Message Board for New MTs / Getting Started / and Marketing / First Job / Better Jobs /

Hi! Any fellow newbies out there! I would like to hear from them. Any advice about this business would be appreciated by this newbie of 8 months. I love the work, but sometimes it can be a little discouraging. For you experienced MT's how long did it take you to earn a good living? I hear about 2 years. Is this correct? Appreciate any feedback! Thanks!

In Reply to: Re: Newbies/Experience MT's Advice needed! posted by Mary Ellen on July 16, 1997 at 23:18:31:

In response to info for newbies! I am also new to the field of transcription. I am working for a service from my home. I heard about the job from my advisor at school. I am not making loads of money, only 7 cents per line. I am, however transcribing hospital dictation and gaining lots of experience in all sorts of specialties. I am going to send out letters of introduction to some offices in my area to let them know I am availabe for work. This may take some time but I hope to get a response. My n eighbor is also a freelance transcriptionist and she just new an M.D. who was just starting up her practice. This can be discouraging but perserverance should pay off. Good Luck!

In Reply to: Re: Newbies/Experience MT's Advice needed! posted by Lis Dozier on July 19, 1997 at 15:26:15:

Hello! I am just completing an at home course, and have 7 years experience in the medical field also. Can you start working out of your home right away? How fast do you need to type to make any money? Being a newbie is scary and exciting at the same time! Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

In Reply to: Re: Newbies/Experience MT's Advice needed! posted by Mary Ellen on July 16, 1997 at 23:08:18:

Greetings to all of you newcomers - welcome to a wonderful profession!
I have posted this same type of message on the AOL MT Forum, so if you've read it before, sorry...
Because I have done it, I firmly believe that you can begin working from home u pon completion of a good, reputable MT training course. You need to have a couple of things in place - the most important being a total commitment to your new business, and the second being a complete reference library. The first couple of months work ing at home can be very frustrating as you will run into many, many terms that were not covered in your training: terminology, equipment, drugs, procedures. If you have two or three references that you can access, however, you can usually find the term and verify it through another source. I would recommend that you have a Stedman Word Book (or its HPI equivalent), plus a good medical dictionary, plus a "catch-all" reference like Vera Pyle or the Medical Phrase Index. You need a current drug book - a nd the "Monthly Prescribing Reference" is invaluable to a newbie working at home. You need a good anatomy book - and I used the Merck Manual a lot at first (covers diseases - procedures, answers a lot of a newbie's questions). Another book that I stil l find very useful is an acronym/abbreviation book; without a mentor or MT at the next desk, you are on your own and the abbreviations can be real "stumpers."
So the point is, don't skimp on your reference library and don't look on it as an expense, it is an investment in your new career.

Marketing to local doctors' offices and clinics without actual hands-on MT experience can be tricky, but it can also be successful. I'm posting a long message on Mary's board on this particular subject, check it out. One point to remember is - you didn't just spring from a black hole when you entered the MT profession; you DO have experience (I'm sure) in another field or endeavor, and that counts. You certainly don't want to fudge and claim it as for-pay MT experience - but it certainly has helped make you the professional, competent person you are. By all means, be truthful in quoting your MT experience - but you can also be truthful and "sell" yourself and your abilities. As far as meeting your financial expectations, it will take a few months, but not forever if you are committed to your business, if you produce a quality product, if you continue to market your skills and services, and if you are available for all opportunities. I really feel that your level of commitment is critical here; if you are less than 100% committed, then your results will also be less than 100%. If you approach this as a part-time endeavor, your results will reflect it. Only you know what your particular circ umstances are -- and what your expectations are. However, your client will expect the work to be perfect and will expect it to be returned within the agreed-upon interval period. Just as you depend on your electric company to keep up their end of the bargain and keep your system humming, so does your client expect professional turnaround and quality results. No matter what, it will be slow going the first few months as you research your eyes out and proof, proof, proof, which is why you don't want to acquire too many clients at first. But it does ease up after a time and you can add to your clientele and start picking up your productivity. I don't think it's unreasonable to assume you will meet your goals the first year, and certainly by the second year. Don't get discouraged. I have found an incredible need for MT's in my own area, and some of that need is generated by the fact that, unfortunately, some of the MT's have been undependable and unprofessional. The m edical community here is hungry for good MT services, and I can't think we are unique. They NEED you as much as you need them, and if your skills and business practices are at the highest level, so will your return. This is a wonderful field for those suited to it and for the prepared. Don't give up, success is around the corner for you. Good luck - Cynthia

