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The MTSOs have found another way to screw us -- Anyone have info on - MVTS - Medical Voice Technology Services
Posted: Apr 26, 2010
Looks like the MTSOs have found a new trick pony. They tried to screw Medical Transcriptionists out of hard-earned money by trying to implement line counts based on VBC (visible black character), but very few MTs were willing to accept that, so not many MTSOs are still trying to push it.
Now they have found their newest way to screw the MT -- “meeting quality” mandate in order for us to keep the minimum wage we currently make.
Pay is set at .09 for 65 char line with spaces meeting 98% quality.
WHAT IS UP WITH THAT?
Anybody hear rumors of any other MTSOs going to the “you will be docked if you do not meet QA?” Where does this end? Now it is 98% or you get docked. What then? 100% or you have to pay the MTSO for “abusing their software” and end up working for free?
This is getting ridiculous. Does any other profession have people who stay up nights thinking of ways of screwing their employees as much as ours does?
Not only does this company suggest a mandatory QA, but they want Independent Contractors to:
MT must be willing to commit to a specific time and date schedule and some weekend work may be expected,
Must be able to consistently produce for a pre-committed period of time and adhere to a set schedule.
Anyone currently work or previously worked for MVTS (Medical Voice Technology Services), out of East Bend, North Carolina?
How do they pay?
Their ad indicates: Pay is set at .09 for 65 char line with spaces meeting 98% quality.
What do they actually pay?
For the sake of our profession, if anyone works for them, please turn them in for abusing Medical Transcriptionists. They have EMPLOYEES, not Independent Contractors.
I wish there was a way to find out if docking pay because of not meeting QA standards is even legal, but I suppose anything in an Independent Contractor’s Contract is legal. The MTSO would have to be deemed having Employees first, and then maybe the legality of docking pay could be put to the test.
End of Rant
Thanks.
MT is like any other job. If you are an employee, - sl
[ In Reply To ..]and do not produce quality work you can be docked or put on probation or even fired. If they require 98% quality on reports, then there is nothing you can do about that. No one wants substandard reports going out. If you cannot meet your production requirement, as an employee, yes they can dock you, take away benefits, etc.
With the IC, they cannot set a mandatory schedule for you, but they can request a schedule from the MT. If they only have work during a set timeframe, however, and you cannot work those hours they are not required to give you work during the hours you "request" as your schedule.
Pay Dock - Anonymous
[ In Reply To ..]I work on-site for a clinic (full-time employee). We have QA every 3 months and if we don't get 99% accuracy our pay is docked 5% until the next review. This is nothing new, many employers do it.
Just cuz "everyone it doing it" doesnt make is right. - What a draconian management style. nm
[ In Reply To ..]nm
would agree except for..... - MTangel
[ In Reply To ..]I agree that a MT should maintain at least 98% or better on the reports. However, does this company have a set standard for QA? The reason I ask this is because in the MT world QA is subject to who just happen to be doing the QA. For instance, there are differing opinions about commas. The job that I work does not want or care if you put a comma before the word "but" or "which", but some other companies may. Some want you not to put commas before "and" even if the phrase following it could be a complete sentence, but some companies do. Should I be docked for this? Do you see what I mean? I have been QA'd where the QA person was flat wrong, but hey, they are the QA, so would that mean I would get docked? Because there are no rules written in stone, I don't think that the docking is fare. I think that if the person is not doing quality work, then just let them go. Do not punish. That tactic rarely works anyway.
Also, we are talking IC. If a person I hired as a contractor was not doing a job that I felt they should do, I would not tell them I am going to keep them on, but at a lower rate. I just would not use that person again.
It would be one thing if they were docking people who - were making a good living. (sm)
[ In Reply To ..]But it's a whole 'nother thing when they're docking the pay of people who are already underpaid, working more hours than they're getting paid for, and who have little to nothing in the way of benefits.
TEACH your employees how to be better, and ENCOURAGE them to be better with the use of a good incentive program, and they WILL get better.
THREATEN, DOCK, "WRITE UP", or HARASS your employees for mistakes, and it will do nothing but encourage them to leave.
Oh. And for those of us with passive-aggressive blood running thru our veins? Continuous punishment will just make us want to make MORE mistakes, out of spite.
