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Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

Looking from the opposite side of the fence

Posted By: you make me sick on 2006-05-13
In Reply to: Heartland Layoffs - OP

Remember QA person, you are getting paid by the HOUR to research blanks, MTs do not, they work on PRODUCTIVITY. Now, I don't leave any blanks because I have personal pride, but when can't understand it and I spend 5 minutes on ONE WORD I figure my job is done. You QA people can research it from there, because the last I knew no one works for FREE, or maybe you would like to? I can't buy groceries or pay the bills with all that free gratis work the company and you QA hourly folks would WISH I did.




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Then there is the other side of the fence .....
This is the direct opposite of a cheerleader.  This is a person who belittle any and all conversations/questions about a company.  They try to steer newbies away from the company by slandering them and bashing them, sometimes with not so factual comments.  There is a fine line to walk and it is hard to determine who is who sometimes.  Best to use your judgment.
I'm on the fence on this one......
He made some good points, and if some of the upgrades he talked about happened they might be good (excluding VR, anyway! UGH!) but as someone else said, the recurring theme of the meeting was MONEY, and GROWTH. How fast or rampant that growth may be is anyone's guess. I'm not ready to dust off the ol' resume yet, but instead will probably ride it out ---- FOR NOW anyway, to see just how much of this meeting was truth and how much is fiction. I've been to SO many meetings at other companies in the past (sometimes about MT, sometimes about other things), but have learned over the years that you just can't trust the bigwigs not to be giving you a snow job. At the very least, today was fortunately not a mass lay-off. But I've learned that in this profession you just never know for sure what's over the horizon.
FOR MDI MTs on the fence - sm
Just in case someone at MDI is still on the fence about staying with Transcend, I want to share with you the caring, big happy family nature of Transcend.  When one of my parents died suddenly, being the responsible MT I am, I called the office to tell them, as obvious this event did affect my schedule. Their response?  Does this mean you aren't finishing your shift?....not ONE word of sympathy, no card, NOTHING....just something to think about if you're still on the fence about staying or leaving.
I love your analogy of the fence painter s/m

You are right on.  Some of us are old enough to remember when we worked directly for the hospital.  Rarely, if ever, was there a shortage of work.  There is no shortage now either regardless of the economy.  What there is is an oversupply of typists.   With the health care reform on the table, hospitals need to cut costs associated with their necessary medical record department.  Are they saving money by outsourcing?  I think not. 


Only the American workers in any industry can change the way they are treated.  They must band together by whatever means, not necessarily unionization per se.   While it is about unionization, I would suggest everyone get and watch the movie Norma Rae.  The point is change doesn't happen without those who are willing to make personal sacrifices to see it happen. 


I do just the opposite
I live alone. I brush my teeth, may or may not get out of my PJs, comb my hair maybe once a week. I am totally pathetic. But...I love it!
Just the opposite for me. The first
2 weeks I had 80% ESLs and a lot of bad sound quality, and since then I've had days like that interspersed with easy days. But I've built up my normals so even the ESLs are fine for me now. The only reports I hate are the long ones with the long pauses that put me to sleep, and some long cardiac cath reports by a slurrer.
just the opposite

I'm drowning! Are you acute care or clinic?


 


opposite for me
i left MQ, interviewed with KS and decided to go with MDI instead, and for me, am so happy i did. there's a good fit for everyone i guess!!
Or...they think the opposite
...they will say, Oh, so you do data entry. lol I could probably earn more money doing 'data entry'.
No, it has been just the opposite. They've been
I just have a hard time with their platform and the account that I'm on is very difficult.  They don't harrass me at all about not meeting the quota.  I'm just worried about it myself because I need the benefits and I'm not sure if it's just me or if the other people below were having the same problem.
and I had just the opposite experience with him.
x
Actually the opposite is more true
You wrote: The problem is that they (MTs) seem nice and normal when being hired and then their true self shines through within days or weeks.

My experience is the opposite with Mom and Pop MTSOs: They tend to be overworked - or - they don't want to be bothered with actually running a business properly.

