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#57628 - 01/27/07 07:29 PM
The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
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Linda Andrews CMT
Moderator-Andrews School
Registered: 12/31/69
Posts: 5006
Loc: Oklahoma City, OK US
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I am getting quite a few messages from people who want or need to work from home. They are apologetic about it because they have seen messages on boards like this which give the impression that it's a horrible thing to want to work at home.
I think many people are missing the message.
There are almost no jobs OTHER than doing medical transcription from home. Hospitals rarely hire brand new graduates. The only job options available to a new graduate seem to be those set up to be done from home. There are often people assigned to make sure that brand new transcriptionists get started correctly.
Almost 100% of graduates of my own school work from home right out of school. Should they apologize for that? Of course not!
The point is, if someone has no prerequisites, can't type, can't spell, can't proofread, etc., the fact that you want to work at home doing medical transcription is not realistic. The messages you see posted are to keep people from thinking this is an easy way to sit at home watching soap operas, talking to your friends on the telephone, running a daycare center and whipping out a few medical reports during commercials. Reality is something quite different.
If you DO have the prerequisites along with appropriate education and training, there is absolutely NOTHING WRONG WITH WANTING TO WORK FROM HOME! In fact, there is no better reason to want to become skilled as a medical transcriptionist so that you CAN do quality work at home while at the same time being there for family emergencies, etc. There is no reason to apologize for that.
The thing that offends people on most MT boards is when someone says that they want to do this work so they can work from home. That's fine, but it isn't enough! There has to be motivation to do this very difficult work and a desire to keep at it when you are exhausted and would rather do something else.
My advice to any potential student is that you should never consider enrolling in a medical transcription school until you reach the point where you cannot be talked out of it. You are so eager to do what it takes that you refuse to give up UNLESS you can't type, spell, proofread, or pay careful attention to detail. If you can't do those things, find another career interest. This one won't work for you. That's reality.
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#57642 - 01/27/07 11:48 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: Linda Andrews CMT]
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bobbcat
Member
Registered: 03/27/03
Posts: 6375
Loc: My office.
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From personal experience in being around fellow MTs at seminars, I picked up sentiments from quite a few, back when I was a student at M-TEC, encouraging me to avoid starting off with an at-home position. I was told that it was too difficult to do at home without prior experience. I was encouraged to get an in-house position first and get at least a year of experience under my belt before trying to do it at home. Needless to say, that advice gave me a few misgivings, but I knew at the time of a substantial number of M-TEC grads who were doing just fine fresh out of the gate working at home.
I forged ahead with my first job out of the gate (at which I still work to this day) at acute care, initially with ER then primarily OPs on an account where I also do all major work types in virtually all specialties except pathology and psychology. I struggled at first, but not overly so, and have enjoyed success from the beginning. I don't really know what has prompted all this sentiment against taking an initial at-home MT postion, provided of course that one is well prepared for it, particularly in this current atmosphere where in-house positions are vanishing all about the fruited plain.
_________________________
Bottom line, it's either M-TEC or Andrews.
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#57669 - 01/28/07 12:14 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: bobbcat]
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Linda Andrews CMT
Moderator-Andrews School
Registered: 12/31/69
Posts: 5006
Loc: Oklahoma City, OK US
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I have to admit that I said the same thing back in 1989. In 1990 I found that my graduates were doing well working from home. Often the only jobs available were those work-at-home jobs and I couldn't tell them not to take the only available jobs.
We all used to know that the best way to get started was with an experienced medical transcriptionist next to you to help you "listen" when you had trouble. Then things changed. Productivity demands made it harder to find anyone who was willing to stop their own work to help. Supervisors with no transcription experience were unable to help. New MTs on site in hospitals didn't do as well because they got less help from the experienced MTs.
Then things got turned on their heads when national services and larger private services started assigning people to help not only the brand new graduates but anyone else who needed it. This made the work-at-home jobs a better environment than the hospitals, in most cases. Now it seems that hospitals are very much against hiring new MTs straight out of school while national services and private MT services are willing to invest the time when the candidate has good potential. I can only speak from my own experiences, of course. Others may have experienced something totally different.
