Care package ideas
Posted By: Military Supporter on 2006-03-14
In Reply to: care package for military in iraq ideas?? sm - anon
I've been doing care packages for deployed military now for a little over a year. There are great sites where you can get a TON of ideas and can even find folks to support if you don't know someone personally. My favorite is:
www.anysoldier.com
This organization has done a lot and you can search on their site for folks from your states or from a specific branch of the military. In addition to doing many of these myself, our company adopted a unit from our state this last year and it's been great to see so many participating.
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care package for military in iraq ideas?? sm
i have a very close friend who is in iraq and i went to send something but no idea what? he ideas or someone know anyone in military and what they like to receive or need? FYI, they are on a ship. TYIA!
Is this what the package says?
I didn't get mine yet. They will be "monitoring" us?
No they only do that if you buy the package - sm
that offers that. I get the "upgrade" every other year as I posted below and I get no other "updates" throughout the year. If you buy the top package then Stedmans does do that, but I don't. I can usually get the upgrade for $40-$50 if I wait for the sale offer they usually do. That is good enough for me.
Hun, the "platform" is the package sm
you type in. Dictaphone EXText is a platform, Chartscript is a platform, Careflow is a platform.....all of these PLATFORMS use Word as their word processor.
Word itself is NOT a platform. The person who answered Dictaphone EXText is correct.
I buy it and use it and it is all caps on the package. nm
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ATT/SBC has an unlimited package. sm
We use it on 10 lines in our office. It runs $54.99 (or something close to that) every month. It is called Total Solutions or Complete Solutions. You have to ask as they do not offer it unless you ask.
He already knows I'm part of the package! nm
nm
Transcend sent out a package...sm
with all sorts of goodies in it.
TAYLOR all the way now for the WIN. He's the TOTAL package.
Spunk, energy, personality, showmanship, and voice. He's got it all going for him.
Kat should never have gotten this far. She's not singing well and had a bad week. There are songs that she can sing, she's just not well-rounded to do any kind of music.
Lots of people will buy Elliott's CD. He's got a great voice.
I wish they'd publish the vote counts. I can't believe that Chris got the boot! Just shows you how sick this can all get. We'll all be angry if Kat goes on to win. Probably more of the sick "vote for the worst" revenge.
MQ letter/comprehensive benefit package
 I really did not make much of it. It would be GREAT,especially if they can offer something for the part timers, but I'm not holding my breath to hear the news. It's been promised/talked about for forever, sure would be nice to finally hear.
The MT software I use has an accounting package for my docs - SM
My docs can search on the software I use by entering date parameters to see how much their transcription costs are. They can break their transcription costs down by date, by dictator, by type of report, by report, etc.
The first of each month, I e-mail them my invoice; they merely check the accounting package of their software to see if the figures tally up.
This really takes the mystery out of billing for my docs.
The basic Stedman's package is great and they you
s
I have an Open Office package that came free
It's legit. I bought a refurbished hard drive so that I could run XP as opposed to buying a new computer, and Open Office came loaded. I just don't think it's Microsoft. I don't use it because I use Microsoft Office 2003, but Open Office works very similar to Word and Excel by Microsoft.
I get Sirrus/XM included through my digital TV package,
So I just play it through the home theater system. It rocks
What did you make of the comprehensive benefit package they talked about
URGENT REQUEST: An MT that we sent a box of gifts to did not receive the package.
It was delivered to their porch according to UPS but she did not get it. It contained gifts for her children. Because we did not put insurance on the package, UPS will do nothing to assist. The box alone to ship had cost $45.00 and insurance would have cost another $25.00. It is a sad story, but what it boils down to is that the kids won't have a Christmas. All monies in the Santa's House for Christmas Angels fund have been dispersed through the Christmas Angel program.
So, I am here to ask for help. I would like to raise $150 to $200 today if at all possible and for anyone who donates $10.00 or more to this special cause, I will give a software package that contains a word Expander and spellchecker that is worth over $100.00 for your trouble. Donations can be made to sales@mtstars.com via Paypal.
Again, thank you for your consideration.
I should point out that the benefits package with the pathology group... SM
is significantly better than what I've got right now. They are offering a matching 401K, profit sharing, flexible spending account, healthcare benefits and dental for me and my kids for about 150 per month versus 400 per month where I work now.
