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Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

My own experience; others' mileage may vary...

Posted By: CrankyBeach on 2009-08-27
In Reply to: Merger; yes or no answer please - NorCalMT

I survived the TRS-Transcend merger. My pay rate did not stay the same--it went UP.

Now think about that $900 (gross) per pay period thing. Pulling an outrageously low number out of thin air, if your rate was 7 cpl (hey, I said thin air, didn't I?), it would still take less than 13,000 lines in that half-a-month pay period to hit the mark. The higher the cpl rate, the fewer the lines it will take.


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This is only 1 MT's experience; your mileage may vary. nm
.
Um, your mileage may vary. sm
Your experience is your experience, not mine nor that of other long-time MTs with the company. Fight for an account or to be treated fairly? Wow, not my experience at all. 8 years with company, have watched it grow, have stayed with same manager, same acct (and added some) and am happy. It fits my needs but obviously not a good fit for you.

You know, in the MT world - one size fits all is not true.
Aren't you cheery? Happy said "your mileage may vary" sm
I don't think the OP was saying that the company was perfect for everyone. Geez, rain on everyone's parade 'cause you don't think AAMT is squat. It was one person's opinion and thus at least a place to start.
agree,the pay is going to vary based on individual experience
nm
Mileage
Considering the crap I have to work with now (old VR), I have no trouble believing this at all. It is all junk in my opinion and things can be typed faster and more efficiently than doing the same job twice, just for the sake of paying somebody less money.
It really can vary - sm
They sent us info on my hubby's policy when he switched jobs.  It was about $850 for both of us per month.  I think I heard something some place where the government is subsidizing COBRA in many cases now, where you pay only 35% of the policy.  You might want to check out one of the government websites on benefits, layoffs, etc.  I hope you qualify for this! 
SInce production can vary
depending on the dictator, available work, your energy level, etc., I would take the $15.00/hour. Good luck to you.
Platforms vary, most are okay. You can get
a decent line count, and editing is good once you take time to learn it. Pay is good. They can be flexible. But they have some really horrible managers that could easily be replaced. Some are good, but many never communicate, some of the managers will tell bold-face lies just to protect themselves even if you can produce e-mails that show they did just the opposite of what they claim they said. But they are the chosen few so never try to report them or it will be your head on the platter.
I think it may vary based on your account
but they have always been very flexible with me. I have another hospital I cover on the weekends, but I know a lot of the MTs do work weekends, and I believe you are allowed to request a second account if you want extra work.

I can only speak from the account I've been on, but the workload is almost always decent. Sometimes we can get a little slow, sometimes their is more work than we can seem to handle, but everyone works together and gets it done.

From what I have read concerning some other companies, I'm pretty pleased with where I'm at.

Good luck! Have you already applied or just thinking about it?


