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That's ridiculous. $1/minute is more reasonable for beginner.

Posted By: deb on 2008-12-23
In Reply to: Taking a chance - Misha

I make $75 to $100 per audio hour.


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That's ridiculous. $1/minute is more reasonable for beginner.
You will be working for less than $5/hour.

I make $75 to $100 per audio hour.
Paid by the minute... new to me... does $1.14/minute sound reasonable?
x
beginner
When I graduated from my course work I applied to several places that were not advertising to newbies. I included my resources, both personal contacts (my instructors) and reference materials, and made it clear that I knew how to research what I wasn't already familiar with. I also made sure to have professional-looking resume to send. I contacted the recruiters directly by phone or e-mail first to see if they were willing to let me test as a new MT, and all said yes, because I sounded like I was willing to work hard. If you get that far and do well on the tests they are usually pretty open minded about hiring. I had offers from 3 companies within 2 weeks of graduating from a local community college course. I happened to accept a mentoring program at a lower line rate to start, because I felt it would be good for me, and was promoted to regular employee status very quickly (less than 3 months for me, but I also had plenty of applicable work experience in other areas of business). From the experiences of others I know, the training time for new employees can be much less thorough, so you need to be very self-motivated to learn the account specifics at some of the smaller online companies, because their training departments may not have a standard method for helping newbies. My advice is just don't be afraid to ask and apply even if you don't meet yet have the requested experience. Attitude is a big plus with recruiters.
A beginner who can't get experience! Help!

Hello,


I have recently finished my MT education and have been practicing with a company for over four months.  I did this to get paid, yet everywhere I look, the general requirement is between 3-5+ years of experience!  How in the world is a person supposed to get experience when you can't find anyone to give it to you!  I am really beginning to think maybe I've wasted my time.  I love doing transcription work, but I may never be able to get a job.  Does anyone have any advice or info as to where I could get a start? 


Beginner given most difficult dictators out of 300 docs who don't know that ESL
I agree that one needs ESL dictators, but most the most difficult dictators in the beginning.
In this expensive 21st Century, even a rank beginner deserves
even 12-15 cpl will be below minimum wage, if the current inflationary trends continue.
I think $15/hr reasonable!!....sm
I cannot figure out the hourly because I get paid by the line and that varies from hour to hour.  DocQScribe is the platform.  I just did 180 LPH for my first hour of the day which comes to $16.40 for that hour but again, that varies from hour to hour. 
Yes, probably reasonable
Radiology often has a lot of normal reports, so with normal macros from each doc its quite doable.  Also there are many repetitive phrases they all use so you can make your own macros and speed production that way.  As a newbie I'm not sure you could get up to speed that fast, it really depends on how many normals are already in place and how easy the docs are.  A seasoned MT would try to bring her macros with her, but as she already knows their lingo and can anticipate what's going to be said, its pretty much the same stuff on each type of report.
that sounds reasonable
That sounds like a fair assessment, what confuses me are the ones that say they can get 500 lines an hour...... In 15 years the best I ever did was around 325 per hour.
Her tone was not reasonable.
Believe me, she couldn't afford me anyway if all she's getting is newbies applying.
Another reasonable post!! Thanks!
x
sounds reasonable to me
but as an employee the company can dictate your hours. As an IC I work a split usually and do better this way. However, as an IC, the company cannot dictate your hours according to the IRS. Companies now days promise too short of a TAT for the MT, IMO. What happened to the 24-hour TAT for H&Ps, consults, etc. and longer for discharge summaries? Not to mention the # of reports at the end of the month when doctors who haven't dictated decide they should dictate rather than be put on suspension or not allowed in the OR until they get their act together.
What is the best reasonable VR program available?

I am an IC and considering buying a VR program, but I would like to know which is the most accurate, and also cost is a factor too.  Does anyone have any recommendations, good or bad?  I hear a lot about Dragon, but I am hesitant because I have heard it takes a long time to train it to your voice.   


Thanks for any and all advice. 


 


Define reasonable
I've gotten all of my equipment from Transcriptiongear.com and have never had problems with the quality.  Reasonable depends on your definition, though.  I never thought their prices were outrageous.
HE** YEAH IT SOUNDS REASONABLE!!! sm
do the math. Supposedly we are supposed to be able to complete 12-14 minutes of voice in one hour. But realistically, we complete more than that an hour. So for instance, take 14 minutes and multiply by $1.14. That is almost $16/hour.
Her instructions are perfectly reasonable
If she doesn't want resumes submitted as attachments, that's her business and the applicants should just follow the instructions. Whether you think she should ask for pasted resumes instead of attachments is irrelevant. If you don't want to apply, then don't. But if you're going to apply, just follow the instructions. If you cannot or will not follow the instructions, that tells her pretty much everything she needs to know about you.
Reasonable cpl to expect for newbie MT?

What would be a reasonable cpl to expect as full-time employee (not IC) with a national if you have no experience but do have MT education from one of the AAMT-approved schools?


Mac she asked reasonable questions

For once can you ditch the negativity, try having a positive attitude and be a little gracious??


