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

Why does everyong back AHDI/AAMT when they hurt us? (sm) - not a fan

Posted: Oct 04, 2010

Could someone please tell me why MTs are members of AHDI? Everytime I hear about a new "rule" from the BOS, it does nothing more than lower my line count once again.

I really think that this organization is for the employers, rather than the MTs. The hospitals, etc, want you to follow BOS for all things that cut line counts, but then do it their way for other things. Drives me nuts the amount of times I have heard, this account follows BOS, except for.............

Our profession gets less pay year after year. Now even our government won't pay for spaces. Where in this world did this trend come from. Last I knew, my thumb hitting the space bar was a key stroke. IguessI shouldforgetaboutputtingspacesinmywork. See how that goes over.

I just wonder who appointed AAMT/AHDI the ruler of medical transcription? Is it associated with JCAHO or the federal government? Does it control HIPPA? I just don't get it. Maybe I should start an organization that undoes everything they do... Think I would get any followers?

Just my opinion, which we are all entitled to. Now back to work, where I seem to lose money daily with new rules that bring my line count lower every day. Thanks for allowing me to vent:(

To not a fan - Anonymous

[ In Reply To ..]
HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) was passed by Congress in 1996. It deals with privacy rules in regard to patient information and patient rights in regard to rules covering electronic medical records among other things. Confidentiality rules are not new and have nothing to do with AAMT/AHDI. JCAHO sets standards for healthcare organizations, and facilities strive for accreditation. They monitor many aspects within a hospital facility, the least of which is health care documentation. Please do some research and beome better informed in regard to their role in health care as well as HIPAA.

As far as AHDI, I don't know why people are members. Membership is not mandatory. There need to be some documentation standards for people to follow, hence the Book of Style. Asking if AHDI was a government agency was a silly question to which you probably already know the answer. Feel free to start your own organization.

I understand your frustration and thanks for venting. A little research would help you become better informed in regard to the issues you are addressing.

Definitely read Anonymous' informative post. Also, of course, - Pragmatist

[ In Reply To ..]
AHDI is not trying to hurt us. The scary, runaway beast we're all riding is TECHNICAL CHANGE. It can't be stopped, by company or government, and every organization involved (EVERY one) is trying its best to harness and steer the beast in a bunch of different directions according to their personal interests, including some that would toss US all off to be trampled. None have succeeded in taking control, though, and none know just where we're all going to end up, not that the beast will ever stop anywhere for long.

AHDI is trying not to fall off like us but is also busy grabbing at the reins while we just hold on for dear life. What benefit their proposed direction would be to us can be further discussed, but the notion that they are the beast itself or somehow directing it is silly and ignorant.

Yeah, I get intolerant of willful ignorance, too. Remember the old saying, "People who will not read are no better off than those who cannot read?" In all of human history, it's never been so EASY to be knowledgeable as now.

Pragmatist - Anonymous

[ In Reply To ..]

Thanks for your message. I did not mean to come across sounding arrogant and if I did I apologize. I didn't understand how the connection was being made to HIPAA, JCAHO and AHDI. I was involved in HIPAA employee inservice at its inception all those years ago, and compliance is a very big deal where I work. Perhaps that is why I am more aware than others. I had assumed that anyone working in health care knew about the function of JCAHO. I'm a coding student so maybe that's another reason all of thiis is fresh in my mind.

I belonged to AAMT years ago and was certified by exam. The things they have done over the years have not been all bad. Promoting professionalism and continuing education were positive things. I remember reading many well-written articles in their Journal and attending some wonderful medical lectures. My criticism of them is that they did not lobby for wage standards for the MT profession so now the MTSOs are able to do what they please. It's been said on this board that AHDI promotes offshoring of labor, I don't know if that is true. The companies are trying to stay afloat and want to provide an affordable service to their clients. They went looking for cheap labor and found it. Poliltical forces were at play there, NAFTA may have opened the door to permit that. I've been fortunate to have always had on-site jobs for employers who treated me well so never experienced working for any MTSO, it seems very competitive to me. I don't know if anyone could have stopped the technological changes, those were probably bound to happen regardless of what AHDI did or did not do. Like you, I perceive that as our biggest threat.

