New giveaway! $50 Build A Bear Bucks, see sticky post above.
Posted By: Administrator nm on 2007-07-13
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Elaine Johnson of Boise, Idaho, you won the Build A Bear Bucks!
Email to admin@mtstars.com with your full mailing address and we will send you your gift.
NOTE: The above sticky post prize changes as someone wins. Inside that post is
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I made a sticky post at the top of the forum. I am not going
to get into specific debate over various belief systems and people's rights. If you haven't read the sticky post, please do so.
Moved from Sticky Post. Christmas IS celebrated on this site
Moved from Sticky post...
Christmas IS celebrated on this website. If you do not celebrate Christmas, that is your prerogative. However, if posts celebrating Christmas offends you, you might consider another site as we celebrate Christmas on this website and will do so every single year. As the owner of this website, I am proud to say MERRY CHRISTMAS in celebration of Christ's birth. I will not fall in line with others who are being politically correct and I do not expect others who celebrate Christmas to be forced to conform either. Since over 95% of Americans celebrate Christmas, I do not see what the big deal is anyway. For those who do not celebrate Christmas, I offer respect for whatever you do celebrate though I may not agree with your belief system. In turn, I also would hope that you would respect what I celebrate.
Merry Christmas,
Sheri Steadman
President
MTStars
Always comes down to the bucks, they can sugarcoat but is the bucks!
x
off topic, but bear with me here
would you be upset if your husband had been somewhat unfaithful in the past, but the two of you worked through your problems and sought counseling and now had a stronger marriage than ever? except you didn't know for certain about the somewhat unfaithful part until after you had reconciled and renewed your vows? but then you find out that your mother-in-law knew about the infidelity and preached to you about marriage and family without telling you the whole story? because it was her son's place to tell me, not hers. and now you find out that she is friends with this other woman and calls and emails her on a regular basis, which is more than she does with you? do I have the right to feel angry and betrayed here? or am I seriously just overreacting and freaking out about something that's in the past?
mama bear
it reminds me of the simpsons. Homer makes a good papa bear..
Smarter than the average bear :-)
xx
So what? 8 cpl is what the market will bear. If you don't want 8, don't take a job that pays
x
May have to grin and bear it. Another option . .
Keep documentation for a while. It's a good CYA move if/when they use it against you in QA audits.
As you noted, you are aware a lot of us have been there. Personally, I think commas are the most subjective points of punctuation. Maybe it depends on the QA's mood or the phase of the moon! ;)
You're right. I can't bear children! BWAHAHA!!! nm
Sucker!
you should be setting your rates according to what the market will bear...
not what you feel like getting. If you like the account, you're familiar with it and able to make good money off of it, you might want to stay at the rate you are at. As a service owner, I used to plan to hire at 7 but bring everyone eventually up to 10 cpl by 0.5 increases every six months. I also used to be able to raise the rates from the hospital, clinic or physician office every 2 years. Nowadays if I bid on a new account, I am regularly outbid at 11 cpl, with 24 TAT. I have discussed it with my IC MT's. If they want a raise, I can try to negotiate a raise from the hospital...but it jeopardizes our account. Every time you raise your rates, it's a signal for them to start shopping around. So I would say, based on what the market will bear, don't expect to be getting raises. Ever. 
Okay, now I am goign to type this verbatim so bear with me.....
If you have tried unplugging the back of the unit and it still won't let you re-program but you hear a dial tone OR after you press PROGRAM KEY and SEC# comes in the window instead of KEYS window THEN try to push calc/clear and hold down until window clears OR push pund key first and then calc/clear and hold down together until the window clears THEN press PROGRAM then KEYS, etc following instrcutions to re-program each work type number and bottom row.
Let me know it this works at all!
My tips (and I can't type tonight so bear with me) (sm)
Also if you're serious about starting out on your own, here are my recommendations (been there, did that last year).
1. Be patient ... realize that unless you hit the offices at just the right time when they're looking for a transcriptionist, you won't get a billion calls just because you "opened your doors" (I was sadly optimistic for quite a while).
2. Market yourself as a professional ... meaning no email addresses such as "ilovemykitties@catsrus.com". Have a business name or simply YOURNAME transcription service but have something to print on those business cards and flyers and brochures you're going to create!
