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#104407 - 07/21/08 08:43 AM
Transcription position losses are industry trend
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Nae
Administrator
Registered: 07/16/98
Posts: 6464
Loc: Sanford, Fl, USA
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The medical transcriptionists who will lose their Fargo MeritCare jobs this fall are victims of an industry trend, according to experts in the business.
Looking to lower costs while improving turnaround time and accuracy, health care organizations around the country are relying on other ways of recording patient information, said Claudia Tessier, vice president of MRInstitute, which educates on health-information technology.
“The movement is toward real-time documentation, which improves patient care and patient safety,” she said. “As this happens, it diminishes the need for medical transcription as we know it. It’s not going to happen overnight, but it’s a reality.”
Transcription losses are industry trend
Edited to fix link, it works now 
Edited by Nae (07/22/08 07:35 AM)
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#104408 - 07/21/08 08:47 AM
Re: Transcription position loses are industry trend
[Re: Nae]
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tropsicleAfter
Member
Registered: 10/30/06
Posts: 2679
Loc: Vicksburg, MS
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Broken link, Nae.
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tropsicle
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#104436 - 07/21/08 10:52 PM
Re: Transcription position loses are industry trend
[Re: Nae]
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casagrandeMT
Member
Registered: 12/05/04
Posts: 1936
Loc: Casa Grande, AZ
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Claudia Tessier, vice president of MRInstitute, which educates on health-information technology.
"The movement is toward real-time documentation, which improves patient care and patient safety," she said. "As this happens, it diminishes the need for medical transcription as we know it. It's not going to happen overnight, but it's a reality."
(Bolding mine)Is anyone else shocked by this statement from Claudia, past bigwig at AAMT and MT author (I used her surgical word book extensively)??
If any of the people posting over at the New MT forum asking "is it worth it" to invest the time and money in becoming an MT, their answer is right here.
_________________________
Casagrande ex-MT
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#104440 - 07/21/08 11:52 PM
Re: Transcription position loses are industry trend
[Re: casagrandeMT]
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Margie Kahn CMT
Member
Registered: 02/17/99
Posts: 993
Loc: Oakland, California
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Why would I be shocked? I think she speaks the truth. I may not like it, but I still believe it. Not necessarily the part about real-time documentation improving patient care and patient safety, but the part that Casa bolded about the diminished need for MT as we know it.
I say this with the caveat that the link is still broken and I didn't read the article, just the quote from Nae above.
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#104441 - 07/22/08 12:16 AM
Re: Transcription position loses are industry trend
[Re: tropsicleAfter]
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FarAwayDeb
Member
Registered: 03/15/02
Posts: 2916
Loc: just south of Rochester, NY
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I got somewhere by removing an extra "http://" at the beginning, but it required me to either sign in or register.
_________________________
Good grammar ain't easy.
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#104462 - 07/22/08 08:11 AM
Re: Transcription position losses are industry trend
[Re: Nae]
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Jay_Vance_CMT
Member
Registered: 12/08/01
Posts: 1394
Loc: Columbia, MO
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The medical transcriptionists who will lose their Fargo MeritCare jobs this fall are victims of an industry trend, according to experts in the business.
Actually, the initial thrust of the article is that these MT jobs are being outsourced, not that they are being eliminated completely. Then the writer segues into a discussion about how SR and other technologies are impacting MT. Interestingly, there's a big article in the latest edition of ADVANCE for HIM (http://health-information.advanceweb.com/EBook/Magazine.aspx?EBK=HI071408#/16/ , you'll need to register) about an SRT workgroup that's trying to come up with some standards for the industry. This article is very significant in that it acknowledges that a lot of the information that's being promulgated in regard to SRT is misleading, misunderstood, or just plain wrong. The article also quotes several industry figures who clearly state that MT, both traditional and editing, is not going away any time soon.
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#104489 - 07/22/08 11:22 AM
Re: Transcription position losses are industry trend
[Re: Jay_Vance_CMT]
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FarAwayDeb
Member
Registered: 03/15/02
Posts: 2916
Loc: just south of Rochester, NY
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Interestingly, there's a big article in the latest edition of ADVANCE for HIM (http://health-information.advanceweb.com/EBook/Magazine.aspx?EBK=HI071408#/16/ , you'll need to register) ... The article also quotes several industry figures who clearly state that MT, both traditional and editing, is not going away any time soon.
At the end of that article, a quote by Christopher Rehm, MD, chief medical officer of Spheris:
... there will always be not just editing, but also traditional transcription. "There are going to be either physicians who don't dictate in a manner that's conducive to back-end or front-end speech recognition, or they have particular formatting or template requirements that are so involved or detailed that the engine doesn't handle it, so the MT also has to arrange everything anyway, so it's more productive just to type it. ... The reality is that we are a long, long way from traditional transcription disappearing."
