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

Anybody making over 30K on SR? - LK

Posted: Sep 30, 2011

How in the heck are you supposed to make any money doing SR? Is it possible? I make good money as a transcriptionist and have avoided SR up to now. Now my company is transitioning over and I'm contemplating running for the door. I don't see how it's possible to make any money when you get paid half the cpl that you would make for transcribing. I generally transcribe as fast as the dictator talks (unless they're really crappy, of course). You still have to listen to the whole dictation when doing SR, at half the rate, plus jump all over the place making corrections. Or even worse, totally retype the big mess. That doesn't sound too good to me.

Should I leave or should I stick around and give it a try?

Only if you send the crap through without editing it. - Suzy Pudenda

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Then you can make a bundle. However, and as I pointed out to management, there is total GARBAGE in the patient records but they didn't care. Just counted their gold and ignored me. So, if you don't give a hoot about patient care, do VR and make a bundle. But if you do not want to have anything to do with this compromise of patient care, don't do VR. It's a scam. No matter what the MTSOs bleat out and try to get you to believe.

Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!

SR - 1mt

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I also have never done SR, but I've lost a couple accounts to it. The MTSO's I do work for don't do SR so they lost the accounts, but had I been given the chance, I would have tried it. That's the way it's all going and if you can get the training for the company you already work for and you know the accounts, then I would give it a try. They say there are some good and some bad SR systems. Then, if you see that you're not making any money, make a decision. At least then you'll know for yourself whether you could make it or not.

VR - memls

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Unfortunately everything is going to VR..I guess that is why most of us are called MLS (medical language specialists) instead of medical transcriptionists...I have been doing VR and I actually do like it..I don't know about 30K a year but I do pretty good

I do, 35 to 40K, but it depends a lot on the - MT

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dictators. I use every shortcut available and I do not lose any money with SR (about 90% of my work), and know many MTs who do well with it also, but I have been on the same accounts for years and my company allows me to use my expansions/normals for SR. If you are a fast typist and on familiar accounts, you should do okay keeping at your current earnings, depending, of course, on the dictators and how well SR interprets their speech. I takes a while getting used to, you just use a different part of your brain editing words instead of listening and typing sentences.

I have to say though, SR bores me to death and I still prefer straight transcription over SR.

If these are familiar accounts you have been doing for some time, I would stick it out and give it a try. If you go somewhere else, not only will you be starting over learning new accounts, but SR will eventually come to you anyway because it seems all the companies and clients are going in this direction. Good luck to you whatever you decide.

Thanks for the advice - LK

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I do plan to stay and give it my best shot, but I just don't see how it's possible to make the same amount of money. I do know it depends on many things, though, and you can't know for sure until you give it a try. I just don't see how when you transcibe as fast as they speak, then go to VR at half the pay and STILL have to listen all the way through, plus stop to fix things, you can possibly make the same money. How could that work?

SR - 1mt

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From what I've read, when you are doing SR, normally you would speed the dictation up as fast as you possibly can but still be able to understand it and read along with the report. So you would be going through the dictation a lot quicker than if you were doing straight typing.

Because you listen to the dictation at a higher - MT

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speed and getting through it faster. Of course, if the dictation is bad and SR cannot "get it," it can take longer, but still not as long as if you were typing the whole thing at least in my case. One trick if you know the dictators is to first scan through the text quickly and put in what you know they always say the same, fix headings, numbering, etc., then start the audio and fly through without having to stop as much. You will be surprised how fast you can get through a report this way. This also helps quite a bit with quality because you are basically looking at much of the text twice and catching small things that are easily missed when just reading what is being dictated (it helps if you read fast). This works for me anyway and some of the really good dictators I can get done in way less than half the time it takes to type it.

Some like it and some never get the hang of it, just have to try it and see. Like I said, it takes a whole different set of skills than straight typing.

I don't know about the everyone else, but I use those skills - in straight typing also

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I scan each document I type so scanning something twice that has already been put in front of me seems redundant. The issue I have is that the VR just doesn't get what the dictator is saying and the really good jobs that pop up that require little editing are few and far between to make any good money from it. Of course, if you are only typing 150 lines an hour anyway, then you're going to increase your count, but I was typing 350-400 lines an hour. So unless the VR is going to spit out more accurate reports than it does, I will not be making any decent money from doing VR.