Ask for clarification, or point out an error and some of these nice and normal sounding MTSOs turn snarky, defensive, and dismissive. Or as in the case of this company, they alternate that with totally ignoring you.

You are correct - there are MTs from h___ however, it's clear from reading the trend of complaints on this board that people aren't looking for extraordinary treatment - just general respect. Like being paid on time. Disclose up front if you tie payment to payment by your client! Like being properly trained. Like answering questions promptly and politely, and taking responsibility for when the MTSO is at fault.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T! find out what it means to me. Hey! giveit2megiveit2me. uh huh!
RUN IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION!
nm
I am soooo the opposite
If I were making this posting, I would be asking if anybody knew who made a 'clicky' keyboard, because to my ear, they're all too quiet. I need to be able to 'hear' what my fingers are doing, which may make sense to some of the people on here. I don't know if it's some kind of subconscious thing or what, like instantaneous letter counting or something, but I can almost 'hear' a typo and God only knows what I would be typing if I didn't get that immediate feedback. I just turn up my volume and, if it's really tough, type really gently through the bad section (and hopefully it's just a sentence or so).
I am soooo the opposite
If I were making this posting, I would be asking if anybody knew who made a 'clicky' keyboard, because to my ear, they're all too quiet. I need to be able to 'hear' what my fingers are doing, which may make sense to some of the people on here. I don't know if it's some kind of subconscious thing or what, like instantaneous letter counting or something, but I can almost 'hear' a typo and God only knows what I would be typing if I didn't get that immediate feedback. I just turn up my volume and, if it's really tough, type really gently through the bad section (and hopefully it's just a sentence or so).

But in answer to your question, it seems to me that a lot of the black Microsoft keyboards are pretty darn quiet, both the straight and ergonomic ones.
I had the opposite response.

Actually I think the opposite happened from the "attacks"
I hope they compare apples to apples and not apples to oranges.
Too funny! I hear just the opposite.sm
I still speak to the records director at the hospital I used to work at. A certain unmentionable company lost a several million dollar account with them when it was discovered they were outsourcing work to Indians. Another large practice has several lawsuits pending from US QA editors Americanizing dictation done by Indians. I've seen the work and it is atrocious.
I found just the opposite is true (sm)
With most companies (outside of medical transcription), being an IC means that you work when you want, for as long as you want, with no set schedule. In medical transcription, these companies use IC status to get around having to pay benefits and deduct taxes, and they STILL require you to work a set schedule, even as an IC. I can't speak for all transcription companies, but that has been my experience. They want you to be classified as an IC, so they don't have to do taxes and pay benefits, but they still want to treat you like an employee.
completely opposite experience here sm

I've received direct deposit, a day before the official pay day of Friday for each and every check, including my first one (which is extremely rare in my experience). 


I have plenty of work available on my account, but I have been trained on 2 different accounts (1 on eScription, the other on ExTEXT).  They've been very friendly and helpful the few times I've had to call them.  The rest of the time, they leave you alone.  As long as you work your shift and meet productivity requirements, they seem pretty hands off. 


It's like any place, I'm sure, what works for some doesn't work for others.  Each person has different needs/requirements. 


Sorry you had trouble. Hope you found a better place for you.


In response to "just the opposite....."
Well, HATS OFF to that MT who got that account! About time someone gave up and stood up to do something for herself to survive this mess.

Quote: ...cannot even get 0.13 per line and most clients want 0.12. Rediculous!

Honey, I'm an MT and I am salivating. From annuals in or around the 70Ks, to living out my savings, I am now on the credit cards because the services are in a tizzy. Got Valium?

Obviously, because the way things are for you services, we MTs feel the need for protection in working for same, regarding overall integrity and how that damages us.

The workers did not ruin it for the companies; we did not make it so damn competative out there. That one is between all you organizers and the VR creators. The only thing we are guilty of is doing good job that made you shine when this profession was, in fact, a profession.

Yet, you people (aside from a select few these days) ARE ruining it for us, rendering it useless to continue without ethical boundaries in your attempts to keep the company afloat.

