I have a potential new client who uses a lot of macros. How do you all charge for macros? He doesn't really want to pay per line but I don't know how to calculate for macros!

Any advice is appreciated!
Thanks,
ggr

Patty

I think this doc might be trying to get away cheap. He keeps talking about how much money he saved using the macros when he paid by the hour to an in-house transcriptionist. He said if I don't have a charge system for the macros that he wants to negotiate the per line fee that I charge. That kind of ticks me off a little; I don't try to negotiate the fee when I go to the dentist or have my hair cut...why do docs think they can negotiate the fee for this service????

PRNTrans, that is a good way to do it but I get my line count by using the character count in Word and then dividing by 65, it seems like if I did it the way you do, it would just be making more work for myself.

I actually had a thought...I might charge by the minute of dictation. That might be a fair (and easy) way to do this for this specific client. None of my other clients use macros but I have logged shortcuts in my system for commonly used phrases, etc.

Any input on per minute charging?

Again, thank you both for your response!
ggr

If you wanted to be blunt with him you could always break it down. Count the words in his longest macro. Then figure that he's speaking at about 150-175 words per minute. Find out how many dictations he does per day. Then work out how many minutes he can save himself by not dictating an entire normal. Figure he can see another patient at $65+ for every 5-10 minutes you save him. Isn't that enough of a discount for him?

If it isn't enough for him tell him that you'll be happy to type the words he says as he says them and suggest that his office staff go through and use his macros at a later time on the reports. Also explain that he is asking you to produce a complete medicolegal document, that includes formatting of the completed document, changes to the macro (when he says "normal male exam, except for HEENT, heart, lungs, and rectal, which are as follows..."), and error checking to ensure that what is in the macro matches up with the rest of the data in the report (for when the patient has an obviously abnormal exam, an ear infection is listed in the DX, but he tells you to put in the normal one).

Sorry if I sound mean. This sort of thing just bothers me. It reminds me that doctors in general have no appreciation of all that we do or how we help them.

Mike DeTuri

[ 06-26-2001: Message edited by: Mike ]

Some great insight on this subject there that might help out. Two of the best quotes from that particular thread are:

"I haven't faced this myself (yet), but to quote from "The Independent Medical Transcriptionist", the lady who wrote this book was having the same problem and she asked the doctor if he bought a laser which would cut down the time of his surgery, would he pass that discount along to the patient. Or would he charge the same fee based upon the fact that it still took his knowledge and expertise to fulfill his obligation to the patient regardless of how he did it? She said that it was never an issue from that point on. A rather ingenious scenario I thought. "

"We are charging or being paid for the final product - the road we travel is our business."

I think I will tell him that my rate is my rate, regardless. It puts me in a tough spot because I don't want to be a 'hard nose' but I also don't want to give in and have this doc say to his collegues 'hey, this service is good and, by the way, if you don't like the fee just tell her and she'll change it for you'.

I'm not sure how I should word the conversation or if I should really ask him if he negotiates HIS fees?????

Anyway. Again, thank you all so much for your support. It feels good having you all in my corner!

ggr

Just because we have the equipment/software to make it easier on ourselves doesn't mean it's free or cheaper (IMHO). It takes time to set these things up, and we have to pay for the software (expanders), etc., to work these little miracles.

We already work ourselves silly and we shouldn't be expected to lower our prices like some discount furniture store.

My doc has never questioned anything I do for him and has never balked at paying the agreed upon rate. We both know we have a good thing (he is an excellent dictator and I do his work well and that makes us equal partners at least in the transcription arena).

It is hard to be firm (gently) with a new client but good luck with standing firm on this one. Jazzy

Mary

Not one more word was said about it and he started dictating that same day!!!

(Was he just trying to see how far I would bend?)

Thank you all again for your support!

ggr

p.s. I had to make corrections (spelling and grammar) in his macros!

[ 06-27-2001: Message edited by: ggr1969 ]

Again, I'm glad you stuck with it!!

Perhaps in 90 days or so you might think about a rate hike?? (hee hee)

Mike DeTuri