Then there is the issue of job security. I'm a realist and I know that in this business of medical transcription, my job could be gone tomorrow due to lost accounts, low work volume, or offshoring. Not to mention, the powers that be at my company could decide that it would be more cost effective to pay their editors per line versus hourly (which has happened to me before) and only offer 4 cpl because after all "we don't actually type all that much."
Maybe I'm paranoid, but I've lost jobs due to all those things I listed. It's upsetting the thought of losing another job. So that is one of my major considerations with this job offer. I'm sure they could offer me a measure of job security because they are a locally owned practice by the physician and all of the the transcriptionists there have been with the practice for more than five years. This position I'm being offered was created because they have increased their work load.
I just don't know. Geez, I hate making big decisions!
Have you tried the Custom Biz Saver package Snow Bunny? sm
It's through AT&T and it's a business plan. C-phones were supported. I used it for a Lanier when I was IC and I was on it a lot, sometimes 10 hours a day. I had unlimited long distance and never had the problems you are having. Problem is you need to sign a contract for 1 year but even with that it was only $10.00 a month more than a residential line.
when you marry a man with children, they are part of the package. You learn to deal with it.
nm
Mouse included in the package lit up right after battery insertion. No on lights
come on when the batteries are inserted and power button doesn't do a thing. Power isn't being transmitted to keyboard for some reason.
where I live, bundle package for HSI/CABLE/PHONE is $99 a month. nm
x
what size package do you have? i have basic and i couldn't make good lines due to speed. nm
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Kinship care versus foster care/adoption
Having been placed in a position where I now have custody of my 3 YO granddaughter and going through the legal system, I sought an online network of relative caregivers for children. I would encourage you, especially since you are in Georgia, that if you take any children into foster care with the idea of adopting them, there is federal law that requires the state to take certain actions in a specific time frame. When a child is removed from it's bio parent(s), the state is required to investigate any possible relatives who can take the child before foster care is considered, but even before that, reunification with the parents is the priority. Once a child enters the system and is in the system for 15 out of any 22 months, the state is required to find permanent placement for the child.
The problem with this is that there are case workers who may favor a foster family and do not seek out relative care. I have a good friend in Georgia who had to fight all the way to the state level to get custody of her grandson after the child was placed from the hospital into a foster care home with the promise that the foster parents would be allowed to adopt. She has now adopted her grandson, but it was a long, hard battle to get the state to admit their own interests were placed above those of the child and/or family.
If you get a child placed through the state, please make certain there is not a relative who wants that child before you get your hopes up. The courts are now favoring return of children to relatives even after a child has spent years with a foster family who hoped to adopt them.
States get bonus federal funds by complying with the time lines and being able to close the case, so some states place children in foster care because it is easier than trying to locate relatives.
Didn't mean to go off on a tangent, but I can't imagine my sweet bella going to someone outside her family.
If it was a clinic, it might have been urgent care, but it was NOT acute care. sm
Acute care refers to work in an acute care setting, a hospital, doing at least History and Physicals, Discharge Summaries, Consultations, Surgery notes, Emergency Department notes, and much more, including GI procedures, Cardiology procedures, Neurological procedures, Pulmonary Function Studies. It goes on and on and it means and acute care hospital setting, not a clinic.
I always figure if they don't care about their dictation, they probably don't care about their
nm
Dont care how many languages you took. Care
x
Yes, I lost mine. I upgraded the Office 2000 package to Office 2003. sm
I have over 2000 autocorrect entries and lost them all as well as my supplemental dictionary for my Stedman's spellcheck. Lots of grief!
Maybe you will be lucky and not lose anything. Good luck to you.
oh, so if I don't care about my job, I "should" care
you come off as narcissistic.
$72 is not their salary, it is their salary and benefits package
including wages,insurance, retirement pension, COLA fund, etc.
Any ideas?
 I'm beginning my carreer as a medical Transcriptionist - which is best Expander program, are there any good ones lower priced?? anyone know if there's a free trial with any of these programs?
Some Ideas - sm
First, keep a list of each job # you do...this is useful in case there is a dispute or lost work. Also, if you later need to request a copy, you can ask your QA dept by job #.