It will vary. Within a specific period of time, if they SM
post profit and how much profit, then they determine how much they will contribute, so you do not kwow when you sign up. Perhaps someone else can explain it better, but that is about it. I would not base my retirment on it.
Ad they had in Jan. said pay with spcs, but rates vary on different accts. nm
s
Line counting methods do vary
from account to account on this platform so ask lots of questions and try and talk with MTs actually working for a company using it before jumping in. I worked for a company that had session statistics disabled and I was very disappointed with the way lines were counted. I couldn't make it. The company I am currently employed with has this enabled and my counts are great. It may have nothing to do with the ability to view the stats but may have all to do with the way lines are counted.
It does seem to vary from day to day, at least on my account, definitely feel your pain but overall,
good company.  I have ear buds and headphones from Radio Shack and I alternate between the two, seems to give my ears a break. 
They do provide the PC, and account specifics vary. SM
I have emailed you just now.  Thanks!
A weekend required, may vary depending on account
needs.  12-hour window.  Frequently no work on many accounts where others have nearly daily OT. 
Axolotl has nearly all this except shifts are Tu-Sat and Sun-Th, and ESLs vary by account. NM
xxx
I realize that experiences vary by person, but I believe they are fair,
xx
Unless something has changed, health insurance rates vary state by state, so we may not have the
info you need.  I'm an IC so I don't have benefits.
Here, here. Exactly my experience also, even down to the 10 year work experience. nm
:+
Experience versus not as much experience
--same job should equal same pay?...Come back and talk to me in 20 years...
For the most part, old school MTs have a ton more to offer than a newbie, by virtue of the amount that they know. Most old school MTs can do just about any kind of report, because they learned the old way, they used books--Dorland's was a bible--not software and spellcheck, they worked in house, in the environment, they understand things that a new person who has only worked online with their word books, shorthand, macros and software just cant understand.. Why things are done in a certain way... Why it is so important that certain documents are treated a certain way. Why some reports are stat versus others. What you might flag for the hospital and why... When you think you know everything, esp as a newbie, you are doomed my friend.
Also, cont education is something that most old school MTs understand is a benefit for them and a gift to themselves...part of their commitment to themselves and their own education, not a commitment to being a certified MT, it is a personal thing, a standard.
If you don't understand that, I don't know what else to tell you.
Sure newbies can transcribe, it isn't rocket science, but they know what they know, if you know what I mean..(and that's about all they know) if they don't care to continue their education once they are out of MT school.
There's a little more to it than what you have stated here. If you consider yourself an MT machine.. you will burn out sooner than you think.
P.S. Not saying they do that to everyone - this was just MY experience
..
Your experience with them?
All the things you like/dislike.
My experience was not a bad one
It would freeze up and hard to get around in it. The accounts I had were mostly awful ESLs and mumblers...very difficult to get line counts. Mostly nice people, but doesn't mean squat if the work is bad. Good luck.
my experience with them - sm
I have 17 years experience, require very little training on new equipment, platforms, accounts, etc. Apparently, I was not what they were looking for. I had heard many similar stories from others.
Experience
That's true. Generalities are misleading. I have known MTs with a lot of experience who never had any QA or other teaching and they never got any better. As long as they typed fast, quality didn't matter to their employers.
My experience
I have worked for TransHealth and believe me run for the hills! (LOL). When I was employed there, they had a high turnover regarding their management and apparently still too from what I hear. No flexibility whatsoever, they do not seem to APPRECIATE their employees as they can be nice to you on one occasion and the next minute treat you like crap. They also don't offer nothing in way of competetive wages as they have no incentives to work extra hours or work weekends and oh when there is abundant work you hear them plead with everyone to get on but where are they when there is no work, exactly!!!!! My recommendation is to shop around and see what each company has to offer.
Same experience here, 7 yrs with MQ
c
I had a bad experience with them also. I was also
hired for Diskriter through them. All sounded great, but something else sounded better so I took it instead. I got a very rude email and was ignored after that email. Very bad business ethics!!
Has anyone else had a bad experience with
Amphion?  I am sure I am not the only one who has found out they are just like everyone else
Experience
Can anyone tell me what companies are more selective in their hiring process, requiring more experience than 1-2 years, and willing to pay for it. I am starting to feel this must be an unrealistic expectation.
What's the experience been like sm.
I have very high expectations as I have a lot of experience.  I need to know if they are nice people there.  I was told I would be working on a regular hospital, not a teaching hospital but when I got the specs for the hospital it mentions residents.  That is a teaching hospital.  The things these companies try to pull over on you.  Like I wouldn't know it was a teaching hospital right away anyway.  The pay seems poor:(  I don't know if they deserve a try or not.  The owner seems uncaring about my situation.  I don't know, I just want a nice decent place to work that pays well.
Any experience with DSG, Inc.?
nm
How much experience do they want? NM
XX
My experience..........sm
I think they are great to work for. Management is great, very helpful. Always work available. They do offer benefits, I can't tell you about them because I don't need them. There are also incentives for higher producers. Go for it!
Not in my experience
They may supply software or foot pedals, depending on the company, but I have not heard of being supplied a computer as an IC.
Any experience out there with...sm
Shaw's Keystroke Services, Rochester, New York?
So-so experience

The line Expander used by Spheris was the least of my worries. I found it extremely easy to merge my own list into theirs. Ask your TL for instructions.


Like most everyone else I had trouble getting my line count. I never got dinged for it, but then I never once qualified for a bonus the whole time I was there - 1 year. I, too, wasted tons of time looking over account specifics. Just when  you get used to one account, they throw in a new one, then you have to second and triple guess everything you do all over again. I finally quit when they threw in another work type with horrible dictators and my line count dropped by half for 2 weeks. I couldn't afford to work for them anymore.


And don't get me started about the freakin' time clock. I hated that thing.


As far as the company is concerned I liked them just fine. Management was fair and I always got along with my TL. I did have one that was witch from hell, but I don't think this is a reflection on the company. It was a personal difference between the two of us that we couldn't work out.


I wish you luck. I wasn't all that successful making many in MT. My income continued to go down each year so I left.


