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Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

When you don't hear from QA anymore nm

Posted By: Anon - nm. on 2005-07-23
In Reply to: Pay raise - newbie

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I don't think so. Not anymore. Used to be
GREAT but you must understand, medical transcription is now available in a global market. The Internet has made it possible for every Tom, Rick and Harry in India to make their services available. These people are not dumb. They are very hard working. Most of them hold TWO master's degrees.  Now, granted their quality is not too good now... but just wait. Let them get a few years under their belts and you will really see India take off as competitors. Furthermore, on a DAILY BASIS, I hear from others in MT who lose jobs to voice recognition, which now works, and electronic medical records, a point and click system. My own service holds a physical therapy account that brings in $70,000 per year. Five people work part time on it and the department is now implementing a voice recognition system. Bye Bye Gravy Account. In the Big Services, i.e. Medquist, etc. they have gone to voice recog with back end editing. What it really means is the MT goes in and cleans up what the computer missed. Now it used to be you could get 9, 10, cents per line typing the report. But editing takes JUST AS LONG, only because it's "easier" you only make 5, 6, 7 cents per line. The customer gets it at a lower price, the service keeps its margin, the MT gets screwed. The only dictators left to do are the ESL, and what a bear. So if you want to invest $4000 to make $4 per hour, IF you land a job, be my guest. I have 20+ years watching this field, and it's on its way out. If you think things are bad now, check back in another year. They will be much, much worse.
Industry certainly isn't the same anymore - sm
I'm a +35-year MT and still going strong, had my own business, worked in-house for hospitals/docs, done it all, work for MTSO now, but just like other industries, a lot has changed and most not for the good. I have stayed with an MTSO for only a couple of reasons - My husband has been transferred many times over the years all over the country and this is one job that I can keep doing wherever my next address is . . .I can visit family and take my work with me when I travel. It is a very isolating profession to be at home, lack of social networking and getting to meet people in new areas.

I have numerous docs for medical conditions and not one of them uses a Transcriptionist anymore, all have their own laptops they carry around. So much is offshored, VR is taking over for many facilities, and many transcription services have been gobbled up over the years by larger ones, also much of it not for the good . .I am just hoping to hang on for 10 more years until I can retire, but I'm not even sure how much of a demand there will be for my years of knowledge and quality work - it's all about the bottom line for these MTSOs and medical facilities - I saw the writing on the wall about 20 years ago or so in Calif when managed care started. One doctor I worked 15 years for was very involved in fighting it with insurance companies as HMOs moved in, of course, to no avail. It all trickles down eventually. I know many people in the business and with whom I keep in touch, and we all feel the same way. It's just sad.

It used to be you could find a mentor to see you through the early years - I had one and that was worth more than my college degree in some ways. I still believe that work experience in-house for acute care/multispecialty is still necessary to gain a good grasp of what transcription is about, but I'm old school, and I'm sure some will disagree - I tried to train/employ new MT's for my business right as they were getting started, and 90% of them just didn't get it, no matter what their courses - an at-home transcription course or college graduate - I couldn't believe the lack of comprehension of the English language in most of them.

This has just been my own personal experience I'm passing along. Overall would I recommend this profession to someone looking to get started in it - NOT ANY MORE.

Disclaimed: Please excuse any typos/grammar errors to those who love to play transcription police - I'm doing this very fast, as I am in the middle of working and typing on a separate keyboard off to the side - always have numerous computers going for different things. I normally don't even post on here, but I happened to click on the wrong board and this caught my eye - I'm sure this subject has been brought up many times here.

I truly am empathetic to your situation and wish I could give you a more uplifting opinion. Good luck to you and anyone else in the same boat.


Legal aspects mean nothing anymore
India isn't the only place, how about the Phillipines. Yes, it's going there too. They're being trained specifically for this work, hundreds of them. So more and more will be going away from the U.S. Your medical privacy rights mean NOTHING in those countries. They can't be held to anything!!!!
Legal aspects mean nothing anymore
Yeah, I saw the Phillipines too. I can't believe the health care profession would be that careless with such an important subject. All the about the bottom dollar huh?
In my opinion, not anymore. Been in this 25 years.
It is all going to voice recognition, meaning that the only real transcribing there will be left to do are the horrible dictators (ESLs and NON-ESLs) who cannot be processed by speech recognition.

Between that and overseas workers, not much in the way of a future in my opinion. Glad I'm nearing the end of my career in it.


Med. Transciption not too good anymore? What next?
Hi,
I've been interested in going through Mtec and becoming employed as a Med. Transcriptionist. Howevever, looking at this board, it seems like things are doing too good for transcriptionists. If the future of Medical transciprion isn't doing too well, then what other sort of occupation should I consider that is similar?
oops!...can't take on anymore students/trainees ...nm
.
Not a hard and fast rule anymore. Strictly up to QA and
s
MT is not worth it anymore. Would not worry about past. Did need to give ID to be hired though.
.
Most places only do the overflow or unwanted work from a facility, anymore. Once those
s
A nurse does not have the proper training to be an MT, anymore than an MT could suddenly decide to b
nm
Anything coming from the AAMT holds no water anymore - they invalidated their status
when they sold us out for the $$ in India. AAMT means another chance to screw MT's, that's all.
I hear ya...