I meant fair and not fare.... - MTangel
[ In Reply To ..]sorry for the mistake. I was typing and not proofing. It meant it is not fair.
Schedule - Anonymous
[ In Reply To ..]By the way, asking someone to work a set schedule is not abuse. If you worked on site or for any other employer, you would be expected to be on the job during certain hours. If your schedule calls for 1 weekend day as mine does, I'm expected to be there. I'm not sure how this can be construed as "abuse." Do you really think they lie awake at night thinking of ways to screw you over?
The factory where my father worked docked - kt
[ In Reply To ..]employees 15 minutes pay if they were late to work 1 to 15 mins, 30 mins if 16 to 30 mins late, etc. Why do you think that an MT's job is any different. You can be fired for not sticking to guidelines, having pay docked, etc., just like anyone else.
My take: If you are in control of the - quality of your work SM
[ In Reply To ..]and you are given the tools to do quality work, and then you fail to do so, I get it. Here is my problem: It is totally out of our control when dictators garble their dictation for whatever reason, and it is impossible to figure out what they are trying to say, you have to leave a blank in that report. Why should the MT be responsible for that? There is a third party involved in this, the dictator. You might be a top notch MT but the dictations are impossible.
Where I work we are not considered "at fault" if - straus
[ In Reply To ..]the dictator cannot be understood. We are encouraged to send reports to QA if there is any question whatsoever and it is not held against us unless it is abused, i.e, something that could have be found with reasonable research. Our audits for quality are only on reports that were not submitted to QA, and we are required to have 98.5% quality or go on 100% QA for 2 weeks.
I'm with you - anon
[ In Reply To ..]I agree. MedQuist has just started a program they call First Time Right and they are docking pay this month if your number of QA submissions goes over 10% of your total lines, and starting May 1 it will be over 5%. So, if you get a very long report by a very difficult dictator that one report could go a good way to putting you over the percentage per total lines submitted to QA for the pay period. Plus, if you're sending something to QA, you now have to remember to put a check in a little box when you go to upload the job. After so many years of not having to do that, I find myself remembering just as it's too late to catch it. Plus, I'm sure it's slowing all of us down as we are trying harder to avoid QA submissions. Striving for quality is good, but this is ridiculous. This company has ripped us off so much already. I'd love to quit and work in another field entirely, but Lord knows what I'd do instead.
Quality should be a #1 priority - rqCMT
[ In Reply To ..]I will start by saying I am not a "suit," but a hard working MT who is an employee of an MTSO. I think setting standards for quality is very important, and standards should be set high. We are producing documents which become a permanent part of someone's medical record and could potentially affect their care in the future. We require continuous education and knowledge to do our job, and personally I want my work to reflect this. I understand complaining about production standards and low pay, but I think requiring a high standard of quality is quite reasonable and essential to our profession. I think the only MTs who would have a problem with this are one's who are not able to produce quality scores of 98% or better. I am not saying this is true of the OP, but I think that this is a perfectly reasonable standard for a company to have. Just my opinion.
So an MT making maybe $10 to $20 an hour.... - J
[ In Reply To ..]and is paid on a production basis should bear the full responsibility of the "quality" of the report, even for minor typos, punctuation, etc? Meanwhile, the person who, IMHO, is really responsible for the report, the dictator, (possibly making in excess of $200,000 a year) many of whom refuse to learn to speak English, dictate in a quiet place, speak clearly at a normal rate of speed, and on and on bear no responsibility for the quality of the report? Pleeze!
Yes, typos and punctuation errors fall on the MT. - jt
[ In Reply To ..]If it is a typo or a punctuation error, it is the MT making the mistake, not the dictator. The MT is responsible for the report being transcribed correctly, just as the production worker on a factory line is responsible for their part of the procedure in making whatever it is. A report full of typos can be dangerous to the care of the patient. A minor typo, leaving a word out, using the incorrect word, etc., can make a big difference in a patient's treatment if the report is the only thing being reviewed by a consulting provider.
''typos and punctuation'' - Dee
[ In Reply To ..]Such a silly post---chock full of exaggerations.
full responsibility - absolutely
[ In Reply To ..]I take full responsibility for everything I transcribe. If there is a "minor typo", it's mine.
