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I wouldn't take the money personally. In a hospital...

Posted By: SM on 2005-11-22
In Reply to: what should I do? $16.50 an hour ... - JoJoMT

they are certainly operating under strict budget guidelines and even though they may "want" to give you more money, it's possible that they probably just can't.


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Personally, I wouldn't touch an hourly rate of under 18.00.

I personally wouldn't stick around but i am having similar type problems, sm
although not the same. these past few weeks, every dictator i do has decreased tremendously in their dictation completed format and i too and saying wow, i just got a decrease in pay. went from 12 font to 10 font several months ago, no increase in pay. now the templates are being cut in half (but i do get paid for them). i also am spending my type correcting their sentences as they will dictate an entire sentence and then say oh change to this, which is the short, abbreviated version and now i have typed it twice for very little money. deleting entire sentences i have already typed. went from listing diagnoses to comma, comma, comma all to fit on one line (gross line acct). the other MTSO acct i do is abbreviating me to death with things that dont' even make sense!! no longer need the env file, which was a good junk and i still have to put the cc on there, which takes my time looking up addresses/spellings but don't get the 3-4 lines for that anymore. some dictators aren't even making complete sentences and their dictation doesn't make sense making me look like a "retarded MT" in my opinion, lol. i hate putting my initials on that crap quality because they want to save money. bottom line, quality of care is suffering because they want to save a buck and not make sense in their dictation/transcription and my quality looks like crap due to it.
Personally, I wouldn't have a problem with men working and tossing this PC out the window;) sm
This is my own personal opinion, but I do believe that God gave men and women specific roles, both equal in value, neither less in importance. Had I married a man who would have been content in his God given role as provider and allowed me to perform mine as a mother and homemaker, I know I would have been a much happier, content individual. I'm 100% certain that my C-spine wouldn't be in the degenerative condition it's in (I see a pain management specialist on Tuesday) due to 17 years of transcription. Instead, I have had to work everyday, have one child instead of the 2 or 3 I craved, have dealt with depression and have even been in counseling.

Look at kids today. Mom's leaving their children to be raised by strangers (IMO) has been one of the major downfalls of western civilization. God had a plan. We changed it and now we are paying the price in our children.
Personally, I think lawsuits only give lawyers more money
nm
Personally, I think the books are a waste of money, with a few exceptions. sm
These days, I would get the CD instead of the book, if that option were available.

That said, I don't see the need for, nor can I justify the expense of, the standard reference series, like Stedman's. For the most part, anatomy doesn't change from year to year, and neither does the vast majority of the terminology. Of course, there are new procedures, new terms, etc., but chances are your book won't be up to date on those. So, a ratty old (cheap) used copy might be handy, but the Internet is much faster (provided you know how to use it properly and don't just accept any ol' c--p you find :-).

At most, I'd recommend (A) Stedman's Medical and Surgical Equipment Words (or whatever they're calling it in its latest incarnation), and perhaps the Stedman's word book pertaining to your speciality, if you have just one or two.

Otherwise, save your money.
Wouldn't you bring home more money at 10 cpl? nm
:
I wouldn't spend the huge amount of money--sm
required for this book. their *rules* will just change in six months anyway and they are only *guidelines* not *rules*. Alot of services do not adhere with the BOS anyway, but go with client preference. If you are in school, you should be communicating with your mentor concerning this. Every school/service is different. There is no *one way* that is correct. JMO
AMEN! Also the government wouldn't make money on busts too! nm
!
AMEN! Also the government wouldn't make money on busts too! nm
!
You gals seriously make this kind of money? I am losing my job at the hospital
and thought I would never find a job that will pay that kind of money and its 14.50. I thought that was good!!!!! So you are telling me if I worked my tail off being an IC I could make more?? Break it down for me? How many hours a pay period, how many lines, how many cents per line?

I was actually regretting losing this job, but may be it is an opportunity.
Most in-house hospital jobs allow only 30 minutes for lunch! So I wouldn't call an hour lunch
"rigid."  If you are an employee, there are rules, set schedules, etc. that you have to expect. 
Depends on what kind of hospital? Large urban hospital or small community hospital? SM

Also, is it a large teaching hospital? If so you have to consider there will be A LOT of different residents dictating, usually a lot of ESLs at teaching hospitals, and the residents rotate out and new ones rotate in every summer. So you can't expect to get the same dictators and build up your macros because the dictators change all the time.