One blank is not reasonable, what if it is a horrible ESL - sm
that you can only understand 1 word in 10? I have had those. Years ago worked for a company that only allowed about 1 blank every 10 reports or so, which was crazy especially since it was acute care and nothing but ESLs. If you went over your daily allotment you would be reamed via email. I understand trying to keep the blanks down but some are just unavoidable.
Hi, any IC's that are paid on salary? or is this a reasonable pay I should ask for?

My docs have now switched to a new platform, which does not utilize counting lines, which is how I am paid now.  They suggested paying by time, but that would be irritating for me to have to keep track and multiply and do all sorts of other stuff by hand (rather than having software to do it).


I have thought about asking them to pay me on salary.  I have been with them for 7 years with no raise.  NO RAISE EVER.  Seven years this September, and I have made between 25 and 28 thousand dollars each year with them.


I am thinking of asking for $36,000 a year and was wondering how reasonable that is.  I get absolutely no benefits from them and in turn, have to pay my own health insurance, retirement, taxes, etc. (so really it would be about 24K a year).


Any advice?   thanks so much


 


15 sounds reasonable for a large
15 is too high unless you are on the west coast.  Here on the east, 14 is about as high as anyone can get on a clinic account.  Acute care goes for about 15-16. 
15 sounds reasonable for a large

The doctor I transcribe for said the company charges 15. Of course we do not make anywhere near that, so I think that is reasonable.
Here's how I do it. I start at a reasonable rate for my area. SM

I take of a penny a line for each of these things:


1.  Digital. 2. No printing.


Or you can start at your bottom line and add a penny for 1. Pickup 2. Printing. 3. Delivery.


That's just how I do it.


I think 12 cpl is reasonable...plus they're desperate, that helps...sm
try to get the work into a digital format though. Don't do the tape running around thing. It will kill your profit. Look at Bytescribe's web site and see about using an Olympus recorder and transferring files via Bytescribe. Many advantages including tracking files, duplicate file posting (files never get lost!), flagging to indicate status of files, digital files have superior audio quality, STAT capability, on and on and on
I just bought a Bissel bagless - reasonable @ $129. It gets the job done
I have a golden retriever - it picks up every hair and hair ball. So far, so good.
I use MPCount, which is free and easy to use,,,can't get more reasonable than that!
boo
Any suggestions on a good Vacuum at a reasonable price?
I would love to have a Dyson but they are a little over my budget.  Thanks!
Without starting a war, how much time is reasonable to spend on reasearch (sm)
when paid by the minute?

I have access to the patient's electronic chart and often use this as a tool to look up doctor names, diagnoses, etc. Often, these charts go back for years. Documents are both scanned into the patient's chart by the physician's office(a 5-page stress test would be 5 separate scanned entries) and typed directly into the patient's chart (a 5-page document would be 1 entry).

We are paid by the minute, no matter how fast or slow the doctor talks. So, if they manage to speed talk, not take a breath, and slur an entire H&P into a 1-minute report, we get paid for a minute's worth of work regardless of typing time.

Having given the above information, what would you consider a reasonable amount of time to spend on research,i.e., looking up "Dr. Smith" with no first name and no specialty or indication why the patient saw "Dr. Smith", or things of that nature.

(I've got my fingers crossed that this does NOT start any type of MT versus QA argument!!!)

Thanks.
CuriousMT

And should you not receive your final paycheck in a reasonable amount of time,

notify them that you will be filing complaints with the Department of Labor, the BBB, the FTC, the state attorney general's office, and small claims court.


I'd be tempted to think he meant SP02. That would be a reasonable air sat value, and sounds simi
nm
RE: Anyone know of a real light touch keyboard that is a reasonable price?

\


 


A good place to get reasonable, objective info regarding ADHD is CHADD

just keep it in mind for the future. www.chad.org. Also there are some informative videos at coolnurse.com. About 10 videos regarding ADHD. you will have do a search on the site but it's worth it. If it's in her father's family it could be possible that she has it, and if so, you needed to get educated about it and be her advocate. School systems respond very well to confident, well prepared parents who come in to meet for a plan that allows for reasonable accomodations. I've been doing it for years.


Flexible schedule and reasonable line rate, at least 11 cpl for acute care!
I am not real "needy". No benefits as IC, just need flexible schedule due to very active family, and expect a good line rate. In return, I will go above and beyond what is expected to meet TAT and quality!

Dell will finance at a very reasonable rate, just bought one and my payment is $50 a month with no i
just start charging interest. I am using my IC job to pay it off. Medquist does furnish computer, Amphion furnishes but with a monthly fee that is refunded at the end of a year's employment, I think.
That is ridiculous
Sometimes people are not where they want to be but where they HAVE to be.  If I didn't have to be sitting here listening to these idiot dictators, believe me I wouldn't be.
ridiculous? no ....
I don't think my complaint was 'ridiculous'. What is ridiculous is receiving pages of scribbles in the mail on a daily basis - half of which I can't even read. THe other MT's in the company warned me already about this QA dude - he's a bit of a nut case.
No, I never claimed to know everything; and I'm open to hearing specs of individual facilities; of course!. My gripe was the pettiness of it all ... but I thought that was obvious in my post, MS Busy MT'ing. Maybe you're the one that doesn't know it all !
That's just ridiculous. nm
nm
This is getting ridiculous.
Now there's a job on the job seekers board looking for an IC MT to do acute care with ops for 7.5 cpl.  IC!!!  With ops!!!!  Give me a break.  That's equivalent to about 6.3 cpl after paying self-employment taxes, not to mention overhead.  Their website says "HIPPA" instead of HIPAA, too.
That's ridiculous!

