The way MTSOs count lines
Posted By: Brittney on 2009-03-24
In Reply to:
Does anyone know if some MTSOs calculate lines on various accounts differently? One of my accounts is very difficult to get a decent line count. While it is more tedious and does not have "normals," it just seems like often I have a shift full of fairly long reports (and a fair number of them), and by feel seems like my line count should be higher. - I can't help but wonder if lines are calculated differently for this account.
Does anyone know of MTSOs doing that? Sadly, I am afraid to ask my employer. 
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Word count: 824 lines. DocuCount count: 897 lines.
I just counted the same file in Word and then in DocuCount, and DocuCount was higher than Word.
Just as an aside.
it does not count gross lines...I count 37 and it counts 67.
x
I count my own lines and would not think of doing otherwise SM
Yes, you may have to spend money on a counting program, but isn't it important to have everyone on the same page, so to speak?
I'm so old that I don't know how to count by lines...(SM)
No, that's not a "I'm so old joke" - wish it were! I've only worked for myself in the past and now I'm helping someone else out. I agreed at a fairly low page rate (certainly lower than I used to charge) but I now think I'm cheating myself! When you count a 65 character line is that 65 spaces from left margin to right? Is that a gross line? What is the standard? I've been counting my characters (including spaces) in each line and they're at least 75 to 80. So, each page is like 1-1/2! My margins are one inch all around and the font size is 11. Am I wrong in thinking that a 65 character line means 65 spaces across the page? And, if so, is 9 cents per line out of the norm? Thanks for "teaching an old 'dinosaur' a new trick"!!
How do you count your lines? m
When you're not using a program like BayScribe that does it for you. For example, if you transcribe letters or reports in Word, how do you calculate the lines you bill to your client? Any help is appreciated!
ES does count lines.
It is one of the most user-friendly platforms I have worked on. I have 2 accounts that the speech rec is very good on and 1 account with lousy dictators that require more editing, but it is often entertaining. The sound quality is very good, and there is little to no distortion when you speed up the audio file.
Yes. They count the lines as set up
in the contract with the client. Each account can be different.
How can you count your lines in Word, I used
to use the word count in Word and then divide it by something to get a standard line count for that report. Has anyone done this before? I forgot the way to calculate when working in Word.
You can count your lines and characters yourself sm
even if you have no counting program. You can copy and paste into a word document or clipboard and count the characters in Word. At least you will have some idea of what you are being paid for. I have done this many times and if it doesn't add up to what the company's count has, I was right on the horn and sometimes even quit because of it. I will not be cheated in any way by any one.
Count lines in courier 12 - nm
XX
and I count gross lines
I do not cheat, I count gross lines and from top to bottom but I make sure that it is fair so my price per line is lower and it all equals out in the end. On chart notes, it is the total amount of lines which includes 2 spaces between patients which then helps to pay for the cutting apart, sticky paper and delivery. But my accounts are aware of this and again it shows in my per line charge.
Need to count gross lines only w/o spaces, sm
Used Sylcount free download but it expired. Any alternatives. Did not like Practicount. Need to count gross lines only. How do I do that using MS Word?
Count several lines both ways and see the difference
??
How did you count lines before the PC, or were you paid hourly then? nm
As an IC you invoice the company, count your own lines, and receive a paycheck.
First Choice, JLG, QT Medical, Metro in Atlanta, just to name a few.
Most use SylCount or something similar. I used Abacus - free line counting software.
Here is the best way...open any document you have typed for anything and count the lines both ways.
I have pretty much always been paid by the gross line...occasionally I will take a job with a company that pays by characters and I never make as money. Remember...with gross lines, a line is a line is a line....that means anything on the lines be it one character or 65 is a line. For instance....today I type a normal file for a client I have worked on for years...if I counted the lines at 65-cpl I got 398 lines, but counting gross lines I got 641 lines. This is a 38% difference in pay between the two, so you would be making approximately 5 cents a line less on the character count. Hope this helps :)
Word Macro to count Lines Strict inside
Hi,
The solutions others gave are good, but if I just needed to get the number of lines with typing (and don't need an invoice or a report), I'd use a Word macro.
The other solutions offered have this drawback: If the body of your document contains tables, the count Word gives you is vastly inflated, for Word counts each cell in that table as a line. This is not what the eye sees, and becomes problematic when you try to justify such to your client.
Below is a macro for counting what we at Emmaus call Lines Strict. (i.e. Lines with typing on them, vs Lines Extended that includes the blank lines).
