bringing back the work!
Posted By: cj on 2009-06-23
In Reply to:
In addition to doing MT, I also work as a coder at a very large teaching hospital and academic facility with 160'some clinics. Our transcription is outsourced and recently started going overseas. Guess what - our hospital is bringing it back to the States AND will not accept voice recognition! Too many errors that affect coding, AR days and, thus, reimbursement. Our dictation will continue to be outsourced but will not be allowed to go outside the US and can only be done by a real MT. Too bad it had to be the reimbursement that was the only issue that will bring the work back and not simply the fact that the quality is just not there but..at least there is something that will keep the work here in the US and keep it from being doing by VR. I just thought someone might like to know this is happening. I am hoping other hospitals get the hint.
Complete Discussion Below:  marks the location of current message within thread
The messages you are viewing
are archived/old.
To view latest messages and participate in discussions, select
the boards given in left menu
Other related messages found in our database
Bringing up Bo Bice - he is back in hospital. nm
nm
Bringing the head lice post back up. This has been going around at my daughter's school.
Saturday, after having been checking her head all week, found lice on her head. Did the treatment on her, on me, DH and other daughter, just in case. Only youngest and myself apparently had them. Got rid of the lice, now need to deal with the eggs. No problem with daughter's head because I am meticulous and have been checking daily and removing anything I find. My problem is my own head. Oldest daughter tried to look through, but she had hard time, though she tried. Husband "I don't see anything", so not much help. I can't look at my own head, so my dilema is how do I get the eggs off my own head and keep them from rehatching? Any help/advice would be appreciated. Never gone throught his before.
I was told that Healthscribe outsourced and when acquired, that Spheris would be bringing work
And this is information came to me from the inside, given to me when I was hired and in training.
Yes, you get back to work now. Go back to
some routine, and it does start to hurt less. I know  And remember, she is still there at work with you. Always will be. I figure at this point I have a whole herd of loved dogs under my desk each day - along with a couple horses, hamsters, parakeets, rabbits...If only I could see them - must be quite a happy zoo! But I know they are all there I sense their love.
bringing to the top
Coding certification
[ Post a Reply ] [ View Follow Ups ] [ Company Board ]
Posted By: diddles on 2005-12-22
In Reply to: medical coding - looking for work
First I would encourage you that if you are serious about coding, do NOT go to a course that does not allow to test for NATIONAL certification. There are only 2 organizations in the US that do national certification. AAPC (the first) and AHIMA. With AAPC there are numerous companies that offer their course. The cost runs between $1200 and $1600 for a three month course of 8 hour classes plus your proctored exam and membership to AAPC, or you can do the self-study course for the same money (I chose to be in a classroom setting so I could have questions answered on the spot). You can opt to take the course for hospital coding CPC-H (which few hospitals will recognize as official) or the doctor/outpatient based course - CPC, which is widely recognized.
I don't know the cost of AHIMA's testing but it is as intense as AAPC's but it is mostly taken by people who either already have AAPC certification or are already working in a medical coding setting. Both organizations offer apprecentice programs if you are not already in a coding setting until you can clock some coding hours. I think you need references to enter either program as to your character - remember, if you make a mistake the penalty could be monetory and/or a jail term.
Now, can you get a job and is the money worth it. Most hospitals want AHIMA's inpatient certification and 1-2 years OTJ experience, unless they are hiring for their outpatient clinics and/or ER (which they will then accept the AAPC's CPC). Most of these positions pay between $15 and $24/hr plus bennies.
It is very hard to get into the coding industry. It's just like trying to get into MT without any experience, only harder. I would network, join both organizations as a member and go religiously to the monthly meetings to network and learn. Both certifications require a high number of CEU's to be earned each year. It is easier to get into a physician's office setting as a CPC. Most of these jobs pay $9 to $18/hr depending on geography, but again you'd have to be very, very good and have good references from certified mentors to help you get a job with no experience.
Most jobs are obtained by word of mouth. If you are very good, you could skip working in a hospital or doctor's office and become a consultant and/or instructor without any working experience (more $$ for the instructor's certification). It would be like working as an IC. You would have to hustle to get clients and build a reputation. I was lucky and got a job with a hospital in their outpatient clinic side at $19/hr with hospital bennies and had an offer with the people whose course I took to become an instructor and consultant for them even before I got the results from my test score (but I had prior coding experience). My job was basically consulting, doing audits and giving feedback and education to doctors on how to maximize their reimbursement, how to document charts properly and be available for their coding questions. I loved the respect I got from the doctors. It was totally unlike what I get directly from doctors as an MT. They are eager to learn, listen to what is being taught, are interactive, friendly and recognize that you are there to help them succeed.
