To Proud Member of AAMT: I think it's just as

Things in this field have changed for the worse over the past years.  Salaries have decreased, yet expectations have risen.  Benefits are contingent upon production, yet a good share of the time production can't be met due to complications outside of the MT's control.  When it comes to taking the losses due to changes in the field such as offshore outsourcing and technologic advancements, it isn't the clients or the service owners taking the major hit.  It's the transcriptionists.  Yet AAMT has done NOTHING to help the transcriptionists in general.  In fact, it has gone out of its way to PROMOTE offshore outsourcing and even to change some of the guidelines in the newly published, amended BOS to accommodate voice recognition and other technology geared to replace the MT or relegate transcription to other forms labeled "editors", which in reality involve retyping whole reports or major portions of reports at a cut in pay, of course. 

All anyone, newbies included, needs to do is to look at the history of the medical transcription field, see the changes, and then see how much AAMT did to promote the worth of the Transcriptionist in this country.  The depressing message isn't coming from those speaking against AAMT, it is coming from the consequences resulting from the actions of the AAMT.  One fact alone can depress a newbie, and that is to look at the average line rate in 1995 compared to the average line rate now in 2005.   Thank you, AAMT, for promoting that.

• To Proud Member of AAMT: I think it's just as - depressing for newbies to see the changes in MT
  • I saw the writing on the wall with them - typingal
  • depressing changes in MT - nowRNwasMT
    • What "stuffs" do you mean? - nm
      • "stuffs" - nowRNwasMT
  • Please everyone write your congress people!! - outraged
  • Adios - Mad and Sad
    • Agree with Mad and Sad - Mad, Sad and Hurt
  • I for one was shocked at the line rate - at my company compared to 10 years ago
    • And that 0.0775 was just STARTING rate. MTs - with exp. were getting 12, 13, 14 cpl and up. sm
      • I had no idea pay was ever that high - How did they justify cutting your pay
        • In 1995 I was making 12 cpl for a small, rural - hospital. sm
          • sounds like its the corp money grubbing middle men - who ruined things for hospitals and MTs
        • the supply slowly dwindles, and you give up and go elsewhere...sm - gto
      • And the result is like a Catch-22. Clients/MTSOs - say there aren't enough experienced MTs,
  • We should start a petition, sign it, and send it to AAMT, and all other associations - agreeMT
    • not only that, but most co's do not supply...sm - gto
  • Excellent post and info...a must read.nm - gto

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I have been at this for about 15 years and have thought off and on about becoming an AAMT member and about getting my CMT, but always stop short because of the cost and basically the inconvenience of having to find the testing center that seems to be located in some obscure office building I've never even heard of.

However, I have recently started working for a facility that actually encourage their MTs to further their education, to network with one another and share information, and offer pay raises for the CMT credentials.  So, once again I am considering the pros and cons of membership and taking the CMT exam.

to start holding hands with India. They are not out to help AMERICAN MTs. They don't care one way or another about American MTs anymore.

Their latest pitch is to the  MTs STOP transcribing verbatim. So not only will we have to be language specialists, we'll have to put a doctor's words in "proper English."

It doesn't matter what the docs want. It's what they want. Baloney. They are not our boss. Our docs are our bosses. If the docs want verbatim, that's what they'll get...at least from me (except for the JAHCO list of unacceptable terminology).

I'm so glad there are hospitals and doctors out there that don't give a hoot about AAMT. I sure don't. Oh, and if anyone noticed, usually buying products through AAMT doesn't save a dang nickel. In fact, you pay just as much, if not more, for the same products you can get by dealing directly with the company that makes them till all is said and done.

I'll save my money and spend it on more important things.

I have an 8-year-old boy and had the pleasure of attending a Math Shootout at his school today.  This is where they take the top 5 students in each second grade class in either addition and subtraction and put them up against each other until there is a winner.  My son was in the subtraction group.  He didn't win, but he came very, very close!  I was really proud of him and all of the kids as they did a great job!

I went to visit my aunt last night.  Last week she fell and broke all the bones in her ankle.  She has plates and screws.  This is her fourth fall this year, but that is another story.  I looked at her cast and placed my hand on her leg just above the cast and it was warm.  I felt her other leg and it was cool.  The more I went up on the broken leg the less warm it got, but all the way up it was definitely significantly warmer than her "good" leg. 

My mother is a nurse practitioner and she showed up while I was there.  I explained my concern to her (my aunt is also a diabetic) about a possible infection.  She wouldn't acknowledge my concern.  I repeated myself and still nothing.  Lately my mother and I have had a couple issues regarding family members and their heath.  I am not a nurse nor do I claim to be, but being in this profession you do learn about the medical field and somtimes I feel I see a different side of things than my mom.  I can't figure out why, but she just doesn't see any value in my thoughts regarding medicine, ideas, thoughts, alternatives, etc.  In every other way she is the best mom in the world and I love her so much, but I feel she is disrespecting me by not taking my opinions/thoughts into account regarding the field of medicine and our family.

Another example is she has trouble with the pronunciation of medications.  I'm not claiming to be a pro, but I hear doctors and nurses says these meds over and over and over and I feel the majority rules in this regard.  Again, she thinks I'm wrong and doesn't really listen to what I'm saying.  The only reason I correct her is because I think it would be embarrasing to speak with a doctor and not say a med correctly.  I think it is a reflection on her.  It also helps with dictation too (as we all know).

Any ideas.  I don't know what to do.  I tried talking to her about this a couple weeks regarding my dad's health and she really didn't listen to what I had to say.  With certain things you can just blow it off, but this is the health of my aunt and father and I just couldn't live with myself if something happened to them.

Thanks for listening and for any ideas. 

Has anyone ever had a family member who they believed is a hypochondriac?  We have an individual who seems like he always has something wrong.  It is to the point now if he really does get sick I can't believe him anymore.  I can't even bring myself to calling him to see how he is feeling when he says he is sick b/c I think he is just making a mountain out of a molehill.  Am I being insensitive?  I am just so tired of hearing it. 

I am sure someone is going to recommend counseling but he already does that.  Anyone have any other advice how to handle him?

TIA

I am wondering what the proper protocol would be if I ever came across a report that was dictated on one of my family members. 

I just started doing transcription for a hospital in a really small town--the ONLY hospital in that town--and it just happens to be the same town were most of my family lives.  I know myself well enough to know that I won't break any rules of confidentiality.  However, is there anything in the *laws of transcription* that say I legally am not allowed to transcribe reports dictated on relatives??

I am afraid to ask my supervisor this question, as I really like this account and don't want her taking me off of it.  It's chopped full of *standards* and the line count/pay just doesn't get any better than this.

I, too, took the beta RMT test and I was ecstatic when I found out I passed.  I was a housewife and depended on my now ex-husband, so plugging away at school and putting everything into becoming an MT was a milestone for me.  I jumped on the chance to become registered.

Not to mention, for those who took the test in July, we only had a week or so to study and we totally missed out on the RMT test prep packages that are available now.  It's something to be proud of, I think.

Awesome job!

Amanda, RMT