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if you're asking for advice or opinion - sm

Posted By: MT on 2007-04-07
In Reply to: I have 2 jobs. - what do you do when they run into each other.

Then my 2 cents is to stay with the hospital. I honestly do not know of many national companies that keep the same hospital accounts longer than 3-5 years any more. And during those 3-5 years on one hospital account, the national may be losing some other hospital accounts. Thus, moving transcriptionists from one account to another, possibly yours, and therefore, affecting your pay and hours. The nationals also tend to change insurance companies every couple of years and not to the benefit of the employee.

Look around on the board some more and you will read about all the problems with nationals, as well as the positives, but mostly negatives.

It sounds like the problem with the at home transcriptionists from your hospital lies within the IT department. Let me tell you - the IT department/hospital equipment has been the downfall of MANY MANY hospitals having to outsource. I don't understand it. These hospitals can apparently afford to spend $32-45,000/MONTH on outsourcing, but they can't afford new equipment for their on site staff???? The two hospitals in my area ran into that problem. I have seen the bill for outsourcing and for our 247 bed hospital, it runs close to $45,000/month. We could have had all new equipment and set up at home for two monthly outsourcing payments. We also ran into problems with snow/icy roads - and as I'm sure you saw on the news, being in upstate NY is no picnic in the winter. But I'd rather work for a hospital than for an outsource service any day.




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....in my humble opinion as you're not in and out with the
s
k, that is your opinion, i stated mine. poor quality in my opinion shows bad work ethics if they do
;
Advice to YOU..1st learn to spell before insulting poster and trying to give advice...sm

Sound advice from a fellow MT if you want advice or support (sm)

I have been an MT for over 10 years.  I also am getting burnt out, tired of my job, day in day.  However, I do love transcription and make excellent money at it, have grossed over $50,000 per year the last 5 years.  I decided to go back to nursing school and am very happy with my choice.  However, over these 10 years of transcription I have had my ups and downs.  My biggest issue with being at home working is lack of socialization, being home day in and day out with just the kids and the animals really gets to a person, sure hubby is home at night and thinks working from home is the easy life, thus the return to school and boy has my overall enjoyment of life changed once I realized I was the problem, not everyone else and I needed to find myself again.


Anyway, my biggest advice to you three-fold:


1.  Get into counseling for yourself, find out who you are and what your needs are, whether or not you think you need to, I sense you are feeling overwhelmed and need someone other than your family to talk to that can be nonjudgmental to your feelings and needs.


2.  If you're only making $100 after you pay preschool you can either keep doing it and be miserable, or quit because you are lucky enough to have a husband who can support the family without your income. (See how fast his mind changes just by losing the income you do have as to whether your job means anything.)  Or look for a different company or office that you like more and are more productive if you really want to do transcription (lots of fish in the sea as far as companies).


3.  Find a local "mom's" group where you can get out and socialize.  MOPS (mother's of preschoolers) is an excellent one that is nationwide, they have a website.  Also Mom2Mom is in a lot of areas.  They provide a once a week time for moms with kids the same age to get together, socialize, (some offer spirtual guidance some don't) and each week a different mom takes a turn watching everyone else's children at the facility that hosts it so the other moms can talk about things they have in common.  Every stay-at-home and work-from-home mom needs to socialize with adults, without their kids, or they will have a nervous breakdown eventually no matter how much they love their kids.


Sorry so long but it does get better but you have to take the first step at making yourself happy.


For Pete's sake, you're not terminating a pregnancy, you're just typing a report after the
It's already been done before you even hear about it, and NOTHING changes regardless of whether you or someone else types it. Sheesh.
It's not funny when you're on a board where language is one skill you're selling.
.
Hope you're gonna have a glass of wine while you're relaxing

in your spa goodies. Congrats!


