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well, that sums it up as to what's happening in this profession! NM lol

Posted By: mt2 on 2008-10-24
In Reply to: Those...sm - As the saying goes

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Yep, that about sums it up. Weekend TV sucks.
x
Chum sure sums it up! Great term!! Mind
if I borrow it?
This is our profession -- a profession which is dying, I might add. SM

So I should get a hobby so I won't care, like you?  A hobby isn't going to pay the bills.  I can't afford a hobby because in addition to working for a living, I also have to study in a different career field in my spare for fear that eventually transcription will be strictly an offshore operation!


I'm sorry that' s happening to you. My doc
was sports medicine/rehab, and they are set up in their own office to do EMGs. Yes, I had them done, and it took 5 minutes, so in the same visit I got my injections. Maybe it depends on your area in the country and how up they are on sports meds and the like. Good luck to you. It nearly ruined my life. I couldn't even sleep at night due to the aching and pain and numbness. Sorry you have this.
It is happening right now
In the transcription field. We use to be a very well paid profession. Now it is getting hard to make ends meet. Everything else is going up and we are expected to work for less
OMG, I can so see that happening!
the doc mentioning it in his dictation. You poor thing!
If that is actually happening, then
I would suggest that is a company to run from.
I am sorry this is happening to you. I can
relate 100%, though not the schooling part.  Go with the good company, forget the bad and get rid of that stress. Its a negative drain for you.  Give a 2-week notice if you can, or a 1-week at best, as you, yourself, feel it is honorable for you.  I did same at MQ, after decades, but I had absolutely had it as well. The end of the line - breaking point.  It was the longest 2 weeks of my life, and many times I felt like tossing it in early and using my PTO time, but I hung in there, and now I do feel good about that.  As unprofessional as they were, I was professional. But, if my new job had needed me to start earlier, or I was having anginal pain, I would have told them to stick it ASAP.  Don't jeopardize your health at all. Maybe you'll feel a million times better once you hand in your notice and know you will be leaving. But if you still feel angina, etc., don't put your life at jeopardy. No company or bridge is worth that, please.  Blessings to you!
This is happening to me
Does anyone know why this happens?

Sometimes I can't bear the thought of having to go out ... even if I had been somewhere the day before and had a good time, suddenly this dread comes over me, and I can barely even answer my phone!
Since it is happening
to more than just me and we have two or three different ISPs between us (employees, I mean), it must be on their end.

I don't think I would get a very good reception from IT. That's why I asked on here.

Unfortunately, I feel it's better not to make waves at work. It seems things (that should not be a problem) are a problem for them.
happening???

Anything can happen if all MTs stick together on a united front.  You DON'T have to strike or walk out.  You do have to STOP allowing the companies to pay you less and less to do offshore corrections and VR.  I do not know all legal aspects here, but I do know that they can only get away with what MTs allow them to.  Again, if they fire you or you lose your jobs, possibly unemployment.... I do not have all the answers.  I am only trying to put some thought into possibly resolving a few issues, not make more.  If they were to fire all the qualified MTs, where would they be.  AND maybe, just maybe it would bring the rate of pay up a bit and benefits back into your arena. 


 


Yes, that me.....have way to much crap happening....
x
Well...heartening that I'm not the only one with this, but WHY is it happening to me?? I'm no
with MQ, with another mid-sized national and just starting using this via SpeechMachines. We've tried everything! The 9-pin pedal, the USB pedal, a new USB pedal, deleted some of the virus checkers, keep others closed, deleted programs I don't use anymore, switched the ports, switched the keyboards, redownloaded DQS...I'm the only one in the company having the voice and pedal freeze up and having the mouse and my typing freeze up. Speed and memory are great using XP; have plenty. Tested the CPU and that's fine. Things only freeze up while IN the DQS screen. I can still use my mouse on the periphery. Defragged, spychecked, kicked out the cookies, etc. I have the same software and spyware that the big kahunas have, too, nothing odd or unusual on my machine. If this last reboot doesn't help, they gave me DQS's own tech support to call. I'll keep ya posted! This really bites.... .Passing Thru
Just read about what's happening in...
placed like The Netherlands where some drugs are legal. I  don't think it will EVER be legalized, and I certainly hope not.   Before you call me an old fuddy duddy at the rip old age of 45, please know that as a teen in the 70s, I smoked more than my fair share of it. Know why I stopped?  Because I realized at about age 18 that I was lazy, paranoid, and forgetful.   In other words, it made me stupid.   Should responsible parents be sitting around smoking dope with young children in their care?   Or driving a car?  I don't think so.  We have enough trouble with people addicted to alcohol who have  turned their lives into a train wreck.  Don't ask me why one is legal and the other is not.  I have no idea, but the last thing we need is another legal mind scrambler to deal with.
that's been happening for over 4 years now.

