Unofficial survey --equineluvr - OhioCMT

Hello ...  Especially Equineluvr  (E-mail name)

Not sure when you posted your initial "vent" comments, but I couldn't agree with you more.  I hope that you stumble upon my reply.  You are right on with regard to AAMT, now AHDI, the "ole girls" club.

Yeesh, where do I start.  First of all, I too, am completely and totally irritated by the name change from AAMT to AHDI.  The key word missing is transcription.  There are many reasons for that, one of which is the fact that we individually and as a group do not make much noise.  We've let them push us aside and focus on outsourcing and coding.

The fact is that many of the seasoned old gals involved with AHDI have been very instrumental in promoting outsourcing 15 to 20 years ago, took high paying jobs to share our professional secrets, pretty much sold us out.  Now, lip service being as it is, they pretend to be defending us in Washington.  A joke, a complete joke. 

I have written more than once that what we do should be considered a skilled trade, absolutely, without a doubt a skilled trade.  A medical receptionist cannot slip into our chair and do what we do.  A nurse cannot slip into our chair and do what we do.  An HIM manager cannot slip into our chair and do what we do.  Even physicians are unable to do what we do; and that is the plain truth.  It takes years of dedication and experience to be able to utilize all of the skills necessary to be a productive medical transcriptionist.  We aren't medical word specialists, or whatever clever name will be given to us next.  We are medical transcriptionists, and we turn ridiculously speedy medical garble into readable text.  We turn low-speaking mumbling medical professionals into understandable, intelligent heros that they really are.  We turn brilliant surgeons with horrible grammar into well spoken miracle workers; and you know what, AHDI should be bragging about us this way. 

During what used to be Medical Transcription Week, I've always thought that instead of a manager or lead buying us a plate of cookies to share, there should be posters, huge posters, splattered all over offices and hospitals with numbers, lots of stats.  People should be made aware of how many keystrokes the average MT makes in a day, a week, a month, a year.  Wouldn't it be a hoot to have doctors and managers try to crank out a couple of reports in return for coffee, cookies, and conversation about what we do? Another major gripe of mine is the fact that many, many of our bosses have never in their lives attempted to transcribe a report.  Interesting. 

Patients should be made aware of our worth and the fact that we are Americans in America that are instrumental in keeping their medical records accurate and that the alternative is .... well, quite frankly, junk from a third-world country that most doctors don't proofread themselves. 

My fondest wish would be for another organization to spring up, a transcription organization, one that truly represents us.  I could go on for much longer, but I won't.  I have so much more to share, i.e., the Book of Style for instance.  Write to me if you want to know why the numbers rule was changed.  Incredible!  Good luck.  God bless.