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Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

Comedy Stop & Offshore Concerns were the last 2 boards to be changed over to the new format.

Posted By: Administrator (sm) on 2005-09-29
In Reply to: Hey! Why did they delete the entire comedy folder from this site? - whats up?

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Please post offshore topics on Offshore Concerns board. (NM)

Thank you. 


Goldbird


The Comedy Stop !!
There's some funny stuff over there.  It's good to have a comedic break now and then.      
Offshore concerns

They are smart , and that is why the jobs are going to them! Jobs don't make people smarter; smart people do their jobs well. If you don't believe this then you must question the wisdom of the American MTSOs and companies that outsource. As I have said before, all Indian MTs are not bad and all US MTs are not good. I've seen excellent quality from India and poor quality from the US - that's the other side of the story which none of you wants to see, let alone admit.


 This is why I call US MTs insular. If you will only look outside of your own town/state/country you will see how the world has changed and the so-called developing countries have advanced in many ways. 


The problem with the US is it has been functioning too long in a  cocoon, sheltered and protected. But with the coming of the global age, competiton has become fierce and jobs are moving overseas and it is now finding it difficult to cope in this new business climate.


You say "sadly" because it affects you but have you ever wondered how Indians like it when American companies dump poor quality goods on them and Indian businesses have to shut shop because they can't bear the  competition? Of course most of you would not have heard that pesticides were found in  bottles of a premier American brand of soft drink sold in India!


Instead of treating "offshoring" as some terrible phenomenon, it is high time US MTs learned to accept the situation because this is the New Age Economy where everything is decided in competition.


 


Offshore concerns blog

I mentioned this a few messages below, but the blog has its first post. I am NOT supporting any Ad things on there and will not be making anything off this. 


http://violatingamerica.blogspot.com/


If you have a link that would be useful to others to write their gov't reps, companies, news sources, etc, feel free to post them or e-mail me so i can get them up there.  I am also looking for any news stories or any information we can get.  One way or the other, we might be able to make a difference. 


Please use Offshore Concerns board for those topics. (NM)
Goldbird
be sure to mention HIPAA concerns with offshore...nm
..
Just added a favorite funny to the Comedy Stop

It was popular in the 1990s, but I was able to find it again by googling.   I discovered that it is not a true story, which is disappointing, but just pretend it is. 


Interesting info on Offshore Concerns board
OSI offshores and that is why they can't keep quality MTs

In Reply to: Today, I landed a client that was using and Indian service. They said the service - Kansas MTSO sm

The MTs they do keep are basically no more accurate than the Indians. The QA department is a joke because they hire people fresh out of MT school. It is a sad company and is destined to fail if they don't start thinking more about quality than keeping the brownnosers happy. This could be true for other companies that offshore as well.

D I T T O D I T T O
Taking 2 polls on offshore concerns board

Please participate!


Thank you!


d~


Note: Go to COMEDY STOP to hear sis's latest adventure...nm
x
Of course you can, but there is a board for that purpose. Feel free to post on the Comedy Stop.
/
Client probably just changed the format- if you are being paid - sm
by a 65 char. line, then your margins have no bearing on your rate since they are counting characters. If you are getting paid via gross line then margins would come into play (as well as font size).
This thread belongs on Offshore Concerns; thread locked. (NM)
Goldbird
Post jokes and comedy on Comedy board. (NM)
Goldbird
I am sorry. I meant boards not broads. Now those darn boards have disappeared again.
:
Comedy board is for LOL!

standup comedy....My magnet says...sm
I have a magnet on my fridge that says:  If Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy.  *LOL*
LOL. And some kind of comedy competition soon too!!! nm.
.
Okay, Top Ten Reasons Why... posted on comedy board

This one is good.


I put a good one on the Comedy board. It might offend some!
x
Reminder: Jokes go on Comedy board. (SM)

This has been an issue before.  No exceptions.


Thank you.


I laugh at the comedy board not at a strike.
then get off of the porch.  You call this OP venting?  Cut me a break.  Sounds more like a cry for help.  Why don't you all find a new profession instead of wanting everything handed to you on a silver platter.  I find no humor in compromising patient care because someone wants to have a b***ch fit!!!  
Bloopers can be posted on the Comedy board.
/
You're right - TV comedy had Phyllis Diller, - sm
comedy readers had Erma Bombeck, and we MT's have Hayseed!
:D
sometimes this concerns me as well
I talked with my account managers about the future of MT and does she really feel there is a shortage. On the 1 hand she said yes there is a lack of qualified MTs, but what she also did say is that those with experience have more job security, which makes sense.

For ideas, have you ever thought of possibly becoming a paralegal or perhaps a legal secretary? Also, what about maybe delving into possible general transcription? I did a bit of that myself and it was not too bad. At least some of the skills you have learned being a Transcriptionist can still be used. I always try to keep a mental list of 5 different "paths" I could pursue if things got bad, but luckily things have never gotten to that point.

