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

Welp, Im going back to college at age 50! - Cant survive on MT salary

Posted: May 20, 2010

I waited as long as I could, but my income has dropped by 30% at least, and I can't pay my bills...........so fortunately I just got awarded a Pell Grant (thanks to my low MT income), so Im going back to school!

Congrats!! Best of luck to you! : ) - sweetpea

[ In Reply To ..]
xx

Don't feel alone. I am in the same - boat!

[ In Reply To ..]
I am 48 and I am now taking classes to work towards RN or LPN, whichever I can get accepted into first! I read yesterday that India had bought out some major coding companies and so that will be outsourced as well... so I can't go that route even though I am already certified in that.. so back to school I go! We can do it though... hang in there.

Whats up with the Coding outsourcing? Is this really going to be a dead career? - It never stops

[ In Reply To ..]
x

Yes, coding is going to India also (nm) - Long time MT

[ In Reply To ..]
NM

how much was your grant? - nm

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

5500.00 a year - nm

[ In Reply To ..]
x

If you have a Pell grant - sm - Anonymous

[ In Reply To ..]
It is only funded per year. If you plan to continue on with your education, you will need to reapply every year.

Good for you! What are you taking? - Backwards Typist

[ In Reply To ..]
I'm way past the age where anyone would hire me even if I went back to school and took something else.

Sometimes I wish I were younger. LOL

im taking.........and age see message - me

[ In Reply To ..]
first off im 49, and your never too old to go back to school, even if its just for yourself!

im taking
MC 173
Intermediate Diagnosis Coding
MC 171
3.0
MC 174
Intermediate Procedure Coding
MC 172
3.0
MC 207
Program Review
All didactic course work with a GPA of 2.0
2.0
MC 294
Internship
All didactic course work with a GPA of 2.0
4.0
MO 110
Keyboarding
None
1.0
MO 113
Medical Business Operations
None
3.0
MO 129
Medical Office Procedures
None
3.0
MO 144
Medical Terminology
None
1.0
MO 146
Pathophysiology and Pharmacology
Corequisites SC 245, SC 245L
2.0
MO 161
Medical Billing and Insurance Procedures
None
3.0
SC 145
Anatomy and Physiology I***
Corequisite SC 145L
3.0
SC 145L
Anatomy and Physiology I Lab***
Corequisite SC 145
1.0
SC 245
Anatomy and Physiology II***
SC 145, Corequisite SC 245L
3.0
SC 245L
Anatomy and Physiology II Lab***
SC 145, Corequisite SC 245

only thing, coding is being offshored as well now. - sorrytosay

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

How specifically do you know this? - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
Could you name which hospitals and/or companies are doing this? Or is this just something that you've heard?

Go check out the coder's board...it's there - Saw it yesterday

[ In Reply To ..]
A coder was just laid off, if I remember right, because her employer just sold out to India (and apparently it's 2 large coding companies).

It was so general and didn't have a link to a press release or even a name - Not much information there

[ In Reply To ..]
Someone says the company they work for was sold. We don't know where the company is based or if it's even in the United States. Usually when someone posts something about a company being sold, they mention the name of the company so we can use that information and not go to work for them or go to work for them. I'd love to know the name of the company and/or where it's located.

My sister works for a national coding company that was sold - wimt

[ In Reply To ..]
She does QA for a national company that I believe is pretty big but can't remember the name right now. A few months ago or so they were bought or merged with another company and then they found out that a lot of the coding would be now be done offshore and many of the U.S. coders were being "transitioned out." Her QA job is safe for now. So, it's true, coding, at least for these big companies, is starting to go offshore.

Some hospitals are writing into their contracts that outsourcing overseas is forbidden - Coding Overseas Will Be Costly For The Hospitals

[ In Reply To ..]
Coding is done for all sorts of reasons including tracking of diseases, morbidity, statistics, etc., but there is one thing hospitals won't mess around with long, their bottom line. I can foresee some giant obstacles.