3. Get business cards. If you go with vista print's free ones, pay the $3.99 to have a BLANK back side. I didn't at first and had to redo mine because they all said "free business cards at vista print" which looked like ca-ca.
4. Create a flyer or a brochure advertising what you have to offer. You can do this in MS Word (we all have it) and there are free templates you can down load or just use the column function.
5. Decide WHAT market you want to target and go for it. I didn't want acute care/hospital work so I only targetted clinics.
6. Send out introduction letters (do a search for client getting letter on the internet, there's one out there that I found but I didn't like it so created my own but it's some place to start) ... enclose a business card and a flyer or brochure advertising your services. Ask them to please keep your information handy in case they need transcription help.
7. Get a website (if you like that kind of thing ... I did). Also you can advertise on craigslist (all I got was spam from it though) or on freeyellow, kijiji, etc. I took advantage of all the free resources there were to get my name out there and I did get calls from people that had to have found me on the internet.
8. IF you live near a big town, it might be worth it to pound the pavement and go directly to offices to drop off your information. For me, I found it more economical to send out letters to every single doctor in the phone books in several nearby towns/cities.
9. Be patient and realize that once you get your own clients, you will feel amazing ... it will revitalize your career when you can say good bye to the middle man and know that every single line you type is YOUR money!!
Feel free to email me if you have any questions. :)
Build-a-pc
Get the best sound card you can. My first computer had a cheapy sound card and it caused all kinds of problems. Make a list of all you want/need to do with your computer and talk to the techies about it. They will be able to make suggestions. And be sure you have Microsoft Word and probably Word Perfect, just to cover all bases. Maybe a cd burner to easily make back-up discs of system and to make discs of info if that should ever be necessary.
you build and add yourself
It is a different style of system. You use the first letter of each word in your phrase so there is no memorizing, you can't forget the sequence of the phrase you are looking for. it is annoying having the screen at the bottom, but i just show the first 5 lines. you get used to it real quick. I love it.
I build my own also. So does my son. It's so (sm)
very nice when we build pc for customers and present them with the finished product. The smiles on their faces when they see that they received exactly what they wanted/ordered is priceless.
there is no way a new MT can build sm
a Medical Phrase Index like the one in print. That book is a great teaching tool and a lot quicker than asking questions on the Word Board and waiting for an answer! Seems to me folks don't want to do the work and research anymore to become a good MT and want everyone else to do their work for them.
if you know what you want get a geek to build you one
Cheaper and better! Not mention you'll know who to call and whether or not they speak English...;)
If you live in the Seattle area, try this link:
http://www.dresch.org/web/dcs/default.asp?c=1
I know him and his work - he'll put a 'puter together to your specifications and it'll be far superior to Dell (or anyone else, plus cost a lot less money)
what are you trying to do, build another city...
please go down about four posts and see the one titled "It never fails to amaze me" and see what happened to that train of thought and the responses to the same. You might get a clue to your answer. Have a great day. 
build your shortcuts to the max
it's ALL about your shortcuts. you have to shorten every word, phrase, not just medical ones, regular English too, assuming you transcribe for someone who SPEAKS English!! 
I have been using the same shortcut program for 10+ years and I STILL add things to it almost daily. 1st rule is if the shortcut doesn't just pop in your head, keep typing and don't think about it. it has to come to you automatically. then you have to be creative. example - I have this one doc who constantly says "once this was done" so I have that in as OTWD. "The patient tolerated the procedure well" is PATOL. I have things like ADP for adenopathy, then you have to expand that on further to be LADP for lymphadenopathy, AADP for axillary adenopathy, etc. if you have one doc who says some phrase constantly, even if it is only one doc, if you type him every day, make it a shortcut. I have typed in "codes" for so long they are drilled in my brain. I'll look at a license plate and it will say RSD456, my brain says "reflex sympathetic dystrophy." the longer you use it the bigger it will get and pretty soon you're typing all shortcuts and not much else.
Are you using an expander? Build up
you're macros/normals. I'm able to batch my work. I type all my reports in each batch and then I go back and relisten to each report, but I turn the speed up so they sound like the Chipmunks. I feel like it goes faster than reading each report, and I find that I'm able to catch errors that I wouldn't have caught by just reading the report.
