Long reports, dead air time
Posted By: Xuxa on 2008-10-29
In Reply to:
Does anyone have any good tricks for dealing with the long reports with huge segments of "nothing"? On top of that, the people I am dealing with are ESLs so that's slowing me down enough already.
At this point, all I do is speed up and fast forward but am wondering if there are other ways to compensate for this issue.
Seems like someone would teach them how to pause when they stop dictating! 
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LOVE teaching hospitals and long-winded reports. Less ADT time which I'm not paid for.
Hate filling in ADT screens w/ searches just to do a one minute report.
Best if you are doing long reports...sm
where you are not messing around a lot on the patient demographic screens. If you can just get into the body of the report and do some work, it's o.k. Also if you don't have a lot of formatting changes, i.e. bold, italic, etc. And it doesn't have a word Expander so you have to use Shorthand for sure. The nice thing about our Meditech account is the line count does count gross lines and blank lines - but I don't know if that is just the way our hospital is set up or not. Meditech is picked for its billing and accounting capabilities. By the time any one asks the transcriptionists about it, it is already a done deal.
long reports
I do independent medical exams, which are usually quite long, for insurance companies and legal firms. they are dictated by MDs for litigation cases. The shortest ones are 4-5 pages, and I have had some up to 70-80 pages, so don't just look to medical facilities but try attorneys and insurance companies also. the company usually contracts with only one or two providers to do their exams so you are doing the same dictator(s) constantly so you get to really know their terminology and style. Mine use standards PEs, standing conclusions, etc., so I get to use a lot of macros. Because they are long you usually have a longer timeframe to complete them, too. it's a good way to go.
Long reports that drone on and on....
it's terrible...I mean, don't get me wrong, I love the line counts, but it's only 9:40 in the morning and I already want to take a nap LOL.
It's been a long, long time since I've used a C-phone, sm
but I do think jobs can be paused.
I know this has been discussed before but how long does it take to relisten to reports that you have
typed. I know some people do that and some dont. So far I have done okay on QA but if I dont I was just wondering how much extra time per day you figure you need to relisten to reports. I usually do about 30 to 35 medium length reports acute care or 1800 to 2000 lines. What errors do you find mostly when you relisten or is it not worth the extra time it takes. Just curious.
How long should you store reports on your computer?
As a subcontractor, what is the appropriate amount of time to store transcribed reports on your computer before deleting them?
Those are long reports! I like 'em at 2-3 mins. so they
s
Psychiatric work or long reports
Does anyone work for/know of any companies that are hiring for psych work or any other long reports like memory disorders, or compensations? I have three years working with these and acute care. I would like to find long reports to do all the time.
Please write to my e-mail address
Thanks!
IC Question: How long do you keep your reports for your docs?
ICs, I was curious to see how long do you keep your reports on your computer for the doctors? Is there a usual time limit?
Thank you!
I love those long reports. I think of them as free money.
It's just straight transcribing with no stopping to verify patient or physician information to start a new note. I'll trade you for 1 minute long dictations by a little Russian guy?
I do understand the frustration at the duplication of information. Then again, the copy/paste feature works great at giving more lines for free with no typing. LOL I always thought that if I could find a way to simplify the medical record while still utilizing MTs, I'd be rich.
I work whatever hours I want, as long as I have the reports back in TAT...
I have assigned doctors...
I had a problem with this for a long, long time sm
I have always worked days, like from 6-3. Over the last few years, it didn't matter how much sleep I got, I became real groggy between 7 and 11. Really shoots the day. Talked to my doctor and he said my blood pressure pills were the culprit but he refused to change me to another brand or dosage since I have multiple aneurysms (2 in the brain). My BP has been stable for a long time and he wants to "keep it on the low side". I tried taking them before I went to bed instead of early in the morning, but then I had headaches all day. So, I am changing to a night shift for a few months so I can sleep when those pills kick in and so far it is working pretty good. I stay mostly awake during my shift and die when I hit the bed from 6 am to 10 am, then I lay down again later in the afternoon for 2-3 hours. I still get 6-7 hours of sleep, it's just split up during the day, plus I am mostly awake now when I sit down to type. I don't have to deal with the heat in my office, either. It tends to warm up real fast in here with the south sun on the house and 2 pc's running all day, even with the air conditioner on.