The membership of AHDI is not that big but their influence is considered to be huge. I really couldn't say one way or the other. I only wanted to point out that they really have nothing to do with HIPAA or Joint Commission. It would benefit all of us to learn all we can in regard to health care documentation.

That's all I want to say, thanks for reading this.

I have two memories of AHDI ...sm - Mist

[ In Reply To ..]
Neither is good...

The first event that happened was a 'certified' medical transcriptionist came in to our department, took the typical dictation test and could not pass the clinical exam....basic clinical chart note.

The second memory I have is being notified that I was in a class action law suit; that a settlement was reached and the payoff was going to AHDI. EXCUSE ME! I went through hell to earn that money, over 50% of my transcription was for ESLs, the usual watching my line counts drop for no explainable reason, and all of that was over ten years ago...nothing has changed. It sounds very familiar. Now I am looking to return to work hoping to be able to return to medical transcription only to find that it is still the nightmare I left or nothing available, at least not in this town. I consider the AHDI to be THIEVES!

Sorry you had a bad experience - sm - Anonymous

[ In Reply To ..]
I completely understand why you feel the way you do, I'd be the same way if I'd gone through something like that. A definite example of AHDI not being an advocate for MTs.

Interesting story about the "CMT."

as far as CMTs are concerned - see message

[ In Reply To ..]
Over the years many people have claimed to be CMTs when they were not, just as others claim to be graduates of an MT school when they aren't.

That CMT exam is tough and someone capable of passing it can certainly do a basic chart note. I would suspect that the person taking that test would have had her CMT claim not to have been verified by AHDI.

My thought on CMT - sm - Anonymous

[ In Reply To ..]
Was that she "grandfathered" in, I know they let people do that for a while. I took the exam years ago and while I passed quite a few people in my group did not, it wasn't an easy test even back then.

I remember that. It seems like eons ago, doesn't it?! - nm

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

I'll join your organization as long as membership (sm) - Yochana

[ In Reply To ..]
isnt over $1.00 a year as that is all I can afford on MT wages. LOL. Ignore the snotty poster. I really wonder myself how AHDI gota so much power and say-so in the transcription business. They certainly arent for the MT and I would never join them or be certified by them. There is also an American Transcription Association website that opposes offshoring, but I cant afford the $100.00 membership. Maybe someone else can tell us how AHDI obtained so much power....in a kind and nice manner.

No way! Never have, and never will! Evil, greedy - organization that has ruined an industry. nm

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

AHDI - carol

[ In Reply To ..]
Why would I want to be a part of an organization who is constantly (supposedly) certifying MTs in India and elsewhere out of the U.S. They are the biggest ripoff for American MTs I have ever seen. Was a member, never again!

Glad to see some MTs agree with me. (sm) - not a fan

[ In Reply To ..]
I agree with all said, except for the Anonymous and Pragmatist. Pragmatist totally lost me, other than understanding she/he called me silly and ignorant:) I really didn't need the background of JAHCO or HIPPA either. Those questions were sarcastic. I new the answers, and was trying to make a point, as JAHCO and HIPPA must be followed or you get shut down.

I had forgotten about the "settlement" we got. Never did do anything with that. They weren't offering anything I wanted. The INDIA thing is a big deal though, hence the name change as they were no longer an American Association. Don't see the point of CMT either. I have been doing this job for 20 years and I know what I am doing as far as transcription. I do, however, have to do all the mandatory government "classes" online each year, since I work for the VAs. Also have passed a federal background check.

Well I just wanted to vent, but am happy to see that some other MTs out there agree. Thanks for "listening."

