I DON'T rely on it, have simply used it and found that nm

• Help with raising food costs sm - SHARE user
  • Many states have the same program, called - me
    • I have used Angel Food Ministries and love it. nm - shipaddict
      • Kinda sad that MTs have to rely on things like that ... (nm) - LowlyMT
        • Most families struggle. This is when you make too much for food stamps, but need help and sm - SHARE user
        • I DON'T rely on it, have simply used it and found that nm - shipaddict
          • I didn't mean to phrase it quite that way - sm - Lowly MT

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They also will accept new words, which I've never done.  As far as the BOS, it's firewood in my eyes, but I guess it helps the newer MTs find a standard.

I also used to capitilize every drug while on-site and no one seemed to mind.  It actually in my eyes made the drugs stand out from the rest of the report.  Most physicians give a little, it is the QA process that doesn't like it; it gives them something to do.

If QA was consistent, then fine but most are not.  QA will admit that they are learning just like the MT, so to me, they are basically another set of ears.  Often, they don't know either, so it gets sent to the client with a blank or "made up word."  It is ultimately the dictator who is responsible and should catch the errors.

In my old QA days, I found too many errors that were obviously the cause of word Expander errors, things not caught by spellcheck, etc.  I doubt that it really slows you down that much.  I have been doing it that way for so long, it is just second nature and quick to go up and fix something real fast, than wait until the end and hope that spellcheck catches it.

Good luck!

Unfortunately, some proprietary platforms seem to run two instances of MSword (as best as I can tell) which prevents you from saving your normal dot.  My post was addressed specifically to those who are encountering that problem.  An Autoclose/AutoExit macro should save the normal dot for you, and may be the ONLY way you can save it, even if you have selected the prompt for normal save on your options toolbar.

In any case, autoclose and/or autoexit macro that saves your normal dot will ensure that most, if not all of your recent autocorrect/autotext/macros present in your normal dot are saved, should you have an unexpected power failure or crash, or if you are using a template that is provided to you by an employer -- a template which may have been programmed in such a way as to prevent your normal dot from being when you exit word.

In any case, whether or not the "prompt to save normal template" is selected really shouldn't affect whether or not the normal is saved, the normal should automatically be saved as you exit MsWord.   The fact that normal.dot doesn't always save is, or worse vanishes entirely, is just one of these weird idiosyncracies which sometimes makes word (which really is a pretty wonderful program) so frustrating to use. (Hint, back up your normal.dot -- frequently!)

In my experience, the only time that a template reliably does not save is if you are writing macros (as opposed to recording macros) and if you fail to manually save your changes inside your Editor before exiting word.  

I have had the experience more than once of opening word to find that my newly programmed template is gone -- sometimes representing many hours of work  -- and that is where "the prompt to save" toolbar option really can be useful.

In short, I am fully aware of the "prompt to save normal" in the options toolbar (and mine is selected to prompt) and if I had thought this was best solution for the professional medical transcriptionist, I would not have bothered posting this information in the first place. 

So to make a long post short:  The best solution to make absolutely sure your normal dot is saved is to use autoclose and/or autoexit macros that instruct word to save your normal template, and don't just depend on the "save normal prompt" on your toolbar.  Regard it as an extra precaution, which is what it really is, don't depend on it, it can get unselected, and poof your normal.dot is gone!

For someone who just writes an occasional letter or term paper on with MSword the occasional loss of the normal.dot, albeit aggravating, probably isn't all that serious, but for the MT who depends on her paycheck to support her family, losing her normal dot and its 37,954 autocorrect entries is a real economic hardship.  She just might appreciate knowing that there is something she can do to prevent this from happening, even though you happen to think it is "complicated."

Isn't this forum here to provide fellow MTs with useful information they can use or not as they please?  Medical transcription after all, isn't a game or a hobby, it is real grown-up work, and it is prudent to take the time do real grown up things to maintain the tools of the trade.

Unlike some posts I have seen, particularly on the word-help forum that just make me want to scream, I will not post useless or wrong information -- even if it is "complicated" -- after all it's just information.  Writing autoclose/autoexit macros to save your normal dot are not pointless or useless exercises; and in any case you can disregard my posts, or not, as you please.  

These are people's lives and people's health.  I am NOT going to guess because their doctor doesn't give a crap and refuses to dictate clearly so lets his MT guess what he's trying to say and hopes she/he gets it right.  

I swear, this group might as well have farted or belched it all out - it would probably have been understood better than they way they dictated it.  And I'm not talking medical terminology either.  I'm talking basic simple English words that they slur all to you know where that is imperative to each patient's record. 

I know to some $$$$ is what counts.  Call me an odd ball because to me, integrity and knowing you did an accurate job is what counts. I can't do an accurate job without the doctor's help when it comes to dictating clearly.  It takes two in this business - the doctor and the MT -to get it right.  So ask me if I miss them.     

and then copy and paste it into the shell for Meditech.  I hated Meditech as well.  Yes, I did get used to it, but it is not MT friendly AT ALL!!! 

If I would guess though, your Word would work well since the spellcheck is better.  Try a small report, and see what happens. 

That makes the report too hard to read, thus more of a margin for errors.  And I put in an extra space after periods on VR that have only one.

No more, no less!  I don't care personally.  I just think that HIPAA thing is so over-the-top that this one jumped out at me.  I see why they have it, but sometimes it's a bit much.  My sis is the CEO of a Hospice in Chicago, and says it's a nightmare for them, so it depends on which side of the issue one is on at the moment.

I question that part of HIPAA regulations.  If a person can't match the demographics to a report, what is the freaking big deal that its confidentially be protected?  So what if anyone sees you're typing a report for "someone" with symptoms A, B, and C?  Aren't there zillions of people with those symptoms worldwide?  Unless you're in a teeny town typing reports for the ONLY hospital where it's possible only ONE person could have a report like that, its really crazy to think that the average layperson, even in they could understand WHAT they were reading in a report, could figure out from any given report WHO that report was for, or even what hospital in what part of the country.  Without the demos, WHAT security is breached and HOW is it considered a security breach????

I'm also over having to have a zillion constantly-changing passwords so I can sit and type in my secure house!  The amount of programs I have to use to type a single report are so complex and aggravating that unless someone came in here who works for the exact same company, nobody would have a clue how to go about bringing up a report and rooting through the demos.  And who the heck would even WANT to?

I can see the need for HIPAA inhouse, where there are tons of people who know the system floating around, patients around looking and listening, and local people knowing stuff about other locals.  But in the case of the remote, isolated MT, who will never meet a single doc, patient, or facility she types for, making us jump through HIPAA hoops is tiresome and pointless - especially since our Indian bretheren typing the same exact reports don't have to worry about it!

have entered viewpoints on certain subjects.  It is an insult to MTStars for you to entertain the notion that only one person would post here with views different than what you would like to see.  Get over yourself and have a nice day for a change.

:D

Watch and see MQ implode.  From one who knows from the inside looking out. 

For those who declare their love and loyalty to MQ, it's not reciprocated and the plans in the works by the MQ constantly changing management will soon let you see just how little they care about American MTs.  It's really kind of sad and the only hope for MQMTs is MQ being bought out.  Why do you think they keep changing management?