I have to disagree. I think it's a great field and I make

• M-Tec grads - Barb
  • Price for M-TEC - M-TEC Graduate
  • Good luck - SABMT
    • I have to disagree. I think it's a great field and I make - excellent money! nm
      • I agree. - sm
    • That person just wanted the price! - M-TEC Graduate
      • You are so right! - LilB

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also see the changes coming down the pike. Also feel it is not fair to withhold or misrepresent that part of the equation to someone who is considering entering MT or just starting out. Knowledge is power. It would take years for a new MT to have the kind of insight into this field that a 20+ year experience lends. Believe me, I would be only too happy to keep running my MTSO, making $75,000+ year while working 20 hours a week, paying my MT's well, but it's not going to happen. Try reading "The World is Flat" by Thomas Friedman if you want a perspective of what's going to happen to not only MT work but a lot of great white collar jobs. India and the rest of the world are breathing down our necks and in the next decade will be serious competitors for American jobs. There will be no "american" jobs - we will be competing against the rest of the world for jobs.

Friedman states: "The convergence of 'flatteners' has created a whole new platform. It is a global, Web-enabled platform for multiple forms of collaboration. This platform enables individuals, groups, companies and universities anywhere in the world to collaborate...this platform operates without regard to geography, distance, time, and, in the near future, even language. Going forward, this platform is going to be at the center of everything...wealth and power will flow to those who get these basic things right...the infrastructure to connect with the platform and the education to get more of their people working on the platform.

Please wake up and look beyond our box.

I disagree since I have seen both sides.   The younger ones, below 30, might be okay with this but those over 35 do not like this.  Another thing there  is too much standardization and the insurance companies are cutting down on payment, etc. when a note is so standardized that it does not show the 45 minutes spent with the patient they will pay at the rate for a  20 minute visit which makes a big diffence in payment.  Anytime Medicare or an insurance company can cut down the payment they will which then costs in rebilling cost.   I work right where the billing is also done when I work on the EMR's, typing directly into them, and I hear what is going on.  Also legal wise, the docs are finding out it is not good.   Like I said the 5 docs in this clinic would rather pay me $18 an hour to type into the charts than take the 2 to 3 hours it takes them to do them along with the procrastination.    Most of them dictate while driving home -- they have good machines, easy to understand and this is not a problem for me, and by the time they get home, their chart notes are done and they bring me the tape the next day, I do them and chart notes are done within 48 hours.  Anyway it works for them.  Trouble is now they want me 40 hours per week but cannot give up my other accounts.  Started out doing just 10  to 15 hours per week  -- 2-3 docs, to get out of the house, then 20 to 25 wtih four and now  they want me full-time for the five.   But I make too much off of my own personal accounts and cannot do it so they are looking for someone else. 

Also, I have been approached by two other clinics to help out with their EMR's as they are having the same problems.   Patients are speaking up and telling the doctor, hey I am paying for your service, look at me when I talk with you and don't be typing into that darn computer.   But then this is just my side of it.     Patti

I went through CAI and got hired with MQ after I graduated.  They are acredited with the New Jersey Deptment of Education as well.  I don't see why everyone is so quick to disregard this program.

(Read this quick, because my posts about being a CAI grad get deleted rather quickly, no matter how much that fact is denied! )

"Spelling correctly should be second nature for an mt, whether it is an email or a quick response to a post."

If I'm sending an email to my boss, you better believe I spell check it.  Taking a test for a job?  Obviously that too.  Posting on a forum?  Not on your life.

I do glance at my posts 90% of the time to see if I catch obvious errors, but I could care less if my spelling skills impress strangers on a gab forum. Not to mention, in our profession of using typing shortcuts all day, I'm lucky if I remember HOW to spell these days.