He can build it. Just keep reciepts. nm
:+
Here's how I've build my own expander-ese:
For multiples, I use numbers based on several criteria. For example, my related Expanders may be 'abc1, abc2, abc3'.
I may use the most-used phrase as #1, less-used as #2, least-used as #3, etc.
Or, I may base it on the length of the phrase - shortest phrase 1st, longer 2nd, longest 3rd.
Or, I sometimes use the numbers to signify tense or multiples. If ABC stood for, let's say, 'abdominal clamp', I may assign them s follows:
abc1 - abdominal clamp
abc2 - abdominal clamps
abc3 - abdominal clamping
That's just a 'fer-instance', but you get the idea.
ALSO: I use my auto-correct as my expander, so space in it isn't limitless. To make one abbreviation go further, type it in lower case. Example:
'dx' - for 'diagnosis'.
When you type in 'dx' in lower-case, you'll get 'diagnosis'. Type the first letter capitalized ('Dx'), and you'll get 'Diagnosis'. Type it in all-caps ('DX'), and you'll get 'DIAGNOSIS'! Three abbreviations in one!
Hope that helped!
:)
Agreed -- Bear is pretty much THE authority on accreditation and distance learning (NM)
nm
Temporary dog house is easy to build.
Take a large cardboard box, cover outside of it with multiple sections of newspaper, then tape large plastic sheets (open up garbage sacks) over it. It is well insulated against cold and wet.
I try not to pressure myself so I don't get that way. I build up speed naturally. -nm
x
Get a custom build from a local place.
I don't know about the Macs compatibility though. I had my computer custom built through a local place and am so glad I need. My kids have done things to this computer that no one has ever seen or been able to quite figure out how they did it but the local placed fixed me right up and they keep companies of all my program disks in case I have a complete crash and need to reformat the beasts. They also custom built an HP laptop which I love, love, love.
I believe most of the MT software programs have a build it "cannot edit"
mechanism,so that once a document has been signed; electronically or otherwise, it cannot be altered. Regarding Addundums, if you were not the original Transcriptionist who typed the document, most companies want you to bypass it in the pool, which will then be reassigned to the original tramscriptionist. It's not good company policy reading and or making an addenda to anyone else's report other than your own.
I believe most of the MT software programs have a build it "cannot edit"
mechanism,so that once a document has been signed; electronically or otherwise, it cannot be altered. Regarding Addundums, if you were not the original Transcriptionist who typed the document, most companies want you to bypass it in the pool, which will then be reassigned to the original tramscriptionist. It's not good company policy reading and or making an addenda to anyone else's report other than your own.
Personally, I would prefer to build my own list versus
using a premade list. If you build it yourself, you know what's in there and you use a system that is comfortable for you. It takes time, but it's well worth it. Quite frankly, I think this smacks of wanting someone else to do the hard work for you, taking the easy way.
Not the AD but when that other giveaway was going on - sm
I found it once on the WAHM board, so I would presume the Secret Santa can be on any board listed to the left. Remember it looks like any other post....at least in that last giveaway it did; hence it is very hard to find.
that would be stickY (sorry)
x
Sticky
My local company is the cheapiest that I have found and never once have I had them separate in the laser printer and I have been using this for 15+ years. I have very little waste as I just do continuous notes on the 8 1/2 sheets and cut apart before I deliver to the offices. I pay $28.70 for 250 sheets and that is with 2 slits along the side so it is easy for the girls to file into the charts. True I go and pick up but it is only 10 miles from me. I have searched and searched and found no place cheaper. And like I said it has never peeled apart and I have had Avery, Viking, many nationals that have jammed in my laser printer before and never once have these. And I like giving locals the business. As for the perforated ones, it is $33 per 250 but I wasted too much for that and when it comes in a roll and you have to cut apart and it curls, too much work for me. My 2 cents for the day.
Tar is sticky
nm
No idea...in 3+ years when we build I wil figure it out....probably a wolf theme
xx
Thank you MTstars for doing the giveaway again!
MT Stars giveaway
Thank you guys so much for my gift certificate from Lisa R from Wolcott NY. It is much appreciated.