Like I said in my heading, sometimes the future of MT concerns me, but the reality is there is no such thing as a stable job anymore. I also got into transcription during my college years, 2 year actually. I ended up completing my AA as well and went on to pursue a degree in IT with an emphasis in networking, but it really bored me to death. Your family should not look at you like you did not succeed. So many people that I know from friends and family all think it is so great that I get to work at home and do so well for myself.
concerns--sm
I tend to agree with the other poster below. Do not discuss things with your mother. You already know how she is going to react and it only serves to aggravate you. If you have genuine concerns about your aunt or any other family member's health, try to address it to the doctor directly. As far as your mother goes, it sounds to me like you are seeking her approval and acknowledgement for your accomplishments. Apparently you are not going to get that. I have a mother who is the same way and it angered me to the point where I confronted her a couple of times about it. It only caused alot of hurt and anger when I did that, so now I just turn the other cheek and try to ignore it. The only person you have to prove yourself to is you and the good Lord. Since He already knows your worth, you need to work on your own. Don't look to others to validate your worth. You don't need to. You are already special. :^) Have a good day, and think positive thoughts of yourself and your abilities.
but boards will be dano's boards and that's the issue. no one dare disagree with dano.
yes the boards will be boring with just one-sided opinions but we need to please dano. isn't that the purpose of MT Stars?
Hey! Why did they delete the entire comedy folder from this site?
???
Concerns/questions

As always, if you have concerns/questions/comments regarding DSG, I have an open door policy.  Please feel free to contact me at kdenson@dsg-inc.net.


Thank you.


You are an IC -- state your concerns
You need to get some faith in yourself.  If you are an IC and if you agreed on a certain rate of pay, they need to adhere to that.  If you have a plumber come and work for you and you don't agree with his rate of pay, you cannot halfway through the job decide to pay him less.   It is the same thing.  I give an offer to my IC's and if they want to work for that they can but I cannot suddenly change halfway through without re-negotiating with them and they must agree to a lower rate, etc.  So if you agreeed fine -- accept it but if they just did it, don't.  It is hard around the holidays but is appears you are not making that much anyway so what do you have to lose especially if they took away half of your job.   You need to read and see what an IC actually means and if they are calling the shots you are an employee and can raise a little bit of trouble for them.  But talk to them as sometimes until you stand up to them, they will walk all over you. 
Your concerns are valid, unfortunately : (

EMR and voice recognition has put me out of a job.  On my former job, there was one other Transcriptionist besides me.  Because she had been there longer, she got what was left over after most of the docs jumped on the voice recognition bandwagon.  They use Dragon Naturally Speaking.  I have seen it at work myself and it is quite accurate.  There is no editing being done on their work.  Now, I'm doing a job that is just that, a JOB.  I enjoy transcribing and am looking for another job, but MT jobs seem to be few and far between where I am.  I can't get high speed internet where I live, so most services are out.  I may move onto a different career if something doesn't come around soon.  I thought about legal transcription.  Anyone have experience with that?


 


Outsourcing Concerns

Did any of you watch the special the other night on identity theft?  I think it was maybe on Dateline.  If so, you heard them say the identity theft ring reaches far beyond the shores of the US.  It involves many of the countries that are receiving outsourced transcription work. 


The first thought that came to mind when watching that was our medical records.  I often have dictation that gives me a SSN and DOB.  I also often have dictation on a new patient giving me other details, such as where the individual works, how many children they have, etc.  I always get their height, weight and race.  With these details, the individuals being outsourced to have everything they need to supply a terrorist or identity theft ring information to enable them to pose as someone else.  This is very frightening to me!


What do we do?  How do we wake America up to what we're facing?  Sure, we can write our elected officials, but you all know as well as I do that such correspondence falls upon deaf ears.  Does anyone have any suggestions on where we go from here?  At this point, it isn't only about losing our jobs, its about national security.


What concerns me about newbies is
that often they write these excited posts and reveal how tiny their working English vocabulary is. That's a terrible place to start out from. I try to be polite, but I do remember being a newbie for hospital work and how appalled the trainer was with the other MTs who had tiny English vocabularies. She about dropped her teeth because the first time I had to spell shotty adenopathy I spelled it right. I couldn't believe anybody would think "shoddy adenopathy" would make any sense. It's not logical.

How do you train people to THINK and be logical in their transcription? Those are things the person should bring to the table if they want to go into a career in the written word. Then you can build on that logic as you interpret MD slurring.


I've had similar concerns
about blacklisting. After all, anybody can see how easy it would be to paint a dark picture of a company on this board so why wouldn't companies have a similar board somewhere to do the same with employees? I think the answer is because it would be considered blacklisting which would likely violate some employment laws and it would be too difficult to keep it a secret. But I could be wrong.

