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Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

good argument for doing away with

Posted By: deenibeeni on 2009-08-22
In Reply to: Anybody else been through this? - Staying Anonymous

being paid by the line. There's no way you can get top speed and top quality...one of the two will have to suffer.

Yes, I've seen similar embarrassing work. It's awful, & yes, it was probably done by someone who racks up billions and billions of lines per pay period, which I certainly don't.

I'm not sure I've ever understood why we are paid by the line. I suppose the argument is that this would be abused & exploited by MTs who want something for nothing & that instead of seeing it as an opportunity to do research & whatever else is necessary to produce a quality document, it would be an opportunity to work as fast as possible and use the rest of the time to eat bonbons.

Is this realistic? Are there really MTs who would do this, or is this just the stock justification for cpl?

I can't think of another profession that is paid this way. It turns us into sweatshop garment workers, not educated professionals who are one of the strongest links in the chain of patient care.

Help me out here. What are your thoughts?


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I have to provide good argument here, though.
That is no different than the MTs (new or even experienced) who have poor medical terminology, poor grasp of the English language, etc.

For the newbies who don't know the difference -- maybe in a test they do but when transcribing they don't get it -- between a hemorrhage and a hemorrhoid in the brain. For the experienced MTs who have never understood that pleural is lung, plural means more than one.

I've seen great work by US MTs and by offshore MTs, alike. I have also seen the most horrifyingly low-quality work from US MTs and offshore MTs alike.


That's a whole different argument...nm
x
Not to start a whole new argument, but sm
It seems awful strange that I know of at least 4 people that have left Transcend in the last 2 weeks or so from the same account because of lack of work all the time on either primary accounts or secondary accounts and now they don't have an ad posted, like they usually do to fill them back up fast.   Hmmmm, maybe they finally realized that they overhired!!!
Ad hominem argument -- sm
I'll admit I had to look that one up. I'm not too proud to say I've probably resorted to an ad hominem argument at some point and time, but now at least I'm more aware of it.
agree 300%--no argument here
it's just all about power and money
no argument here, I just wouldn't...
have called it TOTALLY IC.

I am totally IC--no schedule, no line requirement. But, I am not lazy, I need to eat and pay bills, and us ICs don't want our company to lose the accounts. Therefore, I commit myself to 1000-1200/lines per day whether it be split or straight shifts, and I try to commit myself to 4-5 days/wk.
You had an argument about her professionalism?

your bounds by discussing something like that with her?  I mean, after all, it's her company.  Is it really your place to talk to her about her professionalism when you work for her? 


And when you say she fired you - did she say you're fired?  Seems fishy to me that she'd email in an hour about work if she really did fire you.  And she doesn't have to fire you, she can just say she no longer needs your services.


That was the most well-spoken argument for
I agree 100%, as well. I know some people think that unions brought down the Big 3 automakers, but that's not so. Even their most well-paid line workers with the best bennies don't come anywhere close to what the Fat-Cats up in their designer-furniture-appointed, corner top-floor offices were (and still are) getting. For mismanagement. They aren't building the cars America wants, so they're buying Toyotas, Nissans and Hyundais instead.

When I tell people who are not in this business what an MT has to know before anyone will consider hiring her (or him), both medically and computer-literacy-wise, and then what they're expected to work for, their jaws hit the floor.

I was inhouse for many many years, but was eventually forced out, as although no one will admit to it yet, that office is job-by-job sending its work outside, and will most likely have nothing but a skeleton crew of workflow managers left before the end of next year. They couldnt be honest about it, either. They drove the top-rated, older MTs out with abusive treatment that actually made some workers physically ill. Others left an office that they realized to be a dead-end road.

So these days, many of us are working at home because that's all that's left of MT. Which is the best thing that could've happened to the most unscrupulous of the MTSO's, as not only do they not have the overhead of having to house a officeful of MTs, but they now have an 'invisible' workforce that has little to no contact with their coworkers, and often little to no contact with the office (unless of course, heaven forbid, they make an error).