Remember about 20 years ago or so when ALL MT was supposed to be outsourced. Then some woman overseas didn't get paid and threatened to release all of the confidential information she had transcribed? They couldn't do anything because they had no legal control over her. There are similar battles going on right now with hospitals writing into their contracts when they outsource that it is not to be subcontracted out overseas. There have been instances where it happened anyway and it's a big problem for the parties involved, costing more than any savings they might have thought they were going to make. It will be interesting to see how things turn out over the next 10-15 years. I'm amazed that some MTs, for example, are being worked overtime, on weekends, etc., and others are having their work taken away from them. What's up with that? It looks like there is some kind of a transition or reconstruction of everything, with some losing out and some doing really well.

some MTs overworked, others losing work - busybee

[ In Reply To ..]
About your comment regarding some MT's being overworked and others losing work.....The company is cutting costs. It is probably the same old story with big business that instead of having say 40 employees working regular work week, get rid of say 10 employees to save on expense of having more employees. It costs them money for each employee for benefits and managing those employees. So, they have 30 employees left who must pick up the work of the 10 that were let go. The work gets done and they have made more money on the bottom line. This is why we used to have unions in this country, to prevent things like this from happening.

Except I think most of those MTs (those kept and those not) are ICs - Most are ICs these days

[ In Reply To ..]
Since they are ICs, I doubt that your theory works in this case. My own theory is they enjoy working with some more than others. Some have better skills and/or cause fewer problems and/or get the work done on time. I would probably do that too if I were making those decisions. If anyone made my life more complicated than it is already, they would get less work. Eventually they would quit. That would solve my problem. Just sayin.

I know which ones I wouldn't keep - The ones who argue constantly

[ In Reply To ..]
Most of you know the ones I mean. They will argue about anything and everything. Life is miserable. If I were their supervisors, I would give their account to someone else in a minute. Maybe I would just phase them out, a little bit at a time, so they wouldn't notice. LOL. Life would be so much more peaceful.

By the way, I'm not talking about people who ask questions and stand up for themselves appropriately. I'm talking about the compulsive complainers. Big difference. One is professional and the other is pathological.

overseas this is how it happens - tynkerbelle

[ In Reply To ..]
A company outsourses its work to an American company with the stipulation that it will not be outsourced overseas. That second company then outsources its work to a third company that will outsource it overseas.

Care Tech Solutions is a company that takes over medical records departments in hospitals. They are contractors. I can see how they would subcontract their work. I went to a hospital I formerly worked at and the Medical Record Department was 1/4 of its size.

So is our food. Did you know much of the food we eat comes from outside the US? - Not much left here these days

[ In Reply To ..]
I started reading food labels. Some of the healthiest and best food choices come from outside the United States.

I'm skeptical about all of MT and coding going away because after all the years of hearing people say that, there is plenty of work for many, especially if you have the skills employers are willing to pay for. That's a big key here. I have seen some friends, who really should never have tried to make it as MTs since they neither have the disposition nor the skills, and their companies just quietly stopped sending them any work. There is still lots of work there, but they aren't getting it. It didn't go overseas. It went to another MT with better skills. I'm not happy that they lost out, but it does show that skills are beginning to be more important than ever.

Not buying this argument. I work for local physicians. They are NOT going to send work to India - Biller/Coder/MT

[ In Reply To ..]
I work for orthopedic surgeons and still MT in my spare time but I've been doing both for over 17 years. Local physicians are never going to send work to India. I code and bill out of our office where I have the chart and our doctors would never send out the coding. I have job security!!

This is a BIG Country, so I'm sure at least 1 hospital and probably more try - Anything and Everything

[ In Reply To ..]
If you are looking to have 100% of anything done here and not outsourced, you'll probably be disappointed. You'll rarely find 100% of anything. This is a big country and out of thousands of hospitals, there probably are hospitals and/or clinics that are trying anything they can to stay afloat in this economy. Not all hospitals are 'for sale' and you'll never have 100% of all hospitals agreeing to do anything.

Not buying this argument. I work for local physicians. They are NOT going to send work to India - - Been there

[ In Reply To ..]
I too worked for local physicians, as did other MTs/QA/Billers/Coders, and these phsycians decided after 25 years to send the work to India AND to have the MAs/RNs/PAs use a new program to drop and drag info into the record. Needless to say, the patient's record is now riddled with errors in so many ways.

So, NEVER, say that your employer would send out the coding, billing, or medical transcription.

Oh and by the way, two weeks before they closed the department, they said we had job security and there were no lay offs for the MTs. They notified us through a conference call at home, that our services were no longer needed!

Been there, done that

Da Nile is a beautiful place to visit but - Dont stay too long

[ In Reply To ..]
Go check out the coder board.

