what is so great about it - blah blah blah

And furthermore... - the elephant in the room...

Sending work overseas is what AHDI is lobbying for. - The CMT is just a means to their end..... nm

I agree with you blah-blah... it's not possible to - be an MT without constantly learning - sm

ITA that credentialing is necessary to restore respect for MT, - but not through AHDI b/o credibility issues. nm

Mandatory credentialing is a money making ploy for the AHDI plain and simple. - LaLaMT

I cannot believe any self-respecting American MT would buy into the mandatory credentialing movement.  Here's what some of my thoughts were while reading the article.  (Excerpts from the article in red and quotes)

“Without the credential, there is a false perception that anyone can do what an MT does, making it more difficult to secure a qualified workforce.”

There is already that false perception that anyone can do what an MT does, especially when the MTSOs turn us into well trained little monkeys with the notion of verbatim transcription.  Essentially, we are not allowed to think.  They have rendered our collective education useless.  Type only what he says, how he says it.  Don’t think, don’t analyze, type as fast as you can, use your spell check and sign off.

 “... and it requires the significant support of a parent organization...”

 This made me laugh.  I assume the author of the article is looking to AHDI to be our “parent organization.”  I would like to know exactly what kind of support CMTs receive now from their parent organization and what kind of support can we expect to receive once we all have the appropriate initials after our name?  I will tell you what we can expect to receive, BUPKIS.  What we can expect is an overpriced BOS that changes every couple of years so our parent organization can make more money with each new edition, membership into their little club, and a subscription to their little publication.  By the way, their “support” has a price tag - $500 for the credentials, $135 for the membership, $50 for the BOS.  Gee thanks!  Then of course there are the “discounts” you receive with certain vendors for being a member including a 20-50% discount on the cost of attending their annual convention.  

 “Preziosi believes once policy makers and regulators recognize the amount of protected health information being exposed to unlicensed individuals, the need for credentialing will become more evident.”

Perhaps if the policy makers and regulators were aware of the amount of protected health information being exposed to individuals in third world countries, where our HIPAA and HITECH laws cannot be enforced, they’d realize there is a much bigger problem in the medical transcription industry than “unlicensed individuals” handling patient information.  Maybe the focus should be on bringing American MT jobs back into the jurisdiction of United States where the handling PHI can be monitored and truly protected and maybe then we can talk about mandatory credentialing.

Maybe the notion credentialing is devalued because at the present time more than half of American MT work is sent beyond our borders where it is processed at a mere fraction of the cost of what we, the American MTs, can live on, support a family on or are willing to consider.  Instead of offering our third world counterparts a discount on the CMT and RMT examinations, maybe the AHDI could focus on the “American” part of their moniker and do something about bringing our work back home.  Maybe the AHDI could lobby the policy makers and regulators on the behalf of all American MTs about passing legislation that prohibits PHI from leaving the United States.  It is completely absurd that policy makers and regulators enacted the HIPAA and HITECH regulations without realizing those laws have been rendered virtually impotent when PHI falls into the hands of a third-world MT.

So um yeah.  Really enjoyed the article.  Gave me a few good laughs.   

Is there a place to post comments after - the article? If so, SM

There isn't but I emailed the editor with link to this post - smeeps

You Said It - earlymusicus

Amen to that, Lala! Well said. - cr

LaLa, your post should be copied and mailed to - every hospital & clinic in America.

Agreed! Please do send it on. However, AHDI already took - American out of the name..

SHOW ME THE MONEY!TOO BURNT OUT AND OLD TO CARE... - oaf

AHDI badly needs to be exposed for the crooks - they are, and put out of business. nm

More than AHDI needs to be exposed (sm) - Been there done that

AHDI - piaffan

The problem with you "logic" - mtmtmt