In Reply to: Re: Newbies/Experience MT's Advice needed! posted by Cynthia Lewis on July 21, 1997 at 09:07:21:

I would add to the list of "indispensables" two or three experienced MTs who will be of support to you as you're starting out. I think one of the scariest things about jumping into working by yourself is not knowing when you've figured something out right . I've had it happen where I spent quite awhile researching a term, thought I had it down, felt certain enough to go ahead and transcribe it that way, and then found out -- sometimes months later -- that I was still wrong. These are lives you're dealing w ith here. I think of them in a way as _my_ patients too, even though we never come face to face: I have a responsibility to their good care, just like anyone else on the health care team. And the thought that my mistake could have hurt someone... I just p ray it never has and never will.

If you have a couple of people you can call for help or just for confirmation, it will be quite a reassurance. I don't want you to fall in the trap of calling them every time you get stuck. I'm talking about doing your r esearch first, then calling if you are still stuck or if you need confirmation. I think that most of us on this board already have the mentality of wanting to help each other, and if you find a couple in your area who have that same mentality, and then do n't overuse them, they will be happy to be your resource. If they start to feel, though, that you aren't doing your part, they will quickly get tired of you, so keep some balance here.

In Reply to: A word for newbies posted by Maria on July 21, 1997 at 09:56:41:

See Maria's comments. I have 30+ years experience and like to help out. Feel free to e-mail me and I will definitely answer. I may not have the answer you are looking for, but I will tell you that and try to steer you in the right direction. Check out\ the info on the internet. Mary has some good links to other boards and other sites with all sorts of info. And post questions here and on the other boards--someone is very likely to be able to help you out either via the message board or via e-mail. T his networking is great even for us old-times. I learn new things from these boards every day. I read every message that goes up and often make comments. And I e-mail and get e-mail which I love!

In Reply to: Difficulty in obtaining employment posted by Lore MacFeat on July 08, 1997 at 21:46:52:

First, keep trying. Second, read down through the message boards for ideas--there have been some good ones posted here in the last few weeks. Third, go to the MT FAQ page at this site and download and print it, then get busy contacting the companies lis ted on it. Have you tried sending flyers to all your local doctors with your card and number and then calling them a few days later? You may be able to pick up some part time temporary work while their regular transcriptionists are on vacation. Also try networking with transcriptionists in your area via AAMT chapter meetings, checking the e-mail list at this site, and so on. When you go to the doctor or take your kids to the doctor, carry a copy of your letter and card with you and leave it mentioning that you would like to help out if their transcriptionist is out for vacation, etc. Be sure that your resume and your letter note the fact that you have worked in medical records doing whatever for X years. Good luck to you. I wanted to come home for a long time before I was able to. Luckily, I happened to find a new service starting up in my area who needed a person with my experience (30+ years in an acute care setting) but I have had little luck otherwise in obtaining clients. I keep sending out letters every few months and mentioning that this is what I do when I see a doctor or even run into people who work in doctor's office in other settings.

In Reply to: Re: Difficulty in obtaining employment posted by Carol Reese on July 09, 1997 at 08:36:16:

This is a great suggestion from Carol and will be fun, too, since you get to do a variety of work and the offices always seem to be nicer to the substitute transcriptionist than to the regular one. One caution: No matter how much you're tempted, never, ne ver, never keep the client after one of these, if the office asks you to stay on rather than going back to their regular person. Even if you're wonderful and that other person is terrible, it's a very unethical thing to do and you'll be shooting yourself in the foot, because just as you're building a reputation for doing great work, you'll be simultaneously building a reputation for client-stealing.

