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Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

prior response

Posted By: stradecat on 2006-05-23
In Reply to: Response to Heartland Employees (5/10/2006) - stradecat

Sorry. That was addressed to OP and MsAnonnie Mouse.


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Actually I have only done a few ops prior to OSi
I had mostly done MS clinic. I have worked in acute care before, but did everything but an occasional op. I have to say that ops are my favorite by far now. I was terrified to do them, but now I love them! You're right. It is easier to be negative than positive, but at the end of the day, every company has good and bad things. It may take searching, but there is a company out there for everyone I think. In work, as in life, you have to kiss a lot of toads to find a prince.
you need to really look back to prior postings
This company has been flying all over this board even back in March. I think it goes further than disgruntled employees. Take a look at how their lead people handle these comments. They have badmouthed these employees horribly. Yes, companies will have unhappy employees and there will be some grumbling, but it clearly looks like a much bigger problem with Shapin. A lot of drama for low pay. I would have nothing to do with them and NOT for the grumbling of past employees, but for the obnoxious and crude way Shapin's management individuals conducted themselves!
Work for SPi now, prior CyMed...
and EVERY company has issues, you just have to figure out what issues are deal-breakers for you personally. SPi HAS started switching QAs around to all different accounts, but not sure about the MTs; however, on the few times that these accounts have run short of work for the MTs on them, they've had them actually doing QA! That's ONE position, at least, that you can guarantee you'll move up to if you're competent and want the move.
Their benefits are better and less expensive than CyMeds were, and vacation time is actually a bit better.
There are no yearly or scheduled raises with SPi.
My advice is to ask LOTS of questions BEFORE accepting either job with either company; you should also get EVERYthing in writing, AGAIN, do this BEFORE you accept either position...especially as relate to compensation, benefits, and work hours. :D Best of luck whatever you choose!

Spheris isn't the only company getting prior MQ work....sm
our company has also picked up several million dollars worth of business that MQ used to have because of the clients either having been overbilled by MQ or fears that they would be with all of the legal problems MQ is having.  Other current MQ clients are getting bids for when their contracts expire so I expect the MQ "tumble" to continue. 
Apparently you missed the prior post.
AcuQuist based it's pay cut on an attempt to bring us in line with an average industry wage, part of their new mediocrity- not just for cheap wine policy. Therefore, being better, faster and more accurate, is not a desirable quality, and therefore we are being penalized for it.
I had knowledge of VR and pay rates prior to this job search.
When I was in school, all we focused on was straight typing and nothing was ever taught about VR - I graduated earlier this year. In my job search I'm really not seeing much about VR. The place I am now has four or five accounts and all of them are straight typing. As for the shortage of work, I am on the largest account in the company and the shortage is felt across the board. Even the supervisors are aplogizing to us for the shortage.

Oh well, for the meantime I will just see what is out there, test and interview if asked to and go on from there. For right now though I have a job at a place I like - it's better than nothing!
Insist on sample of prior reports, lots of them. Then when you see it, sm
you will say, Oh, so that is what he is saying.  Then, put it in your expander.  Phrases work the best for me, not normals.  Phrases in the Expander for what each item these guys use.  But you need to see lots of samples of prior reports.
Prior contact said you work the first 2 wks WITHOUT PAY, and then you're offered a very low
s
Prior info said they take $300 out of your pay $50 at a time for something, rent or deposit. nm
s
I left a couple of months for the same thing. The prior

3 months I was lucky to get in 800 lines a day.  I had a couple of days where I got maybe 4 reports.  I would sit in front of my computer for 12 hours/day, checking every 5 minutes, and still couldn't get my lines with 3 different accounts.


They hire away ahead of time for new accounts and after training they have to do something with them until the account goes live so they put them on other accounts temporarily and then there isn't enough work for the regulars. 


When I first started running out of work I watched the backlog report to see where an account might have a big backlog and there were 3 or 4 who were on OT most of the time, but when I asked to be put on one of those accounts I was told no.  There were many days that it looked like half the accounts had a 0 backlog.  Then they started hiring for 3-day weeks and 4-day weeks so there was no work on weekends to try to make up your lines/hours. 


 


Old posts say hire for Emp. only, 120-150 lph. Software said to be glitchy from a prior contact. nm
s
Prior posts say you need a C-phone & 2nd line, and that they follow BOS II guidelines very
s
Prior posts said they used CareFlow and Cquence software, both of which get knocked down as
s
Prior post said it's so-so to use, but only counts the black chars., no spaces. nm
s
Prior search shows 8.5 cpl for FT benefit position. Do you still make this base pay after 1-1/2
n
ChartMatrix (TransHealth) has archived/quick access to prior reports. nm

Last year you needed Word 2003 to work for them. Prior to that, you used their machine
s
I had posted that question right up under the original poster and prior to her post being answeredsm

Looks are deceiving and I AM paying attention.