Hey Porr - Welcome!  First of all, you have come one of the most negative MT sites on the internet.  If you are easily discouraged or depressed, I would advise you NOT to come to this site.  I have been an MT for over 30 years and every time I come to this board, I leave so dejected, I wonder if I have wasted my life doing MT.  I have finally realized that this board drags me down, so I don't come here very often.  The people who do come on here legitimately, come to relieve their frustrations, get advice, vent about work situations, etc.... we are not all this stressed out all the time   But there are a lot of really good people on here, too, and you can get a lot of valuable knowledge, you just have to learn who the "trolls" are and ignore them (easier said than done at times!)  The MT world is undergoing a lot of changes these days.  A lot of work is being sent offshore and now they have the voice recognition platform that they are working on.  The nationals make you feel very unappreciated, but I have worked for doctors, hospitals, clinics and had my own service for a while, and there are a lot of people out there who will appreciate your skills, just not the large nationals.  Stay away from them until you are more seasoned, then, if you feel like tackling one of them, I say go for it.  They have their negatives, but you will gain valuable knowledge and you will be able to get a job just about anywhere with one of the nationals on your resume. 

This is a great field, just keep your nose to the grindstone and stay away from negative websites ().  Do not let the comments you read here sway you one way or the other.  I find this to be a personally rewarding field to work in.  I hope that you do, too!  Hang in there and don't give up! 

Does this line of work have a future?  Is it a good field to go into?  I welcome your opinions.

Hello Everyone! first of all, I want to say thank you for all of the great information I have found so far from these boards.  I am very seriously considering being an MT.  I currently work full-time as a Transcriptionist in a Psychologist's office and I really enjoy it.  However, I believe I would enjoy the medical field more.  I have a few questions that I would really appreciate you guys answering...

Can you make a decent living as an MT working for an online company? (i.e. Spheris, Focus or accuscribe?) Currently, I would need to make at least 25k a year to suppliment my husbands income for our family, and I do not mind working full-time. 

I believe I am going to being training with CareerStep... will companies like that consider hiring me if I test and score high enough, even without prior MT experience?

Thank you so much for your help!

but I wouldn't go into transcription today.

I learned transcription the old fashioned way - my boss said "come here and let me show you how to transcribe." It turns out I had a knack for it and did very well. For several years I had no problem finding a job. I was often hired on the spot in many places. All hospitals had transcription departments in house, paid well and offered great benefits.

Gradually though more and more work was outsourced. Then one by one, hospitals closed their transcription departments. Now hospital jobs are extremely rare, yet most companies want you to have hospital experience. The jobs that exist now are mostly with agencies that pay you by the line rather than by the hour. No matter how fast you type you can't overcome the little things that interfere with your line count - foreign accents, mumblers, people talking and laughing in the background drowning out the dictation, line noise, phone lines going down, computer problems, servers going down, being switched to new accounts constantly so you can't adjust, etc.  When those things happen you don't get paid.

It's very sad because I loved being a transcriptionist. Nowadays it's a completey different job than it was one a I started and one I would not recommend. You don't get compensated enough for what is expected of you.

I would recommend finding something that will pay you by the hour and guarantee you have a job. Best wishes to you and your new baby.

and start making a decent living. There are huge differences in companies. You might get paid the same cpl but make much better money with one company over the other. If you keep your eyes open, sometimes you find a really good one. Also be sure you have a good Expander program and keep finding ways to speed up your own typing.

keep in mind that if you are applying to a company who is hiring independent contractors, that the IRS definition of employee vs. contractors hinges on three main areas, one of which is how much control the "employer" has over the worker. If the employer is providing equipment to get the job done, the IRS tends to look upon this as more of an employer-employee relationship. So if you are applying for a job that is independent contractor status, remember you are self employed and have to provide your own equipment.

Employee vs. Independent Contractor Status is a hot area of IRS Audits.The IRS, state taxing agencies, as well as the Departments of Labor (which are responsible for Unemployment tax collections) have been stepping-up their audit activities. The purpose of the audit is to misclassify a subcontractor as an employee. The taxing agency can then collect the taxes which "should have been withheld" as well as large fines, penalties and interest. So if you want to be an IC, expect to provide your own equipment.

Thanks so much for your response.  That helped a lot! 

I think I am just scared and need to get over it. 

Hopefully some day soon I will be stopping by your pub as a Module 1 student.