The only solution I've ever found for this dilemma -- wanting the client for yourself, knowing you do goo d work for them and knowing you're frustrating them by saying "no" -- is suggesting that they go back to their regular transcriptionist for three months, try to work out their differences, and if, at the end of the three months, they still want to use you , saying you'll be willing. I suppose you could make a follow-up call at the end of that three months but I consider that questionable too.

I got into a classic case of this early in my self-employment career. I subbed for a very busy orthopaedic surgeon. In the two weeks his MT was supposed to be gone, I billed him over $1500! It seemed like the job of a lifetime. After the two weeks were up, the regular MT didn't show up for tapes, so I kept coming in and they kept giving them to me. They called her h ouse and left messages on her machine, but she didn't answer and didn't come in. This went on for nearly _four_ _weeks_. I even prepared a contract for the doctor on taking over his account. Then suddenly, they stopped sending me tapes and were very cagey about why. Turned out she had finally come back (with no real explanation of what had happened) and had been very upset that this sub was trying to steal her account. My rates were a little lower than hers based on my inexperience, and the doctor tried t o use that as ammo to force her rates down. She agreed because it was her only account and she needed the income. By the time I found out about all this, everybody was mad at me. I got her number out of the phone book, called her up, told her I hadn't del iberately tried to stiff her, and then faxed the doctor a letter saying I'd talked to her, that I'd withdrawn my offer to transcribe for him and didn't appreciate his unprofessional behavior. (A little strong, but I was MAD.)

Two years later, I got a ca ll from this transcriptionist. She was moving out of town and remembered that I'd (eventually) been straight with her and was offering me the account! I've been doing it for about three years now. (As it turned out, the $1500 two-week period was a fluke, but it's still a nice, comfortable account.) And I had learned a hard lesson. I hope my mistakes will suffice and you won't have to repeat them.

In Reply to: Re: Filling in for other MTs' vacations posted by cathi tinney on July 14, 1997 at 04:58:53:

I just find them the same way I find the regular ones, but I make sure when I contact a new office that they know I'm willing to sub as well as looking for new accounts of my own. We also have a network of MTs in the area who like to have somebody to call upon to take a break. I've got a real gem up here in the Mojave Desert -- an MT named Lorraine Ballenger, with about 20 years experience who is semi-retired now and ONLY does subbing. She likes it because it's variety, she usually gets paid quickly (by t he MT she subs for), and the offices are nice to her because she's not around long. She's a wonderful transcriptionist and very honest. I've had a client ask her to stay on after I came back and she said no, and told me about it, and also told me their co mplaint (which they hadn't shared with me) so that I could fix the problem and make them happy with me again. What a gal!

The short version of this is, add "overflow or vacation fill-in" to your fliers, and let your colleagues know that you're available and that you are committed to decent business practices so they can trust you not to steal their clients. You'll get work, believe me.

In Reply to: Finding sub jobs posted by Maria on July 14, 1997 at 14:23:38:

It occurred to me that maybe I should say something about how you should expect to be paid if you are a sub, or how you should pay a sub. I don't know if this is a stone-set policy or not, but what has seemed fair to me is:

1. If you're contacted by a m edical office to sub, then you bill the office, of course, with your usual net time for payment.

2. If you're contacted by a transcriptionist to fill in for his/her vacation, then you should bill the transcriptionist directly and be paid immediately. I don't think it's fair to expect someone who filled in for my absence to have to wait around for payment. None of this "I'll pay you when I get paid" stuff; if I can afford a vacation, I can pay to reward the people who make my vacation possible.

