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

l just passed my finals with CareerSteps - Noodles

Posted: Apr 23, 2013

I just passed my finals with CareerSteps. Are there jobs out there for someone like me being new? I am a disabled Veteran and would like to work for the VA Hospital here in Denver or is it better to work independently as a contractor? Thanks!!

Congratulations! - VetMT

[ In Reply To ..]
I'd recommend checking with the VA Hospital, especially since you are a disabled veteran. (I'm also a vet.) It's a bit tough to get started (most companies wanting at minimum a year of experience).

Good luck! I wish you much success!

congratulations - check

[ In Reply To ..]
Check with your school. They should give you some help with that, at least they should. Did you check about their placement service or help with job hunting when you started with them? That is one of the first places to check.

Noodles - xx

[ In Reply To ..]
I think you mean CareerStep, rather than CareerSteps. Congratulations on passing your finals. Unfortunately, the MT market is really tough right now. I think you would have a good shot at it at the VA, as you are a vet. I would like to thank you for having served our country, and I hope you find what you are looking for!

I just passed my finals too - JacKey

[ In Reply To ..]
I just passed my finals too and am getting really depressed about all these posts about lack of work, off-shore sourcing, etc. For those of you who have been at this for while, are slow job markets cyclical for MTs? Are there any decent companies out there?

JacKey - Old Pro

[ In Reply To ..]
Since you asked an honest question, I will give an honest answer. This has not so much to do with cyclical slow job markets as it does with NO job markets. Unfortunately, so much work has either gone to VR or been offshored, that there is painfully little for MTs in the US right now. I would not advice anybody to become an MT right now. If I were your age (I just retired from 40 years in MT), I would concentrate on smaller clinics, getting my own accounts with them, etc. or possibly working in-house for them. Large MTSOs such as M*Modal, Nuance, etc. (with the help of the AHDI, of course) have pretty much ruined the MT job market as people of my generation once knew it. I wish you well. Are you perhaps in a large city? If you were in LA, for example, I would suggest applying to the UCLA Medical Center--there are still various in-house positions for someone who knows terminology. Undoubtedly such is the case in other major teaching hospitals.

JacKey - Old Pro - Old Pro

[ In Reply To ..]
I mean I would not ADVISE, not advice. I think Old Pro needs more coffee!

A bit of advice, JacKey - liz

[ In Reply To ..]
Those schools are not cheap, and it's usually best to research a field, job outlook and job prospects thoroughly before deciding whether or not to spend precious money on courses in a field.

I don't mean this personally to you, but it's shocking how many people will invest significant sums of money into an education in a field, graduate, and after the fact come to places like message boards designed for people working in the field, start asking the questions only to discover the type of information that you are getting and reading.

What you have been reading is not incorrect. The MT job market, especially in the last 4-5 years, is a market of dwindling job opportunities. The jobs are no longer there like they were, and there are MTs who have been in the field for 5+ to 20+ years having a difficult time getting a job in MT, and when they do the compensation is less and less.

I really hope that you are able to realize a job in MT after investing money in the hope of employment, but if not, please remember the next time to check out, and check out very, very thoroughly, the current and future job market in any field before investing money for courses or a degree.

JacKey - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
It is not easy to make money at this job like it use to be. You use to could get a good job working for a hospital with good hourly pay and incentive with good benefits, but more and more, the hospitals are outsourcing their work to Transcription companies like MModal and Nuance as well as others.

Alot of work is also being sent overseas for cheaper labor because it is cheaper to pay MTs overseas than it is in the US. Years ago people who worked for companies were making like 10 cents per line, some more than that. Since voice recognition that has dropped dramatically, now down to 4 cents per line, as they feel you should be able to produce twice the amount of work since you are "editing" the reports. However, this is not necessarily the case. Sometimes voice recognition is not all that great. It works well for some doctors and others not so much. Also, it can only learn so much and then you will find your self fixing the same mistakes over and over again. In many case, its actually easier to just re-type the report yourself from scratch just to get it done faster. So in essence, 4 cents per line is pretty low pay.

Companies will tell you that you will make 8 cents per line for (straight transcription/non-voice recognition) and then 4 cents per line for voice recognition. One would think it would balance out and you would be doing a combination of both, but thats not the case. The vast majority of your work will be 98% voice recognition. You will be lucky to see one straight typing report a day so hence, you will seldom see that 8 cents per line.

That is the current nature of the MT field. It can also be hard for someone just starting out because you have to spend time researching and looking up unfamiliar terms and this is a production based job - You are paid based on your production. So the more time you spend looking up things and researching, the less money you make.

I just passed my finals and VA - Pauline

[ In Reply To ..]
I type VA medical reports and I was hired by an outsource company after I lost my hospital job. VA outsources MT jobs out. Good Luck. I used to make good money working for a hospital until they outsourced. May be you can find a hospital job if there are any left. I have done this for 34 years too. Have seen it all. I used to make about $40,000 a year and I am down to $22,000 and most of that is SS Early Retirement that I had to take because at least it was money coming in to pay the bills and I still have to work PT to just break even.

Please stop saying that! - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
Not all VA facilities outsource. Some never have and others are bringing it back in.

I do not recommend - Clinic accounts

[ In Reply To ..]
Clincs don't much use MTs anymore. I have 3 docs---a family doc and 2 specialists. Not a one of them uses MTs or an MT company. They have their little handy-dandy pointer they punch into and that's that. If it's something more complicated, they basically just type while I talk.

VA - Anonymous

[ In Reply To ..]
I do not think the VA directly employs MTs and uses contractors for their transcription. If you want to work on a VA account, you will probably need to get the names of the companies who do the work for their facilities, good luck.

VA - SM

[ In Reply To ..]
Some VAs do hire their own MTs. They will post openings on www.usajobs.gov. Applications are done through that website, as well.

The VA is a very good employer. Consider any job you qualify for in order to get a foot in the door. Once in, you can move up.

I realize that you have your hopes set on MT, but that training should help you qualify for other jobs, as well. Consider jobs in health information management, jobs described as "clerk," data entry, or secretary in any department, and anything in departments like "ward" or "health services admin." That last category typically has lots of jobs (think front-line jobs in clinics) and offers advancement. Most will require med terms. Being a veteran does help. There is no civil service test.

avoiding using an MT - Minka

[ In Reply To ..]
please realize transcribing is not new and a true professional will use a true professional. Those jobs might not be plentiful but they are out there.

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