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#57674 - 01/28/07 12:52 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: Linda Andrews CMT]
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Doug Jones
Member
Registered: 04/29/00
Posts: 1380
Loc: Indian Lake, NY
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A little bit from the other side.  One of the other facets is that there are fewer hospitals that have in-house transcription units. At one time, yes, it was a good place to train, but as institutions looked to cut costs, outsourcing transcription became the prime candidate. Whether or not it was a good idea, or would even actually reduce costs got lost under the flood of "better, faster, cheaper" sales pitches by various transcription firms.
Those that continued to maintain in-house transcription units were often able to do so only by increasing production. In that situation, you can't afford to hire new transcriptionists, no matter what school they went to - you need people who can run from the start.
The principal training ground for transcriptionists used to be the hospitals, and the transcription firms recruited from there. The situation is now reversed, because the transcription firms were a little too successful at getting institutions to oursource, so they're now forced to train - with the hospitals recruiting from them.
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#57688 - 01/28/07 02:44 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: Doug Jones]
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Linda Andrews CMT
Moderator-Andrews School
Registered: 12/31/69
Posts: 5006
Loc: Oklahoma City, OK US
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Very interesting. Thanks for adding that information from the other side.
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#57692 - 01/28/07 04:31 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: Linda Andrews CMT]
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haggis
Member
Registered: 04/29/04
Posts: 2648
Loc: Left Coast, FL
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Yes, it's the people who say, "I'm pregnant, I have two toddlers, and I really want to do this because it will let me stay at home until they're all in school--and OMG, I already have a computer!" It's as though they believe having kids is THE main requisite for the job, and it'll be a great hobby until they're free to devote more than 2 hours a day to it.
Even more detrimental to the general perception of MT as a "profession" (meaning worth paying us a living wage) is that: 1) There are courses who let people in who have no business dealing with language for a living, 2) Said courses make it far too easy to pass same people through (what do they care? they get the tuition bucks and can brag about a "completion" rate that really doesn't speak to the quality of their grads), and 3) There actually are MTSOs who (whether through a back-door business arrangement or not, I can't say) hire these nitwits--and some who have QA people almost equally deficient (bad wrists should not be THE prerequisite for moving up). I used to shake my head at some of these people and think how sad it'd be when they failed to pass their final and realized they'd wasted all that time and money and really weren't going to make it in the field. . . and now I see those same people not only proudly declaring they've found a job, but they somehow manage to keep it!
Linda, you really can't know how bad or how prevalent this is because you obviously do it right and are too busy to leave the safety of your little cocoon--but I have seen some things develop in my short tenure that would make you want to curl into a fetal position and just give up. I suspect anyone here who does QA can back me up on the horrific things being transcribed because there are so many MTs who just don't know what they're doing. (No, I'm not doing QA, but I occasionally get half-done reports to finish that astound me, and I do get linked to infuriating crap on other boards.) Even if they completely master the medical terminology, they're completely ignorant of everyday English!
The lower the standards have gone, the lower the expectations clients have of us--and the end result is that there's an awful lot of crappy Tx out there, raising the cry that, "If we're going to get crap, it might as well be cheap crap!" What really irks me is that excellence isn't rewarded at all--the pay is aimed at the lowest common denominator. Not only is it not fair to MTs who do the job well, but it makes for zero incentive for new people to get into the field.
I'd digress into the reasons for this sad state of affairs, but that's a whole 'nuther rant. . . 
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#57696 - 01/28/07 04:59 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: haggis]
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Gisele Dubson
Member
Registered: 05/28/99
Posts: 5608
Loc: Boulder, CO, USA
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You know, when I started out doing this in about 1990, it didn't take long to find MTs whose on-the-job training was actually not very good. They picked it up from other MTs whose training was also on-the-job. Now we have a lot of training programs turning out new MTs of equally questionable value. I don't think things have actually gotten worse, just gotten worse in a different way.