HIPAA/JCAHO - Anonymous

[ In Reply To ..]
If you knew the answers, why did you ask the questions? There is no way to know if a person is joking from seeing printed words on a page. I don't like AHDI either but I was neither agreeing or disagreeing, just pointing out that they have nothing to do with the other things you named. Maybe it's time to let go of this and accept the fact that MT has changed and AHDI is not going away. They've apparently done things that have hurt the profession but I am not being forced to join and neither is anyone else. Blaming them for all that has happened is okay if that is what you want to do but there are probably a lot of other factors involved that have brought about the changes we are experiencing, the standardized EMR and VR are having a huge impact, I don't think that was AHDI's fault.

Well ADHI has hurt the line count, thats for sure (sm) - not a fan

[ In Reply To ..]
In addition, if they hadn't been so active in the training of India MT's, who work for peanuts, maybe we wouldn't see our pay going down instead of up. Nowadays, they seem to think that 8c for IC is acceptable. Do you realize how much extra there is to pay in taxes as an IC? Just sad to be in a profession where the pay is being cut. My biggest gripe is their BOS which constantly changes for what seems to be the worse. I was told the other day, no more seven, eight, etc. Now it is to be 7, 8. Sounds petty, but it all adds up to less characters and less money:( The capitalize this, don't cap that, put periods, dashes, etc. What the heck does that have to do with anything, other than getting your butt kicked if you do it wrong? They say now b.i.d. (which is actually more letters surprisingly), is acceptable rather than bid. How many people do you know that would mistake 3 mg bid for the word bid???? Just nit picking. How about the AHDI making a rule of no abbreviations. That would benefit the MT:) But no, they keep adding acceptable things that hurt us. Everyday it seems that there is another acronym/abbreviation we should use instead of expanding. EGD really kills me when I have to use that;) Okay, I guess in the future, I will just have to start my posts with "SARCASTIC REMARKS INCLUDED." Sorry you thought I was serious about the association between all of them. As far as letting it go.... It is great to be able to come here and vent and share my feelings, so I guess as long as I am able....... Have a great day:)

Line counts - Anonymous

[ In Reply To ..]
Hope that being able to vent has helped you. I became an MT in the 70s and remember being taught to write b.i.d., t.i.d, etc. when I was in school. All of my employers wanted it that way so it's something that I've always taken for granted. The hospital where I worked had MT style standards even before AHDI came on the scene. I don't think that using numbers insted of spelling out the word was intentionally meant to ding your line count. It's probably an issue of readability, easier to zero in on a number value than a word. IMO, the goal of the BOS was to standardize things and try to get everyone doing it the same way, consistently. QC is a way of life where I work. We're expected to get 99% or our pay gets cut. No one likes it but that's life. BTW, if you think MT has a lot of rules to remember, try coding! LOL Best wishes and good luck.

Excellent Point About Coding Also Having Rules (That Change) - No Kidding!

[ In Reply To ..]
It seems that everything changes, but coding changes much more than MT does, and they have rules that don't bend and people who don't have a sense of humor if you bend them. LOL.

It is NOT AHDI that has hurt line counts. Just having a - WHO to blame?

[ In Reply To ..]
name to hurl abuse at does not mean it should be the target. Blame them for not holding back the tide if you want and trying to charge us membership fees we can't afford to do it. I'm not an apologist for AHDI and don't belong because it's just too darned expensive.

HOWEVER, once again, AHDI's actions reflect the pressures on this industry to bring the prices down. AHDI is not creating these pressures, which are far stronger than any organization or group of organizations. If AHDI refused to accept them, it would have been pushed aside and ceased to exist some time ago. Instead, AHDI is, in classic go along to get along fashion, doing what it has to do to stay in a position where it can help influence the direction the industry goes. I don't particularly trust them to do the job for us we'd want, even if they could, but at least they have managed to remain on their feet and somewhat relevant, which has actually been quite a good trick as far as it goes.

