LEVI SHORTS : Not sure if this is the "school" that Sally pushes when she isn'tfollowing starving children, but ICS actually claims accountants, butcan't get closer on the others than legal aide/secretary, teacher'saide, etc. My favorite learn-at-home course would have to be WildlifeConservation ... I could probably get advanced placement, since I have acat. Full list (which is funny, really) is at -- Chuck Mattsen Floggings will continue until morale improvesI am so sick of having people who have never once transcribed a report tell uswhat we do and don't do and how we should work most effectively, etc. I can'thelp it that the profession has allowed crappy transcriptionists to go onworking because no one cares about quality any more. However, that doesn't meanI lower my standards. I know I am damn good at what I do. your employers, service owners, clients, etc. - how did you achieve this?What can we do as individuals to raise the esteem of our profession? Whatcan we do as a group? Rae Morrill in Maine"Ya can't get theyuh from heeah"_____________________________ __Spam mailers WILL be reported to their respective postmasters and AOL TOSSPAM!
LEVI SHORTS : That is wonderful and commendable, but it doesn't negate the fact that thereare lots of others out there who do not lower their standards simply becausetheir standards were not very high to begin with. They are in it becausethey can work at home in their jammies and to hell with learning anythingnew. (Don't get me wrong. I'm in my jammies as I type this. But I do careabout the quality of my work too.)The image of us at home in our jammies, of having scads of little ones indiapers running around while we blissfully work, of a nice clean desk withno reference books, all serve to demean our profession. The notion thatanyone with a computer can do this demeans our profession.Rae, my question to you and the others is this: Doug pretty much told usthat we are not professionals. How do we, either as a group or asindividuals, prove to him and others that we are? Ranting at him andcalling him names are not exactly professional behaviors. Can we establishan image of professionalism for MT? Should we even try? Would insistingthat anyone who wants to call themselves an MT join a professionalorganization, or obtain and maintain a standard level of education and/orskill be of help? I truly think this is worthy of discussion and have askeda few times over the past few years. Maybe I'm the only one who thinks it'sworth discussing, because I rarely get serious answers. Maybe if you or oneof the other "movers and shakers" of smt asked the questions or offeredserious answers we could get somewhere. Maybe the question isn't reallyworth discussion and I'm wasting time and energy even asking.
LEVI SHORTS : I've been an MT since 1982 and have NEVER had any prospective employer or clientask if I belonged to a professional organization or if I were a CMT. As much asDoug Jones may be a very nice person and an excellent manager (for the sake ofargument), Doug Jones isn't the person we have to convince that we areprofessionals, since Doug Jones isn't paying our transcription fees.Although I have been slammed for this in the past, I will reiterate it. If onebehaves in a professional manner, one will be perceived as a professional. Ifour contract is a cookie-cutter type with typos, if we show up for a meeting inblue jeans or cutoffs, if our shoes aren't polished and our hair neat and ourfingernails clean, we will not be perceived as a professional. One night Iwalked into a hospital wearing a white pant suit (it was summer) and walkedright past the front desk, a nurses' station, and into a patient's room becauseof the way I walked (with purpose) and what I was wearing (white). Not oneperson stopped me or asked me any questions (at 10 p.m.!) because I looked andacted as though I belonged. The same holds true today. If you look like aprofessional and behave as a professional, you will be perceived as aprofessional (and letters after your name and belonging to organizations hasnothing to do with it.)
LEVI SHORTS : Once we've established the perception of professionalism, we have to carrythrough and produce excellent work, provide what we promise in our contracts(plus just a bit more), learn how to run our business like men run theirs (youdon't see men going to their client and saying I need a higher line fee becausemy toner cartridges cost more now and my baby sitter wants a raise, and I feelyou're cheating me because I'm worth more), and stop whimpering and whining likea sullen child.Every client we have should be made aware of how much knowledge we possess. Ifwe know more about HIPAA, fonts, page formatting, whatever, than our clients,then we need to inform them. Take the time to write an occasional "informationsheet" and update them on MT things we've learned. In this field, respect isgiven grudgingly because we are seen as money pits rather than money producers.A one-page, double-spaced report on how MTs help obtain reimbursement and keepdoctors from losing court battles will prove we know from whence we speak.
LEVI SHORTS : We need to believe that we are professionals, behave as professionals, look likeprofessionals, and produce like professionals.Unless Doug Jones is your boss, there isn't any reason to care whether hebelieves this is a "profession."Most excellent post, Phyllis! The little things count for a lot--asthe old adage says, "If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck,it's a duck." Doug, unfortunately, is not alone. There are many others who feel the same.Some are managers, some are service owners, some are wannabe MTs. Should wecare about what they think? Some of these people determine our pay. Someof them determine how others view the quality and worth of most MTs (thewannabes who never take a course, jump in, make horrible mistakes, neverlearn, and cause doctors to think that all MTs are like this so why pay morefor shoddy work?).What about the MTs who work for hospitals or services? How does theirdemeanor and dress affect the overall impression of MT? What about thosewho work from home for a service and never meet their SO?
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