To use it, copy from Public Sub through End Sub, and paste it into your macros along with your other macros. Easiest way of doing this is (after you have copied the appropriate lines):
1. Click Tools | Macros, and select an existing macro.
2. Click the Edit button.
3. Once the Visual Basic Editor opens, press Ctrl+End to move to the bottom.
4. Paste the clipboard contents.
5. Click File | Compile Normal. (If you've pasted things that don't belong, it won't compile.)
6. Click File | Close and Return to MS Word.
Merry Christmas!
vJoe
http://www.mpword.com
OOPS! I looked at the HTML code after I pasted the code into the editor on this board, and it added things that when pasted into the Visual Basic Editor in Word will not compile. Here's the code if you want to retype it, but pasting won't work. If you send me an email, I'll attach the code into a .txt document, and you won't have any problems. vjoet@attglobal.net
Public Sub GetLinesStrictCount()
Dim CharsStrict As Long
Dim Count As Long
Dim ParaswBlanks As Long
Dim ParasWOBlanks As Long
Dim LineswBlanks As Long
Dim BlankLines As Long
Dim LinesWOBlanks As Long
Dim NumOfTables As Long
Dim NumOfRows As Long
Dim TableRowCount As Long
Dim x As Integer
TableRowCount = 0
NumOfTables = 0
NumOfRows = 0
ActiveDocument.ComputeStatistics (wdStatisticCharacters)
ActiveDocument.ComputeStatistics (wdStatisticLines)
CharsStrict = ActiveDocument.BuiltInDocumentProperties(wdPropertyCharacters)
ParasWOBlanks = ActiveDocument.BuiltInDocumentProperties(wdPropertyParas)
LineswBlanks = ActiveDocument.BuiltInDocumentProperties(wdPropertyLines)
NumOfTables = ActiveDocument.Content.Tables.Count
If NumOfTables > 0 Then
For x = 1 To NumOfTables
With ActiveDocument.Content.Tables.Item(x)
NumOfRows = NumOfRows + .Rows.Count
End With
Next
TableRowCount = NumOfRows
End If
If CharsStrict > 0 Then
ParaswBlanks = ActiveDocument.Range(wdMainTextStory).Paragraphs.Count
Else
ParaswBlanks = 1
End If
If LineswBlanks > 1 Then
LineswBlanks = LineswBlanks + 1
End If
If ParaswBlanks = 1 And ParasWOBlanks = 1 Then
BlankLines = 0
Else
BlankLines = ParaswBlanks - ParasWOBlanks
End If
LinesWOBlanks = LineswBlanks - BlankLines
Count = LinesWOBlanks
MsgBox "Lines Strict (with typing) = " & CStr(Count + TableRowCount)
End Sub
Does Quick Books/Quicken count the lines or do you use a separate program for that?
nm
You can set Word to not count blank lines by changing your paragraph style
to automatically double space after the paragraph.
Ask for a sample report. Count the gross lines on a full page. Then
figure out the line rate you want to make. For example, if there are 30 lines on the page and you would want to charge $0.15 per line, then that would be $4.50 per page. If they would like your hourly rate, figure out how many pages you think you can transcribe in an hour. Using the above example, if you can transcribe 4 pages per hour, then charge $18.00 per hour. In California the going transcription rates are approximately $22-$25 per hour.
Yup ... smaller MTSOs, local MTSOs (sm)
local doctor's offices or clinics! Don't get discouraged!! :)
Work for 1 hour, then count your lines of the completed work - sm
either check you total characters in word (with spaces) then total them all up and divide by 65, and you get your total lines per hour. 10,000/65 is 153 lines. Or if you have a line counting program us that to figure you count, either way will work quite well. Maybe do it a few times and then figure an average over 3 hours or something like that, it will vary with the ease/difficulty of the work you are doing.
Calculating lines using Word Count in Word
I have recently started a job where lines are calculated using the Microsoft Word word count tool. I think I read that you get cheated out of lines if a company counts this way. Is this true?
Take the character count divded by 65 and that will give you your line count.
x
Nope, not a higher count. Actually, the count is the same...
I use a word count and not a line count, but because you mentioned it, I ran a few documents using line count, and the count is exactly the same. However, Flashcount has a lot of nifty features. I like it. :)
Aaahhhh, now I get it. Gross lines vs. Character lines. I guess I've just been conditioned to
think in terms of character lines. One of the perils of working as an IC for somebody who defines what a line is versus owning your own company and defining it yourself. After working for someone else for 15 years, maybe it's time to bust out on my own.
That is a lot of work/lines for 2 people. I do 3000 lines per day sm
if you times that by 30 days that only comes to 90K lines a month, that is working 7 days a week including weekends. I don't think 2 people can handle that.
