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

Expectations for QA. - Lauralea

Posted: Jul 26, 2013

Does anyone know the expectations for QAs? Like, are they required to produce a certain amount? How are they paid? Hourly, salary, or per production? Is their quality checked like MLS's are? How often? How long are they allowed/recommended to spend on each blank (I was told by my supervisor to spend no more than 5-7 minutes researching a blank and, if not researchable, 3 listens per blank before moving on. If I go over MY allowed variance hours, I'm told I'm spending too much time researching).

Here's where I'm going with this: I've been transcribing for 17 years yet I have these younger QAs filling in a large number of my blanks (thus banging me with these 0.25 point deductions in Fiesa) and catching my "mistakes." Are they spending a lot more time on these reports than me or do they have super-hearing?

If you're talking about Nuance QA - SM

[ In Reply To ..]
They can hear better because the audio they listen with is better. I used to QC for Nuance and that audio was the same as what you hear. If you are talking about post audit or QA, the audio is different and better.

Better audio? - Lauralea

[ In Reply To ..]
How and why is the audio better for QA?

They listen to it through FIESA - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
When you listen to a report after it has been through FIESA, post audit, it's that audio that they use to edit/audit the reports. It's much clearer, at least to my ears.

Incorrect info...we listen to the same audio that you do - current QA

[ In Reply To ..]
I used to QC also, and it is the same. I WISH, but there is no better audio for QA. It is the same for MT, QC, and QA with the red box and everything. We see and hear the same as you do. I know for me, I have really great earphones (not cheap) which makes a big difference and I have worked in this field long enough to be very good at ESL doctors, though I still hate them. Just an FYI. If they could make it better, they would not just do it for QA, it would start with the MT and THEN QC/QA would follow.

Well... - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
I certainly don't have an answer to all of those questions, as it varies from company to company anyway. BUT, as far as them having "super hearing" I know that when I re-listen to a report (testing process only) I ALWAYS figure out the blanks I left. Something about when your brain only has to focus on that one thing, makes it much easier. The only way to fix your problem is to go back on every report, and re-listen and proofread. Unfortunately, I don't get paid NEARLY enough money to even consider such a task, but if they want my work "perfect" then they would have to compensate me to do that.

Re-Listens - Lauralea

[ In Reply To ..]
Agreed. I'm barely scraping by and if I aim to re-listen to every dictation, I might as well quit. I wouldn't be able to make any money at all. But what gets me really riled up is when I DO re-listen to difficult ESL dictators or horrible sound quality dictations and STILL get banged on invalid blanks.

Please - Who has the time

[ In Reply To ..]
When we made a decent wage we gave these companies an extra listen, gave more time to researching the spelling.
Those days are gone baby. That went flying out the window with new technology and the other half of my paycheck. Pffft.

They are lucky I still back it up to listen 3 times and if I'm not 100% sure of what was said - even if I do have the ability to fill it in from context of the sentence and years of experience in the industry - you are not getting it plugged in there. You fill it, or better yet have your nonspeaking doctor fill it in.

The FIESA beatdown for substandard dictation is like screaming at the neighbor's cat because your dog peed on the rug.

I'm not a Nuance QA, but sm - Old Woman

[ In Reply To ..]
I can tell you that editing is sometimes a lot easier than transcribing because you have the whole report laid out before you, and the context of the report can sometimes help fill in some of those blanks.

The company for which I work pays QA at a cpl rate that is lower than the MT would make. We are subject to audit reviews every pay period, just like the MTs are, and we are held to the same consequences if our QA score goes below the prescribed limit. I generally spend about 5 minutes researching a word, if it is researchable, and I usually know where to find what I need to find pretty quickly as I have tons of bookmarked pages and other reference material that I go to.

I don't know how old your are, but you mentioned that you have done MT for 17 years. I have done MT for about 22 years, and I can tell you that my hearing is not as acute as it once was. The constant use of headphones and the close proximity of noise to the eardrum causes hearing loss to a degree, so it is possible that younger, as you put it, QAs do have hearing that is better than yours as they have not had as much noise exposure to their ears.

Hope this helps!

Bad ears? - Lauralea

[ In Reply To ..]
Not exactly what I wanted to hear (old and hearing going to hell, ugh). But I see your point. STILL...my ears can't be THAT shot! :)

I hear you.....sm - Old Woman

[ In Reply To ..]
no pun intended, LOL.