_________________________
Gisele F. Dubson, RHIA, Mercury Medical Communications
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#57705 - 01/28/07 06:21 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: Gisele Dubson]
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Linda Andrews CMT
Moderator-Andrews School
Registered: 12/31/69
Posts: 5006
Loc: Oklahoma City, OK US
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I think things might be better than they were way back when I started. Back then there were few schools and usually they just had medical secretarial programs, not medical transcription courses. Hmmn. I guess that hasn't changed. The schools were very bad. You were lucky if you learned any thing other than a few medical terms. Things are definitely better in that respect.
The doctors didn't expect much and they got what they expected. They usually worked closely with the transcriptionists, correcting and having the transcriptionist do the report over before they would sign it. Some of us weren't willing to work at that level. We had to be very creative to improve our skills, but somehow we did it. I wouldn't say that things are easier now. More is expected of a new medical transcriptionist, as it should be.
I would say, however, that there are more opportunities. We are seeing more job options than ever. The range of pay depends on level of skills and being in the right place with the right skills at the right time. I think things probably are better now.
As with any career though, some will do very well and some won't. I'm seeing attitude being a major factor in just how well our graduates are doing. A person with excellent skills and a good attitude just makes more money than a person with a poor attitude, no matter how good their skills are. That makes sense though. I don't want to hire anyone with a bad attitude. I don't know why the medical transcription employers would either.
One more thing, some of the employers have learned that they get and keep better transcriptionists if they provide better pay and working conditions. That also makes sense.
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#57709 - 01/28/07 06:34 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: Linda Andrews CMT]
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14tonks
Member
Registered: 10/25/01
Posts: 6298
Loc: Only 3rd world country in US
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One more thing, some of the employers have learned that they get and keep better transcriptionists if they provide better pay and working conditions. That also makes sense.
That fact would do a great deal to cure a whole lot that is wrong in this business at the moment if it weren't for a) clients who don't care what crap they get as long as it is cheap and b) people who will work at any wage under any working conditions just to get a little experience or earn a small amount of spending money at home. As long as those two facts remain true, it will always be hard for companies offering good pay and good working conditions to attract good transcriptionists to compete against the crappy companies paying peanuts to lousy transcriptionists.
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#57749 - 01/29/07 09:43 AM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: 14tonks]
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Linda Andrews CMT
Moderator-Andrews School
Registered: 12/31/69
Posts: 5006
Loc: Oklahoma City, OK US
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I wonder if they might be fooling themselves.
Compare it to the very horrible schools with the motto, "Get 'em in, get their money, graduate 'em and get 'em out of here." They work cheap, offer less than nothing in return for that tuition, and have a very bad reputation with employers in the industry. They DO enroll lots of students.
Once the industry is aware that the graduates are not prepared, they stop hiring graduates from that school. Word gets around. The only students they can enroll are those who have not done their homework and/or those who do not have contacts with knowledge of the industry. The only jobs those graduates can get (and keep) are the ones employers have created just for such purposes. They know that without appropriate training, those graduates are as good as they are going to be. Before they can get better, they will have to "unlearn" all that they have learned incorrectly. There are easy and poorly-paid accounts where they can put people and keep them forever. No potential for increase in income over the years and the work would be considered boring to most of us, but it is a job that the poorly-prepared graduate can do.
I think that if they keep the tuition low enough, they can still bring in a heavy volume of students and make more money than the schools that actually teach. However, the graduates still suffer. Years later, students who received inadequate training will have fewer job options and will still be unable to get/keep the best jobs, the ones that pay better and have the best working conditions. They can, however, announce to everyone that in spite of having graduated from a school with an awful reputation, they got a job!!! Some will realize later that they didn't get or can't keep a good job. Some will never realize that they are making much less money and have awful working conditions because they have never experienced a good medical transcription job. They will assume that the whole industry is as bad as what they are experiencing, when it is not.
Isn't that what happens with medical transcription companies who work on the cheap? They lose accounts. They can replace them with other accounts that haven't heard or have such low standards that they don't care about quality as long as it's cheap. They can keep going like that for years, but everyone knows that their work is not even worth the low amount they are charging for it. It isn't a bargain, but it appears to be.