Second, your question: I do about 20 reports a day for around 750 lines. It takes me anywhere from 4 to 10 hours. :( New accounts are really slowing me down lately.
HTH!
Try these ideas.
I picked up an exercise bike at a yard sale for $1 and a mini trampoline for $5. Whenever I need a break to recharge, I get on the bike or trampoline for 5-10 minutes. They say that little spurts of exercise throughout the day are as effective as exercising all at once. Plus, it'll help clear your lungs out. Another thing to try is to just step outside for a moment and take some really deep breaths of fresh air in. You used to inhale deeply with smoking, so now you inhale deeply without the carcinogens. You can also try yoga or tai chi. Very calming on the nerves. I also switched to herbal tea, so I'll take a break and fill up my little teapot for one. Replace your bad habit with a good habit. Just don't replace smoking with eating. If you need the hand to mouth thing, try air popped popcorn, cut up fruit or vegetables, a small amount of nuts or seeds, or hot peppers. I keep a jar of Bit o' Honey and fireball candies on my desk, so I'll have one of those a day.
It's important to reward yourself, so take the money you would ordinarily have spent on cigarettes and get something for yourself. I like to buy books, bubble bath, stinky candles, mocha lattes, restaurant gift certificates. You can also put the money you're saving into a big jar to watch it add up for a BIG reward. I saved enough to buy a dishwasher, which is kind of silly for a reward, but I really wanted one.
thank you both for the ideas
nm
several ideas on where to go
Number one was psychology, but that will take too long, going part time, and knowing in the next five years MT'ing might not exist. You need a bachelor's to get foot in the door. I wish they had schooling completely on line for this degree, but they do not.
Second is something with cooking. Would like to work with people on diet and weight loss, since it is the way i've lived my own life for years and I believe strongly in it. The chef/cook field is predominantly male, so it will be hard to get a foot in the door there. I can be a certified dietician all on line within a year, but the pay isn't all that good.
Ultimate goal would be a personal chef or working for myself doing SOMETHING. I think thats everyones dream.
all these ideas
are right up my alley of interest. I have a community college in my area that offers a certificate in cooking. I've sent away for the packet, and I feel this is the direction I want to take, since I actually enjoy cooking and working with food. I'm just in a premid life crisis. Thanks for your advice, i'm glad I posted today.
Some ideas....sm
For the business expense part I would buy a printer that uses a different ink cartridge than what you have now. The best one you can afford. I would tell them that my home printer won't handle that much printing (they might even be able to get you a good deal on one from their supplier). In the meantime I would go to Kinkos or printer and have them print the reports and SHRINK WRAP or package the bill with the reports while you are waiting on your new printer. javascript:editor_insertHTML('text',' ');
Thanks for the ideas.
I do have that book and an equipment book as well. Thanks for the idea I will ask and see if they let me.
:)
The ideas seem to be getting better and better, lol--SM
I like the sticker--I could certainly give a quick glance. But the bead of glue or "diamond" ideas sound even better, as I won't have to even look/glance to check and correct my hand position Thanks--you're some resourceful ladies and I was drawing a complete blank on such a simple annoyance, lol
Two ideas
My daughter LOVES trains, and you can find scenic train trips all over. We did one in Romney, WV that was just wonderful. The train was called Potomoc Eagle, and we did see bald eagles on our trip.
Not sure where you are in WV, but what about Hershey, PA? Probably not the cheapest vacation, but lots to do. Besides HersheyPark itself (very kid friendly) there is a zoo, a garden and more. I'm sure there are packages available.
I'm anxious to see what others come up with too. We are in PA and looking for some close trips as well. Which beach do you go to? We found a beautiful not-so-commercial beach at Lewes, DE last year and can't wait to go back!
Good luck with your planning!
Thanks for your ideas! (s/m)
I really appreciate your taking the time to answer my post and give your input. I already know that I will have signed on for real at a new job before I ever walk out the door at my present one. And although I want SO badly to tell them to "take their job and shove it", I guess I have to not burn my bridges, either, just in case. I had thought about doing some part time work, but I'm usually so burned out at the end of the week that I don't know if I could do that or not. I run around like crazy on Saturdays, just trying to do all the household chores, shopping, etc. that doesn't get done during the week.