Yo-Man, Dude, What's happening?
I agree, Simon is more realistic. Chris did do great last night even though I am not into rock. It was tolerable though! He at least got into it and...was good. Paula LOVES those rockers. She loved Bo Bice also. I think a few girls are the best. Can't wait til tonight and then next Tuesday. It is my favorite show.
SAME THING HAPPENING TO ME
Hi Paulette, I am so sorry this is happening to you. I am going through the exact same thing, except none of my sibling has won any money. I am the youngest girl, I have 3 older sisters and one younger brother. He is the only one who is well off. He makes several hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. And he says that it is my mother's fault she didn't plan for her future. Never mind the fact that she paid for his college tuition and he has a master's degree, nevermind the fact that he, his wife and kid lived with my mom years ago rent and bill free. And she paid for his wedding, the birth of his kids, and other things. Then now that he has capitalized on his education, he will not help her. I send my mother $500 every month. She too has COPD and is 75 years old. The bad thing is I live in a different state than she does but I do more for her than my siblings who live in her neighborhood. I pay for someone to do her grocery shopping, clean her house, etc. My sisters could go over there and do those things but they don't. One of my sisters has finally kicked and started to help her but then she took over her checkbook and misuses the 500 a month I send her.

But like you said, I would work 5 jobs if I had to. In answer to your question, I think they might get it, but as long as I keep helping why should they? Then again, maybe they don't. I have tried to stop trying to figure them out. You know that you are doing the best you can to help your mom. In the end, that's what's important.

Believe me, I understand fully your frustration. I want my mother to finish out her life with some sort of dignity, and the same pride she has lived her life with. I love her deeply and we are very close also. My husband doesn't understand their self centeredness and selfishness. I can only do what I feel is right!

Good luck to you and all of God's blessings to you.

Dee

Dee
The same thing is happening to me
I thought I was the only one.
That is already happening in my office no doubt about that. You are 100% right.
:
First, NY office said no such deal happening; secondly,
the fact that I work for both companies is not why I'm not worried. In fact, that could be the end of my employment stent with either.

I'm not worried because I'll easily get another job or 2 and I can afford to not work for a while if I couldn't find another job immediately.

MT isn't the only thing I can do so I'm not worried.
Yep, very very quiet town. Not much happening there
x
Yes, happening right where I live. I am in South
Jersey, and a local hospital here, along with ortho surgeons, has been using these nasty parts - supposedly unaware of their origin. Lots of local folk have been called in and given the news...Met a lady in a doctor's office the other day who has been sick for a long time - high fevers, shaking chills - goes to ID specialist, but still don't know what she has, but now they know the source - rotten cadaveric spine implants. In NJ, the source of all this mess is a funeral home up in North Jersey. I believe we are not to post identifying info - especially in NJ - I watch too much Sopranos, but the hospital is in South Jersey - the recipient - and the source was a funeral home in North Jersey. A Google search should give all details! Ya just never know...
OMIGOSH! This has been happening to us for MONTHS.
and IS keeps saying, must be your ISP, must be this, must be that. Problem is keystroke lag doesn't hurt anyone but transcriptionists...everyone else can wait for the Keystrokes to catch up but not when you are trying to type at the speed of light. Anyway, we have screamed about it for months, but now our account told us they are trialing a voice recognition system. So see? It could be worse.
This was happening to me yesterday. PleaseSM

I work with the DocQScribe platform.  I was using my DocQScribe Expander as my license ran out with my SH.  So, when I renewed my SH license and started using it again, the same exact thing was happening to me.  I fixed it by hitting F4 to toggle my DocQScribe expander off.  It was messing up because it was trying to use 2 Expanders at the same time.  I have no idea if you are on DocQScribe, but I thought I'd share my experience just in case!  Good luck!


Oh!  Also, in SH I went into preferences and on the keystroke options I have (put) Pause 0 msec after every 999 keystrokes.  That helped my expansions expand more quickly in the past.


Chickadee


OMH - This is unbelievable!!! What is happening to our country! nm
nm
Yes......same thing happening to me, after 25 years. sm
I am tired all the time.....I think I need a change or 2nd job doing something else, other than MT.