Are you using noise cancelling headphones? You might also try to find a headset that has a gold tip as I have been told that does help with the audio. Or you could find a gold-tipped adapter to use on your present headset.

I am so glad to know I am not the only one "going deaf"..sm - Bye all

[ In Reply To ..]
After 20 plus years of this, I am getting to the point that I think I either have Alzheimer's or I AM going deaf. I am getting dinged for stuff I never had trouble hearing before. My early retirement can't come soon enough or I will be fired.

Try Boostaroo : ) - NuAnon

[ In Reply To ..]
We got it as a gift for MT week in the Webmedx days before we got absorbed. It helps a ton!

I had the full audiology test about 4 months ago. - Left ear is gone.

[ In Reply To ..]
They even put a "pad" of some sort on the bones behind my ear and my left ear can only here low tones. The reason why I went to have my hearing tested was because I was listening to a choir and could only hear certain tones of the song. Freaked me out! Now I notice that I get startled at noises because they are strange sounding. It's awful. And allllllllll related to a set of earphones, ear plugs, or headsets over my ears for 22 years. No one else in my family is deaf and I have 3 older sisters who are not deaf. It sucks. But it's reality and I have one heck of a time hearing some things. I have just 3 more years to go. I hope I can make it that long. :(

Disability? - Freebie

[ In Reply To ..]
I think disability has a different set of rules for hearing loss, you might want to check that out.

Same "hear" sm - Kindred Spirit

[ In Reply To ..]
I'm in the same boat, and I cannot tell you how I was relieved to see this post. I've been thinking the exact thing lately. I'm just not hearing thing correctly.

I was born with aural atresia so am completely deaf in my right ear. I've been transcribing for about 12 years. I've got my left ear tuned in like the bionic woman, but even it's starting to crack.

My husband has me hooked up to a 'rock band' equalizer, so that helps block out background noise, helps me hear syllables, etc. He's even working on a customized equalizer just for MTs. It definitely helps.

But the Boostaroo -- I am definitely going to give it a try.

I'm getting worried too. I've just started a new account at the company I've been with for a while, and the very nice and helpful QA lady must think I'm a real dummy or just not trying. I'm just not hearing certain syllables that she picks right up on.

Thanks for listening!

Hearing - greyhoundmom

[ In Reply To ..]
I was so glad I read your post. The reason is because I have a new doctor who mumbles and talks very fast. He was angry with me because I could not understand what he was saying. I immediately ordered the customized equalizer. I hope it helps with his dictation. Thanks again.

Honestly...if I was already deaf in the right ear - I would not be pushing

[ In Reply To ..]
my left ear at all. The Boostaroo probably just amplifies the sound and the louder the sound, directly on your eardrum, the more damage you do. I'm the one with the deaf left ear now and I am really scared to push my ears anymore. I'm going to try and wait 3 more years to retire, but if I get ANY symptoms at all in my right ear, I'm done. Just sayin... :-)

You are so right sm - Kindred

[ In Reply To ..]
I always just tried to act like a normal person without a hearing problem, but as I've gotten older I have learned more about single-sided deafness. I probably should think about doing something else, for more reasons than I can count, especially tonight! :)

Breakaway audio enhancer - I downloaded for $30

[ In Reply To ..]
I never really got the point of Boostaroo, it seemed to be either way loud or not clear enough and also the plugging in aspect and using batteries was annoying. With this you can fiddle around with settings and change for different types of issues with dictators. I find it to be a good tool and prefer the fact it is software.

I downloaded the trial of this last night. - It looks like a good program

[ In Reply To ..]
I can't wait to try it tonight on my shift. Thanks!!

Thanks for the great tip! - Lisa

[ In Reply To ..]
I downloaded this yesterday and WOW! it really makes a difference. My ears aren't what they used to be so I need all the help I can get, and so far this works great!

Glad it works for you - It is pretty loud

[ In Reply To ..]
I usually use just the bypass because otherwise it is way loud. My favorite one is Helix, but when I can't hear I take off the bypass and try other ones while going slow. Anything that helps is worth it, right?

