Dear MTSO: A quality improvement program does not - consist of screams and threats.

This is what some MTSO's believe quality improvement consists of:

"IF EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU DOESN'T STRAIGHTEN UP AND STOP MAKING MISTAKES.....(here, insert the Teacher's Voice from Charlie Brown cartoons) - WAH WAH WAH WAAAAAH WAHWAHWAH WHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Oh, yeah - and WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH, too.

Or this:

"YOU IDIOTS!  DON'T YOU KNOW THAT WE GET PENALIZED $EVENTY BAJILLION$ OF DOLLAR$ EVERY TIME ONE OF YOU PUTS THE PERIOD OUTSIDE THE QUOTES INSTEAD OF INSIDE THEM???!  HUUUH?  HUUUH?  HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUH!  AND THAT MEANS LESS MONEY FOR THOSE RAISES THAT WE NEVER GIVE YOU!"

Or:

"HELL YES WE KNOW THAT NONE OF OUR DICTATORS COULD ORDER A PIZZA IN ENGLISH MUCH LESS TRY TO COBBLE TOGETHER AN OPERATIVE REPORT BUT THAT'S WHY WE'RE PAYING YOU THE BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIG MONEY, ISN'T IT?  HUH?  HUH?  HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUH?"

Quality improvement, by which I mean REAL, EFFECTIVE QUALITY IMPROVEMENT, requires careful, detailed analysis that clearly identifies problems (not what we THINK are the problems) AND THEIR ROOT CAUSES, AND THEN ADDRESSES THOSE CAUSES, specifically and with scalpel-like precision.  

Quality improvement does NOT consist of screaming at people - EVER - and those of you who have been screaming at your folks to try to (a) increase production or (b) decrease errors - or more likely, both simultaneously - know EXACTLY who you are.

You have a problem, but your first and biggest problem is very likely that (a) either you don't have a clue about quality improvement methods in the first place, (b) or you do know what QI requires and you're just too lazy to do the work involved - screaming is so much EASIER, isn't it?!

Oh, yeah - and this:  Be a better employer and you'll have better employees.  For most of you, quality improvement should begin with your compensation package, move to your hiring practices next, then to your supervisory oversight, and then - ONLY THEN - to your transcription team.  The problems really don't start with them.

What's that?  Using upper case on the Interweb is seen as screaming?  Gee, I do hope so.