But for real, suitable targets of blame I offer:

Our long-broken healthcare "system" and runaway medical costs, by far the highest of all advanced nations. Need a name to spit out? How about Ptosis? Good for spitting and appropriate for a mess that is dragging us all down.

The patients for being placed ahead of us. We can still just call them "The Patients" but with appropriate loathing in our voices to make sure no one mistakes our intent for caring.

Blame those who think that's the way it should be and that, push come to shove, it would be great to get rid of us altogether. We can call them "Providers" because that's what those most anxious to spend transcription dollars elsewhere, but expressed with the resentment and hostility appropriate for an enemy our meaning will be clear.

Technology for providing an alternative to us. The Beast, of course. An unending constant stream of sick, weary, scared, and angry complaints and abuse, even blame for those extra pounds and lazy husbands, can be all piled on freely--The Beast won't notice or care.

The VBC, visible black character? NO. Not to blame. In itself, it is GOOD for us in the same way it is good for the providers. It makes it much, much harder to cheat us because it is so easily checked. It does not, in itself, mean we are paid less. Instead, lines are counted with roughly 55 characters instead of, say, the common 65. If you are being paid less because of this, it's because your employer/contractor grabbed the opportunity of this change to adjust rates down without informing you. So, if you can confirm you've been cheated:

Blame your employer/contractor. But whisper and don't use any name until you've shaken their dust from your feet. Then come back and tell the simple truth for credibility. Their own name of course.

Okay, last post on this subject:) sm - not a fan

[ In Reply To ..]
Okay, so we all agree to disagree. I won't mention any names any more. I love it that the ones who defend the NO NAME ORGANIZATION all say that they are not members and not fans. Ummm, sure, that is why you are so upset about it. My final comment is this..... There is this organization that helped other countries get into the MT business and make us not as "valuable" as we used to be. Since my company has started following this "book of many wonderful suggestions" my pay has DROPPED dramatically. Is that better? Didn't mention names.... Okay, end of story. I made my point. But I do see that the ones who disagree with me are more ..... verbose than we hotheads who are not fans;) Must be we are the MTs who don't have time to go on and on because we are too busy working. Or at least I should be:) Nice conversations people.

The #1 thing - Vet MT

[ In Reply To ..]
I have been certified, and I let it go. After hammering a 50-hour week for increasingly less pay, the last thing I want to do is shell out my hard-earned money on webinars about stuff I already know so I can keep 3 ridiculous meaningless initials after my name. As far as I'm concerned the #1 goal of AHDI is to make enough money to perpetuate itself. End of story.

That may be the "End of story" for you, but - the other side of the story

[ In Reply To ..]
We all have our own viewpoints, so it may be the end of story for some, but not everyone. The CMT may be ridiculous to some and others value it. I think it's one of the best things the organization has done. The Book of Style is the other one. Other things they've done are not always good, but I wouldn't throw them out totally. Let me rephrase that. There are times when I most definitely would throw them out, but for those two things. That really isn't much in the whole scheme of things, is it? So am I a defender of them or the opposite? I'm leaning toward thinking they have outlived their usefulness. Even worse, I don't think that is an issue for them because I believe they are more interested in pleasing the MTSOs than practicing MTs. They have said as much. I think they can still survive even without members though, because they have the MTSOs.

Almost all American jobs were sent overseas. - See message

[ In Reply To ..]
There are many things AHDI does that I don't agree with, but they are not demonic as some would portray them. They didn't cause overseas outsourcing. Okay, they didn't help either, but that was one decision made by one person with too much power over the Board of Directors.

In my perfect world I would keep the BOS, it would still be called "American", and one would have to be American to be credentialed through them.

You don't see many people saying they have a halo, but they also don't have horns. The extreme positions are what bring people out, not to defend them, but to bring fairness and moderation to the discussion.

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