Home     Contact Us    
Main Board Job Seeker's Board Job Wanted Board Resume Bank Company Board Word Help Medquist New MTs Classifieds Offshore Concerns VR/Speech Recognition Tech Help Coding/Medical Billing
Gab Board Politics Comedy Stop Health Issues
ADVERTISEMENT




Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

Coding Recognition Software

Posted By: Barry Watts on 2008-03-29
In Reply to: Check out this website. - Lillybelle

I see that Nuance is now pushing its coding recognition software. Maybe I should put off that AHIMA coding course. I can't wait until they come out with HIM Director Botware, CFO Botware, and CEO Botware.


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

Has anybody out there used Dragon speech recognition software to do this job?
What are the pros and cons...does it really work?  Please post what you know about it!  TIA
Anyone familiar with BeyondTXT. Is it a voice recognition software?
thanks!
Does anyone know which compaines use eScription voice recognition software?
Looking for a new job.
RFP cautions No voice recognition software allowed

I was looking at a Request for Proposal from a government medical facility and was struck by a clause that said in bold - No voice recognition software will be acceptable


I thought it strange that they put this in the request. They obviously don't have any faith in it and will not allow the contractor who wins the bid to utilize it. I guess that's good news for we who are worried about it.


Coding, VR?

If the trend continues to let all transcription go to India, what is left for us?  Is anyone paying more than 3-4 a line for reviewing voice recognition work?  Is coding on the way to India too or is this still an option for us who live in the U.S.? I am wondering if it is worthwhile to start taking coding classes now before I lose my job to India.  Can we even do coding from home?


 


Coding
Yes, coding could be the way to go,although not at home yet. I'm considering a course, they say MTs make good coders.
I want to go into coding too (sm)
but don't have the money now for school.  I've been in the biz 20+ years and it's unbelievable how the work has dried up.  Yet they keep hiring when other MTs have no work. 
coding

I was an inpatient coder for a year and I made more transcribing.  I worked for a large chain (that ended up in trouble with the feds) and we were constantly told to find better DRGs so they would get paid more....dig 'em up even if that wasn't the reason for admission.  I enjoyed my job otherwise, I did become nearsighted after a year probably because of reading the physician writing.


Even if you go to school and get certified now, the companies say they need 2 years.


 


Remote Coding
Does anyone have anything to say about the remote coding.
Coding certification

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.


good luck,


d~


medical coding
Does anybody know about going into medical billing/coding. I'm looking into getting out of transcription, and I know of 1 national company that supposedly hires coders, but I don't want to spend the $$ for school and then have no work or a low paying job
Coding is being sent overseas as well
NM
Has anyone left MT to go to coding? sm

I have 16 years experience as an MT, but I am just tired of it.  I have completed a medical billing course and I am now working on  a coding course.  I am really enjoying the coding and it seems to come easy to me, which is a miracle :)  So, if anyone has switched, I would love your input.  Thanks!


In 5 years, coding will be just like MT--sm
rates dropping, offshoring and big services taking over.  Mark my words.
They have coding and transcription
nm
coding at home sm
Would you care to share what state you are in?  I assume you do the coding via computer and have computer access to patient's records.  Do you code directly into the hospital system?  I only had exposure to coders back when they had no computers.    Do you have coding certification?  How many years experience do you have?  I want to get into coding and I would love to work at coding from home.  I've taken classes and really enjoy it and have done well, but am not certified and I heard its really hard to get into coding.  I do have lots of MT experience though, 33 years.  Thanks.
Thanks for warning me, but this is the other company - no coding LOL. NM
xx
Augusta Coding nad Transcription
This company had a job posting on mtjobs.com several weeks ago - anyone else apply and actually hear anything back?  I've even sent a follow-up email and nothing.  Just wondering if I was the only one.
Augusta Coding and Transcription
Amen, brother ben. They are not cool. Do not confuse with AugustaMedicalTranscription.com which is a great Christian owned (2 people, Mike and Pam, friends), run this business.