The lazyMT was from a prior post about testing..NOT about my personal habits. I find it odd that you
would reply with someone so insignificant and to which no one cares about your opinion.  You don't know me and you certainly have no idea if I am lazy in regards to my lifestyle habits so go back where you came from, troll..
Prior complaints of low work loads and only short reports, so struggle to get lines. How about
s
THANK YOU FOR YOUR RESPONSE

I'll stick with MQ too!


just got a response from BLS....

their MAXIMUM line rate is $.05 gross line...... so much for that.


In response to you.....
Actually I just had my husband come and read the these posts. He is laughing HIS ____ off!! We know how much we make. It still blows my mind some people actually think this is not possible. Maybe you would not be ROFLYBFAO if you actually got some initiative and pounded pavement to get an account like mine. :)


Did you ever get a response...sm

I have not heard anything back. 


Thank you for your response...(sm)

What kind of platform do you type on?  Is it strictly internet based or do you have to have C-phone, extra phone line or other equipment? 


Thanks Again!


No Response From Them
I sent them a note and told them I was interested, but wanted to know what the company name was.  Haven't heard back.  Will certainly write this one off as mysterious.
You actually got a response?
It took them a month before I heard anything after I quit. Until then, however, I was still getting the emails and such. They will send you shipping labels for the equipment.
Response to Asking
As far as I can tell from the paperwork I received,
it didn't look like they did medical, just legal and general, but I could be wrong. Let me know if you decide to go ahead with them. I'd be interested in knowing how they are to work for.
Thank you very much for the response.
:-)
Thank you so much for your response
am very concerned about my future there.  I have decided to leave, but am very nervous because I have no income to fall back on.  I want to work for a company that is not so strict on scheduling, will let me type extra, and I need medical benefits.  I have lots of experience. This is a tough one.  I wish MQ would not have changed, I used to love it there. 
response
You have no clue what my background in. I have years of acute care experience. I've also had my own accounts and had IC's work for me. HyperType's QA people had absolutely no problems with my work. The owner wanted me to stay. Tech support had no problems with me, and I basically had no problems with them. The problems with HyperType are solely due to how the company is run. And yes, I was one of their top producers. So, don't make assumptions that people are just full of sour grapes or pissed someone off. There were legitimate reasons why I left HyperType. I'm not going to state all the details here. I did state some positive facts about HyperType, by the way.

Not every company is a good fit for each MT. Explain why the majority of MTs working for HyperType choose to work such minimal lines per pay period. If HyperType was so wonderful, had so much work, if the platform was wonderful, if the work created such great line counts, everyone would be working tons of hours for them each week -- not so.
Thank you for response....LM....

.....Could you tell me how flexible they are when it comes to putting you on accounts?  My absolute favorites are Radiology first and then Neurology second.  These are the accounts I would want to do.  I absolutely detest OPs and would not want to do these at all.  Would they be able to put me on the account I want?  Also, what is their pay rate? 


I too have worked in the hospital setting and at-home with several different companies.  I was happy with my first at-home company (Edix n.k.a. Spheris) until they sold the company and everything changed.  Since leaving them I have been working (if that's what you can call it) with InfoPro as an IC.  The work is never there ( example:  I only made $6,000 last year).  I won't get a paycheck this pay period because there hasn't been any work available.  I absolutely cannot make it like this and desperately need to find another job.  One that I know I will have the work available and also one that I know I will be typing what I like and not have to force myself to try to type what I don't like. 


My only problem is that I don't have a DAC-126 or C-Phone. 


Thank you again for your information and help, it is greatly appreciated.


My response is below.
x
No response??
Not sure who you are but perhaps you should contact them again. They recently had a posting on the MTJobs board.
Got my response.
It was in the form a a really stupid form letter. Anyway, I wrote back to them in case anyone needs or wants ideas on what to say:

I appreciate the form letter.

I will again restate that I do not affiliate myself with physicians, hospitals, clinics, transcriptionists/transcription companies or organizations that support offshoring American jobs in any way. I know where the industry trends are going. I have been under bid, laid off, fired and downsized due to offshore entities that promise work for as little as next to nothing. It is not right that we should be forced to compete with that, and the organization that says AMERICAN and MT in the title should be advocating for the American part and not going over to shake hands with those offshore who are going to end up taking the jobs away from here.

In Response
I've been watching the comments fly by on this board about my company in amusement. Everyone has the freedom of speech, but when it comes to calling the owner of Shapin Medical Transcription (me) names and implying that I give my clients less than perfect reports, I have to step in and say something.

No one knows how I run my company. We have 3 tiers of QA so reports go back to our clients perfect. It is in our contract with our clients that they don't pay for reports with errors and to date, after nearly 10 years, we have credited our clients less than $100 for errors.

We are not a large company, but we also are not small. We have nearly 150 very happy clients who refer new clients to us all of the time (of course they get a nice credit on their invoice when doing so, but that again is something you know nothing about, how to run a business.)

If you apply with us and don't like the pay offered, by all means turn us down. No one is forced into a position with us. The QA and MTs that do work with us are, for the most part, happy. They enjoy the work and no one is complaining about their paychecks.