So as long as we are willing to only transcribe the worst speed-talking, slurring, sloppy, or ESL dictators, we'll still have some straight transcription. I'm sure we'll all not only enjoy that, but make lots of money. 
_________________________
Good grammar ain't easy.
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#104604 - 07/22/08 09:59 PM
Re: Transcription position losses are industry trend
[Re: FarAwayDeb]
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mtangel
New Member
Registered: 05/13/08
Posts: 9
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So as long as we are willing to only transcribe the worst speed-talking, slurring, sloppy, or ESL dictators, we'll still have some straight transcription. I'm sure we'll all not only enjoy that, but make lots of money.
Deb, I think that you've summed up my thoughts on this perfectly.
_________________________
The current state of MT pay in four words or less, you ask?... Will type for food.
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#104979 - 07/25/08 01:28 PM
Re: Transcription position losses are industry tre
[Re: mtangel]
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MaryLynn
New Member
Registered: 01/08/07
Posts: 3
Loc: Florida
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Gosh, I just spent about 10 minutes replying to the posts, but when I clicked to preview my post, it disappeared. I will begin again, and please forgive me if this post winds up posted twice.
I agree that ASR will never replace MTs - at least not in my lifetime (age 59), but I am afraid I have had the same experience of being left with only the dregs to transcribe.
I am with a national company and have been with them for almost 2 years. I have been through several storms with them, including having the days I am allowed to work (as an IC) down to 3. Last year, my primary account went ASR. I tried editing the ASR work, but after a few days, I was ready to shoot myself. The formats always had to be totally redone, etc. I know that the software "learns," but that that also takes at least 6 months. I asked for a new primary account and was given one.
Two days ago, I was informed that my current primary account is going ASR (now), and that all the accounts of this company are going ASR. I have nothing against new techonology or learning new things. In fact, I thrive on both. I am hoping that I am just ignorant of the tips and tricks necessary to do ASR editing without going insane. I found that it would have been faster just to re-type each of those reports but was told we could not, as the documents were fed back through the software, and it couldn't learn if we had re-typed it. Meanwhile, we are paid only 2/3 the line rate for doing the ASR (so, it wouldn't pay to retype the reports anyway).
While this may sound like the description of someone's dog: I am one of the best, most loyal, and most dedicated MTs a company could have working for them. I transcribe anywhere from 225-270 lines per hour (depending on the dictator, of course), and even though I am an IC, I have provided the company with more than 6000 lines a week, week in and week out, working holidays, etc. As far as I can tell, they pay more than anyone else, and frankly, I cannot afford to accept a lower line rate! I also have a PhD in pharmaceutical toxicology and physiological sciences, and consider myself a valuable asset (albeit, one who just wants to work!)
So, I am looking for all the advice, tips, tricks, etc. that I can get relating to doing ASR editing. I really want this to work, especially since I have found it true that the only dictators left for me currently are the worst ones!
I thank you in advance for any help you can provide. Also, please pardon any typos in this post, as I do not dare click on "Preview Post" again and risk losing this post a 2nd time.
MaryLynn
Edited by MaryLynn (07/25/08 01:31 PM)
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MaryLynn C. Zurich, PhD
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#105008 - 07/25/08 04:59 PM
Re: Transcription position losses are industry tre
[Re: MaryLynn]
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vernondi
Member
Registered: 08/11/01
Posts: 939
Loc: Hartland, Wisconsin
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We went VR back in September and there were some MTs that just refused to use it and quit pretty much right away. Fine with me, more job security for the rest of us who were willing to roll with the punches, suck it up, and learn the new software. I love it. I'm making more money with it, my wrists and arms and hands don't hurt anymore, my shoulders aren't cramped by the end of the day and my eyes don't seem to feel as strained as they used to.
We've all been hearing that VR was going to take over the world for at least the last 15 to 20 years. Well, it's taken THIS long just to get it as good as it is (which isn't even close to being perfect), so quite honestly I'm not afraid of it. I just make darn good and sure that I'm the yes person, that I know this software inside and out and backwards (plus it helps that I was a trainer and trained everybody else in it), but also that I'm willing to do anything that needs to be done. If they need help at another facility I'm the first one to respond. I have made sure that I am indispensable so if it should ever come down to needing to eliminate jobs, I'm hoping they'll not even bother looking in my direction because they value everything that I can do and offer the company. Of course it may not happen that way, but I don't make the rules, I just follow 'em and I'm going to suck up like no one's business doing it.
_________________________
Unborn babies are not an abomination. Abortion is an Obama-nation.
