cumbersome too.  The actual document screen is nice and user friendly.  I found it fairly fast.


MTWorld:  I don't think there is anyone still using this.  I have worked for 2 companies that did.  If you have to look up a pt or other information, put in a cc or change a work type, it is awfully slow and you really do have ot know what you are doing to make it user friendly.  I have to say, I thought this was the fastest platform I'd ever work on.  I am wrong.


Bayscribe:  In my book, this is a SICK JOKE.  I found the ADT screens to be time consuming and confusing.  Some companies have a ton of fields for it and some don't.  The Expander in it is ridiculous.  It won't cap the first word to save your life.  You can't see how much work is available.  You can look up old documents, if they are yours.  It will give you a line count at the end of every document you send.  I never got up any speed on it.


Winscribe: I think that is what it is called.  I really liked this.  I think the company I worked for who used it could have maximized it more.  Some of the things you can do with it they didn't utilize and that was too bad.  It could have been so much better. 


Extext:  FOR ME, this is the fastest easiest platform there is. I have had no issues getting the minimum line count and in fact, I started getting bonuses for production after the first 3 weeks I worked on it.  I continue to love it. 


Whatever it is that Keystrokes uses I didn't like very well, but that might be because I wasn't trained properly.


There is NOTHING a Word like or Word based platform can do that wasn't faster with WP5.1 for DOS.