Well, you're all complaining that accounts are current and work is low, so, gee, maybe they're
focusing on WORK, as in CLIENT and transcribing, as maybe half of you should be focusing on!!
If you're experienced, try for 9cpl or higher, and you're lucky to get that! nm
s
Skip it. No one cares. Either you're good on the test or you're not.
x
You're probably right. Plus we're losing our percentage of good people by .... (sm)
allowing every loser from every 3rd world country on the planet to just stroll on into our country, some legally, most illegally, and take advantage of the social services all us hard working little gerbils pay for by having money taken out of our pay every month. But I don't think we're all lazy. Just the ones on permanent welfare driving around town in brand-new Cadillac Escalades. Saw one just today on the Bayshore Fwy. Brand-new black Escalade with expensive spinner wheels, with 5 or 6 Mexicans in it. Well, who knows - maybe they stole it and it was on its way to a chop-shop. Smart-and-hungry people aren't always hard-working and honest.
You're not going to find a word expander for free. You're going to have to pay
g
You're forgetting all the stuff you can't buy when you're UNEMPLOYED!
Unemployed people have a hard time buying anything, including cheaply made offshore products. How many will have to end up depending on public assistance? That means more tax dollars being eaten up - besides the taxes NOT being collected from the overseas workers. In the long run, are you really enjoying a lower price?
If you're on the job, ask for samples to do it how they want it. If you're testing, separate o
s
You're not losing it, you're burned out on your main job.
I feel for you... I am having my own "version" ;-) of these kinds of struggles. Lots of recent changes at the admin level have made my job do a 180, going from a really great one to a really crappy one.

For me, it's a struggle to get through the day with a shred of motivation. I get distracted in the way you discuss as well.

I just try to make my environment as comfortable as possible and make the best of it while I decide what the best way is to deal with the burnout... I figure if I can't change my inner brain workings so that I still like this job, I need to find another one, or this feeling will possibly get worse!

I hope it works out for you. Wish I had some better advice for you, but this really does look like burnout and extreme job dissatisfaction to me. We all wear it differently. Try to be good to yourself while you figure out a solution.


Don't know what you're complaint you're making with this post. sm

You stated in your original post that you don't want to work weekends or odd shifts. What is your definition of an odd shift?  Second shift?  Third shift?  Sounds like you want to work M-F on days.  Sounds kind of rigid to me. 


Personally I like second shift, so everyone working days means more work for me! 


Why not? I have a right to an opinion and it is what it is. (nm)
x
Ah, of course, an OPINION. Uh-huh.
You are, of course, entitled to your opinion. However, the statement "it is what it is" indicates that you don't truly consider it your opinion. You have decided that's the way it is and your mind is closed.

I strongly object to the sweeping across-the-board statements from you and the OP that MTs working for large national companies are either clueless or gutless.

There are many MTs working for large national companies that are paid well, treated well, and have no complaints. That does not make us "gutless." That makes us productive members of society.

What do YOU suggest? What are you doing to show YOUR guts? What is your plan for change? Where do you think all these MTs should go to work? You and the OP are very quick to say what YOU would do instead - but that's a solution YOU find acceptable and/or workable. Personally, I would NEVER work as a telemarketer again unless I was truly desperate.

Working outside the home also isn't a feasible option for me and many others. What is your solution in that situation? Stop working altogether?
My opinion.........sm

I believe many MTs stay with these Nazi-like companies* because their self-confidance has been pummeled into the ground by the abusive, demoralizing treatment they are subjected to every day.  It's like the well known pattern of an abused child who clings to the abusive parent.  What they don't realize, or refuse to see is that more and more MTs are putting their foot down and refusing to stay with companies that offshore, cut our pay, treat us like dogs, and then have the audacity to use us to help them achieve their ultimate goal of eradicating our profession.  Why is VR technology becoming more and more sophisticated with each passing day?  Because we're helping them do it!!  Kind of like digging your own grave. 


I truly believe that if enough of us take matters into our own hands by showing them that "We're mad as hell, and we're not taking this anymore" we can together turn the tables on these money hungry vermin.  Do the math.  We are "still" the backbone of the industry.  We need to take action NOW while we still have the power.