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#105010 - 07/25/08 05:11 PM
Re: Transcription position losses are industry tre
[Re: MaryLynn]
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vernondi
Member
Registered: 08/11/01
Posts: 939
Loc: Hartland, Wisconsin
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And to reply to MaryLynn's post, with VR, it truly pays to be as mouse-free as possible. I hate the mouse so it was an easy adjustment to make. You may think that moving your hands from the keyboard to the mouse only takes a second or 2 each time, but it really takes between 5 and 6 seconds to move your hands, do what you need to do, then put your hands back on the keyboard. Do that 40 to 50 times a day and it really adds up. Use as many keyboard shortcuts as you can possible find. Also, a good word expander is very beneficial. Not the crappy auto text one that comes in Word, but something REALLY good. I personally love Shorthand. I put everything in there, plus I can use it with anything, even email. Speed up the dictation when you're editing a document. Just increasing the speed by 5 to 10% makes a huge difference at the end of the day. As you get stronger with editing, you can increase the speed even more. We have some docs that I'm able to have the speed at the top notch and can still easily understand and follow along. If you're finding you need to edit certain phrases all the time, put those phrases in your expander. Even put doctor names in your expander. For instance, doctor dictates Dr. Tom Jones, but the VR always screws that one up (go figure, it struggles with easy stuff), you could put it in your expander as something like dtj or drtj so all you have to do is highlight the wrong words and type the expander in its place.
I could go on and on with VR productivity tips, there are sooo many, so if you have any specific ones you would like to know about, send me a PM and I'll try to help.
_________________________
Unborn babies are not an abomination. Abortion is an Obama-nation.
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#105034 - 07/25/08 06:37 PM
Re: Transcription position losses are industry tre
[Re: vernondi]
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carolT
Member
Registered: 07/06/99
Posts: 1646
Loc: Canada
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Post #9 in this thread at Productivity Talk:
http://tinyurl.com/5r5u34
has several tips about how you can use your expander. The poster is using Shorthand, but the principles would apply to any expander. There are forums at Productivity Talk for Instant Test as well as AutoHotKey and ActiveWords where you may be able to pick up other tips. And the expanders' web sites also have forums. You don't have to be actually using any specific expander to be able to apply the techniques you find to the one you do use.
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carolT
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#105933 - 08/02/08 09:02 AM
Re: Transcription position losses are industry tre
[Re: carolT]
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thedish
New Member
Registered: 09/15/06
Posts: 10
Loc: Long Island, NY
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My office also went VR a few years ago. When I first found out it was going VR I cried my eyes out especially when I heard I was going to lose three of my girls. As the lead transcriptionist I was devastated. These girls were hard workers and had families to support. The doctors could care less - they had dollars signs in their eyes with all the money they THOUGHT they were going to save in salaries. I started to look for another job myself but then a good friend said to me, "knowledge is power" so I decided to stay put and learn VR. Right from the beginning it was a disaster for all concerned including the doctors. They hated, the referring physician's hated it and I hated it. However, I learned to use it inside and out. I became very proficient in it - flaws and all. I still hated it, but a job is a job and I did the best one possible. As the doctors complained more and more about it - I smiled to myself knowing this system would soon be "out the door". Two years later, and lots of fighting amongst themselves as to how much money they actually wasted on the software program and all the necessary equipment to run it - they went back to the original system of dictation/transcription. Today, the original doctors who worked for the company are gone, we were bought out by a larger physician group, and I now work from home for them. VR may work for some, but for the most part it will never completely replace us.
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#105957 - 08/02/08 03:22 PM
Re: Transcription position losses are industry tre
[Re: thedish]
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angeinMT
New Member
Registered: 07/21/08
Posts: 1
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I have been in transcripton for 18 years total, 6 as an employee in-house, 10 as an IC, and now 2 as an employee for a big national. At each step of the way, I thought the job could not be improved and kept liking each new change better and better - until VR. I, too, have noticed that it would be faster to just re-transcribe than to go in and change every other word. I always made very good templates that would allow me to make minimal changes as I went through it. Now with VR, I'm making changes to 50% of the report and getting paid 3 cents per line less for it. I recently changed accounts after training for acute care work and now I'm in the position of not being able to get enough work to finish out a complete day most days. I cannot get supervisors to really listen - I can tell they're skimming my emails because their answers to my concerns usually don't have anything to do with what was in my email. I'm feeling a bit trapped at this point, as I've signed a contract that if I do not stay with this company for at least 6 months after the training I just completed, I will have about $1000 withheld from my last paycheck to pay for my training. (Joke's on them, however, because with being out of work, I'm lucky to GET that much in a paycheck.) I'm seriously losing it and longing for the good ole days of either working in house or for myself. Then, at least, when work was low, I could do something else. Now I'm stuck with sitting by the computer, checking in every hour or so to see if there's more work, and ending up with a pitiful paycheck. Wonder if they need any ditch diggers...
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