Sticky paper
Like I said below I buy my sticky paper through a place that prints up forms. You will need to do some calling to see. It is a little expensive but I provide that in my price. Just do not buy the boxed stuff from Viking or Office Depot or Office Max as they do not not have the perforations on the sides so that when they peel the note it is smaller than the paper and fits on a piece of paper. E-mail me if you have any questions. But if you are in the Seattle area, there are a lot of paper places up there. If you are doing overflow then the main MT should be able to tell you where to get the paper. Also they might provide it as some accounts do. Everyone is different. But CONGRATS -- the first step is the hardest. Knew you could do it. Be sure to ask for lots of examples when you start. Keep me informed. Any questions you can e-mail me. Patti typing without glasses hope don't have many typos.
You can get Sticky paper
You can get sticky paper from Medical Arts Press, get the quick peel that has perforations on the side so it fits on your regular sized paper. It is expensive though, I used to buy the large box, approx $90.00, so if you can get your client to supply it, that would be great. I always had to supply my own.
Sticky Paper
Does any one have any suggestions on a type of paper that can be printed on and then stuck into a patient's chart? I would like to find a lable type to fit in a certain space. Brand names would be helpful. Thank you in advance
Sticky paper
I use an 8 1/2 x 11 label size paper that has about 1/8" inch that peels back on each side so that it is smaller than the paper you place it on. The clinics use it to put the chart notes in the charts. I get it at a form place that makes it. Avery makes 8 1/2 x 11 labels but you have to cut down the sides before you peel back the sheet to place it on the paper and it doesn't have great peel backs either. Call local form places and sometimes they will have perforations 1" or so but I don't like that as you waste a lot when you have to begin another chart note and you have to be sure it is below one of the perforations. Have been using this for 15 years now. Did go with some national companies but the shipping got to be too much. Again, call local paper and form places in your area and see if theymake it. E-mail me wiht specific questions.
Patti
Sticky Paper
Another good source that is much less expensive than Medical Arts Press, American Corporate Services this company seems to carry everything that is Medical Record Related their web addy is www.americancorporateservices.com think you can find their number on the site. Im sure they carry these tyoe of rolls.
Sticky Paper
Hi, I have always used plain computer paper for my reports but have a new doctor who prefers me to use the "sticky" paper. I was wondering if I should charge for the paper, since it is an added cost, and also if anyone knows where to purchase this paper. Thanks.
sticky paper
I have a great supplier Forms & Filing Systems 800-472-0171. Costs about $120 for 1000 sheets. I pass this cost on to my docs.
sticky paper
I'm not sure about the colors. But it is laser quality. It comes in different label sizes. I use a full sheet lable.
Sticky paper
I get mine from a local form company and it comes with 1/4" inch strips on the sides so that when they peel it off to put into the chart the note is smaller than the paper and fits better. I pay $28 per 300 sheets.
sticky strips
We went through this at the hospital I worked for a couple of years ago and I can't quite remember why it turned out to be okay to register patients like this, but supposedly it was okay. My doctor's office has you write your name on a sticky strip which they immediately take off so it does not stay on the record there, but they still do call your name, so you can't travel incognito if you wanted to. It does seem like a violation of some sort. My drug store won't even tell my husband my Rx is ready for pick up, even though I've told them it's okay.
sticky strips, RXs
Thanks for reminding me what they're called! As for the RX thing, my pharmacy is the same way. You know it's just a huge CYA thing, and creates many inconveniences for "us," but they don't want to fool with a lawsuit.
Anyway, from what I've read here, either some places are okay, and others are in violation. Fortunately it hasn't affected my life. It's been interesting to read the different posts, though.
It says you must enter each giveaway to be qualified
I think that means each different one you need to enter separately. that is the way the posts sounded to me anyway.
Sticky situation/IRS/IC status
I just had my taxes done (extension) and was told that if the company that I do IC work with dictates my hours that my home office deductions may be disallowed. This company asks you up front or tells you up front what "shifts" they have available for you and then they expect you to work those hours. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to approach them about this - I have skirted the issue by working a few hours different every day - but usually staying within a block of time - and they have not said anything to me - but I think that is only a matter of time. I like my job and the work is great - I just don't want to owe more taxes than necessary because the company is not willing to work with ICs but expect us to work a set schedule. Hope someone has had this come up and will have some good information or at least tell me how to tactfully address this situation without losing my work. Of course, i don't guess that any job is worth it if the company is not willing to comply with the IRS rules.
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