* No ethnically based offense intended.  Just trying to make a point.


opinion
Figure out your pros and cons to keeping your current job and the pros and cons to having a home-based job -- consider your need for medical insurance, gas money, clothing allowance for work outside of the home, eating out for lunch, not having to deal with co-workers on their crabby days, et cetera. Most likely you will not start at $15/hour but with saving money elsewhere while being home-based it might make it worth the loss of a few bucks to be home. I do have two children (7 & 10) whom are very active in extracurricular activities and it is a huge bonus to be able to split my shift when needed with no questions asked. My employer is very flexible. When school is out for the summer, it does slow down my production...but children aren't home forever...so I'll deal with it. There are a lot of jobs available but only half of them are worth the time...be choosy and check them out thoroughly before deciding. Good luck with your decision.
So your opinion is okay,
but no one else can give theirs.  Yeah.  Wrong. 
Want my opinion - here it is anyway
You wany my opinion, either way, here it is. Yes, for all of those that CONSTANTLY, AND I MEAN CONSTANTLY bash Medquist - find another hobby. You have already done and beat the darn horse dead - let it alone. Personally, I cannot wait for the phone call to tell me what changes they have made. Already the bashers are criticizing their plan and yet no one knows what it is. On the other hand, if there was no plan established, the complainers would be at it again - COMPLAINING THAT THERE IS NO PLAN. What is it going to take for you unhappy MTs to just quit already - I mean both quit your job and your complaining?

To all you complainers take my advice and "just zip it already"


I am always right and here is my opinion
Why, Dr. Phil here. Is there a problem. These people are living life to the fullest, something we ALL need to do. If you die tomorrow, can you say your last day on earth was spent having fun - probably not. GO HAVE FUN AND LOVE LIFE AND LIVE IT TO THE FULLEST.

I say HOORAY to these nasty posters for having fun!
My opinion

I apologize to you then MQx4 if all these posts were not yours.  It is very difficult to determine who is who anymore.


 


Although, in those crazy people's defense, I actually did find those posters rather hillarious!  I am just your average MT and no I am not disturbed in any way, just enjoy a raw sense of humor now and then.  Please don't bash me for saying that, it is just my opinion.  A raw sense of humor is not grounds for being in the psyhiatric ward.  A good laugh every now and then does wonders for the body (burns lots and lots of calories you know).  With that being said, we should welcome everyone here and as long as I am personally not being threatened, then I really am up for any conversation and/or jokes or whatever. 


It's nice to know who you are talking with, so MQx4 thanks for being consistent with your name.  Sorry if I addressed some of those posts to you!


Opinion of what

UH OH - Just watched FOX News and they indicate that Rita may become a category 4 or perhaps even a 5 once she hits the warm waters.   From what I heard, it is heading for Texas - how awful considering that there are hundreds of thousands of evacuees already there from Katrina.  Any thoughts or has anyone heard anything different of what could or might happen in the upcoming days? 


Share your thoughts with us.


My opinion
To me, it is like watching a good movie, however we have no video to go with the audio. I am not so much for the swearing, but c'mon it is hillarious to hear people's reactions and comebacks.
my opinion
In my opinion, if you do not need to make a certain amount of money each week and you have another source of income, i.e. spouse, then going the IC route may be for you.

But if you depend on the benefits, certain pay amount, dependability in that pay, etc., then stay at the hospital. All the MTSOs can tell you "oh we have benefits and plenty of work, blah blah blah..." but guess what?? You do not know what is going to happen to that account you start out on. You could end up sharing it with 10 other MTs, then all of a sudden, 10 more MTs jump on that account because the MTSO lost a particular account or has no work on other accounts, etc. That changes your pay. I could go on and on about the ups and downs of working full time for an MTSO, but I would be here all day typing.

But one thing is this - very rarely do you get to "set your own hours" as a full time MT with an MTSO.
My opinion.....

If you want to be proficient in MT'g, you can't unless you know business English inside and out.  Check out your local community college. It will be time and $$$ well spent, and remember, knowlege is power.


Also remember, grammar is very important in this business.  A simple hyphen can completely change the meaning of a sentence.....


Case in point:


 


I saw a man eating shark.


 


I saw a man-eating shark.


 


See what I mean?


My opinion...

What your step-father is doing is horrible, but I don't understand your reaction towards your mother.


You expect your mother to "see" what is going on without directly telling her.  If she has no idea what's going on, how could she possibly understand why you are treating him the way you are?