I'm not going to lose sleep over an anonymous post with no substantiated facts - I used to do that

[ In Reply To ..]
I used to get all excited and upset over everything I read. Most of the time it turned out to be not worth the time I stressed out over it.

Sending work to India - Anonymous

[ In Reply To ..]
There are companies who have contracts with large medical facilities who outsource their coding, that work is done from home but I think that's a very small slice of the pie. There are too many small facilities, i.e., clinics and doctor's offices who want their coding done on-site and I personally don't see it being sent to India. There seems to be some confusion in this forum about the difference between inpatient and outpatient coding and billing, I'm not sure if everyone understands what coders and billers do.

I'm one of those. I don't understand the difference as well as I would like - It is confusing

[ In Reply To ..]
I always get confused when people start talking about inpatient and outpatient coding and where it's done. I would think that a hospital could have both inpatient and outpatient coding and a clinic or doctor's office would have only outpatient coding. Am I right or wrong?

coding going offshore - busybee

[ In Reply To ..]
There is a HUGE initiative in the USA to convert to electronic medical records for ALL hospitals and private practice. If that happens, it will be very easy to offshore coding. There are big companies with much $$$ out there actively promoting the use of electronic medical records because they want to capture that market and make big bucks. The government is offering $$$ incentives to medical facilities to start the process (meaningful use) of converting to electronic records. This includes private practices as well as hospitals.

If That Ever Starts Happening We'll Need Many More Coding QA People - Great New Career Option

[ In Reply To ..]
I'm not holding my breath that outsourcing coding will take place in a big way in the next 10-15 years or ever. If it did though, that would be a great opportunity for American coders to act as QA. It would be a very challenging job, but that's why they call work W-O-R-K.

Please pick another career. sm - websta

[ In Reply To ..]
When large companies get into offering their services to health systems, the work usually ends up getting offshored in the end.

Big companies have provided coding services for the past 5 years. The coding field is slowly going the way of MT. There are people who think it won't happen, but it HAS happened already. Please don't sink money into a dead end.

The career you should be pursuing is something that REQUIRES YOU TO BE PRESENT TO DO IT and has NOTHING TO DO WITH COMPUTERS OR DESK WORK. I suspect you are choosing coding in order to stay home? You'll be home all right, and the people in India will be up coding away and you'll be looking for another grant for a different education.

ABSOLUTELY NO FUTURE IN CODING...try physical therapy - ***

[ In Reply To ..]
asst. High paying booming career for th future with aging population.

Seriously, anything computer oriented can be sent ANYWHERE. Even drafting and a lot of engineering tech work is going overseas.

Physical Therapy Has Been Overrun Hasn't It? - Nothing is perfect though

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

but the population is AGING, and I keep reading articles - ***

[ In Reply To ..]
that indicate PT will be a good occupation for the next decade. AND they cannot do it in India.

the problem with PT - and even nursing

[ In Reply To ..]
is that the schools cannot support the amount of people trying to apply for entrance. The schools only take so many students a semester. Until the educational world catches up with the demand, they can only train so many. PT is very competitive as well, as it should be.

Problems with PT and nursing - Anonymous

[ In Reply To ..]
PT and nursing are both great careers but as mentioned you might not get into the program right away. Also, both have prerequisites so depending on your level of education you could spend a couple of years on those. That might be fine for someone in their 20's or 30's but not for someone approaching retirement age.

Just an obsevation, but - SM - Anonymous

[ In Reply To ..]
Are all thos anatomy and physiology courses and labs necessary for a coding/HIT job?

I'm the same age, going back to school too. - STARTREKMT

[ In Reply To ..]
I am going back to school. Have completed almost one year already. Quit MTing b/c it was too difficult to do both at the same time. It is good you got the grant, I am on full loans, because I am getting a Master's degree, actually 2 Masters. You are never too old to go back to school! Doing this has given me a new lease on life. My son has noticed that although life is difficult since I quit worrying about my MT jobs (so many the last 2 years after having only one hospital job for a long time) and making ends meet I have been happier. It is difficult to be in school with deadlines and papers, etc. but if you are an MT you have the smarts and ability to do it. I say good luck to you and enjoy every minute of school and your new career!

So am I. - gb516

[ In Reply To ..]
Since hospitals and medical offices started outsourcing their work, it has been tough for a lot of seasoned transcriptionist. I too in my 50's have returned to school. So you are not alon.