I think lots of MTs know we need a spokesperson in our behalf, as we are basically an isolated bunch, swept under the rug by the healthcare industry and MTSOs alike. What unions have brought to workers like us in the past has been a VOICE. That's something few, if any MTs have these days.

I also think that after talking about this for years, thinking about it, being told it can't happen, but wishing that somehow MTs could be unionized, with our country's new leadership and thorough shaking-out of business-as-usual for the banking, stock, and auto industries, the time has finally come.

If ever an industry needed regulating, it's ours. And we're all but powerless to do anything as individuals; we have to join together for the strength to stand up to the unfair treatment we've endured for so long. We need a VOICE, and that's what unions are - they are the worker's VOICE.

We need more attention focused on the healthcare and insurance industries in this country, and that in turn may start the ball rolling in terms of bringing MT and substandard pay into public and legislative view.

I think people need to know that those of us interested in unionizing aren't talking about being over-paid, or over-compensated in any way, shape or form for what we do. All we want is a fair shake.... a decent day's pay for an honest day's work.

I'm willing to bet many of the nay-sayers on this board are possibly MTSO trolls. Those who are 'grateful' for their lousy 6 cpl jobs, or who say that it's all we deserve, are most likely the same types who think that when a woman is raped, it's her own fault.

And that's exactly what's happend to the MT industry. Gang-rape by AAMT in the beginning, and now by AHDI. By wealthy business-types who buy an MTSO not because they give a darn about healthcare, or their workers, or even know anything about medical transcription, but just because it's a good 'investment' -- to buy low and sell high, and make even more money.

(As for norma rae below, who says 'It's not 1970'; well, actually in a lot of ways it IS 1970. Do you make much more than you did in 1970? (I sure don't). Less, perhaps? Are we in a recession? Yup. Are we fighting a pointless war abroad? Yup. And are women treated as less-than-human in the workplace? Yup.

Yeah, nowadays they can't legally make sexist comments to us, force us to sit in a cigarette-smoke-filled office all day, or ask us to make coffee. But they're still sticking it to us wage-wise. Why? Because they CAN. Because we LET them. Because even in the 21st Century, many woman still believe they're 'lucky to have a job - ANY job' - and will grovel and lick the feet of anyone who tosses them a few cents and a scrap of meat. Or rapes them and tells them they 'want it'.

If ever there was a ripe opportunity to get a medical transcription union going, it's NOW. As this dismal year finally draws to a close, I hope lots of you will reflect on how much you know, and how long and how much work it took you to learn it. Reflect on how many hours you sit in front of that computer. 10 hours? 12? 14? 18 hours a day? All so that you can make that line-quota you're expected to be able to produce in 8 hours? How much overtime SHOULD you have been earning, but didn't get paid? How many of you have a poor healthcare package, or no healthcare at all? How many of you lost any hope whatsoever of being to retire - not just later, like 70, 80, or 90, but EVER? If we're going to have to work the rest of our lives to pay for all our country's 'bailouts', it would be nice if there were half a chance that our jobs will:
a) Still be here 10-20 years from now, and
b) Pay enough to be able to live on.
I understand both sides of the argument...
But I believe that a lot of the posts are from management.  They really should not disguise themselves as MTs and try to trick people.  Just let the truth be what it is, and if you do not like the truth, then do something at your company to change it.  All the effort that is being put into posting on this forum by management from various companies should be put into different programs, incentives, or maybe just a nice word or two to their transcriptionists to try and make the companies better.  I value this forum and believe that MTs need a place to communicate these things to one another to possibly prevent someone else from going through a bad situation.  I do believe that some MTs do need to let it go sometimes, but when you know that it is management posting to try and prove you are wrong, that just makes you more determined to prove you are right.  Just my opinion so don't jump all over me. 
Your argument loses all steam when you get to
For Pete's sake! Simple - no problems, just don't sign it! You state they're likely to sign since they've been thru the trouble of testing? Sheesh! We all know that taking the test is the magic door to finding out what the job is all about.  Otherwise, all details are a big secret.  Only way in is if you know somebody first.  So, you take the test, find out the pay blows and you say NO THANKS and move on.  Glory, glory, glory - hallelujah!  Amen!
Some of these posts are revolting. No argument here.
*
Sorry, you're weakening your argument big-time. nm
for your lack of discipline in saving. But for legal purposes, they should be taking the taxes out.
Gees just mentioning arguring started an argument
Just not worth it. It's all about respect....and maturity.
No argument about AHDI sucking an egg, but I suppose it is just personal sm