My butt hurts from sitting too long, day in and day out, even after exercising and walking daily.

I am burned out also.....I feel your pain.
It appears to be happening to all of us. How do you spell -

We had a weird happening after my father died...
He died in August and when we went to visit his grave just before Christmas, the grass was still growing back over the plot.  The grass had grown in the shape of a Christmas tree inside the rectangular plot of dirt over the grave.  We got some bulbs and decorations and laid them in the grass and took pictures.  Guess what, the pictures didn't turn out.  "dodo do do" (twilight zone tune)
Check out my post above about schooling and what I think is happening. sm
Like I said, newbies cannot do VR effectively. They just don't have the experience. They need to do about 5,000 clinic and/or acute care MTs with extensive notes, books, the ability to do their own research via google, etc., in order to do VR.
There are negative things happening in the MT field that's why
if you've been watching the field evolve over the past 20 years like I have you would know that. If wages were going up, and work was coming FROM other countries, there would be no what-you-call-negativity and what other people call reality. It's the elephant in the living room syndrome. Some people are in denial that there is anything "negative" going on in the MT field, other people prefer to face it head on and discuss it openly. Feel free to skip posts you don't like. Ya know "take what you need and leave the rest."
I understand your frustration but this is happening in all fields.
It affects every work situation as technology advances, etc.

The fact is one cannot expect to have a lifelong career in any one line of work without experiencing some times of either changing with the flow or stepping into another line of work.

Doesn't matter, right or wrong, it's been happening.
Evenutally, the only need for US MTs will be for editing and ASR.  If I remember AAMT even changed their name.  Everyone but the MTs are profiting from this.  My salary has decreased so much over the last 5 years it's a joke.  This has been going on for  years already and the reality is, it's just getting worse.  As long as there is money to be made the big guys are going to go where they can get it and laugh all the way to the bank.  
I notice today, the same thing is happening

to me. I log on and EVERY SINGLE piece of dictation is ESL.  The account I'm on, only has a handful of ESL dictators and so I don't usually mind when they're scattered amongst the rest, even though all but 1 of them completely sucks. Then I get on today and here every single one of them is in the system, all having dictated numerous reports and NONE of them are done.  No American dictators whatsoever. Like that's not totally obvious? I was so livid when I got on I was seconds away from sending an email to my supervisor. I thought better and just did a handful, then logged off and took a nice LONG break and went bowling with the family.  When I got back on tonight, a lot of them were gone, but still, there are more than 15 left (goes to show you how many there were to begin with). So much for getting any kind of decent line count today.  Thanks for listening.   


own contracts versus what is happening with transcription field
can any of you out there who do transcription for local clients give me some insight here. Is it still worth it today to try to go out and get local clients versus working for a national or even in house?  I am so tired of working my you know what off and struggling just to make $12 an hour. When I first started my per hour was not so bad and then other changes came a few years later and I just cannot go on like this and waiting for the good to happen because I am just not feeling it with my company even though they say "those who stick it out will be glad"  I am sooo tired and worn out. Any info regarding on this would be helpful or any advice at all for that matter.  Thanks all. I need a break now. 
that is the same thing that was happening on this board too, not a virus, server problem. that's
if you check your vault - there is probably nothing in there.

The article is old but bares all. the woman did devious things that brought the house down on her and she lost this site.

Now she pulled her junk on Google and she is in trouble with them...so stirs up trouble here.

you can ignor it or research her through all other MT boards. Not quite a legend, must say.
Don't get weird stuff happening when using ShortHand. Easy to use; not like Instant Text. nm
s
Welcome to the profession. Get used to it.
x
Consider another profession?
To standardize testing you have to have every single company use one lone resource. What if company A is more concerned with ESL skills, company B is more concerned with oncology, and company C would like to know whether you rock at op notes? How do you standardize testing to cover every area that a given employer might want to concentrate on?
Definitely a profession. This is a
you will get a lot of pessimism and negativity.  I definitely have made tons of money in my own business.  Sounds like low self-esteem on the posters below, unhappy, depressed.
This is not just in this profession but
all over. I sat and waited on a call yesterday (my off day) regarding a piece of property I have up for sale. No call at all. I really hate to leave a message on a recording because most of the time you are ignored. Times have changed and not for the good. I think the majority of my family including my mother and my grandmother who are deceased would probably be shocked at today's life as we live it.
which profession
would you let us know what you decided to do? I'm wondering what I want to do next.
re: which profession
Dental Hygiene...usually takes 2 years but have to do it part time so I can still earn a living so is taking me 4 - I'm more than halfway done though, so can't complain...
our profession

This is old, but has anyone read this??  I must research further what the final outcome was.  While I totally agree with what they are doing and why, I totally DISAGREE with their final recommendation for standardizing line counts. VBC is not the way to do it.  


