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When I began 15 yrs ago, people were bitter. I

Posted By: say the more the merrier! on 2007-06-13
In Reply to: I'm not posting this to get yelled at!! - newbie

aa


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For me it began to go downhill when ...
the smaller companies grew larger and/or were swallowed up by larger companies. That was when I was forced to become more tied to the p.c. with "managers" looking over the shoulder.

I miss the days when the files were uploaded and downloaded and transcribed at my will within a 24 TAT. Now it seems, even as an IC, that logging in directly to the system ties me to the p.c., unable to stop in the middle of a report and return to it later, unable to do maybe 3 hours in the morning and 5 at night as long as reports are in before the 24 TAT the next morning. Now plagued with IMs and emails about everyone needs to get on and work b/c there are 175 reports on the system .... insane with account specifics being different for every doctor nevermind the templates, and tons of ESL doctors. I could do 2000 lines a day years ago before lunch and have the rest of my day to myself if I wanted. With the advancement in high-tech I'm lucky to get that many lines in 8+ hours b/c the company platform changes or "upgrades" as soon as I reach any speed on the "old" platform, and so far every platform I've worked on slows me down, lags, or you have to go through multiple screens to even begin typing. Some platforms do not have the ability to create macros (expanders), some expect you to jump through several screens looking up patient info, medications, etc., account numbers, etc. some do not allow custom dictionaries.

It all sort of reminds me of being an underpaid in-house employee but with none of the benefits, and with some of the "office politics."
Yes. One of my best friends -- she began seeing married men
which was intolerable to me. I tried to look the other way. She wouldn't even try to hide it from me...wanting to talk about it, wanting me to MEET them. I finally just told her that I loved her very much and enjoyed our friendship but that something had changed so drastically for her to believe it is okay to live like this and it was in direct conflict with everything in my life. I just could not support someone who was intentionally pursuing such a hateful, devastating lifestyle. These weren't mistakes. She saw men she wanted and it was a game to her.

It hurt me very much. Many people who didn't know the reasons behind it blamed me for being a horrible person for dumping my best friend.

It was hard not to discuss her lifestyle to defend my actions.

I feel for you.
This is true. Ever since I began transcribing rad..sm

I have had a significant increase in income (an understatement).  I was typing ER and acute care before rad.  It paid the bills, but I was looking to get out of transcription after years of doing that. 


Well, I was hired to train on a VA rad account, and it changed my outlook on things.  It's a fast-paced specialty and very repetitive (expanders = money$$$).


That VA account has since went to VR, but I will be forever greatful to have had the opportunity to learn rad terminology, etc.  Now, I am working on another account with a very reliable company and making the most money I've made transcribing ever.


 


Just began 2 days ago at Aero.
Took a month to get the paperwork in order and clearance but I finally began working the account (radiology). Let me know how you are doing.
Have you thought of accepting a job in house? That is how most of us began.
xx
Minimum Wage, as I read this tears began to well in my eyes ...

You, like some of the other posters, reflect a clear understanding of the downward trend this industry has taken over the last few years and the mindset of those who caused it.  You mention so many experiences that resonate with my own.  Most notably, I like you, put all of my eggs into this one basket, foolishly believing that this wonderland profession that I had found would last forever.  It was a perfect fit for my skills, abilities, and work preference.  I was able to make an excellent living and felt that somehow I was making a meaningful contribution to the care of each patient whose chart came to life under my fingers. 


It is amazing to me how each year the profession requires more and more knowledge from us, more skill, more ability, more dedication, more resources ... and in direct correlation to what is demanded from us our pay is cut more and more and without apology.  I mentioned in another post that I remember when I first got into MT'g some 20+ years ago hearing the Powers That Be constantly resentfully complaining that we made too much money and were no more than glorified typists.  Who could have known that one day they would finally all band together and make an industry-wide collective effort to correct what they felt was an unacceptable dynamic? 


It seems that everyone directly and indirectly involved in the process of transcription is valued and compensated well for their contribution to the process -- everybody except us --  the ones who actually make the final work product a reality. 


Thank you for your contribution to this thread. 