I'm new too and typing clinic notes only for an ortho clinic.  I have about 2 wks under my belt and what I found to be very helpful was that the QA person would point out to me some of the common phrases used by the different docs. He even made a list of terms the podiatry doc uses often.  There are a few new MTs on this account - perhaps that is why he made the list. Not everyone will have this resource, but you can slowly create one yourself.  I keep a notebook next to me and write down the phrases that I have gotten stuck on. 


I have found that going back and listening to the unclear parts after finishing the report helps, and sometimes I hold the ones with blanks in them until I am done the batch for that particular dictator. I then go back and by that time, my ears and brain have adjusted to that person's style and I can hear things I did not hear.  I am lucky that out of the 6 or 7 dictators, only one is ESL and I have gotten used to the regional accent of the other one that was hard at first to figure out. 


Good luck. I don't know what is expected of newbies, and I would bet that it differs from place to place.  It can be overwhelming at first getting up to speed.  My first few days were simply awful. I am sure if you work hard and get good QA feedback, you will find that you get used to the account and your blanks will go down quite a bit. 


Hear! Hear!
MRS is absolutely right. Anyone offering to perform skilled work for free undermines the economic base of the whole profession.

Please reconsider, if not for the sake of the rest of us, then for your own sake. There are any number of unscrupulous people who would be happy to take you up on your offer and string you along at no or very low pay for a long, long time.

If you have received a good MT education, with a little time and effort invested in the job search, you WILL find paid employment. It seems hopeless when first attempts meet with rejection, but good training and persistence will pay off. You do not have to work for nothing.
Sorry to hear that
Sorry to hear that. I personally would not all the negativity get you down. I think they just are unhappy and are just trying to share their sorrow.

Good luck in what you decide to do.
I'm sure you don't want to hear this, but here goes...
I only hire new grads from M-TEC, Andrews, and Career Step (sometimes). Of those grads I've hired, they were ready to hit the ground running even without experience. Granted, they made mistakes and were not as good as someone with years of experience, but they definitely heard more than 3 or 4 words out of each sentence.

You probably don't want to hear this, but you likely received an inferior MT education, and that is going to hold you back from being successful. If you are truly driven to succeed in this business and want to treat it like the career it is, your best bet is to get a better education. I know M-Tec has a course (by the way, it's "course," not "coarse") for people with prior medical knowledge, and maybe one of the other AAMT-approved schools do as well. If money is a concern, I also know there are payment plans and loans available.

I strongly urge you to look into more education before trying another MT job. The path you are currently on is designed for failure.

Anybody ever hear of TTS, LLC
Are they a good company to work for?
Sorry to hear that

The lack of new MTs to fill the shoes of those who leave will cause companies to continue to look for oversea's MT's. This will probably continue to make the wages drop for those still trying to thrive on a MTs pay. As for me, My degree was obtained through the University system, why would I pay 4,000 more for one online. It makes no sense. Good luck to you all ...I hope things work out well for you ..as they evetually will for me.


I hear ya...

I actually researched this profession for a few months before actually taking the plunge into extra school.  I have an extensive medical background.  But I started by calling different hospitals, transcription companies, etc, around the state that I live in.  They all told me the same thing, experience, experience, experience.  So I asked them what would make me hire-able without experience.  A few of them gave me names of medical transcription schools that they would waive the requirement for.  I followed up and am now extremely happy with my choice. Being a lurker here, I know that many people who are extremely bright and smart cannot get hired because of lack of a certain certificate from only certain schools, which I think is crazy to limit the hiring process based on that only.  BUT what matters at the end of the day is who signs your paycheck.  So instead of standing on my soapbox and shouting all that is wrong, I bit the bullet and enrolled.  I am only a few weeks away from graduation and every graduate from my school has been able to find a quality job in a matter of days or a couple of weeks. 


I hear you!
Were we separated at birth or what?!?  I used the word "pest" when I emailed my mentor last night!
I hear you.
Good luck to you.. I am a new graduate with one year experience.. and finding NO luck... I always wonder how the people in this field break in.. and I think the only answer I've found is persistence... majorly.. hopefully before long we'll both find our way in.
Same here. Took me two weeks to hear anything
I still work there today. Just took a little while to get things sorted out, I guess. Call them! What will it hurt?
Also still waiting to hear...
I sent my assessments back on Friday the 28th and haven't heard anything yet. They were very quick to reply after I sent my resume and sample transcription. I was hoping to hear something soon, but I'm sure they have tons of people to sort through.
Now that's good to hear!

