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Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

all the more reason to go to an accredited college or university

Posted By: if you want to further your education on 2005-10-30
In Reply to: When I went to school for this MT career - I was told I'd make $60,000 to $70,000 (SM)

and earning potential rather than waste time and money on some fly-by-night crappola that has no credibility.


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Anyone know anything about the University of
Wisconsin ad on mtjobs?  Anyone work for them now or in the past?  Just curious-might be interested in applying.  Thanks. You can email me privately if you like.
I know this University
Never worked for Diskwriter, but did work for UPMC (University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, used to be Presbyterian Medical Center) for several years. This is a large teaching institution with high ESLs. They were the first in the country to do heart transplants with Dr. Starzel and his group. That was when heart transplant was experimental.

If you have heavy experience with ESLs, you'll do fine.
I'm not sure who the other university hospitals use but

I never see anything on their sites or on CareerBuilder about hiring in-house MT's so apparently they're all using an outside service of some type.  Most hospitals I've worked in-house for use Medquist and another service at the same time (without Medquist's knowledge).


The only Phila. area hospital I've ever seen advertising for in-house MT's is Cooper in Camden, NJ (across the river from Philly).


Hahnemann University uses MQ, sm
Last I knew,

Temple University Health System uses MQ.

Thomas Jefferson Health System uses MQ.

Crozer Keystone Health System uses MQ.

Chester County Hospital uses MQ and a smaller service, don't know the name.

Most phyician practices in Delco use RX transcription out of Newtown Square, or ProType - Maureen I think is her name.

St. Christopher's, last I knew, was with MQ.

Did I forget any?



Consider this. When I was in college in 1970 sm,
I was making $1.50 per page typing papers double-spaced!! That was the going rate then. It wasn't even transcription but typing off handwritten or typed copy.


University of Texas -- Oh yea! n/m
b
If your college put MD on your certificate SM
would you be able to say you are a doctor?  AAMT owns the certified medical Transcriptionist designation and unless you take and pass that test you are not certified.
college degree?
Since when does a Transcriptionist have a college degree? It is not considered a college degree - it is a diploma or a certificate program.

I am very happy at present with my job as a MT. I do wish that I made more money than I did 16 years ago when I started, but I still make more than many college degree people. I am one of the people that spent the last year complaining about my income and you know what - in the last 3 months I sat down and took a good look at what I was doing and realized that a lot of my low income times were my own fault - how much time was I spending on this board, how much time was I spending walking to the laundry room, turning the TV, listening to the radio, fixing lunch for my family? I finally got me a timer and set it for an hour and work my hour instead of getting up and guess what? I consistently make $35-40 an hour - that is not cherry picking my reports, that is taking first in/first out as they come to me from the company I work for. I don't have a small clinic that I get the same doctors over and over, I work on a hospital account and have a lot of doctors and on top of that, I have only been on this job for 3 months so I am not used to these doctors by any means.

Anyway, I understand that we should have higher wages, I understand that we should be upset because our line rates are not going up and seem to be going down, but we cannot say that this profession is not a financially rewarding position if you are willing to work for it.

Where else can I go with a 1-year DIPLOMA and make $40 an hour? Then you add into the fact that yes, my power bill and internet bill is there for me to have to pay, but I am not putting gas in my car at $2.78 a gallon and driving 30 miles one way to an office, that I am not having to eat my lunch out every day, that I don't spend that extra 45 minutes to an hour driving each way every day that I don't get paid for - yes, I think we are still in a financially rewarding career!
OSI - State College, PA

Does anyone have any information about this company?  Do they have VR?  What is supervisor like?  What type of platform they use, etc.? Haven't heard much about them on this board but very curious to see if anyone has any info to offer. 


 


 


I graduated from a community college, but

my first job was not at a National. I got a job at a hospital first, then after two years was hired by MQ. If you can get experience, I think it's easier to get on with Nationals. It is probably possible without experience, though. I would just give it a try.


