DICT8 Plus (new November 2022)

[Whitestar55]

Hi, Here we go again, anyone else set up a new thread yet? Hope to find everyone 🙂

Hi everyone. Haven’t commented for abit, ophthalmology is still non existent for me, haven’t done a good batch of letters since last summer.

tpro application, Isit just a simple basic CV I can get away with? Thanks and hope everyone is well

@Raisingboys22 - as far as I remember (which is over a year ago) I applied to Tpro via the form on their website. Very simple. Also the typing test was very easy as well.

@danblack87 - just seen an advert about employers underpaying staff. To check you can phone ACAS for free advice and also report employer to HMRC. Might be worth a try.

@Raisingboys22 You can apply via Linked In to T Pro. I would just do a brief CV outlining your medical experience. At the end of the day they will give you a test and it is self employed so you don't need too many checks. They are really busy at moment so good luck.

@olddoglover Thank you, I shall do that today. Fingers crossed

Sorry another question, how long do they take to reply if you’re successful? Thanks

@danblack87 I was wondering if AMSPAR was worth contacting.

@Pinksville @Gally123 @danblack87 I think because we are classed as freelancers our pay would be disputed, but contacting ACAS and HMRC might result in an investigation as to whether we are actually freelancers, workers, or employees and into how these intermediary companies are operating and basically exploiting us, so they can pay less tax and NI.

@Whitestar55 I am planning on having a chat with ACAS next week to see what they say - it is the no pay rise for over 10 years I think is unfair and not sure how they can defend - watching the snooker this week!

@Whitestar55 and of course the notes box with no pay. I need a few days to make notes on what I want to discuss.

Also I wonder if the fact that D and T have contracts with the NHS via this NHS picks suppliers for £200m voice recognition and digital dictation framework | PublicTechnology.net would help our case, as this proves they are acting as intermediaries/agencies who invoice the NHS and then pay us, rather than the transcribers being directly contracted to and invoicing the NHS (which is a criteria of being classed as self-employed and so exempt from minimum wage/holiday pay requirements).

I think the refusal to pay for the note box is key. Didn't it use to be just altn then all of a sudden some bright spark (probably that awful woman who cannot be named) decided that the secretary/doctors needed an in depth spoon fed reason why the alt n key was used, what the word sounded like, why you used the alt n and a full grovel for not knowing what had been said !

@Gally123 They can defend it due to the, what I would say is false 'freelance' nature of their description of us and because they don't care how much we are earning as long as they make a profit. I think they could only be made to pay up more if this was changed and they were deemed as agencies or employers. Advice from ACAS is a good idea though, so thanks.

@Gally123 They are getting away with that because they have so far and ACAS and HMRC probably know nothing about it. It would be interesting to get their views on it.

I think another point that could be made is that freelancers should be able to negotiate a fair rate of pay for services, but negotiation is not possible with D and T as it is fixed to their advantage and is non-negotiable, which is another way they are exploiting NHS trained transcribers, plus they are reducing the number of jobs/work available for transcribers to be employed by the NHS on NHS pay rates.

What has happened with the notes box is that it used to be purely for queries the transcriber had regarding the dictation (in the original transcribers' manual), but now the dictators are told, (it's on the website and videos) that they can dictate instructions/messages to their secretaries to be typed in this box by us (and this has now been added to the transcribers' manual).

Does anyone have specialities that they don’t have experience in typing? I’ve asked for some to be added but they want experience, dates and how long 🫤

I had a few months experience in a gp practice but they don’t usually take this into account do they. Desperate for some bloody work

Can anyone here give advice on Dict8 or other similar companies. I am a NHS Medical Secretary and have reached the end of my tether. Now just want to do a bit of work from home if possible. Any advice would be welcome as have seen varying reviews of Dict8 and somewhere on this thread another company was mentioned Tpro - just wondered if they recruit regularly and if you just contact them directly etc?
Looking forward to hearing your views.

@Pinktapir tpro are recruiting now, I sent my cv off today, if you google t pro vacancies it’ll take you to their application.

I am also an NHS secretary but only work part time due to my little ones so wanted something in the evenings for when the 2 are in bed. I work in ophthalmology which for me, picking up in the evenings there’s no jobs in the queue. Not sure what dept or medical terminology knowledge you have for dict8 but ophthalmology i haven’t made a decent cheque since last summer!

@Raisingboys22 thank you for answering my message. I have worked in many departments, currently endocrinology and have worked in NHS for many years. I will look at dict8 and apply for Tpro too. Hoping to retire a bit early and wondering if this would just be enough to tide me over until I can fully retire. Many thanks

Thank you for the best wishes. I'm on the mend as I'm able to bend better now, leg still numb, though managed a bit of weeding and although ached everywhere I feel better for it.

@danblack87

I'm truly sorry you are having such an horrendous time with everyone around you.

Its shocking to hear of the suicide. I've lost an ex partner to that and it's devastating.

Now struggling with my autistic son, mental health services are the lowest of the low.

I've been looking deep into diet and nutrition and it's becoming apparent high refined carbs are looking to be a bad source of mental health as well as metabolic disease. I think the world needs to get a grip, the fat cats are only happy with profit at the expense of people's health. It's literally the smoking effect all over again.

Only since my hip injury have I had time to check my diet and although been low carb/keto/intermittent faster, have I realised I'm addicted to carbs, I ate nothing but meat since Easter Sunday and in a week my low mood unexpectedly changed for the better. Introduced carbs and in an hour of that, headaches, sadness!

Everything that's costing the NHS now points in the direction of high refined processed foods, obesity, metabolic disease, diabetes. All links in when I type a patient with diabetes, the odds are they have something kidney related, high BP, AF, under cardiologist and if worse, dementia.

We all got "physical" in the 80's and this is the side effect. 😢

So very sad for your friends loss.
Hope everything else resolves quickly. ❤️

@Raisingboys22 With TPro they expect you to tackle all specialties although I have noticed that Ophthalmology tends to get left so you should be all right.

@olddoglover they’ve rejected my cv this morning 😩

I’ve asked them why, maybe because I said I can only do evenings