900 lines is below 1100 lines, where the bonus starts.
x
You need to watch your line count. I was working for them and got reports that had line count of 0
You need to watch your line count. I was working for them and got reports that had line count of 0 in them. They did not pay for templates, they would deduct the template even if it was not used and deleted. I notified them and said they could not change it.
So I asked to be put on another account and they refused. I quit.
I was also promised they would have an incentive plan going into place if you type a certain # of lines. Two years went by and nothing.
I was really disappointed in OSI.
They also offered to pay half on joint AAMT, which they failed to do.
I am glad I am no longer there.
Gross lines include all lines containing
printable characters, so a full line and a line with one word on it are charged equally. Straight lines are basically the same as gross lines, but with this method of counting the blank lines are counted as well (again, equally). I have only had one company pay this way, and they are a middle man. I would think the charge would be about the same as for gross lines, and that not too many offices will want their lines counted this way (the one I worked on was probably inherited from someone who had counted the lines that way, so just continued).
The norm is 1 minute = 10 lines; 10 min = 100 lines - sm
granted this varies per dictator. More lines if a fast talker, less if a slow talker.
I went from 2400 lines to 1800 lines
a day when I switched from clinic (through an MTSO) to hospital work. Not only was the clinic work easier with more macros (and less providers to learn, 12 vs 300+), but I was typing in straight Word (as opposed to Softmed/Chart Script). So you see, it really varies depending upon the type of work as well as the platform used. That said, I am so much happier typing the 1800 lines per day (I make over $15 per hour plus an incentive for any lines in excess of 1200 per day) plus a great health package/benefits, AND approximately 5 weeks of paid time off per year. In my opinion, hospitals really are the best employers WHEN they appreciate the work we do.
My advice for you is not to judge a job by any one criterion but rather the entire picture. The 'extra's can really add up.
Good luck in your job!
Which is the one where they are sc*&ing us the standard lines or the qualified lines? SM
Mine show up as STD when I pull up my transcription log. But I see now there is STD/QT.... So which is the one where they are ripping us off, standard or qualified? Need to know. I am about to switch companies and I will not do if they are actually taking lines from me. Thanks guys.
MTSOs
You are not wrong but in my opinion, you are giving them too much credit. The reason why they don't do what you ask is because most of them are not concerned with making your life easier; rather, they are more concerned with figuring out more ways to cheat you and to make your life more difficult. Then when you get disgusted and quit, they will just get somebody else in a very short time to replace you because you are very expendable. And it goes on and on in the same vicious cycle.
MTSOs
You know, there has to be a market between the dastardly corporate MTSOs and small transcription companies. It seems to me that if a talented, aggressive MT with a good business sense could find a way to create a "team" approach to the transcription business, perhaps one could find that niche and sell "team transcription" to good accounts that the MTSOs screw up and have cheated. After all, you have to believe that with the scandals in the transcription corporations - over billing, sending work over seas without informing the client, a lot of trust is lost by some of these unsatisfied accounts. I say, find a way to market to those clients in a "team group" and find the right price, somewhere a little lower than the MTSO charges and go after those accounts aggressively in a group. There is a market there you know.
more than most other MTSOs pay.
it is not kosher to share on public forums what a company pays.
I would not think many MTSOs would want to
x
No, it's not just the MTSOs (sm)
The actual doctors don't want to pay more than minimum wage for transcription either. As an independent, I've had doctors balk at 12 cpl (which is BELOW what the MTSOs are getting, believe me) and I've lost business because I wouldn't take $6 an hour or what equated to 7 cents a line.
So where am I at? Making peanuts working for MTSOs who are getting 15+ cents per line as a middleman for these same kinds of physician while I'm making a paltry 7-8 cpl. It's a no-win situation.
Help for new MTSOs? sm
I have questions about proposals, equipment, and what to charge in order to get started. Are there any web sites out there to help me in this? I have books that I have read, but they go over the basics of start-up MT services.
You should run this by the MTSOs and
see what they think.
This is why the MTSOs have gone so low
single mom, does not want to work away from home. I bet they love reading postings like yours. They have women where they want them, just lower the rates because these people are saying they cannot leave the house.
When MTSOs overhire, this is what happens:
There are actually MTs who work to support their family or supplement their income to meet the customary lifestyle. When MTSOs overhire, leaving the MT with very little work, I have observed this - Jobs are done hurriedly. When extra foot work is required (due to discrepancy in report, incomplete info provided, etc.), the MT who is desperately trying to meet their bills will skip the job or disregard the need to research and go on to the next job. This is extremely dangerous for everyone concerned. At times, it is weeks before the incomplete report is realized.
I do not fault the MT entirely. When the MTSO overhires, they are setting themselves up for this. I do believe 98% of us want to do a really good job, especially those who have been at this for years. But, I have noticed this more and more, and it will, MTSOs, come back and bite YOU.