Way back when, a long, long time
ago and in a galaxy far, far away, I had my own accounts also and some years cleared $75,000. Yes it can be done, but you need to have your own accounts. Also lots of delivery, and other duties involved. I work for a large national now and make much less, but I got tired of accountants, having to deal with hardware problems, deadlines, driving deliveries, printing, printers, etc. So I decided to simplify my taxes and stay home and just type. Don't have to worry about computers either, because the company will just send me a new one.
I've been doing this a long, long time...
I used to make $70,000 and up a year and did so for most of the late 80s and 90s (one girl used to make six figures a year working 7 days a week!) Because we were making more money than the supervisors and Medical Records Directors in hospitals, they began to switch to transcription services which were sprouting up all over the place. Plus AAMT came into existence and even though in the beginning it claimed it was to fight for transcriptionists (although assured us it was NOT a union), they eventually morphed into an organization that was more management friendly. They developed the "guidelines" and the 65-char line. That was the beginning of the end for those high-end wages. Then all those mickey mouse transcription schools popped up, and now outsourcing overseas. YES, we're complaining.
Been in this biz a long, long time, 30+ years and....sm
I love/loved MTing. However, things have changed so much during these years. The job definitely gets easier; don't have to look up much, can decipher ESLs much easier, in other words, you get pretty comfortable with things and you have confidence in yourself. The more experience you have the easier the job, but....
I actually made more money 10 years ago!! We didn't have speech recognition and you actually got paid for headers/footers, demographics, carbon copies, etc., you got paid for what you did fairly; today, I am not so sure.
You will feel burned out at times, but that passes and you find you like your job again.
Good luck to you!!
Lucky. I love long reports. I thought I got a good one, but it was a 1.5 minute
report with 12 minutes of dead air. Sit here and do nothing. For free.
The last time I did reports per page...
was about 3 to 4 years ago, and I was getting $2.50 per page then. I did about 10 pages an hour, so I was making $25 an hour.
I shouldn't have RETYPE the reports all the time because the MT
doesn't do their job. They don't read over their work. They add and leave out words. They misspell words as if they don't have any spellchecker whatsoever. They completely SKIP dictations in the middle of a 30 min tape. NO IT IS NOT MY JOB TO TYPE IT. IT IS MY JOB TO EDIT IT. I would rather spend my day EDITING because I am an editor.
Find my reports changed all the time.
In ChartScript you can view and edit previous reports. Anyway, I have found tons of my work which I know is not the way I typed it. I just let it go and so far have they have not said anything. If, however, I was told about these mistakes I would say something even though I know QA would be right. Agree, they think they know it all and some really don't know jack.
Do the majority of MTs reread or relisten to all the reports you do and how much time does this take
or I suppose rather which is more effective and takes less time. Do you do this for every report you do. Do the big nationals require this. I suppose it depends on your QA score if you need to do this.
well, it IS work related. I edit those reports all the time.
nm
Unfortunately most docs don't care; they don't even read the reports most of the time.
It's OUR job to comply with quality standards.
I do reports all the time where patients have asthma, COPD, emphysema, and
even cancer and continue to smoke. In our local paper they are following a woman in her battle with cancer. She continues to smoke, as does her husband. They were broke before the cancer diagnosis, having to borrow daughter's babysitting money to pay bills. Just think how much money they've blown on cigarettes.
I've even known one man with a trach who smoked through his trach.
If they don't read their reports how do they know what's wrong with patient next time he sees
Yer right... half the time the docs dont even read the reports. (nm)
.