I would say 9 cpl would be a pretty good offer for a small to medium community hospital where you will be doing the same dictators on a daily basis.  But for bigger, urban or teaching hospitals I would want at least 12 to 15 cpl. 


Money, money, money, mmonnneyyy. Singing the Apprentice song.
:+
It wouldn't load with my Office. Somehow it wouldn't "read" my 2003 Basic, although sm
technical couldn't find anything wrong with my software. They really tried hard. I see so many people that like Escription, I'm sorry not to be able to use it. Hopefully I can get Office Pro on my next machine, and maybe use it then. I could upgrade, but I'm still not sure it would work.
Wouldn't that mean that you simply wouldn't have to print out everything?

Make money? I'm not making any money because of my decision. You read my reasoning
You can agree with me or not, but don't make false assumptions please.
You're working to make money, not to spend money.
These people should be ashamed of themselves taking advantage of people this way!
I also blew some money signing up with Quixtar... The only way to make any money is to bug everyone

you know into signing up.  I felt like a snake oil huckster.  I hated it.  I was flushing money down the toilet from the moment I handed over my money. 


RUN, do not walk away!  I do an entirely different side business now that I really love (in addition to my MTing, which I also love!)  Find something you're good at and that you truly love doing.  Then make a business out of it.  That's the best way to have a side business.  Selling discount toilet paper through Amway/Quixtar?  Not so much. 


The CMT exam is overrated. Don't waste your time & money. Use that money on
paid anymore just because you have it.  There are a few CMT cheerleaders that post to people like you but they are pretty well sucked up into that association.
Yeah, money, that's it. I paid $20.00 for my dog. Money is NOT THE ISSUE
walk him daily, play ball daily, he sleeps in my office daily while I work. Yeah, I got a lot of money, NOT HARDLY. And, my dog is HORRIBLY HORRIBLY ABUSED because he wears a collar around his neck. It's people like you that make me sick. I am done defending my use of the shock collar. I am going to continue with it and my dog will continue to be pampered , educated, fed, kept warm, and love me for everything that I do for him even when I remind him that his barking needs to stop. So, with that said, I will not respond to any more of your CRAP in reference to the shock collar.
Money is money and most people will do whatever it takes when in need. sm
if you do bring it to the attn of the office manager, why not offer her a raise to compensate. it is obvious she just needs or wants more money than your office is paying her. I agree, it is a free country and although it seems odd, unless you had it outlined in contract, she can work for whomever or whereever she pleases on the side. at least she is typing and not at a strip joint, lol. I see no conflict of interest, she has experience obviously in whichever field you are in and what is wrong with doing extra in that field. i agree with MYOB "nicely" and concentrate on your reports than looking at older reports and seeing who they are typed by.
Hospital. I wish I'd never left my hospital job.
They'll only take me back if I start off working nights and weekends again at the bottom of the totem pole.
If you work for a hospital - how come no one from the hospital
called you?? Were they in the dark, as well?? How sad, that no one in your hospital communicates with the at home staff.
No need to wonder..It always means less money for the MT and more money for MQ.
z
Money, honey, money!!!!!!.
nm
Personally, I would not do it.
It's bad enough changing to nights when you are a "day person" but to have to keep switching back and forth, week by week?  (if that is what you meant).  I bet they will not continue this, though, because a day person is not productive at night, and a person who is used to working nights is usually not productive in the day.  I think they will find that they could hire someone who WANTS to work nights, rather than all the switching around.  JMO, of course.
Personally I think since 9/11/01
EVERYONE in the USA is making less money.  It's all relative.
I know for me, personally,
When I am feeling like you just described, I am usually feeling very guilty that my house is a mess, I'm not accomplishing anything and so on. It is the voice of your consciousness that is beating you up. You need to be kinder to yourself and things will start working a lot easier. You are being hard on yourself. Start making lists of things that you have accomplished today. It is a great feeling when you realize you are actually accomplishing a lot of stuff. Those good feelings then give way to the energy that you need to get more done. The way you are feeling is taking your energy too, so you have to force yourself to do everything that you do get done probably. Try accepting that the house didn't get cleaned but you did get a lot of other things done today. Then tomorrow you will have more energy to possibly get more things done. I'm serious, I am real hard on myself and trying to learn to talk nicer to myself, accept that I'm not able to do everything and it will be there when I do get time for it. You'll be amazed how much better you feel after making lists of what you've done and talking nicer to yourself! I hope this helps.
Personally I know that
mttest.com to do their testing there are instructions on the mttest site on how to use your own foot pedal and ExpressScribe. I know because I have done it. Also, if the company has a link to the dictation, you can right click on it and choose "save file as" then save the file somewhere...I usually would just put it in My Doucuments. Then open ExpressScribe and load the document from there. The instructions on the mttest website say basically the same thing. :-)
I get it now!! Well, I know personally I have
never been able to move expansions from DQS anywhere. To my knowledge, they are coded and unmovable save to another DQS computer. If the DQS is from a certain company that starts with M, I know there was another company, a competitor, who actually tried to lure M employees by saying their tech people would help them copy their DQS expansions. I have tried to copy DQS to Word, and was not successful. I do know how to do it from computer with DQS to computer with DQS, so I'm not totally illiterate. Personally, I have never known anyone to succeed, but maybe someone else out here can help you!! But I have always been told DQS Expander is not compatible with any other platforms, which would make sense, as its a copyrighted product, etc. But good luck! I always just spent a day or 2 making a new expander on Word on my own, and have been very happy. Maybe change your subject line and repost!
Did you know her personally? sm
I'm curious and wonder if some of these folks have others working for them, or have a spouse who knows MT filling in at times.
not personally, but...sm