Again, this is similar to buying a loaf of bread just because it costs much less than the other loaves. The bread is stale and moldy, but it's cheap. If you buy enough of these, you'll tell others that even though this bread is cheap, it's not worth the tiny amount that you have to pay for it. People who don't know better will still buy it anyway, but the word will get out for those who care about quality. Those who don't care about quality will tell themselves that the store wouldn't be selling that bread if it weren't good bread. 
I had fun with this thread today. Please forgive my (temporary) silliness on such a serious topic.
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#57790 - 01/29/07 02:13 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: Linda Andrews CMT]
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Annie
Administrator
Registered: 01/08/00
Posts: 7858
Loc: Long Island, NY
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Pinning this one, Linda. Great topic!
_________________________
New to the site? Please read through the "How to Use MT CHAT" forum BEFORE POSTING!
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#58947 - 02/06/07 03:46 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: Annie]
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rp44
New Member
Registered: 01/16/07
Posts: 4
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Linda or anyone who might know. On the subject of "outsource."
I am a potential student looking for the best school to attend, which I am pretty sure is going to be Andrews. I have been reading all I can from other MT's and about different schools. I also want to be trained well, not half way. I want to know what I am doing when I graduate. And I have heard great things about Andrews. Now, to my question. I have had an MT tell me that "most" doctors, hospitals, etc... are sending their work to India, because it is cheaper, (like 3 cents a line) and in about 2 years there will not be enough jobs to go around. That is a little discouraging to me. Is this a myth or can someone shed some light on this. Linda I would really like to hear your opinion on this. Thanks.
Future Student
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#58963 - 02/06/07 05:42 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: baldymom]
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tropsicleAfter
Member
Registered: 10/30/06
Posts: 2441
Loc: Vicksburg, MS
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I have to agree that the outsourcing issue has been around for quite a while, at least back to the early 90s. In this market, a certain percentage of all possible clients will choose lower costs, regardless. I don't feel threatened by those that do the outsourcing work, but I do note the impact of clients that will send their work out. All in all, it has not affected the way I work or my ability to make a living at MTing.
_________________________
tropsicle
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#59241 - 02/08/07 02:26 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: tropsicleAfter]
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Linda Andrews CMT
Moderator-Andrews School
Registered: 12/31/69
Posts: 5006
Loc: Oklahoma City, OK US
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I'm seeing more jobs for my graduates than ever before.
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#59288 - 02/08/07 05:01 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: tropsicleAfter]
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Linda Andrews CMT
Moderator-Andrews School
Registered: 12/31/69
Posts: 5006
Loc: Oklahoma City, OK US
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Thank you.
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#59293 - 02/08/07 05:27 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: Linda Andrews CMT]
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Endiqua
Member
Registered: 04/28/05
Posts: 3468
Loc: At the computer - where else?
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Linda, I have a question for you.
Some of the new MTs at my company (which shall remain nameless) have said they have gone through a special training course with this company as part of their education via another institution.
What I was wondering is whether this is something that has been made available by the employers to Andrews grads, as well...or is that not necessary?
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#59304 - 02/08/07 06:50 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: Endiqua]
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FarAwayDeb
Member
Registered: 03/15/02
Posts: 2834
Loc: just south of Rochester, NY
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I know of at least three companies who have special "programs" with some of the schools to give students/grads "extra training" before they will hire them, because they just are not ready right out of school. Some of these programs are actually unpaid internships. (Sure, we'll work for free. We might as well, we can't get paid.)
Somehow I don't think Andrews is one of those schools.
_________________________
Good grammar ain't easy.
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#59308 - 02/08/07 07:06 PM
Re: The Reality of Working From Home As A New MT
[Re: FarAwayDeb]
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Endiqua
Member
Registered: 04/28/05
Posts: 3468
Loc: At the computer - where else?
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Unpaid internships? Oh, say it ain't so!
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Moderator: Annie
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