A long, long time ago, I was going thru
a really bad time emotionally and physically. I was suffering, and my transcribing suffered. I assure you - if you are to the point of not paying your rent, literally, and needing food stamps, there is something else going on in your life than current transcription rates. We are all in this industry and many are thriving, most getting along comfortably. If you are literally to the point of food stamps, you honestly would be a fool to continue. I blamed it on my job, on my line rate, on everything but the honest truth that I was ill and was NOT working as I should or could. It is a really sad thing that you keep spreading this propaganda that MTs in our culture are doomed and now destined for food stamps. Food stamps are not something to toss around lightly, as you would know if you ever had to use them. Please let's not be quite so dramatic. Again, if you are really in those dire straits, you really need to face that MTing is not the fit for you, personally, and do something about it rather than blame our industry. You dwell on the past, but we can't do that. While you may have made other wages 20 years ago, may I remind you that we were pounding away on IBM Selectrics using layers of paper and bottles of white out, going crazy trying to rewind tapes over and over to get that dang word, with no idea what an Expander was. Technology is fantastic. Things have changed, but things are still great in this industry, and in this world. Those who change and can adapt will be fine, but you need to recognize that most of us are not ready for food stamps.
long time - nm
nm
long-time MT
I MUST do it this way. I don't trust myself otherwise. I've transcribed on typewriters, etc., and I just don't trust my eyes anymore. I'd rather take the cut in pay than trust my own document to be error-free. I also must read the report OUT LOUD to myself, otherwise I just don't catch the mistakes (grammar, etc.). We're talking some 4 and 5 page reports/documents the docs are transcribing, so I have to heavy proof myself. It's just that way anymore. I'd rather do that than some VR machine doing my job!
Yup, and have been for a long time (not me). nm
x
Did take a long time to get used to it? sm
And, I must confess to a bit of stupidity ....... the description talks about foot switches or whatever -- what's that about?
Thanks for sharing! 
Now that was a long time ago
wow that's a long time on QA (m)
My daughter was a newbie, went to work for a company and does only private offices. She was off QA in a very short time.
I think you could ask when you might be off QA but if they want to QA you, let 'em. Who cares?
THANK YOU! A long time ago I
somehow shrunk my font using the internet, but had no idea how. It stayed that way. I can barely read certain pages. It is now fixed. Thanks! :)
I have been at this a long time
I try to encourage new MTs to learn as much as they can from their experiences. The reason that companies do not hire new MTs is because they worry about production and having to utilize their QA staff. I know it is a catch 22, but that is why it is best to try to work on-site for at least a year to gain some experience. Most companies require a certain line count each and every day, which can be tough on a new MT that has to research and look things up. I'm with you, not against you, and wish you all the best. With anything, take the good advice and leave the bad advice alone. 
That is how it was for a long time, then someone
came up with this and we all got scr#wed. That's where the pay cuts started. Then came the slave labor competition (overseas workers who can't speak English to save their lives but apparently good enough to type our medical records! But ever read any? LOL) and speech recognition (so easy even a computer or data entry person can do it! Again, ever read any?). Bottom line is this is no longer considered a profession and nobody gives a rat's behind about the quality of medical reports as long as they're done quickly and inexpensively. But I guess that's what happens when a bunch of suits are in charge that wouldn't know a salpingo oophorectomy from a slapping pooperectomy (stole that one from an ASR Editor on this board - HA!) It's pretty scary, isn't it?
A long time ago I did
I was working for an attorney and he wanted me to get into court reporting so I would be able to travel with him as his private court reporter in his cases. I checked around and there was only 1 school in my state. It was a 3 year course and cost $10,000. Of course, I had to say no, as I couldn't afford it.
I had also checked at our county courthouse for transcribing the tapes and they showed me the ins and outs. For a job there, I didn't need schooling, just the smarts, was told that type of job is solid once you get in the door, but not to depend on it (waiting), as nobody quits. They retire...and the girls I talked to were my age, so that bummed me out, too. Gave up that idea, too.
MT was my 3rd choice. It's okay, but too stressful anymore. 
That's what i use too (v. long time MT)
x
been doing MT for a long time!!