BUT!  We are supposed to transcribe his work with a smile on our faces....GRRRR.......  I swear they just don't THINK!!!  Good luck with that one. 


That is ridiculous. Don't come WHY?
Looks like at the very least he enjoys his peace and quiet away from family but then maybe there is more to this than meets the eye.
That's ridiculous

I also have a 4-year-old and the whole point of preschool at this age is the social interaction, then the academics come in to play.  She still has another year of preschool before Kindergarten, doesn't she?  Maybe you should consider looking into another preschool.  Sounds like the teacher is the problem. 


Oh please, how ridiculous!
It was her sister for crying out loud! And I can't even believe the OP was questioning this. Extremely odd! ;0
Ridiculous
That is really time consuming.  But that is my opinon.  What you could do is to by sylcount and save each patient as a file and then count them and they would list each file out by the patient name.  You could do an extension or by their name do cn for chart note, lt for letter, etc.  Then on your invoice if you do totals by doctor, Dr. Smith total lines, Dr. Jones total lines, etc. and attach the print out from Sylcount that would show each file by the patient's name and the line count.  I thought it was bad when I was subcontracting and I had to break out chart notes from letters/consults/x-rays by date and doctor.  This again makes me thank my accounts as I just keep an Excel monthly line count by doctor, highlight the docs, attach to an invoice that has total line counts done in Quick Books and hand it in and they pay.  Some accounts don't even want the daily break down by doctor just each doctor and a total line count.  Have never been questioned once over my line counts.   If this is a sudden change then I would tell them that there would be an hourly rate to figure this out and keep track of the time it takes.  But again, one of the simplest programs that would do this for you would be Sylcount.   Good luck. 
Really ridiculous especially when...

typing into the hospital system because all they have to do is type in a few things and get this information. 


That's ridiculous.

Is it ridiculous
to list a Brainbench certification for medical transcription on your resume?
Ridiculous
Sometimes I wonder how much nicer this industry would be without all the control fanatics.  I wish they could just be shipped out to some island to battle amongst themselves, play those control games that they enjoy so much, and leave us to complete the work in a rational time period without all these ridiculous rules.
Seems ridiculous
As much "fixing up" we do of what is actually dictated, I think it's pretty crappy if you get points off for simple punctuation.

Just think if we all left everything completely verbatum (especially those dictators who say coma every other word or say to put periods in the middle of a sentence)!
Best battery backup with a reasonable amount of time - just lost report when elec blinked Grrrr
nm
the start up $$ is ridiculous

That's what I think is so sinful.  They sucker you in telling


you can be an employee, you can make 12,000 a pay period


easY!


None of that is true.  And then you are left trying to figure out


how to pay the insurance, pay for the computer you sunk money


into buying and meeting their requirements, reference books,


the whole 9 yards.


And do they have a conscience about leaving a mom and her children


with no food?   I really doubt it.


And NO a new MT is not then ready for the next job because


all over again he/she will have to INVEST in the new stuff that


THAT particular company to meet THEIR peculiarities.


I'm sick of transcription now.  When they sent us home - that relinquised


the responsibility of these nationals from providing equipment and


turned all the $$ over to profit for them and ate $$ out of our income - not to


speak of the extra utilities run while home.  This computer heats up


my house terribly in the summer - it helps in the winter but it still makes


a considerable dent in my bill compared to my neighbors who work during the


day. 


Ridiculous complaint?

Busy, you should really try to be a little kinder.....or read her complaint a little more closely.  I think her complaint was not about CONSTRUCTIVE feedback.  If she gets hard copies she can't read, what good are they?  Just how ridiculous this QA thing can get; one of the editors in a company I worked for corrected my "40-year-old black female" to 40-year-old Black female."  No problem, if that's what they want, that's what they get.  I corrected my Expander to "Black."  Editor #2 comes along and corrects me saying "black or white" is never capitalized.  I fired back a very disgruntled e-mail and said editor #1 had corrected me and that I KNEW black was never capitalized but if they wanted it capitalized, fine with me but somebody needed to get their sh*t together and figure out what they wanted from me.  At least with that company, editor #2 had some sense, she sent back a very nice e-mail saying that to appease editor #1 to go ahead and capitalize it until I was off QA and then do it whichever way I wanted and in the meantime she would not count me off for it.  At least editor #2 had some sense but ridiculous?  YES, indeed. 


Busy, if you're working for both MQ and Spheris, I assume your experience is about the same as mine.  I worked for MQ and for Spheris when they were Edix.  Once I was off full edit (in a very short time), I never heard anything from either company QA again so I assume they were happy and I went right ahead doing my best.