I agree - sssdt
[ In Reply To ..]We all know quality and accuracy are important. No one needs to come here and lecture us on that. However, we also know problems happen, dictators say the wrong word or stumble or eat while talking. They can't speak English well, there are technical issues, etc. An MT who makes 8 cents a line on production getting docked for making a mistake while the doctor who can't be bothered to pronounce even common drug names properly never gets corrected is just wrong, in my opinion.
Not to mention QA people who don't know BOS or who change from day to day. That happened to me, one QA insisted it was "weightbearing" (which I use) but the other said "weight-bearing" and I'd get dinged depending on which QA was working that shift.
If there is an issue with an MTs quality, docking pay is not the solution. It's just an excuse to pay MTs even less.
Re: MT making $10-$20... - Great post!
[ In Reply To ..]How ridiculous to suggest MTs should agonize because even punctuation and minor words will actually endanger lives. But no mention made about the responsibility of the author/the dictator of the report! What a bunch of baloney.
Any MT job is going to require at least 98% - QA scores. Would you
[ In Reply To ..]want someone transcribing YOUR personal medical record meeting less than that score? Each company is different. Some you'll be out the door, some have a procedure in place to give you a chance and, yes, some dock your pay. There's really nothing new about QA scoring.
They can "require" it all they want, but until they pay - MTs better, so we can afford to - sm
[ In Reply To ..]slow down and go over everything we type with a fine-toothed comb, mistakes will continue to happen. You can have it GOOD, or you can have it CHEAP. But you can't have BOTH. Cheap is as cheap does.
If that were the case, then anyone and anybody - can jump in and do our job
[ In Reply To ..]according to your thinking. Achieving and maintaining 98% should be part of your normal working day. Everyone has an off day, but if you're consistently coming in at under 98%, maybe you're in the wrong business.
Ummm, everybody already IS "jumping in and doing - our jobs". Its called: "INDIA".
[ In Reply To ..]nm
Perhaps if more MLS did not feel that quality - should be required on their part
[ In Reply To ..]there wouldn't be a need for doing this. If they are going to pay for junk it might as well be cheap junk, right? You'd be surprised though. Offshore work isn't as "junky" as you make yourself believe.
Correction more did not feel quality should NOT be - required.
[ In Reply To ..]x
bear in mind, though.... - dc
[ In Reply To ..]...that at certain companies, the QA "rules" vary from person to person. I've worked (briefly) for certain companies that have even given me samples of how they want things, had one QA person say "great job!" and had another dock me points way beyond 98% - and no, never for inaccuracies, rather for instances where they believe a comma should or should not go in a particular place, even when you can back up your reasoning with the AAMT Book of Style or any other sourcebook you want.
MVTS - Stay Away - Flygirl
[ In Reply To ..]This company does overflow and account work for a major teaching hospital and they are difficult to work for. I worked for them in the past and found them to have too many "chiefs" telling MTs what to do and not enough "Indians" doing the work. My start pay was 0.06 cents per line until my counts were up and they were happy with my work and then it increased only to 0.8 cpl. The platform you have to work in for one the jobs posted is the hospital's platform that the hospital created and it is definitely not user friendly.
I worked there. No matter what I did, same pay every time. sm - anon
[ In Reply To ..]I worked extra days, extra hours, sped up...same pittence of a paycheck, obviously out of my control. Someone decided how much I needed to support my family knowing NOTHING about what that takes....someone made extra off of me.
Also, the account I was on had a line counter, but we could not run it. (RED FLAG)
Hated it, and schmoozin when questioned about the above, well, pushed me over the edge to find another position.
I do not endorse this company.
a company offered me a job with that exact requirement - sssdt
[ In Reply To ..]They had a clause that they would hold ALL your pay if you did not meet their standards of quality on one report, but they didn't define said standards. I asked questions and was told they wouldn't answer until I signed the contract, so I ran far, far away.
They asked why I wouldn't sign and I told them. The lady replied back to me from her Blackberry in text speak to tell me why I was wrong. She typed something like "its tru we cover r (butts) w/that". So professional! And I'm so glad SHE could afford a Blackberry.
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