If your MTSO is also adding a coding department to their company, that would be an easier way to get into coding as it could be done from home with access to electronic medical records. There are a number of tools available to coders that help to electronically code and flag potential errors, hopefully your company would pay for all that because it can be quite expensive.
I tried to portray a clear and realistic picture with discouraging you. It's a lot like going into MT without someone being realistic with you, so the fact that you asked is a good sign.
Thanks for bringing that up.
I cringe when I read this bord. The cruel and crude remarks meant to make another feel small actually sting my eyes when I read them.
Where did this come from? We were oncde librarians who loved medicine. Now, we have management, the noisy and miserable librarians who insist on an opinion on everything and refuse to budge, our immediate supervisor. I would give a million bucks to be able to be a good conversationalist. It appears that gets one farther than anything in this industry.
Younger MTs? The loud MTs are the ones who are MTholics and think just because they have dissected and analyzed every aspect of the typed medical sentence, the fact is more deaths take place in hospitals now than at any other time, due to medical record errors.
This is about patient health, not the QA, editor, whateverrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr, so I say to this industry:
Lighten the fk up. We are human beings and your colleagues. WHY are you being to rude?
Monitors would help but they love it. The rude remarks to a question leave one with a feeling of disappointment and dread, monitors, so uh, do your job.
Bringing up my DQS problem from down below, how many of the MQ MTs that use this..sm
are running it under XP AND have updated to the service pack 2? Tech Support says that's the only thing he can think of as everything else looks fine on my system. And on the converse, how many of you use DQS and DON'T have XP with or w/o service pack 2, or are just using the original XP w/o any upgrades. I don't want to be doing something to my machine that's going to screw it up even more. Thanks for your help. nm
Chickadee,..bringing this to the top
A better alternative to Lap band is the Medifast 5 and 1 plan. You eat 5 of their meals a day and then what they call a Lean and Green that you prepare yourself. I've only just started, but have lost 9 pounds in 4 days. Check out the website... Medifast1.com
Read the info and check out the message boards. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.
You can spend 17+ thousand dollars for a band and eat 6 small meals a day or spend a couple of hundred dollars a month and eat 6 small meals a day.
Bringing up old documents....
Hi-I have only worked on Extext for a few days and it seems pretty good. I agree with the problem with inserting doctors names though. I am especially interested in finding out how to pull up old documents as I wasn't told about this feature. Can you let me know? Thanks....
Sure does, if you are going back to work (sm)
and want to get screwed out of your disability money.
Back to work
I started working 2 or 3 weeks after I delivered via C section. I might have even been back sooner but I had twins. But I am only part time and ~at the time~ had a flexible schedule.
Good luck! A bit of advice, don't resume a regular diet right after the C section. Liquid diet the first 24 hours. Soft diet the next 24. Then resume regular diet, as tolerated. Take it from someone who ended up with a bowel obstruction and NG tube (terrible!!!!) because the nurses said GO AHEAD AND EAT!!! when the cafeteria brought me chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, some kind of veggie, and a dinner roll.
Let's take the work back!
I agree that unionizing is not the answer at this point. I would like to see us take the work back from the MTSOs from the hospitals and physician offices. Let us talk to our local medical facilities, explain what is happening with their work (nationals, overseas), and ask for a chance to prove ourselves. If we offer a reasonable rate and perhaps even a small free sample of our work, maybe, just maybe, we will find facilities ready for a change back to a more personal transcription setting.
No, I don't have all the answers - wish I did - but this is my suggestion, and the only one I can think of at this point. I am one of those MTs who has been an MT for 20+ years who has seen a decrease in pay, as many of you have also seen.
I will read with interest any other reasonable suggestions from my fellow MTs.
I've often wondered about this one myself - thanks for bringing it up! nm
Bringing up hurricane discussion
Just for some other information. When Hurricane Rita hit in Texas, i.e. Jasper, Beaumont area, these people were not prepared. They were not prepared because hurricanes do not come in that far inland. The Jasper area is one of the areas where most hurricane victims evacuate too. There are people in that area that are still without power including elderly people and children. Most of the surrounding areas (Pineland, Rosevine, Hemphill) are retirement areas. These are also low income areas as well. These people definitely would not have expected the hurricane to effect them in the way that it did, but it did.