My sister won tickets to the tour this year and I'm trying to win some! Should be a good show, I think...


 VOTE FOR TAYLOR


I personally believe, yes, I am.
And I have been. I truly believe we should 'honor our Mother and our Father.' My parents gave and sacrificed all their lives to give me everything I needed and often, what I wanted. It's because of them that I have the values and traits that I do. My parents are treasures. Unfortunately, both of them have passed away. I'm only in the my mid 30s and I've already dealt with this question. For me, it was never a question of if I should. It was a natural role for me and my siblings and even my husband to step into. My mother died suddenly but my father passed away more recently and it was a slow death from an illness. We cared for him in his home, both with a wonderful person we hired to be with him some days since we all work. I took a computer and my work to his house so I could be there more and still have an income. I was there when he passed away and I consider it a privilege that he even wanted me to care for him. I would do it again. I miss them terribly and some of the most precious memories are of when I stayed nights caring for him. Even in the quiet of the night when I would listen and hold my breath praying for him to take his next breath. I think we need to do whatever we can to care for them. It put us in a real financial bind more than once to care for my Dad, but I don't regret a bit of it. Money was beside the point. FYI, even when he was well we lived with and cared for him as he was alone, and before he fell ill and we moved into our own home, we were trying to figure out how to add-on to accommodate him coming to live with us. I didn't read all the posts but this is my personal belief and experience. Disclaimer: I didn't proofread, LOL!
I personally would not,...

not right now, but that's just my opinion.  I just left an in-house job to come back home.  I have been transcribing for 17 years, most of them at home.  The couple of years I spent in-house were in some ways really good--steady, not as stressed sometimes, but I spent way more time away from home than just 40 hours.  There's money spent on food, clothes, and then the various functions that occur at work--holidays, showers, etc. 


I love being home!  But you have to do what's right for YOU!


Personally I would take it

Give it some time, like 6 months, and if it doesn't work out go back to MT/QA.  After all the guy that started it left his full-time job to pursue his dream, so you should too provided it makes sense financially, etc.  Obviously you have spent the time researching and really thinking about this.  You do have a career to fall back on, and I would jump at it. 


Me, personally.
If you're talking about something like, "the x-rays were interpreted by me, personally."
Personally, more with OPs but (sm)

I'm sure there are so many variables.  I wail on OP notes because I do them all the time and most are incredibly similar so I can use my Expander and crank.  I hardly ever do clinic notes, so those are a little slower going for me.


Another typist told me it's just the opposite for her, so it all depends. 


Try not to take it personally...
Don't feel bad. When I was looking for a job earlier this year, I signed on with Transcription Matchmakers. I was told I failed the test. I have been a Transcriptionist for almost 25 years and am experienced in various specialties. In fact, I managed a transcription department in my last in-office job. I, too, was told I was not good enough for them. I now work for a great company and am, in fact, a lead person on my account. I hope this makes you feel better. I just shrugged it off as their loss and went on with my life. Hang in there! All tests are different, and all transcriptionists have varied knowledge, none bad, just different.
Not unless you know someone personally and can
s
I never had one personally
but my husband did, and although he's not an MT, he had double hernia surgery, and he was out for a little over a week. His job is mostly standing though. Sorry I couldn't be more helpful.
Personally if it were me

Considering it's a macro or template and not something dictated I would have to agree with your feelings because I also take great pride in my work.  I would probably make a corrected copy of their template/macro and send it back to them as a suggestion, especially since part of it is spelling.  You may get a good response and a thank you and you may get told to leave it be, but at least you'll know you tried. 