I wonder if it would be possible to find a university that would need an experienced MT to just do
OR reports.  Is this possible. 
I have when I graduated college, that gave it away as well!
Burned. LOL.
So right! Just because a job doesn't require a college
And if a job is worth doing well and being diligent about (which most jobs are), then they're worth paying the workers fairly for. The U.S. exploits farm workers, office workers, MTs, nurses, computer programmers, teachers, you-name-it. And they do so by not putting a cap on overpaid, do-nothing CEOs' salaries (as in.... banks and stock market, for starters!), and by rewarding companies for sending work offshore, instead of PENALIZING them financially for doing so. There should also be something done about all the work that has become IC and/or part-time work. All so they don't have to pay for insurance. Lots of highly educated computer techies now have part-time jobs and no insurance. There should be a way for IC's & part-timers to get insurance through their companies. The insurance industry needs an overhaul, as well, then maybe this would be possible. The fat-cats at the top get paid the big, over-inflated bucks because what they do (when they're not sitting around picking their noses) is they see how many insurance claims they can deny, including perfectly legitimate ones. I recently had a small claim for a medical procedure that was necessary, and I followed the ins. company's instructions to the letter. and did they pay one red cent? Nope. The industry is a fraud, and I'd love to see that one tank, just like the banks & stock market are doing right now. Then maybe something could be done about it. Meanwhile, those of us doing our respective jobs every day, and getting paid less and less, are taking pets to the pound we can no longer afford to feed, telling our kids we can only afford for them to go to a local junior college because there's no money for the real thing, watching savings accounts shrivel because we can no longer fund them, and keep siphoning off of them every few weeks to keep the bills paid, and watch any hope whatsoever of being able to live our older years with any kind of peace or security go right down the drain.

Greed sucks, and there's way too much of it in this country.
Wondering, does your college teach SM
expander use as part of its basic transcription course?
Anyone here work inhouse at Stanford University? - sm

Or know someone who does?  If so, any comments, pro or con, about working there?  I'm moving to that area soon, and was wondering if they're hiring.


Yes my college degree is worth more than $11 an hour.
..
Anyone here for for University of Kansas Medical Center? Please let me know. Thanks.
I work at home for a national now and I'm wondering if KU outsources or does in-house and about their benefits. Not a newbie, have 11 years experience in acute care. Rock chalk!
I have an A.A. degree in English from a 'real' college that
Sounds like AHDI ('All Hindi-speaking Dufuses International') is just trying to find another way to lure MTs into wasting their money on their ridiculous 'credential'.

And if they did elevate the credential to the equivalent of a degree, then they'd have to also acknowledge that MTs be PAID as 'professionals', as well.

I laugh every time I read something that group generates - it gets more ridiculous every year, doesn't it?
Kind of like an education at liberal arts college...
is it necessary that I know Henry Moore is a sculptor in order to get my Bachelor's degree in Science? No...just makes me a more well-rounded individual (and NO, not my shape!). Hahaha
I'm back in college part-time after 24+ years
I figured this is the only to get my foot to the right job. My daughter will be 11 soon and by the time I finish my school that I did not finish after 24+ years, I could definitely be making 2 or 3 times more money than 7 cents per line. I can work at my local Starbucks part-time making $10.00 an hour with excellent benefits!!!
You had better believe it. Working 12 years in a huge university and now offered 8 cpl. nm
:
That is terrible. You know, those women have no idea how to handle all these big university accounts
that are moving up there. They are very very wrong about some of the things they do and it seems like they really dont know as much as they would like you to think they do. That is absolutely disgusting that they did that. I hope that MT reported them to anyone in New Jersey they could find. I would have taken that as far as I could have if I would have been her to the CEO. That is just horrendous. My goodness, why does MQ continue with them. I believe firmly if you make enough calls you will find someone that is willing to listen and take the info where it needs to go I believe that.
University of Iowa Med Center announced layoffs yesterday
I think the news report said they were getting rid of 130 people now, a total of 200 this year. Fortunately (their word, not mine), they're not going to have to make any cuts in people who have patient contact but in administrative areas (that'd be us). Truthfully, I'm not sure if they even still have in-house transcriptionists, but you know that if they do, they'll be the first to get their marching papers.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System Hospitals is huge in Philadelphia. Do they hire their
own MTs for those hospitals does anyone know. They must have a large amount of transcription to be done.
You can be fired for any reason or no reason at all.
No one HAS to employ you. No one MUST keep you in employment.

As an IC, your unemployment isn't coming from the account of your contracts! It comes from YOUR tax payments!