Also, people in Lufkin and Nacogdoches, Texas were effected from it as well. Again, a hurricane never has come close to these areas and these areas are also where evacuees come. During the time we had evacuees from Galveston, Beaumont, Houston, and still the ones we had from Louisiana drained the resources that we did have here (not saying anything negative by this – just a statement). None of the businesses could get trucks in to deliver gas, food, ice, water, etc. When we did get gas delivered, the lines were so long that people were waiting 9-10 hours to get gas and of course by the time most got up there, it was gone again. This went on for several days. Even the Wal-Mart here and in Nacogdoches was only able to be open a few hours a day and for the first few days after the hurricane because of the amount of extra people in these areas, they finally had to limit the number of people they were allowing in the store at a time.
Some of you say, people should be prepared. I do agree and especially more so if you live in a coastal area. However, these people affected in the areas I mentioned above do not live on the coast; however, were heavily impacted by this natural disaster. You are saying these people don't deserver help?! Well let me tell you this. When we had a lot of LA evacuees here, FEMA stepped in and for a lot (not all of course) they received $2000.00 for help with housing, another $600.00 for food, and there $400.00 for something else (honestly do not remember what it was).
However, my mother and father-in-law who are elderly went 14 days without power, lost everything in the freezer and refrigerator, and they are also raising 2 of their grandchildren (both young teenagers). They were unable to get FEMA to help with anything.
I guess the point is this. Before spouting off about who needs to do what or who the government does or does not need to help (or where you tax monies go), you might want to think about the fact that this was a natural disaster and therefore, no one can ever really be prepared for one. I hope none of you ever have to deal with anything like this. It is not a pretty site in this area right now. Clean up is still going on. There are still trees down on houses and cars. How would you feel if this were you?
By the way, yes I do feel that my family was very lucky to come through it unscathed; however, some were not so lucky.
Just my 2 cents.
Bringing over HIPAA question
Can anyone answer the question: Do you HAVE to remove PHI from reports legally?
Bringing up from below the subject of low carbs, SM
Food Network used to have a chef named George Stella who lost several hundred pounds by doing the Atkins diet. I'm not sure if his show is still on, but he does have a cookbook.
Bringing topic over from 2nd page. Someone
higher rate because he/she has the CMT. I say the reality is that 90% or better don't give a toot about the CMT and are going to pay what they want anyway. And, all the RMT is going to do is cause major grief to a lot of hard working MTs, MTs who are barely making it financially. The RMT will cost MONEY along with their requirements. AAMT has caved to offshoring and is doing American MTs no favors. Frankly, I think the only worth an AAMT membership holds is the money you would be paying to put in their pocket. And, for what? To lobby on the Hill in favor of a bill that would ensure that patients’ individually identifiable health information is secure and protected; improving health care quality and reducing medical errors, and developing best practices to support and accelerate efforts to adopt, implement, and effectively use interoperable health information technology when all the while AAMT is openly embracing offshoring?
In a nutshell, your money is fodder for a worthless organization.
Oh, and Jay and anyone else from AAMT, in case you're reading here, here's a couple of suggestions for AAMTs potential name change...
Foundation for the United Council of Kooks (Formerly Modesto Mavens)
Organization Of Offshore Suckups (OOS)
I agree - can't have any convo w/o bringing..sm
the ones that can not have a discussion about current events without mentioning their fanaticism.....
Most folks have some religion/spirituality.
Most folks don't interject it into every conversation 24/7/365.......just the fanatics!
Great tips! Thanks for bringing up the
In my experience when bringing this issue to
my supervisor's attention (when I worked outside the home). They are afraid to talk to the physicians about dictation - they don't want to bother them. Makes no sense NOT to bother them! Now that I work from home, I find that if I leave blanks ---- QA puts in what they THINK is right! LMAO? Makes no sense
one last comment for me, then I'm back to work. sm
Consider that someone (lets say Magdelena) is Buddhist (or whatever) and Jesus is "just a nice guy" in her opinion.
Then lets say she led an exemplary life, servitude to others, love of mankind, everything "good".
Then lets say Jesus was THE only path. Would Jesus, a man of his magnitude, deny Magdelena the kingdom of Heaven if she lived her life with Jesus' principles but didn't believe he existed. I think not. He would say, pleased to meet you and come on in!
Frank, I will go get back to work as soon as I
fix my makeup and put shine serum in my hair to look beautiful typing today for you.
sending back work
I have made it a point to learn the *hard* doctors, cause they are sent to me quite a bit, cause MQ knows I can do the *hard* doctors..Its crummy having to learn them and knowing you are losing money in the process but once you learn the *hard* doctors, you know the ones who are ESL or English as third or fourth language (smile), you can do them and then it is no big deal. Yesterday, I got a half transcribed report with at least seven blanks for Q/A..I was able to do the report with no blanks cause I have learned this doctor, who has what I think is a Middle Eastern French accent..He is quite hard but I can do him as I have learned him over the years (since 2000). Practice makes perfect and the way transcription is going with voice recognition, I think the only transcriptionists who will be left in the end are the ones who can do the ESL, mumblers, speed talkers or speech impediment doctors, the ones who voice recognition cannot do.