I seriously considered training for another career about 10 years ago, when we were told our jobs would "be taken over by VR" eventually. But I got into MT because I don't fit well into most other professions. I've had a couple of my own businesses. Too much worry and having to be available 24-7. I've gotten lazy in that respect. The same with going back to school. I'm just hoping I can keep on scratching out a living with what I know how to do, until I have enough saved to at least retire to part-time work to supplement my 401K & whatever Social Security is still left in 2025. So, I'll keep my fingers crossed!
Thanks again for taking the time to share your thoughts!
Some ideas
All teachers don't come out of the same mold, but my friend who is a teacher says the best gift she can receive is a gift card from a grocery store. She likes all gift cards, but it's easier to use the grocery store ones. We all have to eat!! An Amazon.com gift card is also good.
Her second favorite is homemade cookies or other edible products.
Trinkets and personal gifts are great, but she says she remembers students by their personal qualities (or lack thereof lol) more than any personal gift.
Good luck!
Thanks for all your ideas !!
We have decided to make a picture collage of the puppies that survived and "mom and dad", and include it with a basket of goodies that can be eaten while on the run with an assortment of coffees, teas, individual bottles of flavored water, etc.
Although we wanted something unique, the goodie basket seemed to be at the top of everyone's list... so if you can't beat 'em, join 'em.
Again, thanks for all the help.
Thanks for the ideas!
I think some of these might get me arrested, but they are good ideas! Hubby would love them! I am going to take my special chocolate chip cookies to the airport for him to eat in the car. I will give him a kiss and a big welcome home card too. Thanks to you all! :-) Just 1 week to go now!
Some ideas...
I'm in the same boat, but decided to get over it as July has come and is on its way out and the work is still very skimpy. Fortunately, my rent isn't due until the middle of the month and I'll figure something out about the rest of the bills even if it means getting reaaal good at Ebay.
Some suggestions:
--Check the local temp agencies, perhaps they have something, med. transcription or not, that might be available to help tide you over.
--Consider hiring on with another "back up". That's not being disloyal. It's being smart and sane. What good are you getting frustrated, upset, being tense about where the rent's coming from if not your current employer? What good are you to your family who is depending on you or your employer if you're all out on the street?
--Whether you tell your employer what you're doing (to literally keep yourself afloat) or not is up to you and depends very much on your relationship. Think this particular over very, very carefullly regardless of how much better it might make you feel regarding loyalty.
Hang on, hang in. We've both no other choice. We'll get through this.
Need some ideas
A friend of mine has throat cancer and is undergoing radiation. His throat hurts and he has no teeth and I am trying to come up with some high calorie food for him to eat, he says he can't taste much and has been doing milk shakes and mashed patotoes, any other ideas. Really need to be high calorie because he does not want to have a PEG and if he can keep up his weight and still swallow then he won't have to have one. Thanks for any suggestions
Some Ideas for You RE: LX-219
First, sorry about the funny way my answer is formatted below, I'm no good in this little box.
Are you dialing into a Lanier system? LX-219 and other Lanier equipment only works with Lanier.
Ranzy Luster in Texas fixed my LX-219 with large display for a flat rate of $100, gave a 90-day warrantee with the repair. He sometimes advertises on the MT Daily site. He has been around a long time. His phone number is 254-235-3241 and his e-mail is rluster@transcribe solutions.com. I felt he treated me very well and he was fast. I should say if the large display is not working, I don't believe he works on that, but if you can see anything in the large display, I believe he will work on it. Ask him.
Look in your User Guide for the LX-219 and try performing the call-echo-cancel sequence. If you are calling into a Lanier system, then it is not recognizing your machine. Lanier machines send a proprietary tone in to connect with the host modem.
Sometimes the phone is set for dictate instead of transcribe. You can try this: Press *99 (that's star-99) then the 1 key
If set for transcription it will say 20 through 39.
My old Lanier service tech said he always used 20 as his default when setting machines for transcription mode.
When you dial into Lanier, the LX-219 must be programmed with YOUR ID number. So, program one key with the number you are dialing, then another key with your ID.
