To the ladies who have their own accounts

• To the ladies who have their own accounts - question?
  • Have my own ftp site for receiving wave files...return completed - anna
  • I have a call in system and also use tapes. We send completed reports via encrypted email. - MTSO
    • Are you happy with the call in - system you use?
      • I am happy with it, but it was very expensive. You may want to check what is available out there - MTSO

The messages you are viewing are archived/old.
To view latest messages and participate in discussions, select the boards given in left menu

IF MQ did away with quarterly bonuses, not that they are, only a question she threw out as in IF

First off, let's get something straight:  It doesn't matter HOW I spell words in my posts because you are NOT paying me for my posts, okay?

Now that we've gotten that out of the way, I'm giving you MY experiences - like them or not, and I don't care if you do because you weren't the one who lost $$$ coming out of the word work because of it and had a bunch of sleepless nights.  

I didn't like the experiences I've had with subcontractors I've used - I give and give and give and can't get decent work back.  Those are the cold, hard facts, like them or not.  I didn't like them!  That's why I do it all myself now.  I personally just don't have time to babysit SCs who are supposed to know how to do their jobs but for some strange reason, refuse to do it.  It was the mentality of pure slop - type it up as fast as you can and hope no one reads it!

It's a good thing I'm a nice person because I tell you, some of these SC's got me SO irritated with the slop quality of their work that I should have strangled their little necks with my own bare hands!

If the MTSO is getting, say, 12 cents a line from the client, do you REALLY expect to get paid more than 8 or 9 a line subcontracting?  I mean, after all, isn't the MTSO entitled to make SOME profit, or do you believe the MTSO is in it just for the joy of it all?

I get a little irritated listening to these SCs who expect a line rate equivalent to what an IC/MTSO is getting.  If you want those line rates, then please.....find your OWN accounts, ya know???  In the interim, please get with reality and understand that when you work for someone,you're just NOT going to get pay like you would if you worked for yourself!!!

beef tenderloin, mushroom gravy, noodles, salad and some fruit.  Then, a whole pot coffee while I work.

I wanted to have a serious discussion about the value of taking the test compared to the value of the profession at this point and where it's headed in the future.  I do take a lot of pride in my work, but taking the test and maintaining my certification are something that will put a strain on my already strained budget.  I'm wondering what good or if it will do any good at all to spend the money to get a 1 cpl increase and still come up short after a 55% line cut due to VR.

I keep reading posts that say if you're not happy get out, there's other jobs. And posts that say VR is the future for MT, so get used to it.  When hearing all this, it makes me wonder if I'm smart to invest to secure my future or just get out now before I invest all this and be obsolete in 10 years.

Jodi and ta-shi--you both have done an amazing job!  My hat's off to you two!  PLEASE make sure you CHANGE THE LOCKS.  Once he's out of the house for, I think it's 48 hours, he can't legally come back.  So don't let him muscle his way back in!!

Congrats!!

I thought I was the only one who couldn't obtain a high line count and my ego has been crushed .  I have often wondered - am I just stupid?  I am glad someone else has this problem, makes me feel a little more normal.  (Not that I wish this on anyone) 

I have been an MT for 7 years and have never made a high line count (I do maintain a 99% accuracy score).  I believe the main reason is that the majority of MTSO do not give you dedicated accounts so that you have the same doctors over and over and over.  This is the only way to get speed (for me anyway).  I am on 2 accounts.  My primary is an ER account.  I know what the doctors are going to say before they even say it, but rarely do I have enough for a full day's work.  On the occasions when I do have my primary for a full day I can make 1200 lines easily.  But, normally I have to alternate between primary and secondary accounts on most days.  The secondary account has 300-400 doctors.  My primary has maybe 25.  That's just too many doctors. 

Another thing that has ruined dictation is the portable dictation devices that enables doctors to drive and dictate, run here and there while mumbling into them. At my very first job I was connected directly into the hospital system where doctors sat at a dictation station and dictated in a timely, orderly manner.   The voice quality was so clear it was like they were in the same room I was in. 

Then, on top of that, MTSOs  want to not pay for spaces, and instead of paying more for IC status to offset the lack of insurance they want to pay you less!  And it's not only the MTSOs, doctors and hospitals don’t want to pay anymore.  THEY can drive around in luxurious cars, live in fancy houses but they are too cheap to pay an MT.  So the MTs have to struggle to even buy groceries.   Do they realize where they would be if all the MTs just quit?  Well, that's my gripe for the day.

I wish the best to all of you who are struggling with lines counts....I understand cuz I am in the same boat. 

My national employer has 19 accounts in my queue, though I rarely work in all of them in a week or a month.  Still its too many.  I'll often work 5 or 6 accounts in a single shift, despite the promise of a limit of 2 or 3. 

This is a terrible business practice. If you are a dedicated MT, it requires extensive time to review account-specific instructions, not to mention being unfamiliar with place and people names associated with the different regions.  It is unfair to "quality patient care" to bounce MTs into unfamiliar territory.  After all, how quickly and accurately can one transcribe a record when you are overwhelmed with studying your fifth or sixth different set of instructions in less than 4 hours?  I believe the substantial amount of MT shuffling is to slow us down--they have overstaffed and its to their benefit to force familiarity with odd accounts so they can do it again next time.  They do phase people out of primaries and secondaries and even tertiary accounts once they become proficient.  We hear the work is low due to summer slow down, yet they keep sending their "please welcome our newest recruits" memos.

And, yes, I will definitely be searching for a new company very soon. 

best way of getting your own accounts?  I have one small local account that I got from a newspaper services ad eight years ago.  If I had two or three more like this one, I'd be a happy camper.  I've mailed postcards and made cold calls with no luck whatsoever.  I've even done intro letters with business cards to new providers on the city business license list and in response to help wanted ads.  No nibbles there either.

It doesn't even necessarily have to be a local account.  It could even be Internet based or via mail/UPS.  One guy used to priority mail tapes to me from New York back when I had my virtual assistant/secretarial business.

Any positive suggestions are welcome.  Thank you.