Similar Messages:

Oct 13, 2011

Mting is no longer for me. I'm 34, single mom, need a better career. I can't seem to decide on which career path to take. I want to get my bachelor's degree because it will make me feel like I have accomplished something, and I would like to have a degree and possibly get my master's someday. I can't decide between healthcare information management and getting my RHIA, or something totally different and getting a BS in business-human resources man ...

Mar 14, 2014

To the same speed talking doctor I've had to deal with all night. You, who cannot be bothered to slow down and take a breath at the end of a sentence so the person who is trying to type this stuff out for you knows where to stop the sentence. Just so you know, the rest of your reports transcribed by me tonight will have no punctuation whatsoever. Just one long uninterrupted sentence and I absolutely do not care anymore. You can tell them to fire me if ...

Mar 17, 2010

I spoke with a counselor/advisor who was extremely helpful. They gave me a couple of tests, personality and skill tests to see what I want do in life. I scored pretty high on counseling and criminal justice and even showed medical transcription. Here is what it says about being a medical transcriptionist in Oregon. Wages Location Pay Period Entry Median Top Oregon Hourly $12.73 (1) $17.00 Monthly $2,206 (1) $2,946 Yearly $ ...

Sep 29, 2012

I just wanted to post that I completed my first week of college. The first day was scary, but by the second day I felt much more at ease. My first class happened to algebra, so wish me luck. I know that I am making the right decision, so I am hoping that I can start counting the days to when I can just give my notice. It is going to be tough, but it definitely is going to be worth it. ...

Oct 22, 2013

After going back and forth for two years, I finally decided to apply for college and I was accepted, yay me!! Actually, I already have my Associate's degree, so this isn't my first time in college, but I feel like I've taken a huge step in my life and I was so excited I just wanted to share with my fellow MTs! Just an FYI, after researching an endless amount of colleges, I chose WGU majoring in Health Informatics and am even considering my MBA there as well because the ...

Feb 17, 2015

I see many job ads for coders that specify a college degree is required. I am in coding school currently but only have a GED. What do you think chances are I can get a job with no college degree? I currently work as a remote MT and have almost 20 years of continuous experience in that field and was hoping that would help me get a job. I am not at all, however, interested in getting a college degree. ...

Jun 08, 2015

But I noticed when my son graduated from college, it was a mid range college in no way an ivy league school, that he spoke very intelligent, used correct grammar, and actually formed correct sentences. I made mention to him, that in listening to his friends talk, I was VERY impressed and happy they actually learned something in school..He said, "I don't see why, that's what they teach us in college, this isn't high school anymore mom." I'm just not hearing it out of these d ...

Jan 07, 2010

I recently signed up for Medical Billing and Medical Terminology classes through Ashworth College. I would like to know if anyone out there is familar with Ashworth College, I've been told that there's a lot of schools out there that just want your money and I want to make sure if I'm making the right decision for me and my family. Thanks in advance for your help! ...

Jun 15, 2010

Does anyone have any experience with this college? They just opened a new site in my town that will be doing healthcare only at first and have been thinking of doing this. ...

Feb 11, 2011

Is it better to go with the tried-and-true Andrews or M-tec as opposed to a local community college that offers MT courses? I was thinking it would be better to stick with the former, but was intrigued by the fact that the local junior college seems to be promising "internships". I'm not 100 percent sure yet, as the informational meeting isn't until the beginning of March, but wondered what the prevailing wisdom might be on the subject. Thanks in advance for any info. ...

Jun 25, 2012

After being an MT for 12 years and wanting to go back to college for the past 2 years, I have finally done it! I will no longer be an MT as of July 1st, and I couldn't be happier! I applied and was accepted to WGU and will be getting my BS in Health Informatics. This is a very unique program and my goal is to finish in a year and a half (I had credits transfer in which helps). Anyone who is interested in going back to college and wants to work in health care with IT, check ...

Aug 23, 2012

I can't stand doing MT anymore. I applied and have received Pell grants, yay! Now, I need to decide on my major. I want to be in a career where I can help people. I'm thinking social work or psychology. But I keep seeing jobs where they say "BA in Human Services needed." Wouldn't this just be social work? ...

Jan 18, 2015

I would like opinions on taking a coding program at a community college, then being properly prepared to become a successful coder and getting certified. Cost is important to me, which makes this an attractive option. What is the consensus about this? Thanks for your comments. ...

Dec 10, 2012

...