3. If y ou sub for somebody, you should get paid what you usually charge, not what the regular transcriptionist charges. Thus, if you regularly charge more than he or she does, you shouldn't have to lower your rate to help him/her out. That's the cost of getting good help

In Reply to: Medical Transcription posted by Vickie Astudillo on July 09, 1997 at 22:42:54:

Vickie,
Glad you found the message board! That first account is the toughest to land...it takes persistence and resourcefulness.
Local MTs and offices are the best sources to pursue. You can probably find some local MTs on your state list at http://www.mtdaily.com/mtlist. Feel free to write them to see if they know of any local service or office where you could get a start. You may just find a mentor among them...
For more help, see

http://www.mtdaily.com/mt1/marketing.html
http:/ /www.mtdaily.com/mt2/first.html

Good luck!

In Reply to: How do you get started? posted by Jana Slemp on June 21, 1997 at 22:51:00:

To get started last year I took a course in medical terminology at our local community college. I was going to take more courses over the summer, but none were offered. I asked a physician friend to borrow a tape for practice. After transcribing the ta pe, I realized that I had learned enough medical terms to do this work, but needed a Physicians Desk Reference for correct spelling of the drugs. I bought one, but later found out the doctor's offices get them free and will gladly give you an older one. I then composed a letter and started mailing it to physicians --25 letters a wk. It took 2 months to get my first client, and now I have 3 and all of the work I can handle. I'm the mother of 2 year old twins and do the work when they nap and sleep at n ight, so IT CAN BE DONE!

New MTs can contact local MTs via E-mail from the E-mail Directory and ask about possible starting accounts in local areas. It is very difficult to find a starting position outside of the local area. Also see list of MT Services at the Directory. National companies that hire new MTs are listed on the FAQ.<

I am in search of advice. I have recently graduated for a Transcription program. I am having a difficult time finding employment. My goal is to work from home, but I am realistic enough to realize this may not be a possibility until I have several years of experience. I have contacted several companies found on the Internet with no luck. I live in the Northern Virginia area, any jobs appearing in the newspaper all require experience. How do I obtain a job without experience? I do have an extensive secretarial background, not in the medical field though. Help!

In Reply to: How to break into this field posted by Karen DeSalva on July 28, 1997 at 14:08:00:

Karen, I am in the same spot as you are. Although, I haven't completed certification (I still lack a transcription II class and a pharmacology class) my instructor from my college recommended me to work volunteer-no pay- at at local hospital. My supervisor/mentor is great. I go in two or three days a week for a few hours and the experience has been terrific. I am transcribing all of the different reports and really getting the feel for the doctors different styles. If I can keep doing this I hope to get my foot in the door. I'm looking to starting out slowly with maybe one or two doctors at home within the next four months. Anyway, that is my present time schedule for the moment. This might be something you could also look into doing. Also, I nearly forgot, but a friend of mine went to a local physical therapy clinic and offered her services free. They ended up hiring her when my daughter, who is a medical transcripist, left to have a baby.

In Reply to: How to break into this field posted by Karen DeSalva on July 28, 1997 at 14:08:00:

You have graduated; did your program not include an externship whereby you worked in an area hospital/clinic for a period of 6-8 wks? Does your school/college have a placement center for graduates?
Very carefully prepare your resume, stressing your education and credentials, your career background, stressing your strengths. Send a copy with a cover letter to each and every hospital, clinic, and service in your area. I'm not sure about working for "free;" the facilities I'm familiar with would not even consider it for one thing, primarily due to the confidentiality aspects. You are, after all, not an employee and therefore would not come under the same criteria as a regular employee. Do not discount your school experience as experience in the field, your computer literacy and programs you have worked with. Don't sell yourself short!

Good luck; prayers are with you.

In Reply to: Re: How to break into this field posted by Ruth Chaney on July 29, 1997 at 11:20:36:

Ruth,

Actually, the hospital that I'm getting experience from is a large hospital and I did have to sign a confidentiality statement. It is a very professional environment and I am not aware of any problems to-date. I realize not everyone can do this, but it has worked for some of us. I hope to hear from you again.

