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Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

Clueless but not completely

Posted By: Dulce Shelton on 2006-07-09
In Reply to:

I’m somewhat clueless and really don’t know what to do.  I have over 5 years of distant (1973-1978) orthopedic experience, before MT was a hot item and have been working as an IC for one person for 2.5 years, doing mainly Urology and Urology-related Radiology.  I have not had formal MT training.  In reading all these board messages I don’t totally get it, i.e. Acute care, what is it? I just found out what the Basic 4 are.  I feel like a moron even though I know I’m not.  Nonetheless, I’m not getting enough work, have submitted a few resumes to a few sites.  Am wondering if I need to get formal training/certification.  I was lucky to get what I did without the certification, but I’m ready to go further in terms of specialities, OP reports, consultations, etc.  But, I am apprehensive about the whole enchilada.  Is anyone out there who has been in my shoes?  Any advice and/or recommendations would be appreciated.


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clueless
No, they sure don't. But then again, I have to remember doing this on a typewriter........ then I would have had to do the whole thing over instead of just going back and editing. Small comfort anyway :)
sorry for being clueless here but
where are you guys seeing where all the MT week prizes are?
Clueless
I think you are right - the MD's in a hospital setting very well may not know who/where there dictations are going to as it is the hospital's decision to contract with a company.

If a patient sits down to check in at hospital and is presented with a release/consent form to sign stating that they agree to have their medical record information sent overseas, THEN you will see results.

I have a letter in the works to my state senators. I don't know who else to send it to. The news media? The whole thing makes me sick.

I am paying for services rendered when I go for medical treatment and the last thing I want to do is contribute to the wealth of an offshore transcription company to have access to my information and potentially screw up my report because they don't understand the nuances of the English language. How many doctors sign off on reports without reading them? That's a whole different thread, and that particular topic makes me absolutely crazy!
clueless
Absolutely, its happening in my office also. I have been there for 4 years, from the beginning. I set up the dictation system, worked with IT, MDs etc to make this work correctly. Then set up the transcriptionists with a global pool. The most of the work was done in 24 to 36. Now, new girl wants to reinvent the wheel.. going back to one person at each facility... Then, good portion of the work is given to an IC. I had to release most of my part time coverage because of internal issues, but of course its all due to transcription. I am so sick of hearing this. My job is done when the doc signs off on the report. What happens in the file room is another story. Reports not faxed to MD or copies in the charts.

What I really wanted to tell the OM is to sit and do my job for the day, take the dozens of calls because your help can't use a computer to located something and try to produce quality work.

Loyalty can only go so far..I may have to jump ship soon.

clueless
Maybe someone can help me figure out exactly what my employer is asking for here -- because I certainly can't seem to wrap my brain around it.   I work for an EXTREMELY busy cardiologist who is, quite frankly, quite spoiled (more than the norm) and bascially wants to be spoon-fed everything.  As it stands now, he doesn't dictate anything at all; he writes everything down (or his nurse does) and I transcribe from written copy.  However, he has received several complaints from lots of different sources regarding horrible handwriting, and he has come up with what he thinks is the bright idea of having someone follow him around - everywhere - with a laptop to record everything he says, freeing him from having to write down anything.   Now, in our main clinic and satellite cllinics, I can see this as doable; we have laptops in each exam room with SOAPWARE installed, an electronic patient record system.  I can see him having someone in there to do this as he speaks.  But he isn't wanting to stop there.   He wants someone to follow him as he makes his rounds at the hospital, sees patients in the ER, etc., and I cannot figure out how this can be practical.   It seems like he wants to dictate, right?  That's what it logically sounds like.   I suggested this.   No, no, he says.   That will cause a "delay".     What???  How would following him around with a laptop be any better, when you figure that you still have to dock someplace to print it off and give it to the hospital staff.   It makes me tired to even think about trying to follow this hyper physician around 18 hours a day (which is what he would expect).   I think the man is crazy, to be honest.  But I'm wondering, has anyone known of any physician to take on such an endeavor as this?   I just can't seem to grasp the whole idea of what he wants, and I can't hold him still long enough to get him to really explain himself.   Any thoughts?   Thanks in advance
clueless
You're so right on the money!  A personal assistant DOES seem to be what he wants.   I suggested the hand held digital recorder to him but in his own mind it's not the same thing (when all of us know that it really would be).    yes, he's quite spoiled. 
Laptops - I am clueless!
Sorry if this is a really dumb question but are all laptops equipped for headsets and foot pedals?  I hate all my wires and am considering going with a laptop and wireless connection to do my work but I'm not sure if you can plug in your foot pedal and headset? 
I am so clueless about DVI, C-phone,

I see an ad for work and he is requiring a DVI or c-phone.  I have worked on a Lanier before but can't tell you what model.  Does it even matter.  I bought a DVI system from transcriptiongear.com and had to return it.  It was not compatible with what the company was looking for.   Can anyone shed some light on this.  I am thinking if I purchased the Lanier it will work for whatever situation, but not sure if the model matters.  Also, how is it different from DVI or C-phone?