Lauralea - I am QA

[ In Reply To ..]
I do QA on site for a facility so I can only tell you how it is for me. I am paid hourly and take all the time I need to make sure the reports are accurate. I listen to the blanks a couple of times and if I can't hear it or understand it, it gets sent back to the doc. I listen to every document and that is how I find things that the MTs miss. I also research things because the MTs don't have the time, or will not take the time, to look things up, and I do catch a lot of mistakes; medication dosage errors, medical work misuse errors, grammar errors and the like. As far as audio, the voice files I receive are the same ones they listen to; many times the voice files are of poor audio quality. My hearing is very good. I'm also not some young kid who doesn't have a clue about what I am doing; I have done transcription twice as long as you. By the way, how do you know that the QAs reviewing your work are younger?

How do I know - QAs are younger?

[ In Reply To ..]
Because I'm past retirement age, so it's just logical they are younger AND they are Indian as well, to add insult to injury.

They must be fairly young or inexperienced. Current job - postings as for 2 years experience only.

[ In Reply To ..]
I was shocked by this. I've been an MLS (Transcend) for 9 years and to find out now there will be newbies coming in to grade my work is just a crying shame. Are they really that desperate?

QAs are paid hourly- - meme

[ In Reply To ..]
QAs are paid hourly. They are not pressured like MTs are. They can afford to take the time to look up references, listen more than 3 times, and search old reports.

Similar Messages:

Oct 11, 2011

Need to vent. Cannot stand to hear any more sad attempts by docs to murder the English language, to expect us miracle workers to turn garbage into important medical records, to expect us to read their minds, to throw out a bunch of words and expect us to give it some structure while staying within about 10 different guidelines, mostly set up by old ladies trying to stay relevent, yes I said it, and all this plus more for about $10/hr on a good pay period. I could deal with the stress ...

Oct 24, 2012

I am absolutely fed up with being an MT and I am about to leave this field for good. Over the years, I have worked for several MT companies and I know that quality is important. I understand that the reports have to be correct and quality has to be high. However, what I need to *** about is what these MT companies are REALLY doing to us. First of all, to be an MT, we went to school. We studied our butts off and we paid an outragous fee to get this diploma. We took tests and passed them. We ...

Nov 05, 2012

Am I being unreasonable here? I have been an acute care MT for almost 15 years, spent the last year and half learning coding, coding increasingly complex cases, working towards certification. I am having a hard time with the concept of getting certified and then only being able to find a job doing billing in a doctor's office at $13 an hour. I feel like I would be taking a step backwards, like I have all this inpatient expertise, and I would be billing URIs and primary care visits. The ...

Sep 29, 2010

I need opinions please. Do I expect too much? When I ask my lead a question I do not usally get an answer. When she does choose to respond it is very often rude and/or condescening. Not one time have I ever gotten a sample despite numerous requests. Am I unreasonalbe? ...

Jan 18, 2011

I am interested in hearing what those of you with experience in this business would consider a reasonable salary or wage in today's market for doing MT. What do you think the average earnings are for doing medical transcription today. Would you say $40,000 a year would be over the top, average, or low. Better yet, if you knew a company was paying an average salary of $40,000 a year, would you consider that laughable or something worth looking into? All ...

Jun 06, 2011

I have had it... Low pay, high expectations, stressssssssss! Going to work in a department store. Hourly wage, paid for all I do all the time. ...

Oct 23, 2012

Copied directly from an advertisement for a transcriptionist for a hospital setting; 2. Transcribes an average of 10,000 lines per day, based on an 8 hour day. now, can anybody really do this? lol. maybe they are talking speech rec, but even this would be a lot to expect. Wonder if they pay incentive for going over line requirements. ...

Feb 03, 2013

I just landed an entry-level position as a hospital outpatient coder! Yay! It is a foot in the door towards my new career. After I sit for and get my credentials (I have 0 experience in this field), I plan on giving my passing credentials to my HIM director and to HR. Is it appropriate to ask HR when I do my hiring paperwork/orientation what salary increases are given for credentials and per credential? I am not really sure that is the right time or place to discuss ...

Dec 23, 2012

I just cant believe MMOdal have set their bar so low... What has MModal done to make our accuracy grow DEP programers, heres a piece of advice...get an option of grading the dictator in ur next version of DEP within the file....like, excellent, decent, good, bad, worst...whoever ever get 2 weeks of worst % should be warned if still no improvement, penailze with heafty fine and still no improvement, should be dumped from dictating forever.. 1. MMODAL face it..ur DEP program is grabage..e ...