Made more back then, did not work
for a large service, had my own business and also worked for a clinic, better pay. Services are stingy. I hard one complaining because half their expenses were MT salaries. I asked him why don't you just get rid of the MTs, then you won't have to pay them. Cheapskates.
Not! They are why I went back to work for a hospital
to work
Going back to work after c-section
I returned to work two weeks after my c-section working 6 hours per day. I however made sure to get out of the chair frequently so as to not get so stiff from sitting for so long, which does happen so soon after a c-section. I wouldn't go back to soon though, as it can be very stressful with a new baby and a job to tend to on top of it all.
Tell her NO exceptions, work has to be back. If she is not
able to do the work don't give it to her. You wouldn't tolerate it with the other MTs and I sure which I had an account that wouldn't drop me if work was that late. Send her (if you haven't already) a form where you state TAT and ask for her commitment on a monthly basis. You can state in the form that failure to meet TAT could/would result in termination. She is taking advantage of you but only because you allow her too.
Maybe only give her work 2 days a week and give her only an amount that she seems to be doing currently. If you give her less work maybe she will be able to meet TAT.
I have work going back years - sm
others keep it a month or two. I have one doctor who sees patients on a yearly basis, I pull the previous report so I don't have to retype a lot of it, as he basically repeats the old one with a few changes, I'd have a lot more work to do otherwise. I have another account that constantly misplaces their work, I have to retrieve work from months earlier because they cannot find their copy. I can either pull it from my stash, or the MTSO has a FTP where we back up all our work just for this purpose, she keeps it all there going back years. I have no idea how often she cleans it out, but she hasn't in the almost 2 years I have been with her. On another note, I only keep the sound files for a month, then I dump them.
yes, when all that overseas work comes back
after it becomes illegal to outsource work with our personal information. I am hoping that day comes soon.  
Hey Patti and MQA and other MTSOs..bringing thread to top
Hi again,
Just to let you gals know, I got up the nerve at the last minute, partially because of the posters to my thread about starting my own business, to quickly print up a resume and cover letter along with a sample ortho report and take them to my physical therapy appointment. (They may need an at-home transcriptionist.) The office manager was not in yesterday, but my PT gave me a little info about how the process works. Unfortunately, we were interrupted when she was about to tell me what they dictate IN TO, but she mentioned that she thought that was going to change. On my way out, however, when she was flipping through my chart to see when I should come in next, I asked her if they received the transcription via floppy disk or CD, and she told me, *No, paper.* Yes, they still use *sticky paper*! Too bad we got interrupted earlier. I have a feeling they transmit the dictation via the internet or phone lines, then the Transcriptionist delivers the finished work to the office.
Anyway, my PT says it is slow right now. (Indeed, there were only 2 patients in the office at the time with 4 PTs.) But she thought if things picked up and the sole remaining MT got overwhelmed, there might be a chance of picking up the overflow, which would be just peachy for me.
More questions...(now, why did I, at first, capitalize the Q in question????) I may as well start preparing as much as I can now in case I DO snag a job....
1. Can anyone or everyone recommend a good medical spell checker that interfaces with Word?
2. What about an Expander to work with Word? I know some use Instant Text, but at least one says she uses the Word Autocorrect feature. (I think.) Does the Word autocorrect hold a bunch....can you put whole reports into it...large capacity?
3. You all mentioned that the docs usually supply their letterhead and to use plain copy paper for subsequent pages. Does the MTSO usually supply the paper or the docs? Same question with sticky paper...that sounds expensive!
4. Any other inexpensive tips you gals can think of that can be gotten ready now besides the main transcriber? (Would want to wait on that to see which type the office uses.)
Now that I have the ball rolling, I am also going to contact the two MTSOs that I know locally and ask if they have any overflow. Might also send a sample psych report to my shrink and see if he can spread the word. Scary stuff, but you gals really helped! Thanks so much for all the encouragement!! 