Augusta Coding will screw an MT by charging for software, paying low and charging high. Beware beware. I did not and I did work there, but found making about 3.00 hr was not possible.
make better money coding...sm
I do earn more money coding, mainly because it is hourly pay (so no fluctuations like you get with line counts) and the value of the benefits. I do think there are coding jobs which are much less stressful than where I work. Actually, I think most of them are. Our facility is huge, actually has it's own little city, with 3 hospitals, one with a level 1 trauma center which is shared with a children's hospital, 150-some clinics, an eye institute, and a cancer center plus is a teaching facility so we do the coding for the college facilities. Most coding jobs in my area (midwest) are working from home. Our benefits include health, dental, life, disability and vision insurance, FSA and HSA accounts, tuition reimbursement, AHIMA membership paid, 403B match, 4.6 hours of earned vacation and 1.8 hours of sick time per pay period (2 weeks) so they're pretty good. I do know coders in other facilities around here who do not have the same stressful conditions which we have and who love their jobs. Much of it is due to size and our remote management. I used to work at a smaller hospital and really liked coding there. I left when my daughter became ill and needed me home. I ended up at the facility I am with now because they were one of the few places who did have home coding available at the time that i started. Now I just think I am too darned old to start over someplace else and give up my seniority, vacation accrual, etc., so I will stick it out until I can retire. So it's my own fault I'm miserable 'cuz I don't make the change! If you go into coding, I hope you get to be one of the people who does love it and would venture a guess you would not find the stress level to be what ours is unless you work for one of the largest of facilities.
Augusta Coding and Transcription

Watch out for this company.  They have a horrible platform they use and are extremely rude in QA (main gal running the company).  Please beware, as life is too short to live like this. 


What about medical coding? Is that a lucrative..sm
and somewhat secure field to consider?  I am doing a lot of re-thinking after this MDI-Transcend stunner and know that being an MT today is nothing like it was 30 years ago when I first started my career.  Does anyone have any opinions or knowledge on medical coding and if that is a viable alternative to MTing?  Thanks.
OOPS! Supposed to be Coding and Transcription
nm
Anyone ever hear of Augusta Coding and Transcription in SM
Georgia? Any comments. There are 2 in Georgia. Thanks in advance.
Make sure it is not Augusta Coding and Medical Transcription....
that company is run by 2 psychos, Ann and Stella...it certainly is not Christian either, and you will have to pay their license fee to use their software. In other words, you pay them to work for them.
is this ACTI (augusta coding transcription inc) in Evans, GA or
Augusta Medical Transcription in Augusta, GA? I'm trying to find out which company is better. I want to work in ChartScript. Thanks!
Part & Full Time Data Entry & Document Coding Position - Sara McDaniel - HR Administrator
This company has ads on other web sites. You have to pay them $55 to do a background check up front. Guess what? If you don't get hired, they've got your $55. Don't know if it's legit - just posting facts.
speech recognition
We won't become obsolete, but we will become trained as editors in speech recognition if we want to keep our jobs. Spheris already is doing this on 1 account they have. Other employers probably are too and will follow suit. It's coming. (I've been resistant but want to keep my job.) It's not so horrible, just learning the hot keys or function keys. The MTs who initially resisted and were trained in speech recognition now love it and can't imagine going back to straight typing. Yes, I can't believe I'm saying this, but ALL MTs who trained on this who hated it at first now Love It. Something to think about.
VR/speech recognition
I COMPLETELY agree with PathGuy on this one. What I was told the basics of the VR were that the physician dictates into their system. If his/her voice is easy to understand, eventually VR is able to record his voice, thus turn it into VR/speech recognition report/s. BUT, there are many, many ESL dictators and EFL dictators who have nuances in their voices, etc., that the VR WILL NEVER be able to adapt to. This, my friends, means that a Transcriptionist must always be needed to translate what is dictated. This we have some comfort in, because there are always a lot of dictators out there that VR will not be able to do that part of the job. This is not to say that the Transcriptionist is left with the worst dictators, but it DOES SAY that VR/speech recognition does have its limitations. Bravo to PathGuy. I believe that a lot of docs WANT AN MT transcribing their work and not some VR system because the MT IS MORE CAREFUL WITH THE DICTATION/REPORT. Kudos to us!!
Voice recognition.
As far as I know, they only have one account and it is overstaffed so it is really hard to make any money. Some of the people hired for that account have moved on.
Voice Recognition
Does anyone know which companies hire reviewers/editors for VR work?  My hands/fingers are starting to really bother me and I need to shift gears.  Thank you!
Voice Recognition
For anyone out there who does voice recoginition can you tell me what you average per hour for lines.  Just curious to see if I am on the right page with it. Thanks 
voice recognition
So far I have had the opposite effect (drop in production), BUT I have only been doing it for two months. Does someone have any hints???