TIA.


 


Another clueless statement made.
There are LOTS of MTs out that there will say ANYTHING and promise ANYTHING until the time comes to get the work done.

References are generally used for employee situations and the company will only be given information on people who will give a favorable reference.

In business, the customer comes first. Any IC worth anything will understand that and make sure that their customer (the company) is happy; otherwise, they won't have customers.

Silly you.
Thanks everyone for your help. I am wanting to go wireless and am clueless.
nm
They're clueless about tense

I want to know how anybody with such a pathetic grasp of sentence structure can make it through med school?!!?!?  Appears they've never heard of the word "an", hence "a" enema, "a" 8-French catheter, etc..  Never make the tense or verb agree.  They spell words that are new to them but I've typed a thousand times.  They whisper, mumble and drop syllables.  But they all spell out 'n-o NO" every time they use it (unless that syllable gets dropped).


And the women - 3/4 of them apologize at least once a sentence whether they make a mistake or not!  "The patient had - I'm sorry - the patient had a history of diabetes - I'm sorry, the patient had a history of diabetes mellitus".  ARRGH!


One chick in particular I just want to shake until her teeth rattle - ESL, she speaks until her breath runs out, takes a deep breath, and does it again, putting the wrong stress on syllables for even the most normal words "dem ON strate" for "DEM on strate" - and every dang time she dictates multiple views "axial T2, axial T1, etc.' - says "was" performed, not "were".  At least a couple times a day I catch myself yelling "its PLEURAL you stupid @)$(#)*!".  Oh, for 5 minutes alone with her to beat it into her head, that's all I ask!!!


Happened to me too -- won't let me post, even after I entered the address. I am clueless. :( n
x
The problem with this field today is that those in charge are clueless.
They are only interested in TAT, not quality.  People who have some useless initials behind their name and they're the ones who make the decisions that affect all of us.  They have no idea what is correct and what isn't.  As long as the reports get done and in the chart that's good enough for them.  They have their cushy jobs and tons of money and us going crippled for slave wages and all is good with their world.  Things will only get worse, and I doubt they'll get better.  I am trying to think of other options.  Don't have any idea what, but I can't take this abuse anymore.
I had one of those. If you have a completely sm
level back yard, you should do okay with yours. My yard had a slight slant to it which made the pool lopsided which made it very susceptible to collapse. Since I lived in South Florida at that time, I could never use the pool past May because the water was as hot as bath water.

They require a filter change weekly and lots of chemicals. The rim will easily get holes in it, so be very careful, especially if you have dogs that like to jump in and out. And never sit or lean on the edge, or your pool will quickly collapse. If you expect heavy rain, better drain at least 2 inches out of it beforehand.

Strongly advise getting a cover for it!
They are completely different - sm
Smartype is geared toward medical transcription specifically and is much more user friendly than Intellicomplete.
While VR won't take over MT completely,
With VR, one MT can do the work of 2-3 MTs doing straight transcription. So while there will still be MT jobs, there will be less of them. At the same time, you have MT schools churning out new grads willing to work for 1-2 cpl just to get their foot in the door. One MT company is so actively recruiting they are placing ads on Craigslist to get new students. Meanwhile, they have a ton of new grads complaining on their forum every day that they can't find a job. Things are definitely changing in this industry and it is not for the better.
I completely agree
These ESLs work hard to learn the language before they come here, many learning it through their school years, come here and legitimately and legally set up their practices (I haven't heard of any doctors complaining that their jobs are being taken by foreigners), and they still have to fight for any respect.
you are welcome and I completely agree with what you are saying!
it seems that so many like to twist around the Word or leave parts out that are uncomfortable. 
I disagree completely. Please SM
It is MY job to ensure MY work product is as error-free as possible. Just because I get paid piecemeal does not give me license to just send it to QA for the sake of make a few extra pennies.

As far as your statement on the influence on our paychecks, you're right on -- but for a different reason. Because of higher quality, you will qualify for incentive plans, be offered more variety in worktypes, and when the chips are down STILL HAVE A JOB.