Jan 09, 2010

Does anyone know anything about this school's Medical Transcription program? ...

May 16, 2010

I think its like 15 dollars a credit but some of the AHIMA classes you can obtain credit for through your college and they will accept them. I think its about 40 credits too. ...

Sep 27, 2010

Based on what I've been reading on these blogs, I realized how little prepared the grads of the MT program from my college actually were. So I wrote a letter to the assistant director of the program, making suggestions on how they could improve the training they offer; things like exposing students to REAL dictation, rather than just CDs of actors reading scripts; exposure to ESL dictation; including a course in speech recognition editing; including a course in medically-oriented ...

Nov 02, 2010

I've been going back and forth regarding which school to go to. I'd prefer to do online training but would still like to have an instructor that I could ask questions of, speak to on the phone, etc. I live in California in the central valley, anyone who has attended Heald college for coding I would love to hear from them. ...

Apr 04, 2012

Ive heard many opinions on coding training at Andrews, Career step and community colleges. I have just come across EverettCC and their coding course is completely online (scheduled,not self-paced)and taught by teachers who are certified medical coders. Im just curious if anyone here has attended or heard about this school. ...

Jul 17, 2012

After much research i had decided on taking coding classes through Andrew College. Unfortunately since they are not an acredited college Vocational Rehab will not help pay. Can anyone recommend a good acredited college or one that accepts FASA grants? Looking to take online courses or classes in Ft. Wayne, IN. ...

Nov 06, 2012

I am a new graduate of Ashworth College's MT program. I am having much difficulty finding employment due to my lack of experience. Can anyone give me any suggestions on companies that hire New grads? ...

Aug 22, 2013

While purusing the classes offered, looking for possibly a career change, lo and behold, no MT classes being offered any longer. Coding, yes. CNA, yes. In home caregiver, yes. Nail tech, yes. ..... MT, no. Thinking of real estate now as there is an upswing in that direction. ...

Mar 04, 2012

I tell him a little of what goes on here...and he says if they idiot factored in the cost of doing this, this and this instead of keeping people without work and bitching, the company would make far more money...Not gonna give his tips away, if they want them they can hire him, not that he would work for a company that is run so poorly.. ...

Jul 12, 2013

Ok, so I thought I had made up my mind on attending Andrews, but there is a certificate course offered by a local college. This is not a community college but Kent State University. Now I am wondering, should I try to go through their course to earn actual college credits that will be transferrable to a degree someday or go through Andrews where I know for sure they will prepare me for the coding certifications?? HELP!!! ...

Sep 05, 2014

Here are a list of sites that offer free Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) college classes/coursework/tests online, some come with certificates of completion but you have to enroll by a deadline usually and once you do enroll you should treat it like a class you pay for. coursera.com Stanford,Yale edX.com openculture.com Harvard and MIT ocw.mit.edu almost all of MITs course content is available online for free Not all offer cer ...

May 09, 2010

For 3800.00 I would think they should be accredited most definitely. ...

May 20, 2010

I just registered for Santa Barbara City College's HIT program online. Has anyone else taken their program? I really needed to find a school that was accredited because I qualify for FAFSA to help me pay for it. I looked into Andrews and also AHIMA, but all were WAY too expensive and you can't receive financial aid. If anyone can give me information on the Santa Barbara courses, if you've taken it through them, please do! Thanks! (I'm ...

Jun 22, 2012

I'm taking my first steps to get out of this field - I'm 48 years old, I've dedicated myself to Medquist/MModal for 16 years of my life and I am making less today than my 15-year-old son who just got his very first job. In my lifetime, I never thought I would be 48 years old, on Food Stamps and barely making minimum wage in a field I gave nearly half my life to. It is a complete insult. I've been going around and around in my head how to get out of this fiel ...

Mar 07, 2010

Hi everyone, I just graduated from Rasmussen online college with a 2 year degree in medical transcription back in September. I was able to land a brief 2 month job in November but the lady that hired me wasn't a patient trainer and let me go because I wasn't perfect right away and she was very busy as well, backed up in fact. My question is, does Rasmussen College have a good reputation in the medical transcription world? ...

Mar 24, 2013

Hi - I am struggling with what to do, somebody please help! I have read that Andrews and M-TEC are the best schools online. I am just concerned that I won't do well without hands on learning in a classroom? I could really use some advice from some people who have done the coding courses through these places? Which is the best, and how does it work exactly? Thanks ...