I was addicted to Chapstik/Bonne Bell lip stuff--began "using" went I was 10 -sm
Pretty funny thing to get addicted to right? I used BB or Chapstik or Blistex until I was 27.....so 17 years of it getting progressively worse, not kidding I would lube up every 5-10 minutes...at least it was a cheap addiction (don't smoke, etc). Went cold turkey when I was 27....I had 3 months of hell, my lips peeled and generally felt and looked horrible for 3 months until my lips regained their natural ability to take care of themselves. Even now I have to be very careful not to get "readdicted" as it would be very easy to do and have "slipped" now and then by using my Chapstik a bit too much. Now if your lips are doing this for no particular reason, yes, I'd get it checked out, can't hurt....
Not bitter one bit. (sm)

Just showing the other side of it. I'm trying to point out an employer can expect a few oddball resumes from people grossly underqualified and even those new to the whole process of presenting oneself in resume-style dossier. In the same way, potential applicants can find that the drummed-up company names and profiles for a job posting at any website, in any newspaper, anywhere can be nothing but an e-mail dress and/or fax number of someone trying to subcontract work they are subcontracting from someone else...or worse.


What is unacceptable is when companies tout themselves as major players in the medical transcription field, or demand certain professional standards from their applicants, but cannot get their act together to perform professional, honest and effective interview/testing/hiring sessions. It just helps MTs to identify the people who lack respect for their time and efforts as an applicant, as those MTs can expect the same after being hired.


Yep. And it is a bitter cup.
x
Because they are bitter that they can't. lol
oo
Bitter
You certainly are one bitter woman. If you would have read what I said - I DID say I was making 4 cents less a line than I was making 20 years ago. I don't think you can read.
Thank you. I think this is just a bitter person
trying to cause more bitterness. I feel sorry for them.


Actually I did go to college and I'm not bitter at all....sm
Just realistic, as I said. Obviously you've not found the right company - there are out there, believe me. But the previous poster did say it correctly - if you were working in an office with your degree, you couldn't just jump up and run. An MTSO or company has a business to run, too. I schedule my appointments after my working hours - pretty simple it seems to me.
well, now I know why you are a bitter, name-calling person.
nuff said
I have posted on this subject, bitter?
Oh, no, I could take now but I am 1 year short of full and it would be crazy to have Uncle Sam taking my money any more than he does know. I got the information up front- I know how much I will be getting when I do take my money, I know how much I get on a retirement account. Not bitter, just smart not to retire before I want to!
I must be a bitter MT..Check out the ad on job seeker's

Obviously Indian-based, but they want to train you to be an MT..check this part out..


Transcription is fun for the right person as it allows you to write and if you love to write, then it is an enjoyable career. Some people who do not like writing because they are not creative still enjoy this medical online profession. Even people who hate writing like this profession because it allows for working at home on a flexible schedule.


OKAY.. what planet are they from..Since when is transcription fun LOL...and I'm sure glad it lets me write whatever I want, because I just love to write..LOL and I get to use my creative ability also to write whatever I like. People who hate MT-ing just do because they hate to write and are not creative LOL. I'm sorry but this just cracked me up. I've thought a lot of things about transcription but FUN was never one of them. Lucky for me though, even though I don't like it, I get to stay at home and have a really flexible schedule..NOT.. lol...


 


Why so bitter?? Does the truth hurt? nm
//
What are you? A bitter old school marm? Hahaha
All your "PAY ATTENTION" posts. Hahaha

geez you guys are bitter. Maybe she's trying to lighten

Maybe she just has a fun personality?


And with this awful bitter cold weather
going ballistic on the drivers when they do return!
Why does it seem that all divorced women are so bitter? It is not ALL men that are rats. You just
found one that was.
I'm not bitter. I've been remarried to a wonderful for 13-1/2 yrs.
z
Your tone sounds 100% whining and bitter.
That's why I call your posts whining and bitter! The other poster stated her case in a mature way, using stats as her back up. No whining, no bitterness. I have not formed an opinion on the AAMT either way to date, but am leaning more pro-AAMT by just the style of postings - those supporting it come off as calm, professional, and mature, while those not supporting it sound emotional, bitter, and whining. Just my opine and reaction to the posts!! Debate much? Its a great skill, and long lost in America...
You're sounding bitter about your cubicle.
Be happy for her, be envious of her (I know I am), but bitter is unbecoming a professional.
you sound just as bitter and defensive, so we're square. nm
b
who really cares? personable, angry, bitter, just do your work.
I don't really know the purpose of a supervisor so I guess I don't really care what their tone is. I have been through MANY supervisors. I don't really care about their tone. I do my work no matter what they say or do.
You sound like a bitter, jealous, uneducated female.
Sorry, but I've been married to a blue collar man who beat the living crap out of me and destroyed my life in every way he possibly could. Turned my own mother against me, took my kids, laughed when I got cancer.