Maybe there's a reason for that.
I find it hard to believe that it's just a coincidence that so many people are having so many problems with so many different companies for it to be just the fault of the ones you call complainers. A lot of people really do something about, but it's still a big upheaval in their lives and I don't hold it against them just for looking for someone to share it with. 
The reason they are doing this
like the other person said is to be more competitive with the market but what they are actually doing is lining the pockets of the big shots they just hired with the savings they don't have to pay their employees. Goodbye!
The reason I'm asking sm

I just wondered what it would take to make that kind of money per line. 


I have close to 20 years experience in acute care and I was not offered even close to that, with only a half cent raise after the 2 week period, which still does not get me to what you are getting.  How many years have you been with them? 


 


Reason for U

Here is a reason, the owner of Omniscribe goes back on her word.  She will tell you one thing, then do another when the mood suites her with no thought to you as an MT whatsoever.  Is that a good reason for ya?  BTW do u work for her?  Why do you need a reason when someone tells you to beware of a company?  Isn't that reason enough? 


Exactly!! And that is the reason
work is being offshored!! People crazy enough to accept something ridiculous as 4 cpl!!
Some MTs will try to think of any reason why they just are
not hired. They totally overlook the actual problem, that being themselves! I guess they need an excuse so why not make up something called a black list? That's as good a reason as any to deny that you just lack the qualifications of some companies or just are not a good MT.


Any reason...
Yes, I believe you're right there. It is always easier to blame the other guy than to be accountable for our own shortcomings. The reality is that there ARE some good companies out there, not all are bad, and yet it seems they all take the heat with things like this. I find that unfortunate and would hope that any recruiter of those good companies would weed those folks out in the interview process.
For what reason?
Have you not returned equipment?  Do you still have a foot pedal, computer, etc.?  What else in the world would there be to bother you about?
This is the reason why (m)
it's impossible to get any real info here. You can't be honest unless you have only good things to say. I also would not be shocked to learn that people from the companies themselves post some of these questions just to see what kind of responses they get, then axe the people who respond in a way they don't like.
Because there's no reason..sm
..for the OP to want/need to know anything personal about us, let alone our SO.  And it doesn't matter why WE decided to get into the field.  Everybody has their own reasons, the way I see it, and why I went into it or why you went into it may be different than why he/she goes into it, so what difference does it make really.  That was the way I took it.  Seems very personal, just in terms of the asking about your SO part and the benefits.  I tend to think it's MTSOs trying to find out info on us and why maybe they don't need to offer us benefits.  Just being paranoid maybe, but you never can be too cautious these days.
Yup....that's the reason I went with them! (nm)

The reason I am an MT- sm

I have done this for 25+ years.  If I was choosing a career at this point, I don't know if I would choose MT - it has changed drastically in my lifetime.  However, I would like to tell you why it is chosen and why we do continue.


When I first started doing this, I had no clue regarding the enormous amount of information I would be required to learn.  I did not know that it would be an ongoing and never-ending process of learning.  I just thought it would be cool to type medical reports and wondered how hard it could be to listen to someone talk and type what they said!  When I started getting a clue it became a challenge.  I was already hooked, learning new things every day, feeling important because I had doctors talking into my ears, and knowing things about health/medicine that I had not known before.  After a few years of striving to learn medical terminolog and hours and of hours of research in books and online trying to make sense of what I was hearing, I decided I had invested too much time/effort to do anything else.


For every medical report that is typed, someone behind the keys has had to learn terminology, lab values, physiology, anatomy, medications, proper style/grammar, and do it all quickly. 


It is not the companies or the nickel/dime antics they play that keep us doing this.  It is a geniune love for what we do - at least for me.  I don't feel superior because of the knowlege I have gained over 25 years; however, I have worked hard to learn the things that make me a good medical transcriptionist.  I am happy with my job/life because I choose to be.  I could complain about the companies, MTSOs, etc., but I have worked at other jobs and had complaints.  If it was not a job, I would not get a paycheck. 


I love the field.  I enjoy typing medical reports.  I enjoy the research.  I am good at what I do.  By the way, if you ever find yourself on the receiving end of our work (in a hospital bed), think of your chart as the medical transcriptionist's gift to you - hopefully it will be typed by an experienced MT who stayed in the profession and knows how to do it right. 