Any experience with...sm
InHealth Transcription Services
I had a very bad experience with them too
They were dishonest about things. Not the way to run a company at all!
My experience.....sm

I worked there for a short time recently.  The people who worked there were nice, pay was okay, but I had sound issues with the account I was on.  Nothing I did fixed it, so I would have to guess the problem was at their end.  As a result of this, my line production went down instead of up, which is why I left.  If it weren't for that, I'd still be there.


Good luck to you!


I had the same experience (sm)
They were all gung-ho, and then I never heard from them after their saying they'd contact me. You will have to call them and keep on them. They're not snubbing you. It's lack of organization. You may not get a call if you don't follow up.

I was hired and had a great experience with them. Best QA people. They will leave you alone unless there are problems. They don't bug you for little crap like the other companies do. The setting your own schedule and working when you can is the best.

Good luck!
Need to know more about experience. sm

Can you do acute care? How many years of experience? Do you need benefits? 

The only one I know of that lets you work when you want is OTI (aka Oracle). It's wonderful that way. No benefits, though, and must have acute care experience.


Almost 5 yrs experience

This is bad but I'm a little confused with what acute care consists of? I have Radiology experienc in a hopsital setting but I've also typed Oncology, Ophthalmology, Nutrition, Cardiology, Pulmonology, Internal Med, Family Practice and Psychiatry/Psychology reports. I went to school so I have typed ALL kinds of reports, they were just a long time ago.


I'm a fast learner and with a template or an example of an old exam I can figure out what needs to be done. I can send you my resume if you'd like. Just e-mail me.



Heather


This has never been my experience with MDI.
I've seen several posts like this from MDI MTs over the years about these supposedly fantastic 300+ line counts per hour, and I never believe any of them.  I've been at MDI almost 10 years now working on hospital accounts, and I know better.  The line counts most definitely went down, down, down when Bayscribe came along...No doubt about it. 
my experience - sm
I left Diskriter because it was a nightmare trying to make a paycheck. I've been a Transcriptionist for 12 years so I'm not new to the field. I would have days where I couldn't get up from my computer and days where I was a prisoner in my house waiting for work. Email response was slow. Paychecks were an issue a couple of times. I left and went to Alltype and have been happy ever since.
my experience..
i started with acute care, which to me is harder because of the different work types like h/p, consults, ops, er, etc; it't a little bit of everything and can be overwhelming. by the time you get to clinic notes or multi-special clinic notes, they seem easier and familiar; just a little bit more detailed in each specialty. if you're a go-getter, i would say go for the acute care. but nothing wrong in learning clinics first also; it will get you ready for acute care.

i dont know about everyone else, but i have had more ESL (and junk english-speaking doctors) in acute care, especially if it is a teaching hospital. good luck.
My experience
Have worked for several different companies on Ex-Text. Be careful. If you go to ICHART site to get your line count, it will sometimes be lighter than you expect as it does not post there immediately. If you do a control I to get your line count while in Ex-Text you will see what you get after each report. This figure was always higher than what was on the ICHART site. Some facilities have disabled this feature while working on Ex-Text because people were questioning this discrepancy. Demand to know up front in advance what, if anything, is being deducted and for what reason, and ask where you will get your line count from. You should be able to see immediately what you are getting. In my past experience, when my lines were counted with Control I, they were slightly better than using the MS Word Counter. When I used the ICHART site count, they were lighter. Also, do not work for anyone with Ex-Text who deducts money from your paycheck saying you give back x number of lines per report because they don't get paid for that. That is nonsense. There is 1 company in FL that did this to me in the past, and I WALKED fast. Good luck to you.
Yes! Seems the more experience you have
the more they egg you on, but then don't get back to you. I think they are afraid they may have to pay too much for a good MT, so would rather hire substandard.
Here's my experience. SM

You can only choose employee status if you are in California.  Their accounts are the absolute worst of the worst, and I mean BAD, BAD, BAD.  They don't do direct deposit unless you are an employee and if you want your check sent overnight, they charge you $30.00.   The pay is decent but no bennies.  I don't know where the other poster got all the information but I have two friends who worked for them and I still do and they don't get any of that stuff.  Terrible company, extremely RUDE QA.  Would never recommend this company to anyone.


That has not been my experience with MDI...
Are you sure it is not the other MDI in Maryland, they are not related.
It has been my experience, and I
have a lot that when a company starts cleaning up, emphasis on TAT so that it is all nice and neat and putting out lots of work to appear prosperous,  that they are about to sell.