Well, and I'm so, so sorry, but the MTs ARE this business with an -ist.

So, I guess it has finally some to this: Unionize - or pair up and organize. Reclaim self-respect, self-worth by getting hired on for say, 11 cpl, even. It only takes ONE facility for me, just one.


I have the opposite experience.. I have a lot of communication
I don't feel like a number there, I really feel like a part of the family.
Sometimes you can get completely opposite opinions from
MTs, not just a disgruntled MT versus owner/recruiter/supervisor.

Unfortunately a lot of companies play favorites, even though they may say it cannot or is not being done. The MT who gets the short end of the stick is going to, rightfully, complain about bad situations and bad line counts, hard work, etc. The ones who are spoonfed by their supervisors - get the jobs with all the normals, get the accounts with easy line counts and easy dictators, are going to think it is wonderful.

I have been watching the boards for a long time. I remember 1 company that was touted as being the best in the world (located in Florida and is almost a bad word now), sent flowers to every new employee, etc., but gave the new people all the rotten work to do. Same happens with a lot of other companies, and if work is low, the favorites are allowed to continue to work and the others have to try to make up the time as best they can.

A lot of companies have different platforms to work on, some easy, some not so great. Line counting may be different on different accounts. There are a lot of reasons for the discrepancies in posts.
It;s the exact opposite where I work
We are flooded with work and are being asked to work extra.
I get charged the opposite - i have to pay $5 per check for DD. nm
@
Quite the opposite. I have found mostly positives. sm
I started 4 months ago and so far, so good. When I was doing research, it seemed that all the negative posts were from the same 2 or 3 people, one in particular that harps on no raises and no OT pay. Everyone I have talked to at KS and other MT's that I know at KS all say the opposite is true; they do give raises and do not expect you to work OT. When the do ask you to, they often say holiday pay, which means 1-1/2 times your regular rate, just like OT pay. I did get my raise at 90 days, as promised. I do have the work I need to get the lines I need to make the checks that I need, so I am happy. The training was excellent, and the QA feedback helpful not spiteful.
I have the exact opposite experience
I did have to tell them approximately when I would be working (mornings, afternoons, etc.) so they know who is on when stats come through. I did not have to give them an exact schedule that I am required to stick to.

They do require Messenger, but I have only be IM'd once in the 6 months I have worked for them and that was for request to do a STAT report. I don't feel I am monitored.

I have missed several days of work and been a no show due to my kid being sick, but it has never been an issue. They have never even mentioned the days I have missed.

I guess the lack of work may be an account thing. My account has only ran out of work 2 days out of the 6 months I have worked on it. I have plenty of work and only work on 1 account for them, but I could easily get a secondary if needed as I have received several emails announcing openings on otherr accounts.

I do agree that the Iscriptor can be slow, but it is comparable to other platforms I have worked on. I like it better than Inscribe and Extext. Just personal preference I guess.

I have worked with many companies and Advanced is one of the better ones in my opinion. I feel I am left alone to do my work, but when I need help, someone is only an IM away and is always ready to help.

Just goes to show how people can have completely different experiences with the same company.
I had the exact opposite experience!
I was recently contacted by a SoftScript recruiter as a result of my resume posted on this site. She informed me that I seemed perfectly suited for an acute care (Big 4) position, even though my resume makes it clear that my experience and interest lies in clinical transcription and editing, not acute care!


This is just the opposite for me..plenty on weekends. (nm)

Just the opposite. The rates we charge have gone down too because of offshore sm
and several other reasons, including MTs that go in and get accounts for the amount that they are paid by a company. I had a potential customer decide against us at the last minute because a new Transcriptionist offered to do their work for 0.08 per line. They said that they could work with her being new.

I also see times where newer companies willl go in and underbid everyone just to get their foot in the door. Then other doctors or clinics or hospitals that are looking call around to their friends at other offices and find out that they got that low rate and no way are they going to pay 0.14 per line.