Do you think it is fair to end your relationship with your mother over something that she has no idea about?  If you are going to end your relationship with her, she at least has the right to know why.  You are not "saving her the embarrassment."  You are taking the easy way out.  I think it is mean to do this to her.


It is not fair how your step-father is treating you.  It is wrong.  But 10% of life is what happens to you and 90% is how you respond to it.  Do the right thing.  Tell your mother and everyone else what is going on.  Keeping silent only protects him. 


Personally, if my daughter ever told me what you just said about someone I was with, he'd get the boot right out the door.  I don't think I would even wait for an explanation from him.  Give your mother an opportunity to do just that.


My opinion is....
Go for it, just say you were wondering if they got your email, as you haven't heard back from them. That gives you the excuse to get one on the phone, then maybe you could get down to the nitty gritty of what positions they have open, what shifts, what are they willing or planning to pay, etc.
Please help! Really REALLY need your opinion SM

I have been asked to transcribe some training material for my brother-in-law.  He puts together training manuals for addiction medicine counselors and has a lot of things that he needs transcribed into Word.  (They are on tapes, VHS, DVD, etc., but he is going to put them all in a wav file format for me to transcribe.)  He wants to pay me the normal going rate.


He wants to know how I would charge (word, line, job, etc.).  I have decided to do 65 character lines including spaces, but need to know how much per line would be appropriate.


I don't know if this makes a difference, but he's in Minnesota.  I am leaning toward 14 cents per line, but wonder if that is too much?


Please let me know what you think.


Chickadee


I did it, here's my opinion.
I was in QA/QA management for many years. I lost touch with what being an MT was about. It happens.

I regret many things I corrected while in QA because, quite frankly, being an MT is a very hard job and QA shouldn't sweat the small stuff. Anyway, I went back into transcription part time and felt as if the weight of the world was lifted from my shoulders. I enjoyed working again.

Now I have the fun of laughing over the tiny **** that QA finds to pick on in order to find errors on a review (hyphens, commas). Heck, I got a major error for not putting a capital letter in the middle of a drug name! Yikes! Did the patient die? No! But it's a major error. lol.....

I hope that someday the person who is QAing me will have the same "a-ha!" moment I did, but in the meantime I'll just smile and be grateful I'm not in her shoes. Or working for the manager who insists on such silly scoring.

I've gone back to transcribing full time with a hospital (yes!), and I'm making more money than I ever have in my life--even more than as a QA manager.

Do it! Go back to your roots, your first love, and enjoy the PEACE that transcribing brings.
My opinion is that you should
Go visit the family and come back. I think this is a great opportunity for you to be able, somewhere down the line, to have a lot of freedom in your life. When you finally get the house and aren't taking care of this person anymore, you will have the freedom to go visit them whenever you want and even stay there for long periods of time and still have the peace of mind that you have a home to live in that is paid for and that is a major expense that you won't have. Lets face it, not a lot of us have a retirement and most of us will work until die just trying to keep up the house payment. That is a real load lifter you've been offered.
My opinion
I know that what's one man's poison is another man's feast, but I wouldn't give you two cents for the Bahamas - the natives are ruder than heck and everything is priced beyond belief.  UGH!  If I'm going to see water and beaches, I want to go where it's worth looking at; i.e., the Pacific Ocean - The Oregon Coast and/or Southern California!  Now THAT's a BEACH, and the food?  Oooh LA la!   
it is my opinion that you are very ill....sm
do you need any one of us to make an appointment with the nearest psych MD?  Maybe we can book you a room in Bellevue Hospital.....
just my opinion

First off, let me say how sorry I am that you and your children are going through this horrible experience.  I completely understand your range of emotions.  I left an abusive alcoholic many years ago with 4 children under the age of 9.  At that time I did not have any means of income, so I went on welfare.  After the kids and I settled into being a "family" without a father figure, I got three jobs and went to college to be a paralegal.  Let me tell you it was far from easy, but well worth it! I refused to allow my children to think that his way of "love" of normal or appropiate.  I also did not have family or friends to lean on, I only had myself and my children.  You need to find the strength and resove in yourself to do what you know is right (if you didn't think leaving was right, you wouldn't have posted).  You need to lay out a plan, and then outline steps needed to fulfill this plan (make a real budget, find housing, etc..) Also you need the abuse documented in case child custody is an issue.  Next file for FULL custody and child support.  Please go talk to an attorney, many offer first consults free.  I wish you courage through this.