Speech recognition
There is no way I doubled my lines and I was good at doing Speech recognition, in fact had my employer asking me to help others achieve their goals in speech.

I hated it because there was no money in it and it is faster for me to type and edit my own work than try to interpret what the computer is spitting out
voice recognition.
I have been talking with a woman from Diskriter about part time shift and she did say something about willingness to learn about voice recognition. Does that mean that all the Transcriptionist become editors or how exactly does that work out for those working for them? Will there be layoffs?
speech recognition
I think at this point I have just about been beaten.  I thought I found the perfect place where I could stay and transcribe, and less than 6 months into it I have lost a ton of my work, not due to speech recognition but due to EMR.  It keeps happening to me!  I'm throwing up my hands at this point.  I'll try editing at a new company and maybe I'll be able to stay put for more than 6 months before new technology eats my job again.  I understand that you want to transcribe and not edit and I hope you find a good company.  I just don't think anyone is safe from either EMR or ASR anymore.  Best of luck to you. 
speech recognition
i am new in this business and I was wondering why doesnt anyone use speech recognition to get a better line count?  Is this just wishful thinking on my part. I just heard about this product called Naturally speaking today and it seems like a dream come true for any MT, though obviously unethical?  Any opinions or experiences?
Speech recognition
I am tired of killing myself and ending up with nothing, so I was considering speech recognition.  I just found a very affordable program called Speech to text that gives you a 30 day free trial. I know it has good and bad points, but has anyone out there ever tried speech recognition to make more money as an MT?
speech recognition
I was wondering about the pay rate (the usual pay rate).  I was just notified by my current company that the speech recognition rate received is 5 cents a line.  Is that one everyone else is getting for speech recognition.  I understand the thinking is the pay is low because it is not much typing???  
If using Speech Recognition, I don't like it. nm

.


Voice recognition

Take my advice and avoid voice recognition if you can.  Half the pay for the same job!


Speech recognition
Go to Google and put in voice recognition. The first thing that shows up is link to wikipedia. Scroll down a bit to Applications and Healthcare. It explains everything in that article. You can also go to other links that show up, too. Remember, research is a vital tool for an MT. I hope this helps.
Speech Recognition

The computer records the speech and the MT goes in and reviews the report to make sure everything is correct. 


I am sure MTs know that RESEARCH is vital in our job.  So is professionalism, some people should do some RESEARCH on it!!!!


Speech recognition.
x
Unions would help us get some recognition
Currently it's lacking 100%. Look at AAMT/AHDI -- they don't represent us, they're killing us. They need to be investigated and put on a short leash ASAP.
Holiday recognition, etc.
I work for SGS.  They sent the same Christmas card they did last year, same picture, some greeting, etc.  I can remember working for Edix and getting a cookie jar for Christmas and also QED sent me a cookie jar when I worked for them.  I sure would have liked a cookie jar or something other than the same card as the year before, but what are you going to do.  As a footnote, I work for SGS but am looking for another job.  You can't make any money there.  Right now they are upgrading to Version 8 of Escription and require the employees to buy all the upgrade materials, Word program, foot petal, etc.  I think that totally stinks. 
Regarding Voice Recognition.

Hi: 


I noticed your comment about Transcend and the Voice Recognition program.  Well I worked there about 4 or 5 months and never could get the hang of it.  I do not mean to be discouraging, but I really did not like their program.  If your line count does not improve, I would look somewhere else.  I know they have wonderful company and some of the greatest people ever, but they are not paying your bills either.  Look out for yourself in the long-run.    Hope this helps. 


 


VR = Voice Recognition
Not the OP, but I am going to assume that VR stands for voice recognition, not a state abbreviation.
MDI voice recognition

Just curious how the transition over to speech was going for other MDI employees. 


 


TT vs MQ speech recognition
Have worked on both MQ's ASR and TransTech's escription VR. TT's blows MQ's right out of the water... no comparison, TT's is a zillion times better. Just my opinion.
More OSi accounts going to speech recognition
Please, if someone is really in the know, please give info of what is going on. I'm starting to get worried now.