I am now married to a lawyer who treats me like a queen. It's wonderful to live a stress-free, hate-free existance and my kids and my mom have finally come around so I'm looking forward to a wonderful holiday for the first time in 6 years.

However, I would never say that ALL blue collar men are abusive, drunk, lazy slobs like my ex-husband is. That's generalizing and that's not fair, and certainly not correct.

I also wouldn't say that all corporate executives are perfect men either. That is also generalizing.

You don't sound like a prize yourself with your judgmental nature, dear. Time to take a step back and do some self-evaluation and perhaps get some therapy.
Bitter? I think the recruiter/owner had some valid points. nm
x
Explaining my occasional bitter-/crankiness
I confess, I am one of those that will occasionally toss a snide comment in. I don't think I have ever gotten to the point of being brutally mean, but I have been snippy. And it may be petty and it may be unnecessary, but, in my case anyway, it stems from a frustration when obvious newbs post a question that at least in my mind seems simplistic (based on the s/l they are able to provide) and should either be a common knowledge type thing or else easily findable. After a day of plodding through ESLs, rapid-fire dictators, or reports that have more chromosome testing than I have chromosomes, I do get a little cranky when someone who probably only makes $50 less a week than I do posts on here asking what 'conjecture hard fail your' might be and respond in a somewhat less than mature way.
You sure sound like an "angry, hateful, bitter old bigot" in posts above!!

Geez, you're really getting close to the line of sounding bitter.
May I suggest some counseling? The OP asked an innocent question and you took it like a personal attack against you.

I've been a single parent and mind you I know how hard it is to be in that situation, but if someone asks a simple question like "what does your spouse do" most people who don't have a SO at the moment would have moved on to another thread and never given it a second thought.

Seriously, time to do some self-searching.
if you live among trashy people, low income people, people w/o goals or direction,
content to just get by, you by default become a part of a group. "people" have decided to group trailer people as trash. that is because there are enough people in that group to earn the title and even if you aren't trash, you are categorized by others. did i think i was trash in lower class neighborhood surrounded by people who drank and fought all weekend? no but i knew i wasn't staying and did not try to pretend that all the fools in the neighborhood were just nice folks who ended up where they were because high horse snobs deemed their neighborhood low class. people for the most part live exactly where they belong because they don't want to educate themselves, they don't mind "trash" around them and they don't want to be bothered trying just a bit hard to extract themselves from that world. they justify everything to themselves i guess saying everyone who doesn't like their lifestyle is a snob and the comedians (Jeff Foxworthy/Chris Rock, etc) who make fun of them are just ill-informed.

As for me, I fought hard to get out and don't even want to look back. It amazes me people stay for generations.
so many people was wishy-washy nowadays...love to see people make
a stand for what they believe in...

it is kind of wierd those statements have to be made in the first place but guess we are an ever-transitioning country and are still young. so many different beliefs yet not much tolerance.

I found your post respectful, and right on as to how you feel. it does not seem that difficult to sift through to read and respond to messages someone might not care for...
Just remember that it is not the people on this board who short changed their people and ONLY after
caught did they (after they were suied) make an effort to look good by sending out these checks. Now, think about this--had they done this many years ago when they short changed everyone, that would have been honest. Does it not bother you that only after they know they are under the gun that they are doing this to try and make themselves look good?

I used to work for MQ and I used to like what I did. I never can say I really liked the people that I worked with, but I really think they had some of the best accounts that I have ever come across in the MT industry. I loved working the major teaching hospitals that I did, but that certainly does not mean that I enjoyed being cheated out of pay.

So chill already. People have been cheated, were lied to, and only AFTER they got caught have they tried to return some of the money they robbed us of (as well as cheated their clients).