Proofreading and fast scan - VeteranMT

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Yes I also use the quick proofreading method especially with doctors that say basically the same things each time. That way I can do a "fast scan" at first, correct format, and make quick modifications even before listening to the dictation. Then I adopted a co-worker's advise and listen to the dictation on high speed (after making my initial modifications) and that way there is a double edit on my part, with 99.5% to 100% accuracy on all of my audits. Works very well for me - and I still earn a nice paycheck.

frustrated - em

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I usually have my VR speed maxed out and after two years working on the same account I had been on for three years before that I still can't get to where I was, as far as pay. I was getting 10 cpl typing and now get 4 cpl editing. I know part of my problem is it bores me to death, just like you said, and I get distracted because of that, but also I get discouraged when I stay really focused for an hour and work really hard on getting up a good hourly count and look and it is still 25% less pay for the hour than my old average. I would love to just straight type again, but I think you are right that there is no getting away from it, and at least the VR I get is pretty decent compared to others. I'm just working on my escape plan now throgh college and gritting my teeth with MT until I can get done with school.

Thus all the good MTs leave for greener pastures thanks to VR. - Suzy Pudenda

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And leave the dregs of the MT biz to type your medical records on which life and death decisions are made. The state of our health care system, unfortunately.

You'd probably be making 50 to 70 with typing - nm

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x

I make around 50K and I DO full editing and not just send them back as I'm appalled to see belo - sm

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I used to make around 70K doing straight typing, so it's still a pay cut for me, but I easily make 50K without trying too hard. I make great use of the keyboard shortcuts for navigating around the document and I speed up my audio to 150% on all but the most difficult dictators, and even on those I speed it up to as fast as I can have it and still understand them. It's easier to read along for editing with the audio sped up than it is to try to keep up with it straight typing, so it's a great tool to take advantage of.

Making money - old and burned out

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I, too, used to make great money transcribing when I was working on a few familiar accounts. Now I have to work on about 10 different accounts with thousands of doctors in total. The vast majority of them are such poor dictators that I cannot even understand them at normal speed and have to slow them all down. I can listen to about 10% at normal speed and none at faster speeds. Much of the VR is not even 10% correct. If you are working under these conditions, there is no way to earn the kind of money that you are fortunate enough to be earning.

Agree with all - CB

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Agree with everyone here about the variables. I also made $50,000+ last year (about 99% VR) at my old company . The VR (Dictaphone ExSpeech)was very good, I sped up dictation when I could, made use of shortcuts, had primary accounts and didn't get bounced around, pay was 6 cpl and 7 on weekends, and we didn't have nitpicky QA (didn't have to "over-edit"). Unfortunately, that company closed after 30 years because of losing accounts to EMR. I really like the company I am at now (MxSecure), but trying to get my speed back up using a different platform. It's M-Modal based and I find it cumbersome. For example, it takes longer to choose headings and normals from drop-down menus than using expanders,and too many times I have to take my hands off the home keys to hit the arrows. So far, using InstantText, and HotKeys to program the more efficient ExSpeech shortcuts has helped. Hoping I can get back up to the 450 lines an hour average I was doing at my old job.

I am working under those conditions and have over 10 accounts. - sm

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I work my butt off to make that much. I make sure I work a full 8 hours. If the phone rings, I stop my stopwatch and take my phone call, then restart when I start working again. I have my share of good dictators and really awful dictators. I have been with the same company for a long time and have been on the same accounts, but I have many, many accounts with different account specs and I assist in the start-up of any new accounts that come on until they are full covered with new hires. I've just had a good 5 years to learn the majority of my accounts inside and out and after that long even the most difficult doctors have become easy to me.

Just wanted to comment though because it's no luck or fortune. It's hard work and just doing my best with what I get without complaining about it.

If your VR is truly that bad, talk to your managers, and if they don't listen, I'd find a new place to work. Our VR works where it has to be able to understand at least 75-80% of the dictation to create a report to edit or else the document goes into a "blank" report to type. Some of the docs are all permanently on typing mode and some that always say the same thing the system learns and gets even the worst pretty decently. If we have issues with our VR throwing out nonsense, we write down job numbers if we're finding a pattern of it happening with particular doctors, and then forward that information to a liaison who checks out all the settings in that dictator's profile, and if nothing looks amiss raises the percentage for it to create a draft. Not all VR sucks.