When I started 16 years ago with my own accounts, I charged .18 per line. Now I cannot even get 0.13. Most want 0.12 or under. Ridiculous!
I do NOT feel that I am treated disrespectfully! Quite the opposite, really. sm

ALL of the support people I have dealt with have been extremely polite and helpful.  I hear please and thank you all of the time.  You do not get that too much anywhere nowadays, it seems.


Granted, I would have been happy if I had been like the one poster and had been paid this Saturday, which is what the original post was abuot, it seems, but I always know that I WILL be paid. It is not like some of these MTSOs I read about who write bad checks, give excuses about paying late, cheat you on your pay, etc.  They are very honest people and I never worry about that end.  In fact, they have shown me kindness in the past where others would not have cared at all. 


There are problems with all companies, and this company is not perfect, but then again I have not found any company that IS perfect.  Admittedly, when I was first told that the company was in India, I was a bit taken aback as I had always viewed them as the enemy.  However, all of the transcription is done in the US, and the work is sent to India to be pasted into the GEMMS platform. How it works out to be cost effective for them I do not know, but anything that saves me having to type directly into that nasty platform (GEMMS) is a blessing.  I now have a couple of other jobs, but that is only because I wanted to be an employee with benefits.


I feel bad that this whole thing has turned into a bashing of the company and especially Tonya.  It is true that she has gotten busy, but I always know that I can email her or call her and she will get back with me.  There are times that the work dried up for me and I was not happy, especially when I saw ads for more MTs, but I also blame myself for not talking to the right people about it.  Most issues can be worked out if you just deal directly with the people who can help you and not just come anonymously on a message board and complain.  In fact, I wrote to Tonya about the paycheck issue, and she confirmed for me that they had my invoice and the funds had been issued, so that was that.


Bottom line, the pay is decent, the work is easy, and the people are great.  People could find far worse places to work.


I apologize for the long post, but when I saw that post, it really annoyed me.  Thanks for letting me vent. 



Well, MY experience with unions is the exact opposite...
My dad was in a textile worker's union for 35 years. He had to go through a strike when he had 3 small kids. For six weeks, he received $20 a week and only two bags of groceries for the whole duration. He lost his job at 35 years from the plant closing. That is not to mention that his union wages had us always barely making it, and the union never once did a thing about the conditions they had to work in. He has struggled with a form of bladder cancer for 19 years from working in those conditions and the chemicals used there.

Ask the auto manufacturers what the union has done for them. Yes, the workers are making it fine laid off, but the companies are near death. Those companies feed our nation. We're 1000 miles from Detroit and our livelihood depends on those car companies staying up and running. My husband's company does not make a thing related to cars, but the company that OWNS his company does.

Bottom line is that if this industry has come to the point that we are discussing needing a union, then maybe we need to either get government intervention to standardize the industry, set regulations about ONLY US work for US medical records, and use only certified workers, OR we need to go back to college for our next career choice.
We are opposite, not as stressful for me and the money is fine
I make at least $20 or more per hour and that is ok with me, plus the fact that the ESLs that are on there (which there are many!) I am happy because it will get those a lot easier than I need to rack my brain for.
I experienced just the opposite..lost hospital job,
nm
i think the opposite, give the boot to those who are wasting everyone's time and just don't ge
the quality dropping also drops our pay for good MTs who care about quality.
sorry.....intro should have read i felt the opposite last year....until
nm
My experience exact opposite- Me willing work 6 days, regular sched, 100% QA last review- Company: N
Me: Ready, willing and able to work 6 days a week, regular schedule, 100% QA my last review, on all ESL's doctors.

Companies: No work. All ESL work. All the worst dictators. No work, did I mention that. Don't want to buy new software or any software to help the MT. Ridiculous formatting rules to decrease my line count. Low line count rate. No holiday pay. Have to work holidays.

Your post was way, way out of line. Maybe you work for a great company, SO tell us who it is.