We all have reasons not to be happy with this company and you go off on us because we are complaining of things like small refund checks of a penny or a few cents or a few hundred dollars and NO WAY to even check to find out if this is correct?

I am sorry you are unhappy all of us thinking that there is still a dead rat in the cellar, but there is still a dead rat in the cellar and nothing will bring the dead rat back.

I would hold no love for a company that I know willingly cheated the very people who helped THEM make money out of their hard-earned money.

Go take a deep breath and think about that.
My people skills are just fine. I just want to hire people who want to work.
I've not been ugly, I've asked questions, legitimate ones.  Please tell me what is wrong with that.  This site is not just for MTs, it is for QA Editors, Supervisors, Service Owners, there's even sections for Billers, Coders, and Nurses.   
rude people? I would take good pay over polite people any day
Besides that they have never been rude to me and I have been here for almost 2 years. What do you consider a bad account?

I know my account is a little tough, but I am used to it. I am tough!
Rude people? I hardly think so. They are some of the nicest people I have ever worked with. sm
Not just management, but QA as well. No one is rude. They are a very understanding staff. There is one account that is hard but all it takes is getting used to it. Once you are used to it, it is no harder than any other ESL account that you would do anyplace else. I have heard all these things about TH from the archives and I have yet to come across rudeness or any kind of thing that I have read about in the archives. I would definitely pursue them if I were you. I think you will be pleasantly surprised.
2 people to do that amount of work, is she nuts? More like 20+ people - nm
x
Certain people getting raises, certain people not. Guess who is?
Say what you will about unions, the good and the bad. But, one thing they did ensure is a raise, good benefits and that you would have a job in the morning.


Yeah right, OF COURSE! How could there be other people who don't like QA people?
Could only be one.   Hahaha.  Dream on.
I agree, some people will never get it but, then again, what does it say about them as people? Not

.


I don't like people
nm
Just so happens there ARE some people who
CAN really produce and NOT cherrypick. GEESH.

Problems come from working with stinky attitudes like yours.
The people....
Did you ever think that what you take as politeness might just be their poor language skills?

Why don't you go over to India and live for awhile - they have half of our MT jobs so you should be able to find work (Healthscribe, Medware). Then, tell us how polite they are.

People are people - just because they live in another culture doesn't make them any better than us or any worse than us. It is the job, working with the public, that wears people down eventually. It is particularly easy to be rude over the phone.
There are people who don't know better, there are people

who need to be at home for whatever reason, a chronic illness, kids, caregiver to sick parents, etc.  Any job is better than no job if you need to eat.  


If there were enough decent paying jobs with honest companies no one would work for the low paying, dishonest companies.  So far I have turned down jobs with MQ because of their actions, quit a job with SS because it is a lowsy company, I have turned down 2 positions with companies that offshore.  Fortunately I got on with a company that paid a decent wage and one that doesn't offshore, though it isn't the great company that it used to be either, but it is a living. 


try something most people have a
problem with and your worth increases .. neurology and ophthalmology for instance.  Most people are afraid of the eye .. wonderful once it becomes second nature.  Oncology is another sought after skill, but takes a lot of work.  Also you might contact M-Tec to take their class in neuro or OAK Horizons .. they are both very good.
That people such as yourself
would quit airing your dirty laundry and asking for advise - and then get all pissy when people give their opinion. After all, that is what you were after right? This is MT Stars, this is NOT a military advice column or posting board. When you open yourself up on a public forum, then be prepared for what follows.

Personally, I think anyone who signs up to defend the country and then turns his back on his duty is HEARTLESS.

The military makes your obligations and consequences VERY clear.
Sure some people do need help..(sm)

The below is an e-mail that I got from a lady who lives in Houston.  These are her observations only, but it sure does make you think about all of the self-righteous out there who really don't understand another person's hesitation in taking many of the people in to our communities.  Some of them come from a whole different kind of mentality.


 


Well...

 

I feel sorry for these people - they have lost everything - they have nothing. I blame their own government at least a bit for not evacuating the ones that were too poor or had no way to evacuate.

 

That being said, it isn't going as well here as the media makes it out to be. Anthony has been down the to the Astrodome as required by the Fire Department, and I went down on Saturday with a friend of mine.