I NEVER want to be paid by the hour again, regardless. Minutes are NOT tick-tocking away at my pay! I'm too fast AND skilled to ever limit myself in that fashion again!
Completely understand now -- wish
I was still in house.
I understand completely...
Every morning she jumps onto my desk, goes behind the monitor, on top of the printer, comes down the printer (which by now is beeping from her stepping on the buttons), then she steps in front of the monitor and bumps her head into mine. She will not let me work until I get up, go into the kitchen, and open a can of the most gosh-awfulest smelling food.

This is a ritual...what a way to start the day! :)
I agree completely!!
When I first started typing for MedQuist, if there was a difficult doctor, I would skip over it. As time progressed, the more typing I did, the better I got and didn't want to skip over reports, I wanted to be able to type whatever came up! If you NEVER type these heavy accented doctors, you will NEVER learn to do them. I agree with you "Got the Letter" and am waiting for my phone call!!
I agree with you completely

when EVERYONE criticizes how the government is run and how they do things? Why put your life and those of your family in jeopardy waiting on the government to help you. What happened to PEOPLE helping each other?  People seeing that their elderly neighbors get to safety? People pulling together to solve these issues? Why do so many seem to be waiting to see what the government can do for them??  The government has enough problems!  I certainly would not rely on the government for ANYTHING!  Do these people want to government telling them what to do in their everyday lives?  If so, move to a country with no democracy! 


 


  I'm finished for the time being.. but WAKE UP PEOPLE!


I agree with you completely

and believe me, they don't give a patient a discount because they feel guilty. They don't give the employees yearly raises. While they (and the 2 office managers) get their bonuses and go buy brand new cars, SUVs, boats, vacation homes and, yes, even airplanes, they have plenty of employees struggling to make ends meet. One employee (that I know of, a newly divorced woman) recently took bankruptcy and our insurance is so bad that most of us can't afford to even go to the doctor as we have $2,600 deductible for a single person!  I would NOT feel guilty one bit!  


  


I completely agree with you . .
Did you see Tanya Tucker's reality show? I loved that. There's one about roller derby girls and a new one is coming out about rodeo cowboys - sounds exciting to me.
I completely agree - sm

I love it when they say thank you.  It makes me smile every time.  It also makes me smile and chuckle a little when I get one that will laugh at themself when he/she gets tripped up on their words.



I agree completely
Sad but so true.
This is completely not true

If you read the instructions of any of the federal returns about the issue of filing for an extension, it will tell you that you can file a form to ask for time to get the finished return in to them (until August 15 I believe), but you must send in what you believe you owe with the form filing for the extension.  If at the time of filing the actual return, you still owe money, then the issue regarding penalties and interest comes into play.  If you fail to file a return or an extension request and you expect a refund, you have up to 3 years to file the actual return with no penalties.


Just remember, you still must pay what you believe you owe when you file for an extension.


Have I just completely lost it?...
Sometimes when I am working if I get a doctor with a sexy voice I try googling him to see if I can find a picture.  Every now and then I do find a picture but most of the time I am disappointed with how they look.  Does anyone else do this?
That is completely unethical.

That service found you that job. They trained you on that job. They did your QA on that job. And now the doc's office wants to go around the service and hire you direct, and obviously cheaper?!  First of all, know that if they can replace you cheaper, they will. Second, I hope it's a really, really good stable job, because you will be blacklisted among MTSO's and never work again... Talk about ungrateful.


I agree with you completely!
And now that many companies are cracking down on and checking quality due to client complaints and sloppiness, I would bet many MT line counts will be going down real fast.  Remember, haste makes waste... and slow but steady wins the race!
Not completely true
You can work IC or temp and still draw unemployment just have to report what you make.  If it is more than 1/2 of your weekly pay, you then begin to lose 1/1 dollar and when you eventually make more than what your weekly entitlement is, you lose it completely.  But she will have to actively be looking for work and AVAILABLE for fulltime work.  Just like insurance forms it is all in the wordking.  Available and looking for work.   I have drawn years ago when I used to be an employee and still worked temp jobs.  If they ran over the amount I did not file for that week and drew nothing.   My brothre-in-law last year was laid off as the CEO of Smukers jam as they closed  his plant.  They kept him on as a consultant as an IC and when he worked he did not file and when he did not he drew his unemployment.   It went on for a year as he was entitled to 26 weeks and because of him working off and on it lasted for a year.  You just have to report the earnings. 
Completely addicted to that
Craigslist. I have bought several very nice items off lately including 2 Persian rugs, 1 for $75 and the other for $95, both large, the last 8 x 11. Fantastic buys. I absolutely am in love with it.
Oh, I completely agree. (sm)
I've also seen 20-year MTs who proudly announce that they don't know the difference between there, their and they're, and it doesn't matter anyway. (?!!)