 


Don't take QA personally sm

You remember when the parenting books used to tell us to distinguish your love for your child from what they do?  I love you, but I didn't like what you DID.


It is the same thing with QA.  You have to listen, you have to try harder, you WILL figure this out.  Just remember, it is about what you DID not who you ARE.  It took me many years to get this straight in my mind.  Oddly enough, once I did, my accuracy went up.  It is less pressurizing when you understand that we are all human and we all make mistakes, but it doesn't follow that we are somehow less worthwhile when we make them.


I think perhaps your nerves are getting the best of you.  Having worked for a lot of companies, every switch is an adjustment.  They all have different rules and ideas about how the work should be done.  It takes some time to get that all down, and it isn't necessarily all about your work.  Be patient with yourself because you deserve it.


Personally, I think
she's full of sh....... you know.
I personally think anything less than 9 cpl
for employee and 10.5-11 cpl for IC is a slap in the face. Unless they have awesome benefits, I need to make at least 9 cpl and really 10 at a minimum. I wouldn't even consider less than 9 at this point.
I personally don't know about this, but
there has been talk about doing other transcription, such as legal. You might want to check that out. Just Google and see what comes up. I am a recent grad, and finding it is not that easy. There is work out there, but the question is: What type of company will you end up at? It all depends on getting good dictators, little or no ESLs, how many hours do you spend looking things up, etc? Companies don't pay for this. It's not like you are getting paid hourly, unless you're lucky enough to work in a hospital. 7 or 8 cpl isn't much for all the researching, change this, change that, what did he say?, etc. things that we do. I wish I had gone into something else, but I am here now, and trying to make the best of it. It is nice, I have to say, being able to work from home. I can take a break when I want, I can take and pick my kids up from school, etc. I am very fortunate to have a good husband, with a good job, that lets me pretty much do what I have to, to be there for our kids and still make some money. I don't know your situation, but if you are okay with just making extra money, or chancing who you may work for, then go for it. Just from my research and looking around, it seems the quality companies to work for are less and less. Good luck with whatever you decide.
I personally do not think VR will ever be
perfected enough to be a threat to medical transcriptionists. There will always be a need to correct/verify the information that VR spits out, which is nowhere near perfect and probably never will be.

I haven't heard of anyone getting laid off because of VR. I think they mostly quit because most companies tell them their production will increase with VR hence they lower their pay when in reality it doesn't increase enough (if at all), so their pay basically drops. JMO
Everyone is different. Personally, I
type while listening and then if dictation is too far ahead I stop until I catch up and then start listening again. I do not listen, stop, and then type. It all depends on the doctor and the rate of speed at which you are listening to the dictation. I listen at a normal speed the majority of the time. For fast dictators, I sometimes slow it down, sometimes speed it up if they are slow.

Just do it the way it is the most comfortable and easiest for you.
Do you know someone personally-SM
Do you personally know someone from one of these countries with national health care?  well I do, we have family friends who live in Holland and they and most of their friends and family HATE their healthcare system-long waits for appointments, longer waits for specialists and surgeries and the older you get the longer the wait so unless you know someone personally in these countries you don't know what you're talking about. 
You're taking this way, way too personally.
If you don't like it, ignore it.  People always criticize the mother.  Hey, at least she's not some bug-eyed  psycho broad lying to the authorities about being kidnapped by Hispanics. 
okay, but I meant, what if you use it personally?
...you know, on your own, without telling your employer.  That is what my friend meant, too.  Say I am transcribing for a company, and on my own I use the speech recognition and set it up to type my reports for me. 

That is how I thought some people were getting these huge, incredible line counts.  Not so with this poster, she already told me she is not using it, but I do know there are some who do. 

Where I used to work, they were always praising these mass producers, too, in newsletters and E-mails, letting everyone the phenomenonal line counts, and I would think, hey, I can not even get work, was always running out, doing 4, 5, 6 accounts and struggling through the specs and accents continually...

That is why I brought it up, I wondered if perhaps some MTs were going that route to get ahead...

Thanks for your post - I am GLAD to hear you think it is more troublesome than anything...(except good for lowering our pay, huh?)
Ah, so you know her personally? What I sense from you is

Take a cold shower, Billie Jean!