 

The Astrodome holds around 50,000 people - and there aren't that many evacuees down there. There are bathroom facilities, but these people are squatting on the streets, parking lots, and lawns of places down around the astrodome and leaving behind urine and fecal matter. They are throwing trash wherever they are when they finish with it, and quite a few act like we "owe" them something. I can't tell you how many people were bitching about the MRE's that they were being served.

 

As high as gas prices are, I will go out of my way not to have to drive by the Astrodome (my RE's office is about 1 mile from the dome). When you stop at a stop light they come up to your car and beg - and knock on the windows. There have even been reports of some jumping in the backs of pickups and even scratching cars and trucks with knives, if you don't give them money.

 

I know that there are some good people out there, but there are a lot of bad ones too. There are some that were appreciative of the baby formula (breastfeeders - please don't jump on me here) and diapers and coloring books that we were handing out - and some that were bitching about the brand of diapers, the fact that we were only authorized to give out one can of formula per child and that we didn't have a certain kind of bottles. I even had people that refused to take gift cards from Grocery Stores - wanting money instead.

Last night, one of the evacuees was able to score some alcohol somewhere, got drunk and carjacked a car and ran into several parked cars - the police were able to pull him over after a 15 minute chase.

 

And I can't get over the smell of raw sewage in the area of town that most of the evacuees are housed. The plumbing in the toilets are working just fine - but they aren't using it. They are trashing the place.

 

I can't imagine what it must be like for them, having nothing but the clothes on their backs - but I think I would be more appreciative of whatever someone could do for me, instead of griping about what kind of bottles they were giving me to feed my kids with, and that the MRE's were cold.

 

I really have mixed emotions about the whole thing. I feel sorry for the people who couldn't leave, and got stuck in the chaos. I don't have as much sympathy for the ones who could have left, but didn't want to.

 

I am sure I sound like a cold, callous, b****, but I was absolutely amazed at the attitude of most of the evacuees that I was in contact with on Saturday.

Some people believe anything

Evacuees are NOT trashing the Astrodome! You people choose to believe anything. There are enough cameras around the Dome to show how residents are reacting. Security is very tight and strict there right now! As far as "sorry people" that were evacuated, you do NOT know their situation NOR their minds and hearts. My brother was one of the evacuees. He was a student at the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. He lived in Orleans parish just blocks from Ward 9. Most of Ward 9 are very poor people, handicapped and disabled, and yes there are some drug addicts and lawbreakers there. But I bet if you would look in your own neighborhood you would find them there yourself! Some people, if you could crawl out of your own self-righteous world, do not choose to be in the financial shape they are in. Let's see here, I live in NE Mississippi and people's financial status in this community is very poor. Why? Is it because we have women having babies at 15 and no daddies and no desire to better theirselves? NO! It's because our lovely government signed NAFTA and allowed all our manufacturing jobs to be taken away. So what happens to the people? They fall in the cracks!


 


Back to New Orleans. Let me tell you all about the wanting certain things to be donated. A evacuee does not EVEN get to choose what they want. How assinine of you! Do you think they just sit on the streets and wait for handouts? NO! They have to get passes to even leave the Astrodome or any other shelter. It is the Red Cross that is not taking clothing donations and asking for particular donations. My brother went to the Red Cross to get assistance and was told unless they were living in a shelter, they could not help them at this time. Where is the justice in that? We took clothing to the shelter here in MS and was told to take it back home because they didn't have the time to sort through it. They said that was the job of the Salvation Army. ALSO, our area churches wanted to adopt families and take care of them. Out of 300 families, 50 were given homes to stay in. Last Thursday, we were told by the Red Cross unless we could take them all, we could have none! It had to be the evacuee to approach us and ask, they would not allow us to come in and get families because they said it would only stir up strife. The Red Cross needs some serious reorganization! They have infuriated me!!!


 


So before you get on your high and pious throne discrediting ANYONE, why don't you come on down here in our area and just try living in the situations that are going on right now. Life is very difficult for most of those people. They have lost all of their livelihood and have no hope for the moment. It's only when loving, kind people with caliber that you do not seem to possess, try to help those that are less fortunate!


BECAUSE OF PEOPLE LIKE YOU
I get the garbage every darn day.  You people bite the big one and not well.
BECAUSE OF PEOPLE LIKE YOU
I get the garbage every darn day.  You people bite the big one and not well.