I still love the world of medicine and the language of medicine. I think if you don't have that love for it, you will not be able to suffer through the highs and lows of this field, and there are plenty. I am in my 16th year and have done everything from MT to QA to teach, to supervising, and I still love to sit down and transcribe. If you have a good company or a good hospital to work for, there's always plenty of work which makes for the ability to make plenty of money. You will get faster and faster as the years go on, and if you don't have a ShortHand program yet, get one. You'll never make money without one.
it has been a long time since I used sm
a C-phone (dictaphone) and it seems to me that the setting depended on what the platform had set up or something. I know I had a couple different accounts and depending on which one, the setting was different. I can't remember either one right now though.
Depending on your C-phone, sometimes you can go on line and do a search for an owners manual for that particular C-phone.
Sorry I can't help further!
Answered A LONG TIME AGO - DUH. SM
I guess we can assume you only answered it to be able to put down the original poster? I hope you get the same one day, I really do. Wish I could see it happen. You are hateful.
Then how is it that you have time to post here all day long?
so transparent
I hear ya long time-MT
My cuz kept telling people to call me because I worked from home...they would ask how easy it was to make 2300.00 partime from home (you know all those ad's all over the place).Grrrrrrrrrrr.
I finally just got fed up and when folks would ask what I do I'd tell them that I was a medical language interpretor! ha shut a lot of them up caus they can't scratch their heads and be rude at the same time.
That's a long time! That's excellent.
I had been a "chicken only" eater for years, but 2 years ago I read something from PETA that completely changed that, needless to say! It's been great eating new and exciting dishes that I never even thought of before. Could you tell me how the Tofurky tastes (I think that is the name?) Last year I just ate sides, no substitute for the meat. By the way, the new issue of Vegetarian Times has some excellent Thanksgiving recipes in it.
ick ... I have used the name long-time MT, and this is not me ... I would gladly help anyone sm
in any way I can for no charge. Thirty-some years ago when I was starting out, people helped me ... it's great to give back. To charge is kinda slimy, I think. Just my opinion
There was a thread a long time SM
ago from some people who worked through them as traveling transcriptionists...apparently K-Force had their share of pay problems, reimbursement problems, travel issues and most interestingly, they had a bunch of criminals working for them (drug/petty criminal activity). I have no idea how things are now.
My boss always says "I'd rather you take the time to get well because we need you for the long
I understand, I feel the same whenever I am sick. But I too would rather get better so I can produce quality as well as quantity work. When you are ill, that just doesn't happen. I have a great account and great business relationship with my account. So,when I am down and out, I take the time to better. I am no good to anyone, even family, when I am sick.
My advice to you is to take the day off when you are ill. It pays high dividends in the end.
In my case, I have been an IC for a long time
addition. I asked my tax guy if I needed to report the Avon income, and he said as long as it was not more than $500.00 then, no I did not have to report it. My tax guy is a professional and has his own business. He is reputable, and a lot of his clients are state police officers (just to give a little background). I do not do my own taxes. No offense to Patti, but she has stated before that she does do her own taxes, but just uses the previous year as a guide. My tax guy goes to seminars and forums each year and also sends a letter each year with all of the new tax laws with instructions on how to prepare for our meeting when the time comes. My advice would be if you are not sure, seek a "tax professional" not a message board forum for the correct tax information. I am not so sure that any of these posters are actually "tax professionals", they are simply independent contractors who do their own taxes. I would definitely take that into consideration when reading these posts.
I did that a long time ago. I turned it over sm
and let it sit overnight, and the next day it worked fine. I think as long as it wasn't anything sticky like a soda or something, you should be okay. It just has to dry out. Of course, I'm not that technically oriented, so I don't know, but I'll certainly cross my fingers for you.
Long time passing..nm
nm
I currently have 2 jobs and have had for a long time....sm
I work days from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. then work the night job from 5 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. I have off Sundays, but work Monday through Saturday. It is gets very old, but I am the breadwinner in my family and am trying to get debt free by the end of the year except for the house and if I have to work like this to accomplish it then so be it. I have tried 3 jobs before, but that just gets to confusing, as all three companies had different account specs and style rules and such and I got to where I could not remember which was which. Good luck to you.
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