preference.  When I started transcribing 35 years ago or so, I had never heard of AAMT or anything like it, but the people in the Medical Records Department (which of course his now referred to as HIM -- why keep things the same if you can change them constantly for no rason) who transcribed the reports were called transcriptionists.  The machine I used to access the dictation was called a transcriber. 


Of course, it is no big deal and I shouldn't get so hung up with labels.  I worked briefly for an Indian company (felt like I was sleeping with the enemy but that's another story), and they called us transcribers … ugh.


The best co. ever! Good work, good people, good pay, good bennies.
x
Yes there is! Good pay and good bonuses and good benefits.

Personally, DSG is a good fit for me. Pay is good and on time, sound quality depends on the account
and I like the platform. There is not much weekend work, although sometimes is available.  I get along well with the management, no major complaints.  There is pay incentive once you get over a certain number of lines in a pay period.  I work as an IC, so can't help with benefits, insurance questions, etc.
I'm with them. Good work environment, easy accounts and I'm making really good money. nm

Fairly flexible but they do like a schedule. Insurance is good. Benefits are good in my opinion.

For the past week, work has been a little slower but I think that is common in every company..some days busy and other not.


Does anyone recommend a pretty good company that is good to work for, pay always on time and plenty
of work.  I know that is asking a lot, but just curious?
Strictly IC, good company, hard accounts, good platform.
Good pay, always on time, no direct deposit though.
Is Transcend a good company with a good platform to work on. They are advertising.
:
Webmedx hires some ICs. Good company. So sorry for your loss. Good luck!
x
TransTech for many reasons, good pay, stable company, good benefits
and flexible.
I have looked around the last 6 months and have found nothing better. Have turned down numerous jobs, and have finally decided to stay put. The better insurance plans were announced and even moreso than ever, I am staying put, and my paycheck is happy about that because it is getting better every day. Good luck to you.
TransTech is a good company. Debbie is the owner and a good one at that! nm
n
Good company, great people, good benefits.
Affordable insurance. Good luck!
Adminstrative Assistants and VanBelkum. Good companies, good pay!
x
Spheris supes/QA are good, insurance not good; they offshore
nm
U.S. only, very steady work, some VR, good pay, good insurance, no PT, schedule. sm
That should cover it!
Things are not good there now. Think only hiring for 2nd and 3rd shiifts. Good luck. nmx
x
Had the same happen here, heard the same thing, good references and good ....sm
job record will get you better $$$ if you are willing to promote yourself, search like crazy, talk to everyone, etc., but I have never been paid a cent more for CMT, what a waste, and all the years I paid my dues to AAMT, what a joke, they did NOTHING to better our field, just took the money for better conventions, as far as I can see.
Good owners, average-low pay, good dictators sm

Send out checks the next business day after they receive the bill.  Only work when you want.  It's a nice p.r.n. position.


Chickadee


I know JLG and they are a good company with a good group of people

I joined JLG about 9 month ago and I am thrilled with the experience that I have had.  Although the company has been around for 20+ years, a group of good industry veterans who know how to operate fairly to both employees and clients have joined the company in the past year.  I followed my manager from another giant company. 