ITA and my #2 reason I'm looking for another job. nm
 
I know the reason...

It used to be that the only abbreviation anything you could use with Lotus was what you could enter in MS-Word...no abbreviation Expander was compatible (for a lot of reasons I'm not going into just now).  In any event, there was a compatibility problem with Lotus not counting all the characters expanded by abbreviation programs and the transcription manager was having to go in and manually count the characters to give the MT the proper pay.  You can imagine that was a nightmare!


They have finally found a compatible abbreviation program that is fully compatible with Lotus...it is the only one compatible.  Good company, honest people...They WANT you to succeed.


The reason for that
is because OSi has a difficult time staffing and then the workload gets way behind. That's also why they offer such a big hiring bonus. Unfortunately most MT's don't stay there long enough to collect it.
I have no reason to lie.
I make copies of my report prior to uploading when they must go to QA. I have been an MT for many years. There have been times when I have left a blank in a sentence and after seeing what QA has done..they deleted the entire sentence. I had no problems whatsoever hearing the other parts of the sentence.

DSG sucks in so many ways it is not even funny. There are no checks and balances in terms of the QA staff. I have no idea what their requirements are but I KNOW FOR A FACT THAT THEY HAVE ENTERED RUBBISH IN THE BLANKS!!! Terms that could not be referenced ANYWHERE!

SOOOOOOOO....while you are wasting time reading this board...why don't YOU go work on a plan to do audits of the QA staff. And, since you want to be so informative...what happened to the QA manager who was recently hired and now is gone???????? Huh????
she will want to know the reason
I think your liason will probably be willing to move you to a new primary, but I would guess that they would want to know the reason why you want to move. Just explain it in basic terms in a professional way.
Is this the only reason you
are thinking you might not stay? I am thinking about applying, but I would like some input. It seems like it could be worth waiting for pay if it is stable and on time. It might be a wait for the first check, but after that pay would be twice a month, so it seems like there is something else that you don't like. Is the line rate good? Since you have had a week or so, maybe you could tell me what their dictators are like and if you get put on a bunch of accounts or just one. How about the platform, easy to use or not? Any information would be helpful.
There is no reason to take this job...
There are lots of other jobs out there - apply to those.  Check the company board and you'll find reputable companies.  I've even applied in the past to companies that weren't advertising but actually did have positions available (just no need for 100's of applicants).  There's just no reason to torture yourself with this company.
This is the very reason
that companies overhire to keep their word with their clients regarding TAT.  They give the client their word the work will be kept in TAT and then the MTs do not work if they do not feel like it and what is the end result.  Same old story of how a few bad apples make everyone pay the price one way or another.
I think the reason
that they had to change it to the 7th and 22nd because we were needing a certain pay date. I know when I first started it was there like the next day, and then it went to two or three days. The more people they added plus the manual counting plus us always worrying is probably what prompted them to saying hey, it's just going to be the 7th and 22nd now.

Plus it does say in our contract they have up to 7 days after the cut off date.

(Maybe our banks should quit screwing around and just let the money go in there as soon as there is a DD, I know that would make things A LOT better! :) )
One reason
My experience with AllType was one of serious email communication problems.  Then, when the paperwork was finally sent, it did not reflect the information discussed during the interview.  Seemed like it would be a hostile working environment.  Just my opinion, but was enough to cause me to call a halt to the process.
One reason
Focus is not the same company that they were 2 years ago.  They were sold to Nuance in 2007.  They used to be nicer to their current employees, too, but that changed.
Here's one reason why :
In a word: * QA *.

You do a good job. You research. You proofread. You turn out a correctly transcribed medical document.

Then some Editor who is paid a low, per-correction production rate gets hold of your work for *random QA*, and since there's nothing wrong with your work, takes it upon themselves to make changes, so they'll get paid more.

And voila. Now you have a report that's a piece of crap, and you never know it until it goes to the doc, and the doc complains to the MTSO. Then you get called for the *mistake* and docked for it.
There is no reason to tell them you
are working PT for someone else.
There is really no reason to tell your
FT job you work PT for another company. The only conflict would be if your FT company supplied your computer and you used it to work PT for the other company.