When bringing up old documents in Extext, Ctrl S,
I think I missed a step. I hit ctrl S, put in patient's name (in this case) and then click find, or quick find. Then, it brings up a list of the patient's admission. Then, what do I hit to bring up the document? The options on the right side are statistics and close? I tried to highlight and double click the admission but nothing. Need some help here....Thanks
Ooop - meant the RMT- sorry. Txs for bringing to my attn.
xx
I work on an account that just came back from India sm
They had an outsourcing company that sent their stuff to India. They were so unhappy, they brought the account back to be done by AMERICAN MTS.
But the poster below me is right, the government IS doing something, they are making it easier and more financially rewarding to go overseas. One day and sooner than later, the American worker will be so poor and so economically depressed that America will no longer be able to import goods/services from overseas because we can't afford them. By that point, we'll be gardening in our window boxes and stockpiling foods that we will no longer be able to have or afford.
The tip of the slippery slope towards another Great Depression.
It's a different world now of course, so I'm thinking about going back to work.
Well, you may be rusty at first but start out slow and build up speed and knowledge. You have a huge advantage I think over newbies in the field as it's there in your memory cells and all you have to do is "open the file" so to speak and build on what is already there in the hard drive. Just going on vacation makes me rusty so I can imagine that you have your work cut out for you but its still the same job and you know the drill.
Oh well, as long as it gets our work out of India and back to us
I would go back to the office in a second for decent money and affordable benefits.
I went back to work when babies were 9 days old
And yes, you can transcribe with TWO babies on your lap. It's a royal pain getting spit-up out of the keyboard though!
And before anybody starts a flame war on me, the boys are 10 years old now and now I get to work while they're asleep.... ;)
Going back to Office Admin Work
Hello everyone. I wanted to sign in and thank everyone for all the info that has been posted on this board. It was a very important web site for me during my short transcription career.
After being laid off from a company in Michigan 3 weeks ago, I have searched for and found an office manager position in a non-MT environment. I'm going back to my routes in Admin. I tried to make a career change a few years ago. Maybe it was not the financial environment to make such a change or maybe it is just not for me. What ever the case is, I'm leaving. I have invested a large amount of time and money into this dream but sometimes you have to know when to "fold 'em." Lucky for me hubby is on board and not making me feel bad about our investment or how this dream of mine drained our finances.
So, again, thanks for all the help and good luck to everyone.
DId NOT work. Had to pound the keys -- took it back in 2 days. nm
x
Sorry, I got cut off and didn't realize it. I was told it was more of a way to get the work back
I was told it was more of a way to get the work back and forth. Does it actually affect the line counts?
You might be sending finished work back to an FTP site
s
I work whatever hours I want, as long as I have the reports back in TAT...
I have assigned doctors...
OK. Now if your husband is bringing you down by his mental illness and not paying rent
(is husband able to work? how deep is this mental illness? did he have money to pay rent and spent it elsewhere?) then maybe you should think about leaving him rather than placing your kids in any kind of foster care. That has to be traumatic but then so does living on the street. Speaking of placing your children in foster care while you get yourself OK in the head, what is your problem at this point. You see, if there is a lot of arguing and a dysfunctional family living on the streets, then foster care to permanent placement may be better for them. I just don't quite understand how you got into this mess and if these are mental health issues on both your part and your husband's I would look into placing the children. BTW, how old are they?
So all things considered if you don't have any issues other than depression because of a lack of a place to live and your husband's mental health, I would go to a family member or church and BEG for help sorting your life out. If there is more than that going on, including maybe substance abuse along with permanent mental health issues that will keep you from caring for your children, yes I would seek placement for them. And I would seek PERMANENT placement rather than foster care which I would think would be more traumatic for your children.
Mind is willing to work but legs and back aren't cooperating.
Any cures for MT body aches?
Get samples. Proof your work. Have back up equipment. Meet TAT.
dd
I would just supply one digital copy, either send the work back
via an FTP site or email attachment or whatever, or keep addending to a CD, but let them keep their own archives. And why can't they print when you deliver the CD or the work in digital format? I don't do any printing at all. Everything goes back digital and they keep their own copies. Once I bill for the month, everything gets deleted, as it should be under HIPAA.
Just say it's not going to work out, quit, and send the stuff back. Not like you'll be using t
s
Was offered 7.4-7.7 cpl for clinic work back in 2005 and 8 cpl for hospital. Is it still
s
looking for people that used to work for small MTSO in Suffield, OH a few years back.
ss
if you purchase bytescribe/docshuttle, you can actually upload the completed work back on there. nm
;
I didnt ask for ANYTHING. Merry Christmas and watch your back when u work for a national.
thats MY point.
Worked in clinic for 30 yrs and have tinnitus. I am used to back ground noise, hard to work
:+
|