I have also worked on this account and it was plauged with problems from the start.  The hospital required the account to be implemented in a matter of days, there were technical issues and the hospital management staff was new and the employees were mad because transcription had been outsourced.  Personally, I won't miss this client but good luck to those that get it. 


There is plenty of work at JLG and I have already been advised on my new assignments


DSG is a good company. The sound quality is good sm
but I don't understand why they are hiring. In the a.m. was have NO work. The afternoon and evenings do have more work though.
Some of the offices were good and some not so good (like MQ). For the most part it was a
The owners were shady characters and they were forced to sale.
Good luck and good nerves. sm
I hope you do well.  I would rather have a root canal than drive a bus around with the rowdy kids around here, my gosh, they get in fights all the time, the bus driver has to return the bus to school.  You are probably from a better area, but they would have to pay me big, big money.  Good luck to you though.
I would give them a try, you hear good and bad, but mostly good. nm
x
Good for you! I have done that several times......Good luck to you. nm
x
I have a good ISP, good connectivity, but Enterprise
is just too slow.  Talked to the Solutions Center today and the issue was a third party ISP evidently.  When e-mails are sent out to multiple STMs that Enterprise is down or running slow it isn't the MTs ISP that is at issue.   I came from a platform that was so simple and so easy to get lines, but they lost the account so I didn't have a choice but to make a change. 
Management is good, benefits are good
As with most places, familiarity and building your templates is the key to lines. I never run out of work but, on the other hand, I said in my hiring interview that I had been through a series of good companies but where I was constantly running out of lines and so that was a huge priority for me, and they have honored their promise to keep me in full-time work. Insurance is cheap and good. PTO starts accruing from day 1. Holiday leave comes out of your PTO, but you earn 3 or more weeks a year (based on your lines typed) and they don't insist that you work it. I had Thanksgiving, Christmas eve, and New Year's day off for the 1st time in (seems like) forever! I would say, in all honesty, that the only thing I don't like is that I have to go to another page to check my lines but that takes a few seconds and is more of an inconvenience than anything.
Then be grateful you have good accounts, good MTs,
and a good system. Consider yourself lucky because most QA jobs aren't like that.
Good company, with good incentive SM
pay scale, decent health plan for full-timers, lower end for other benefits, well organized and dependable, good platform, good support. Very heavy ESL, medium-sized community medical centers, relatively high SR pay rate because it takes longer overall to clean it up. However--good producers who put in a good workday make quite good money here.
AllHealth in GA - Good company, good equipment, any info about this company? (sm)

What type of work do they have?  Any op reports?  Appreciate any info. 


Pay was good, 925 lpd min., very organized. Just not a good fit for me. nm
s
MDI-MD pretty good. MDI-FL not so good. nm
nm
They are definitely one of the good ones...good luck!!!!
nm
No. Expect good things, and good things will come
x
not good

I have worked for better companies.  My experience is not a good one, but then again, everyone is different. HTH


Hey, that's a good one . . .

Ya, I gots me a whole load of them thar kids. I dun't even have to work, cause all thar pappies supports me and them thar kids, all 7 of em'. I just mess around with my MT company caus' I just needs somethin ta do while the kids are screamin' and raisin cane' round the neighborhood whilst I type. Course, I cherry pick too and make lotsa money cauz of dat, course, I gotsta have my booze while I type to so's I don't really have much money for food. Good thang my no-good-for nutin BF is thar to pick up the slac. Fur sur!


What you also don't know, is that I have a sense of humor and if you would have read my post below, you would have noticed that I have supported myself in the past and worked 4 jobs. But you go girl. I bet you feel a whole lot better now that you got that off your chest. I know I had fun typing my post.



Good IC job. sm
I don't think that it's so much the owner being picky as it is the owner wanting top quality work coming from her company....I don't think that is asking too much.

I've worked there. Only reason I don't now is I don't want to be an IC. Good accounts, too.
You have a good one too......... nm
:)