When you have a dependable employee who can be counted on for production of a certain amount of work, provide that to them.
MTSO - When you get a new account and hire top shelf MTs initially to get the ball rolling and make a splashing impression, do not replace them with lower rate MTs afterwards - it is obvious when the company is hiring nonstop and they already have MTs sitting at home idle for hours at a time. And this creates, MTSO, the "disgruntled employee" who may make every attempt to ruin your reputation each time they can.
I have just come home after being in house for a few years and after three months, I see this happening with my company and, according to the board, it is widespread. It is an issue that needs addressed before someone, namely the patient, is hurt by it.
Unfortunately MTSOs now do good if....sm
they collect 15 cpl. With the pressures from overseas vendors the pricing has dropped to 12-14 cpl. In the "old" days (prior to say 5 years ago) the going rate was 20-25 cpl and of course companies could afford to pay 10-12 cpl easily.
Wellll, I don't know about MTSOs, but JLG -- Please SM
was helping with our hospital transcription.
We got paid $1.50 a minute if we did 2500 minutes a month ($1.75 a minute for all minutes over 2500).
JLG got $3.25 a minute. I saw the bill. I saw it with my own eyes. I nearly fell over. And to boot, it was horrible transcription, FULL of ridiculous errors, blanks. And we had to convert the text files. It was such a bunged up mess.
I lost all my trust at all in the hospital since they were paying us HALF of what they paid a service. I even contacted JLG to see if I could hired to work on MY hospital's account. They were going to pay me 7 cpl. What a joke.
Any Medikin using MTSOs out there?
I am in the process of opening my own mid-sized transcription company. I am still in the process of deciding what TASP to go with as I do not want the hassle of maintaining my own equipment. I have been looking at Medikin's website and am very impressed with what they have to offer for the price. If anyone is currently using or has used them in the past, could you please post your experience here.
Good MTSOs are even
more difficult to find than good MTs. Many of them have negative attitudes and expect indentured servitude in exchange for peanut wages. Many of them have limited, at best, technical or MT knowledge. We get tired of the ranting emails that don't even apply to us from a PMSing or menopausal females. Disorganized, poor communication skills, cheap, selfish, zero management skills, lack of a formal education, lousy platform, personal life issues conflicting with job performance. You'd be able to find good MTs if you were a good MTSO.
From an MTSOs standpoint
no, I'm not one ... just throwing a coin into the playing field ...
Wouldn't having only ICs working "for" a company mean less liability. IOW, if MQ phased out the SE status, could that take a potential monkey off their back?
OTOH, they can hire all the ICs they want, but if those ICs only work for MQ, they're still considered SEs ... correct?
small MTSOs
There's a great online resource for MTSOs of all sizes, varying benefits and pay, and variety of work. It's called www.MTJobs.com. Sign up to be on their mailing list. There are usually at least 50 companies listed on each newsletter, which comes out twice a month. Good luck in your search, and prayers for God's healing of your medical problems. :)
To MTSOs or QA Managers
I recently took over QA for a small company just purchased. Previously there had been essentially no QA rules. If any of you could send me examples of how your QA is set up, the percentages you deduct for errors - common, critical, etc., it would be most appreciated. Any rewards given for high QA or deductions would be appreciated as well.
Patti or other MTSOs...
Hi,
Need to get my own account/s instead of relying solely on the national (guess who). Getting a client in my area is probably the easy part. The hard part is the logistics of software, paper, etc. Not having dealt with this stuff working with a national, it is the *simple* things that are a mystery to me (and others, I suppose). I hate to even inquire about transcribing for someone, not knowing what equipment I will need, what software, kinds of paper. I am sure I would come across as an idiot (like right now, maybe?)
OKay, well, I looked online at Dictaphone and it looks like there are mini, micro, and standard cassette units (not to mention digital online programs), so I guess you WOULD have to find out which the client prefers before investing in one, and I know you can get them on EBay, but what else? Does the software come with the transcriber? I don't suppose you can type them out in Word? I suppose one can buy a medical spellchecker. Then you need paper if you are going to print them out...what kind? Anything else? There are so many variables. I suppose I should first contact the two MTSOs that I know locally and ask for overflow work. That way, they could help me learn about this stuff.
No slamming, please. Very sensitive tonight as I just received a call from my Supervisor, very nicely hinting that I need to bring my line count up but, as we talked and now, hours later, I have *no jobs* on my screen. Pretty hard to get that line count up with no jobs!
Thanks for any tutoring and/or advice. 
MTSOs AND RESUMES
As a recruiter, it is nice to have the references already listed in the resume.
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