We are hiring more QA people because we have a lot of new clients coming on board over the next few weeks, not because our QA people are leaving. Again, you make assumptions on something you know nothing about.

And yes, we do outsource, to India, to the Philippines and we have American MTs. Our overseas MTs don't complain about having to work, they don't ask for time off every other day, they don't have excuses for not turning in their work within TAT and several of them produce client ready work. Our offshore MTs pride themselves in their work and turn in the best quality they can, unlike a few of the American MTs we’ve had that turn in less than perfect work, don’t take direction and refuse to change bad habits, and ask for more work just to make more money.

I am asking the contractors that work for us to refrain from making any more comments, but since it is a free country they are free to do as they please.

I will NOT respond to any responses to my post. I do have a company to run, a family and a life and don’t have the time that a lot of you seem to have to live on this board.

Juliann Shapin
Owner/President
Shapin Medical Transcription, LLC
let's try this response again - sm

I keep trying to post a response, but for some reason it won't post. 


I know a couple of people that have worked for the company - they were newbies.  They said it was awful - low pay and LOTS of ESL doctors. 


HOwever, I'm assuming that you are new to the industry, and this is a company that does hire newbies.  So you might want to use this as a learning experience to get your feet wet.  Or you may want to try a local hospital or clinic - I found that to be the absolute best experience around - because I had the help of other transcriptionists around me to ask and for feedback.


Thanks for the response
I realize for the 401k you have to be there a year, I was wondering if the company matched a percentage. I agree that most of the National companies abuse MTs, especially as far a pay goes for good experienced acute care MTs. The only option I see is going back to IC work. I did that for over 10 years, no paid vacation, no retirement, none of the perks the larger companies can offer. I'm so tired of looking for that perfect company, or even one that comes close, I guess it really just doesn't exist. Thanks for your input.
RCR response

Just stay away from that company.


I applied one time and got a call from the owner.  It was not the job that scared me away, it was him.  He told me how he was taken someone to court about who knows what but I wanted nothing to do with that kind of thing.  Imagine someone calling to offer you a job and having to hear that non-sense.


 


Run, run stay away is my advice to you!


my response was much different
I've had BS for months with no problems. It was explained to me that as long as I hung up several times a day, the 5000 minutes started over each time. The limit is for autodialers. I specifically explained my situation and recorded the phone call in case I needed it in the future.
I got a response
from Debra Mcnair for the vet ophthalmology but I did not have any prior experience in that field.  it sounds like she was looking for a lot of experience right off the bat for it.  Good luck.
Response

Several of us working there thinking the same thing.  It is a pattern and has not changed.  Several looking for other positions, but I think it is the same all over and nothing done about cherry pickers and never will be.  As long as there are in-house (hospital transcriptionists) it will continue and then you get the message that they are the client, but yet it is all outsourced to Keystrokes.  It is hard to trust or believe anyone in this business anymore, they are looking out for themselves. Just be sure this is what you want to do and don't give up something good for something you think may be better.  Wouldn't it be interesting if companies started giving their turnover rates? 


No response either
I also have 10+ years' experience and they never contacted me. They probably had a TON of responses all at once.
response to your

I was trying to stay within the guidelines of the original question which included being realistic. I think line rates should be at or above the level they were 10 years ago (I know . . . lot to ask). However, if the MTSO is working with a specific amt of dollars, the MT willing to slog through the difficult and slow dictators should be paid a higher line rate than someone transcribing ERs or appendectomies and C-sections.  I disagree with your statement that everyone is highly skilled. I could train high school students to transcribe ERs in three weeks that would be every bit as competent in them as someone doing ERs for 20 years. It is a narrow skill set. Don't let your ego get in the way of the facts.


 


 


 


 


Thanks for your response. I know not everyone's
experience is the same and I got a pretty good feeling from them, so I have accepted a position. Thanks again.
Response

I started out in ER but quickly transitioned to acute care.  I miss the ER - there are so many more normals than in acute care unless you get lucky with the op notes.  I will still get asked to do a chart here and there if they need a stat on ER.  They have good audio files.  I have never had a problem meeting the line count requirement for ER or for acute care.


Yes, they have a radiology team. 


No, right now you cannot access past charts, but they do have sample files/charts that you can refer to, and you can ask for a copy of whatever chart you have typed that you feel you would like to have for future reference. 


I have never gotten a response either.
Always seems to be the same sort of posting as well. 
I got a response,
 replied with a question and hopefully hear back from them but that was just today.  Sounds like a good company.  i like the fact they pay every week.  heard good things about them.
Your response
No, that just means that I cannot speak for anyone else. I will give you my particular situation. On my primary account, I type in Microsoft Word and use a VXP Player off the internet to obtain work. I type letters only for a cardiology account. I average 150-200 lines per hour. I just started my secondary account on Meditech but have only been training and not typing, so I cannot answer. The platform seems simple enough. I hope other Keystrokes employees are able to help you with your questions! Good luck to you wherever you choose to go!
response
Around .045 per line to an acute care Transcriptionist with 17 years experience plus 2 years VR experience. 
Thank you for your response.
:)