You can test how this works by dialing the phone manually, touching all the buttons just like the regular phone, then input your ID number, the system should recognize you.
I haven't used my LX-219 machines in a long time, I use a Lanier TXC card to download large amounts of dictation to a sound card in my computer, but the above were some hints I wrote for myself in the handbook for the LX-219 a couple of years ago.
Is your C-phone located near any other equipment? That can cause static. Move it away by itself.
I hope something here helps. Give Ranzy a try. He might have some suggestions for you.
Some ideas
Grilled cajun chicken or shrimp over Caesar salad. Marinated steak over salad. Marinated chicken or shrimp kabobs. Italian sausage kabobs with peppers and onions and cherry tomatoes. A crustless quiche. Shrimp scampi. Tasty veggies..brocolli with cheese sauce, cauliflower with cream sauce, glazed carrots. Cole Slaw. Stacked thin burger patties filled with layers of swiss cheese, mushrooms, onions, or whatever you like. I find if it's tasty or fun to eat you don't miss the carbs as much ;)
Any ideas
Sorry, this is kind of long, but I would appreciate any advice/comments.
Back in May I was contacted by someone to whom I had sent my resume several months prior. She asked if I would be interested in some part-time work, and I said that I was. She had no idea how much or what time of day, etc.
Well, it turned out to be quite a bit of work, and I wound up calling her and letting her know that it was too much, as she would ride me about turnaround time when I had let her know that I already had almost full-time work prior to accepting her part-time deal. She did have another girl working on the account, but her work needed to be edited (fully to voice), and she asked that I hang in there while she found someone else, which I did, and she went through about three other girls. During this time she would hit me with sometimes 2+ hours of dictation out of the blue, and there would be many days with nothing at all. I had actually been hoping to still get daily work, but just a reduced amount from what it had been, and was still hoping that is how it would go once she was able to find someone else to share the load.
Anyway, about a week ago I received an e-mail from her that she no longer had the account, and here is where my question comes in . . . I really liked doing this dictation, and am interested in trying to obtain the account for myself, but they are in a different state from me. Since she has lost the account, I do not feel that it would be stealing, but obviously they must have had a replacement transcriptionist/service prior to telling her they would no longer need her services, so I am wondering how long I should wait and what approach I should take . . . should I call them, or perhaps mail something, or even call and try to get an e-mail address??? I was not told what the reason is that they no longer use her services either, by the way, and as far as having said what I did about it being too much work, I would give up something else to have this account if I could get it, but at the time I told her it was too much I had not decided that. I had been considering proposing just that to her, for a negotiated higher wage, but then she lost the account.
What would you guys do?
TIA for opinions/ideas!
Thanks for the ideas!
I am also really, really tired of being strapped to my seat, working my buns off for 9 cents a line, having nearly no communication by the company I work for (oh, unless they need a STAT done and then they are all over me to take it!), and just generally being a really small fish in a vast sea of transcriptionists, which they seem to cycle through on a regular basis when people either cannot handle the rotten accounts or cannot meet their line quota. I have done this for 7 years and am about worn out, which I never thought I would say because I do enjoy the work itself. It is being switched around on accounts all the time that is really killing me. It is like starting over again and again and again...Yep, cleaning houses is sounding pretty good right about now! 
Here's some ideas ...
MQ pays 80% of your MT base rate. If you make 8 cpl MTing, you'll make 6.4 cpl MEing. If you make 9 cpl MTing, you'll make 7.2 cpl MEing. If you make 10 cpl MTing, you'll make 8 cpl MEing. They pay the most for VR work.
I'm not sure about Spheris.
The other smaller companies pay 50% of the base rate.
need ideas
You know, I go on this board and I read where people are typing 400 to 500 lines per hour, and they make $40 to $50 an hour (okay that was one post, but I've seen others that are semi-comparable in recent times). I have been doing this for 7 years and I STILL average only 250 to 300 lines per hour and top maybe $23 an hour (at 9 cpl w/spaces). And this is with doctors I've been typing for 2 or 3 years now! Would someone please tell me what I'm not doing completely right? I use a word Expander (Instant Text), and I have macros, but apparently I'm still not quite "getting it." Any suggestions would be so very much appreciated. 
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