I've tried 10 companies in 10 years, and they were all the same. Pick my brain and make me work hard, hard, hard for ? 150 lines an hour with ALL ESL, poor sound quality, and then don't really want to pay for the 150 lines, want to jiggle and wiggle it down to 120 or less with rules.
Thanks to all of you who see my side!
Thought I might be fighting this battle on my own. I'm glad to see that there are people who feel that posters should be responsible for proving negative accusations. Thanks!
MDI side
I agree...and I even like AIM also. There are much worse places to work, BTDT!!
yes..you are on his side, because besides--sm
not sending the money he owes his MT in the first place, he is taking more of it away from what she earned by charging her to send money he refused to send in the first place. It comes down to *fault*, not capitalizm. He was the one that was wrong. she did not ASK him to overnight the check, so why should she pay for it? If he had paid on time, there would be no issue. Greed is not the way to do business...and you wanting to add a surcharge on top of a $25 overnight fee, puts you in that category, as well. JMO
I'm sure I'm ont he other side
I've always been paid every other Friday the whole year that I have been there, so that must be why I, along with a ton of other people, never got that message. I also never got the e-mail about the insurance benefits, but I don't get them, so it doesn't matter to me at all.javascript:editor_insertHTML('text','');
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The other side of it . . .
what's the harm in stating their preference. The schedule cannot be enforced but maybe the days and times posted is when the work is available.
Think about the other side

Its nice to say you could never work for an MTSO that only uses US based MTs. But what if that MTSO is told by its large clients that they will use a different service if they don't reduce costs. Would you rather the MTSO drop the cpl you get or would you prefer they use offshore help to reduce the overall price but keep your CLP the same?


Seems to me that the MTSO that works to keep your CPL is looking out for you.


what is the GT side?? nm
,,
I'm on your side, 34
I was actually just trying to make a joke of a situation that has caused me grief for a long time now. I have been doing this 28 years (if you want to factor in all of my late-night moonlighting jobs, probably 40 years!!). I have seen this profession go from in-house, Selectric II typewriters, WordPerfect 5.1, and desktop tape transcribers to everything you need wrapped up in a nice little computer and INET voice files and the ability to work in your jammies. Over 25 years of experience and here I sit and can't find a job. Well, let's back up... I was offered a couple of 7 cent a line jobs and one 8.5 but I had to work graveyard shift and weekends with my choice of IC or employee. I forgot to mention the 40% ESL rate. There is always something that makes me feel like I'm getting the shaft. I know there are good accounts out there. Who is doing them? I'm too freakin' old for this!!! I feel like beatin' someone with my cane, ha ha. I like to keep it light because I don't want to get irritable bowel syndrome over it... but, come on... something's gotta' give here.
I don't like the CM side at all (sm)
The platform is lousy compared to Enterprise. The staff is different (brought in from elsewhere) and has a very different culture than the rest of Webmedx. I would not recommend anybody work on the Chartmatrix platform, especially if you have a choice between Enterprise and Chartmatrix!
I know I would too, and by my side would be
x
One side of WMX is on this.............
And supposedly, according to the example we were given today, production should increase considerably, but I doubt it will be enough to compensate for the cut in pay. There is a limit to the amount of work a person can crank out in a day.
Why don't you just jump over to MDI side!
You think Transcend is bad, honey work a week with MDI and then let's compare jelly beans.
do any of you do something extra on the side
My hands kill me just about every day now, and looking at my hands i have muscle breakdown and twitching, so i'd like to cut down on typing.  Want to find something to do on the side to earn maybe 1000 to 1500 dollars a month.  Was thinking about ebay, but i'm doubtful I could make that much, even though they hype up the advertisement by saying you could make 3000 MINIMUM.  I'm just desperate and feel like my hands are about to fall off.  I've spent close to 1000$ this year alone in keyboards, gloves, splints, doc visits, meds, changed my station around, hot soaks, cold soaks, exercises, stretches, vitamins. still my hands just sing every day esp at night.  So any extra money earning ideas you guys?  thanks
Flip side
I will have NO trouble doing that. My problem is I need to work more than 40 hours. If no more SE, I will be restricted to 40 hours/week.