As in any profession, you will come across people that feel they are greater than thou.  You've made the right choice.  Now, take that education and go with it!  What I have found is that it is not so much being corrected by QA, it is the manner in which it is done.  I always felt I'll take all of the advice I can get, but only use what I need, and let the worthless advice come in one ear and out of the other!  TAKE CARE AND GOD BLESS!  When it is all said and done, you are helping people even if it is behind the scenes.  Proper documentation to a caregiver means the world and do not ever forget that! 


So sorry to hear about your husband.
Have you tried your local hospitals or do you need to work from home? That would be one of my suggestions since it sounds like you are not a newbie. That is how I got my job. I had gotten several calls from potential employers here, but only one solid offer. Unfortunately, it came after I started the job I have now.

Good luck in whatever you decide to do.
Obviously you're not going to believe anybody unless they say what you want to hear.
So just go ahead an spend your money, and then come back here like all the others and complaint that no one will hire you without 2 years' experience, because NOBODY will waive that experience requirement for graduates of Allied. MANY places will waive that requirement for Andrews and M-Tec grads, and let them take their employment test (which they will most likely pass). The companies know that grads of Allied can't pass the employment tests because they are not trained well enough. So if somebody comes on here and tells you Allied is a great school and they had no trouble getting a job afterwards, go for it. Maybe you'll be one of the RARE lucky ones. Just don't hold your breath.
I hear you, Sasha!!
I have had the same issue.  I graduated in November from one of the top 3 schools, only to find the same thing as you - testing with so many companies I have to keep a log to keep them straight, no responses from e-mails, "we'll be hiring in a few weeks" responses, "you need 2 years of experience", etc.  I graduated with a 95% average and thought I would get a much warmer response than I have.  Granted, the economy does affect some, but I would not think it would affect all.  I landed a phone interview with a national, but the message boards are making me a little paranoid about even thinking about it.  I'm in the same boat as you, Sasha!!
Thank you! I am so glad to hear
that using the pinkie to shift will not interfere with the program.
Hear ya loud and clear!!
I am also having trouble getting my foot in the door anywhere. Frankly, my toes are a little sore!
Sorry to hear that. I hope you can find one
x
I'll believe it when I hear from others getting their money.
nm
When you hear "big 3" in that post sm
it has to be Career Step - Andrews and M-Tec students identify their schools.  As I have said forever, CS students have a harder time.
Gotta know your stuff or you'll have to look up everything you hear. Must
s
Sorry to hear about your lost business. We aren't seeing that.
I'm seeing more business than ever before. I hope yours will pick up. Don't get discouraged.
But didn't you hear? Goji got her refund!
Yeah, I ALMOST believe it!


Anyone hear of TTS? (Transcription, Technology, and Support
I have been offered a job with TTS and can't find any info on them. They are located in New Hampshire. They had  a job posting on the job seekers board here so I was hoping somebody had some information. Thank you!
Glad to hear such good news!
I am happy for you and your family, and I hope he continues to improve.
As you'll hear 1000 times, there IS no school that SM

can offer an MT certificate. You have to take the test through AAMT.


Also, what offices and hospitals want? A person who can sit down and do their work without a lot of discussion or BS. Just get the work out, make it correct. I was in a hiring position for several years at the largest hospital in my state. I didn't care about certification. I cared about test performance.


Of course a CMT behind your name means A LOT. That test is very difficult and, for the most part, if you have passed that test, no more discussion is necessary.



You will hear responses from both ends of the spectrum and everything in between on these boards. (s
Personally, I LOVE MT. I went to The School That Dare Not Speak Its Name (not one of the "big three") and I had a job before I finished my course. I have had plenty of work since then working for a local service.

I only work about six hours a day. I could work more if I wanted, but I have children and would like to spend my time with them. I make about $1500 a month, which was what I needed to make to supplement our income.

You will read here about people who say they make $60K a year, and you will read here about people who swear they have no work and that the end of the world is nigh. Take it all with a grain of salt.

For what it's worth, I love what I do. I spent six years in college getting a BS and an MA, and I will never use them again... I love MT! Good luck, and feel free to email me if you like. I think you'll be just fine.
It makes me livid to hear the line of BS these schools are handing out-
such a disservice. Why are they misrepresenting what remains of the MT field? Cha-ching!
I'd also rather hear from a successful employer with a good plan for continued success
Success breeds success. When I look for a leader or mentor or someone to give me advice, I look for someone who has been successful. That person will have to be able to identify his or herself and have verifiable proof to back up their claims. There are ways to do that. Blind posts on message boards don't do it.
Just type what you hear. Lots of things are repeated in differnent notes.
s
I never hear of those who attended decent schools unable to find work
You can pay now or later.  I had job offers with every company I tested with when I graduated from M-TEC, which was more than 8 years ago.  I have worked from home since day 1 doing both clinics and mostly acute care.  I do not know of anyone who graduated with me who has ever had problems finding a job.  Employers are catching on as to which schools offer enough training so that the grads actually have some experience under their belt or are worth bringing up to speed.  I also did not have to start out at 6 cents a line.  That is absolutely insane.