Faxing and HIPAA concerns
I need to know the regulations imposed by HIPAA for MTSOs faxing medical reports to referring doctors.  Thanks.
Of course they do. That was one of the concerns about Medquist. Info from the VA
was going offshore. The info included the location of the soldier's troop when he was wounded in combat and more.
Know is old post - but valid concerns

I don't kow what they could do to help you RE: Katrina but companies need to verify the NEED to cut back or do it across the board, at least in the department / job level. I worked for this company for 6 yr & had several cuts in my take home. The platforms used became slower & slower because of the amazing amt of data in the programs. I had 3 gig memory & STILL took forever & you aren't making a dime for that several minute while a report is sending & the next coming in & then doing the demographic page.


I've been trying to find out if there was anything of that investigation - I never did get that paper that so many other employees got. And I had a definite beef.


Anything an MT can do when you have grave concerns about patient care?

Is there anything at all an MT can do when you have grave concerns about the care a patient is receiving? I know the answer to this is probably no, but I am so completely frustrated with my one of "my" doctors right now.  I know that one of his patients is not receiving the proper care, and I am really worried for this patient. I wish I could contact the patient's mother and let her know my concerns, but I know that is not allowed and I would be fired for doing so. I know that I'm not anywhere near as smart as a doctor, but my son has the same condition that this patient does and I know that the patient is not receiving the proper care or even the correct diagnosis. It is hard to go into all of the details for confidentiality reasons. I just know, 100% sure, that this patient deserves better care than he is receiving. 


Sometimes the virtual world that we work in is great, and other times it really stinks. If I were working in the doctor's office I could gently share my concerns (maybe I would still be fired but I could give it a shot). Here in this virtual world where the doctors don't even know I exist I can do absolutely nothing.


I'm just so frustrated at the doctor and so very worried for this patient.


Take your medical degree into the office and voice your concerns.
How do you know the patient isn't getting the proper care? No two patients are alike, just because your child has the same condition doesn't mean anything. This parent probably has googled her child's condition and is working along with the doctor. As an MT, you should not talk about any patient even with the other people in the office. It is confidential information and very unprofessional.
stop and full stop
that reminds me of a doctor who had his own very unique word for period...he called it a "perikat".  All through the report...Perikat... perikat.... LOL
Here is our format.
RIGHT FOOT, TWO VIEWS:

CLINICAL HISTORY:

COMPARISON:

TECHNIQUE:

FINDINGS:

IMPRESSION:
format

The example given by the other poster is good, but you may also want to add the date of the exam.


DSS Format
If you download Express Scribe which is a free program that does play .dss formatted files, you should have no problem getting the files to play. Good luck.
format

Just use all caps for headings.  They aren't testing you on format.  Worry about terminology, spelling and grammar. 


Also, I have never heard of "acute care clinic" work.  Acute care is hospital work, clinic is office work.   Don't bill yourself as having acute care experience if you do not.  They are quite different. 


format

I use Wordperfect at work.  There are approx. 7 people to have access to my files.  Over the past 2 months, I am finding "Word" symbols in some documents and the format is changed, font, etc.  No one is supposed to change one iota on those pages. Can anyone tell me what's happening??   I hope I'm on the right message board.  This is my first.   and thanks!


WAV pedal-.dss format
My doctor just switched from using the regular WAV pedal program using the WAV format to using the .dss format.  This is coming up in Media Player and I cannot get the WAV pedal to work with it.  What am I doing wrong?  It leads me to believe I have to work online rather than download and work off line.  It brings up My Documents and it looks like I should be saving it there.  (I used to have in My Documents in Word a file set up for My WAV files, and one to Archive the dictation to keep for a while before deleting).  This does not come up in My WAV any more, but is still in Archive.  Any help or direction is appreciated.  Please email me at maplehil@rea-alp.com as soon as possible.  My work is piling up and I cannot be typing one line at a time.  TIA
Start with Format...
Tee hee, I just learned this like last month!  It took me long enough and it's really simple.  Start with Format, go to Paragraph, you'll see the alignment of the paragraph is Left, change that to Center.
CLICK ON FORMAT,

Then the arrow at the bottom to bring up more choices.  Pick "background", then choose the color you want.


You would need to learn format.
Perhaps if you take an at home MT course that would be sufficient, and with your medical background might be able to land a job. After getting a dentist's salary for so long, might be depressed when you see your paycheck, and with all the ESLs out there might not be so much fun. Not trying to disillusion you but just stating the facts. Also, need to be able to type pretty quick, and have listening/typing coordination - takes some getting use to in the beginning.

If you decide to do it, good luck.
Format heading
Tt the top, under format, check 'bullets and numbering'. Or, you can click on 'reveal formatting' under the same heading, then click 'show all formatting marks' and it might show you what is turned on that you don't need. Make sure you un-click the 'show formatting marks' when you're done to get rid of them.
What is the file format - wav, dss, etc.
What program are you using to try to load?