Sounds like you work WAY TOO HARD for what you are earning. nm - Cindylou

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nm

Working an 8 hour day is too hard? If I want a decent paycheck, I don't mess around. - plain and simple

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nm

VR, MQ and me - old and burned out

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Oh, you poor deluded soul (just joking). It's obvious you don't work for Medquist. I get all sorts of emails except when I let them know that something is amiss; then they ignore me (and everyone else who complains). I would change companies except that I work only 16 hours a week now and no one will hire me to work so few hours so I stick with MQ but their VR is as bad as I say.

No, I don't work for MQ, but I'm sorry you're stuck with a situation you don't l - nm

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nm

So, so true. The suits realize VR is a scam and they hope YOU DON'T. - Suzy Pudenda

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Your post sums it up. It's like that Ponzi scheme that's in the news a lot these days. The MTSO Suits need to keep recruiting MTs with these VR LIES as MTs are burned out trying to achieve these totally unrealistic amounts of money the suits claim you can make with VR and quit. Why do you think there is all the continual hiring and overhiring? People wise up and it is time to attract new marks.

Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!

I don't believe you and I suspect few others do too. - Suzy Pudenda

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All the suits come on here and continue to try to baffle the MTs with BS. VR is a scam and, on top of that, compromises patient care.

Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!

Would you like to see a copy of my W2 with my name blacked out? I've got proof. - Why are you SO negative?

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Wow, your posts on here are so negative and bitter. You can call me a liar all you want, but I've got all the proof you could want. If you can suggest a way for me to share it completely anonymously, I'd be more than happy to.

She knows no other way to be - other than negative

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Not all VR is a scam, Suzy, and it's unfortunate that you have only worked for companies who do not manage it well.

MQ is one who does not manage it well. There are companies who do - such as the poster above who says her company has the accuracy response set at 75 to 80%. The thing with VR is all of the MTs have to be making the corrections the same way and the system has to be managed by people who know what they're doing and want to make it work. You also can't have every doctor in every facility on it and have your MTs bouncing around from account to account to account like some of these big idiot MTSOs do.

The company I work for is very much like the one mentioned above. The accuracy percentage is set very high and if the draft doesn't meet that, then it comes through as a blank document to type and we get paid a higher CPL for that. If the account is managed well and the MTs are conscientious and doing the editing correctly, then the drafts come out very nice and there's not much editing to be done and you CAN make money on VR. There are just a lot of variables to it that are not in our control.

Your imaginary company sounds great! Can I get a job there? LOL. nm - Suzy Pudenda

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nm

Trust me, they wouldn't want you. - nm

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nm

LOL! Can't you put in a good word for me with your imaginary friends?? - Speaketh the Truth

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LOL! nm

No, can't put in a "good" word for someone with a horrible and pessimistic attitude. - nm

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If this industry treats you so badly, I have a feeling it's mostly your attitude.

even if you have 75 to 80 percent - sm

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you can type it just as fast if you are a fast typist. VR is a scam. It is for people who don't type very fast. If you can type as fast as the dictator talks, how can the VR be twice as good. Oh Well, think what you want.

Everyone apparently needs to get a job where you're working, - sm

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My own personal experience in VR has been too many corrections to be made in each document so speeding up the dictation doesn't even matter when I am having to constantly stop and start for corrections. This is VR from more than 1 company and more than 1 system.

Make about 48,000 now, used to be 60+ - paycut

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nm

But still a paycut, right? - LK

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So the people who make 30 K and more doing SR used to make a lot more doing straight transcription. I guess I should have asked if anybody does as well or better doing SR. I think I already know the answer, though!

Thanks again for all the responses.

In general, the high producer will take a pay cut going to SR, but the low to moderate - producers will do as well or better. nm

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nm

I agree about this on VR,but doing straight right now and - strugging to make, sm

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$40,000 or more due to lack of work and cut in pay. I too used to make between $50,000 and 60 a year but have seen my pay decrease slowly over the past 2 years with VR and the pay cuts that a lot of these companies are now offering for straight transcription. I was and still am a 2000-2500 line a day transcriptionist.

Downward pressure on wages - LK

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There is most definitely a trickle down effect from VR (and offshoring) bringing down all MT wages. That's why I keep thinking that with 10 or so more years to work, I might be better off getting out of MT altogether.

I'm working on getting out of MT altogether also, hoping to be - done with this mess in 2 years

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