Just my opinion, but
it sounds like you are bragging.
my opinion
really ask yourself how badly you want to do this. Read this board carefully and know where the MT field is headed and all the pros and cons- then decide.

my personal thought is go back to school to do something else
I would like to add - those asking for it, in my opinion,
are lazy and don't want to do the footwork themselves. No time for those who sit back and want things handed to them!
Just an opinion
Does anyone else think that all dictators should have to listen to their own dictation once in a while - I am so tired already this morning of dictators on cell phones that are so muffled you cannot understand them, horns blowing in the background and the dictation coming and going because of losing the signal.  I think the physicians should periodically have to listen to some of their own dictation.
Need opinion...
I am currently a newbie doing transcription for a very high volume acute care hospital.  I am having a hard time meeting production, and they are opening a position with a psych hospital. To be honest, I am bored with what I am doing now. I am wondering if I decide to take the psych position that maybe it might give me a chance to improve on my production and mix up my day a little better. Since I have such a wide range of doctors right now and such a wide range of reports, it is hard for me to make any templates or anything that can help with my production. Any advice would be much appreciated.
opinion
I would think that if you are bored with your current job, getting a different one would be the thing to do. I am a newbie to,working for one specialty, and I am very glad that I started this way first - not quite as overwhelming as to take on so many terms at once.
My opinion...
Find one that will work with you and treat you good!!

A small MTSO is what works best for me personally for those very same reasons!
Let us know what your opinion is!
nm
My opinion
Chris rocks the house and is soooo consistent week after week. However, I enjoy Kellie Pickler and Paris as well.

Personally, I think this is the toughest season yet....in other words, lots of excellent singers and performers.

I enjoy listening to Taylor, but I have to say that looking at him just throws me for a loop. So darn hard to believe he is only 29 years old. Even his demeanor and personality seems more like 40s.

I just hope Kevin goes home tonight. If not Kevin, then Ace!
My opinion...
Love is a choice. We choose to make the effort, and it goes both ways. He is obviously not making much effort. The fact that he is willing to go to counseling is a good sign though. Be sure and tell your counselor the reality of it all.

Would and could you get a housekeeper? That would take a lot of stress off of you - even though he really should help.

This is not much in the way of advice. Just hang in there. I am sorry you are going through this. You must feel the weight of the world on your shoulders.
My opinion

It is impossible to "spot reduce" one area of your body, but doing resistance training and building muscle helps to burn fat more quickly than aerobic exercise alone.


I need your opinion, please.
If you were given the option of either working at home on a schedule with a little flexibility for production with benefits or working outside the home on an hourly rate which is reasonable with benefits, which would you choose and why?  Please give feedback as to why you would choose one over the other, pros and cons.  I really need your opinions as you all know what is involved in this type of job.  You may think of something I haven't already thought of and I value your opinions.  Do you prefer to know your doctors personally so that you can get personal feedback from them or are you comfortable just knowing them as a "voice" and getting feedback from QA?  Thanks in advance for your responses.
In my opinion....

..I think they are pretty good to work for.  They don't really bother you, so you're just left to work in peace.  They have several platforms, so what platform you use will be dependent on what account you're assigned to.  The people are very nice.  Pay is pretty decent and always on time.  They can come across as a little disorganized in the beginning, but all-in-all I'm happy with them.  


Hope this helps!  


In my opinion......
It sounds like arthritis.
Here's my opinion....sm

  • They support off-shore transcription.

  • A lot of employers don't pay a CMT differential, and if they do it's generally not enough to cover the costs of being certified or keeping it, much less the yearly membership.

  • If you like to meet and talk with other transcriptionists then you might like it.

  • A lot of their meetings are held on Saturdays, so you'd need to plan for that if you joined.