It is appalling. But those people also rarely post on boards because it's just a job they put in and they don't usually want to use a computer or talk about work outside of work (in my experience).

Maybe if somebody had let them know differently in the beginning, they would have chosen another career or taken the time to learn the English language.

You are only the second English major MT I have come across, and the other one is the best MT whose work I've seen.


Completely agree
Always have two companies, at least.
i completely agree.
"Assault" may sound nicer than "rape" but it's NOT the same thing. It's the MT's job to accurately record the doctor's words, pretty or not. Of course we may correct grammar but certainly not the meaning of a document.

These are sometimes used as legal documents and that should always be taken into account.
I COMPLETELY agree.
I mean, it's not as though we have nothing else to do! These tests take a long time and unless you have no job, they are much too time consuming. The worst is when you don't pass after spending so much time.

Also, you go through the grammar, etc. and then come to that?!

I think a couple of carefully selected files will tell them everything they need to know about your skill level.

NO. Not lazy at all!
I completely concur.
.
By the way, my keyboard completely different from the other 2
NM
Agree completely. Sometimes I am not even
sure if I am talking to the same person when they do not use their same initials or names with every post.
This is completely untrue. SM
I emailed a response while they were looking for moderators. I received a wonderful email with no broken English giving me all the sign-in information needed as well as complete instructions. It was NOT signed by Dr. Ahmed. I will not give out the name, as they clearly stated they do not want that known until this whole mess blows over. I will, however, delete any more of these outright lies I see on this board.
I agree completely (sm)

As another poster said, our bodies "know" when we have typed a certain number of lines.  Having worked for various transcription companies, I found it difficult to even reach the minimum lines with many of these places.  I feel very fortunate to have found an MTSO that is honest.  Guess what, I am transcribing over 2,000 lines in 5 or 6 hours!  I am saving every penny possible because I know it will not last forever.  


Time to do something completely different

You've turned completely inward.  Time to look outward.  Walk outside your four  walls and walk away from cyberspace - they'll still be there when you come back.  Talk face to face with people.  Go for a walk to somewhere completely different each day.  Volunteer somewhere in your community.  Befriend and be helpful to your neighbors. Sitting in the dark online 18 hours a day is a habit that can't be good for anybody - face it and change your behavior, or you will inevitably be forced out of your hideyhole into the world anyway.  You can either embrace, choose and take charge of changes, or wait until you have no choice. 


This may sound a little weird, but try using feng shui to rearrange your apartment - it can make a difference.  Just moving my work space to a different part of the room worked for me (my productivity greatly improved).  Good luck, and don't let this beat you.


Completely up to the client

At my first job I typed disc because that's what they wanted.  On the next job half the clients wanted disk and I went nuts keeping it straight.  At current job all clients want disk.  I put it in my ShortHand to change disc to disk, because of the bad habit I learned at the first job.  If I should get another account that wants disc, I will make them a separate shorthand tab and try to remember to switch to it when I get one of their jobs.  It sure would help if all clients agreed on this issue.


I agree completely
Well said. It's been said time and time again there are no grammar police on this board but they're here all the time just the same.
have you tried your new job out before completely quitting?
nm
I COMPLETELY AGREE!

nice post!


Understand COMPLETELY!!!!!
xx
Completely different experience
I have been working with MediGrafix now for about 6 months. They are EXTREMELY easy to work with and for. Everyone is so nice and helpful. Do NOT be afraid to ask questions if you don't know, they are more than willing to help you find the answer. Their platform to work with is SO easy. If you can handle Word, you are in good shape. As with anything, when you start something new it is a learning experience. Allow yourself time to learn and don't get frustrated at yourself or your employer. Do give MediGrafix a shot, I think you will be pleasantly surprised.
Understand completely but
I just bought an adaptor online for a few bucks. It plugs into the dictaphone machine, but converts it where you can use standard headphones. I can now plug stereo headphones into it. Works great AND I can use whatever headphone I want, instead of those cheap things Dictaphone sells.
understand completely sm
Jealousy rears its ugly head in many ways. You can be the brightest and the best but it will work against you. You should go "over their head" if you leave that company and make the owners aware of how you were treated. That is, unless they are women also. Cats!!!!