A community of 30,000 US Transcriptionist serving Medical Transcription Industry

Hey, MTSOs - MT

Posted: Dec 20, 2011

When will you MTSOs wise up and realize that pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages of account specs for nitpicky docs SLOW DOWN YOUR MTs?

If you had any sense, you would use standardized headings in all reports and then turn that into a positive by telling prospective clients that it expedites turnaround of their reports. That is *exactly* what I did back when I owned my company, and it worked! It was a small company (only 18 accounts), but guess what! THERE WERE NO SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS. ZERO.

Our clients were THRILLED, LOVED US, and we did no advertising -- procurement of new accounts was via referral from other satisfied customers.

I'm ready for your question: The company is closed because I suffered a major health crisis. But I'm very proud of the work that we did.

The POINT is that all this buttkissing of clents that you're doing doesn't affect patient care, is completely unnecessary, and annoys and slows down your MTs (which of course adversely affects TAT).

nitpicky accts - YEP!

[ In Reply To ..]
I agree 100000%!! I work for a small company and there are NO special instructions or pages of stupid "stuff" to adhere to - and we are fast at TAT and she also gets new accounts via word of mouth. It is a JOY to work for her!

Hey MT. We don't care. You have made it that way. sm - Fed Up MTSO

[ In Reply To ..]
I have 15 employees, 10 ICs and to be honest, really don't care anymore. I am not a millionaire, work harder and longer than anyone who works for me and am sick of the whining. This is a job, that's all. I don't owe you anything but a decent line rate and a paycheck on payday. Before I get slammed, you need to be realistic about line rates. We DO NOT get 22 cpl anymore. Those days are gone. We get 12cpl and 13cpl if we are lucky. We can only pay 7 cpl and 8 cpl and survive. Those who pay higher don't survive very long and those who pay lower end up selling out to MQ.

Go ahead and bash away, but walk a mile in my shoes, in the shoes of the MTSOs. We have to keep overhead expenses paid, pay taxes and keep both customers and transcriptionists happy. We have to hire accountants and lawyers to make sure that we are on top of everything we need to be on top of. We have to juggle TAT's and schedules and have to meet increasing customer demands with employees and IC's who want to do less and less.

If you don't like what transcription has turned into, leave. Go do something that makes you happy. But before you go, think about what you are leaving. A decent paycheck, working from home without gas and car costs, an office wardrobe, daycare and office politics. I used to love being an MTSO and have always treated everyone fairly but fair does not mean that I have to give you every last cent and then some.

Wrong! It's MTSO's fault. - TMT

[ In Reply To ..]
If MTSOs didn't just HAVE to have all jobs out there, making low-ball offers to hospitals and clnics to get those jobs from dedicated MTs, thus setting the current standard line rate, we all -- and I mean all of us -- wouldn't be in the poor shape we're in right now.

Hey MTSO: Your reading comprehension - skills are lacking

[ In Reply To ..]
Go back and read the original post carefully this time. Did the former MTSO say anything about crappy line rates? Umm... no. And, the OP is 100% right. The ridiculous pages and pages of client specs are enough to slow down even the most productive experienced MTs. Most of the rules contained in the client specifics are unnecessary and do not affect patient care whatsoever (yes, a patient will die if headings aren't bolded & underlined with every other letter capitalized)... again the OP is right. So, if you want to pay your MTs a crappy line rate, you would probably have less "whining" if you dropped the ridiculous pages of rules so they can do their jobs and churn out some extra lines to make up for your cheapness. Another tip would be to assign work so your MTs come across the same dictators regularly so they can build up their text expanders/shortcuts (pssst... that increases productivity and accuracy). I'm sure you consider this "whining" instead of something that benefits both the MT and the company.

Don't lash out at the OP because you have trouble running your business, and if you don't care anymore, you shouldn't be anywhere near the healthcare field in the first place.

You don't really think MTSOs are the ones who decide format? - Maggie May

[ In Reply To ..]
As far as I know, it's the PITA clients who want to pay peanuts yet have every picky little thing exactly the way they want. They are the ones who insist how things should be. They don't care enough to dictate in a reasonable manner so they can be understood, but they demand perfection down to the last comma from the MTs.

No, but it's the buttkissing MTSOs who cater - to unreasonable clients

[ In Reply To ..]
who are ultimately responsible for the ridiculous account specs. Not only are they allowing it... they ENCOURAGE it!

At my current company, I am covering 8 or so accounts, 4 of which I am very familiar with and the others I come across every so often. It never fails, when I come across one of the less familiar accounts, I have to stop what I'm doing, grab the specs sheet (more like a booklet), and make sure how they like their headings, can we add headings, is date format month/day/year or xx/xx/xx or xx/xx/xxxx, allergies bolded/capped/regular text/bolded AND capped, etc., etc., and then make sure that the dictator on the report doesn't have their own subset of rules. If I was paid for all the time I've spent wading through rules sheets, I'd be vacationing in Hawaii right now.

IDC how great it sounds to pitch a product "designed to your specifications" (and I'm pretty sure that's exactly what the sales pitch sounds like), it does not work, it's too time consuming, and it leaves the company open to receive numerous complaints if and when an MT didn't realize that Dr. So-And-So likes every 3rd sentence punctuated with an exclamation point.

Many moons ago, it was my job to go into offices/facilities and get their transcription department running efficiently. In order to do so, one of the goals to reach would be having the amount of time that an MT's hands are off the keyboard be as low as possible. There were several ways I did this which, when presented to the MD, would immediately get a poo-poo response.... that is, until I mentioned the fact that it would increase production and accuracy and ultimately save them money... then their ears would really perk up.

Again, the OP is 100% right on. And, if she ever decides to get her company up and running again, I'd be the first to apply. She gets it.

sm-fed up MTSO. This is also your opinion behind the scenes. - anon

[ In Reply To ..]
Don't go bashing the MT doing the work and saying that old cop-out line of 'if you don't like it, leave.' We are ALL struggling too. We have taxes and bills and have put in YEARS into a job that is our livelihood also. So, because of the economy and the healthcare laws, don't think you are the only one suffering. Good for you that you are trying to survive...as are we all. We also surely are not millionaires on 4 cents. Plus all the benefits YOU say of working at home..I can think of many that are NOT benefits also. I'd love to work in-house again and get some respect. None of use are working less and less as you put it. Hurray for you, thinking you are the only one working so hard...I thik psychiatry has a diagnosis for that personality also.

Thanks! - Beentheredonethat

[ In Reply To ..]
Thank gawd you posted that. I am good friends with a Regional Manager at The Q whose been there since day 1, she said the exact same thing. MTs demanding more and more has PARTLY caused the MT *problem.* I found a GREAT company now that pays well but expects work and high quality...took me 3 years & 3 different MTSOs but I persevered, didn't give up and whine, and found a good fit. It's not a popular message but it is what it is.

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