 


 


You ask anybody in any profession
They will say they are worth more than they are being paid. That's the way it is everywhere. I make good money sitting at home. My local hospital pays their transcriptionists 9.40/hr. Big deal! I'll rather stick with a MTSO any day.
Our profession/New job

About three weeks ago I began a position with a local health care company (transcribing for local acute care hospitals but part of a national chain).


We are not really transcribing, at least not by my definition (21 years of experience).  Rather, we are recording medical ShortHand (abbreviations [even in DIAGNOSES section], shortened medication names, slang, contractions, etc.).  On the one hand, they claim they want you to type it verbatim (no expansions, additions, etc.), yet OTOH they say to delete redundancies, repetitions, etc., which is hardly verbatim. We are not allowed to expand, add to, or correct ANYTHING except number and tense dictated by ESL docs, who comprise about 60% of the dictators.  In addition, certain dictated terms are to be abbreviated (e.g., "emergency room" transcribed as "ER").


The supervisor had the gall to look me right in the eye and deliver a harangue about how these are "legal documents, and we have to transcribe EXACTLY what they say."  (Conveniently disregarding the bit about deleting redundancies and the other "allowed" changes.)  So ALL of my previous employers, AAMT, etc. did it wrong, and THEIR crackerjack legal department is smarter than everyone else?!     Don't think so.  Cutting costs is the game they're playing; everyone can see that.


Excerpt from a typical report looks like this:  Wrote scrip for vanco 100, patient also to take aspirin 81 and will return next week. I don't think .... [blah blah blah]


AAMT taught me to create a complete, coherent, grammatically correct document that doesn't look like alphabet soup.  Needless to say, I don't feel good about what I am creating and HATE THIS JOB!!


I'm just curious if this is happening elsewhere.  With all of the emphasis on "cutting costs,"  I have to think that it is.


Thanks for listening to my splenic venting.


A - No future in this profession.
Get a 4-year degree and open up your options.
Is our profession drying up?

I'm an independent contractor and have just lost an orthopaedic clinic account to EMR.  Also, I've been sending out hundreds of letters for new accounts, and I'm hearing nothing back! 


Is our profession (clinic work) drying up?  This is getting very scary!


Could someone either (1) comfort me with "it's not true" news and there's more than enough clinic work out there to go around, or if you find that it is, indeed, drying up, write back and tell me of your experience.


Thank you `` Nancy in Alpharetta, Georgia


 


Good for you... and for our profession.
x
Find a new profession!
You never told us you had another job as a fortune teller! PUHLEEZ - your crystal ball is nothing more than an average bowling ball!
Stop trying to stir up trouble!
MT Dying profession

I don't agree with you.  I'm betting that MT is good for MAYBE 5 more years.  Maybe.  Thinking they won't perfect VR is only fooling ourselves....they will.  I wouldn't recommend MT to anyone looking to enter the field.  Money better spent on something with a better future but what that would be, I don't know.  Seems everything that can possibly be offshored is being offshored.  Maybe we should move to China   Then we can be sure to have jobs seeing nearly everything in the U.S. comes from there anyway.  Or maybe, the way things are going we had all better learn to like rice, cuz that's probably all we'll be eating before long.


Regarding MT being a dying profession...
I have actually read in numerous places that MT is a job with future opportunity, in light of the baby boomers beginning to get old and sick.  That's going to supply us with a lot of medical reports for a very long time.  As for voice recognition taking over...I'll believe it when I see it.  I know an MR who does VR and I've seen the gobbledegook that it comes up with.  Eventually all these companies will realize that they were sold a bill of goods by these VR vendors, but because they've invested so much in this technology, they're going to stick with it until the bitter end.  Just my opinion of course.    Finally, outsourcing.  I'm  pretty confident that  something will happen that will put the kybosh on sending private medical records off to Calcutta for transcription.   I think that practice will also stop eventually.   I could be totally wrong and maybe I'll have to put away my rose colored glasses, but for now, that's my prediction.