In Reply to: Re: How to break into this field posted by Ruth Chaney on July 29, 1997 at 11:20:36:

Ruth,

Thank you for your response. No, the college I attended did not include externship or help with job placement. Although, the course outline included the phrase "job assistance available" which meant a counselor looking over your resume and giving you a list of transcription companies, all of which do not hire new MT's. We did do almost 14 weeks of in-class transcription from SUM tapes covering the major specialties. I do plan on including this "experience" in my cover letter, but I really do not know if this will impress anyone. Thank you for your support and prayers, I need all the help I can get. Karen

In Reply to: Re: How to break into this field posted by Linda Battle on July 29, 1997 at 10:58:09:

Glad this issues of internships has come up. I think there is a precedent for temporary internships (without pay) in professions; consider medical students, law students, therapists, etc. One could argue that internships for MT actually increase the status of our profession.

Hopefully it would be very temporary! It's much more fun to be paid to learn than to pay to learn or to practice without pay. :)

There will always be a tension, I think, between competing on the open market with discounts or temporary free services, and the ethics of competing fairly and honestly with respect for the welfare of our profession as a whole, and respect for physicians with a fair price for our services.

We do need more starting positions for new MTs not only for individual new MTs but for the MT profession, when you consider the competition with voice recognition and other new technologies, and the global market of overseas MTs. I think new MTs will help us keep strong in the larger competition....

Mary
Mentoring my daughter for free.

In Reply to: Re: Breaking in posted by Linda on July 30, 1997 at 07:55:49:

Way, way down this board I remember posting something about when I took an intern last summer. I get at least one phone call a week from people begging to let me work for them for free just for the experience, and I'd never even seriously considered it because I agree with the biblical principle that the laborer is worthy of his (or her) hire. But I was approached by the administrator of an MT school last spring about placing one of her externs with me for 160 hours. She was very persuasive, and the short version is that I took a lovely lady named Carolyn on as a summer extern. Mind you, this is a home business now, so she was stuck in Bedroom #4 with me, with two preschoolers bouncing through the room, toys strewn all over the place, dirty dishes in the kitchen... You get the idea. But she was wonderful.

I don't have anywhere near as much work as I had last summer, so I wouldn't be able to do this right now, but it was great last summer. For one thing, Carolyn had an excellent formal education, and I learned so much from her!

What I'm trying to say here is that I think it should be the job of the school to help its soon-to-be-grads arrange externships. It made all the difference to me that it was the administrator of the school who called me.

In Reply to: Re: Opening Doors posted by carole on August 03, 1997 at 09:23:15:

During the last 5-6 years, we have participated in the local community college's transcription program by providing previously transcribed hospital tapes to students for their mandated
150+ hour outside clinicals; this is a necessary
part of their obtaining their certificate of completion for the course. As specified by the school, the students cannot be paid, but it does
provide valuable "ear" experience. I am available for questions, but have not in the past had as much time available as I would have liked to review word by word. However, within the past six months I have had our proofreader set aside time to review the majority of returned student transcription so that the percentage of feedback is more pertinent. (We do pay the proofreader for her time spent.) I believe this is a win-win situation both for the student and our business, as we are able to identify the students who are extremely well motivated and who have a great attitude about continued learning for possible employees. It also does not decrease the "outside" value of a new transcriptionist. It might be an idea for others to look into.

In Reply to: Re: Opening Doors posted by Carole on August 03, 1997 at 09:35:50:

Regarding Carol's description of a hospital mentoring program:

Looking in from the other side of the door, I have to say I benefited enormously from a similar situation. I received my MT training through a local college program which required externshi ps for all of their students. Mine was at a local hospital, where they assigned me to a "mentor" (one of the people on their QA committee, actually) who ever-so-patiently answered all my questions and proofed my work. It really helped to give me a solid foundation upon which to build my skills, and I will be forever grateful that someone took the time and effort to give me that opportunity.

Of course, I like to think that it was a win-win situation, as I applied for and accepted a job in that departme nt once my externship was over--all those hours they had spent with me were ultimately to their own advantage.