Home     Contact Us    
Main Board Job Seeker's Board Job Wanted Board Resume Bank Company Board Word Help Medquist New MTs Classifieds Offshore Concerns VR/Speech Recognition Tech Help Coding/Medical Billing
Gab Board Politics Comedy Stop Health Issues
ADVERTISEMENT




Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

Safe way of mailing printed reports?

Posted By: Libby on 2009-01-13
In Reply to:

I am currently transcribing and printing reports for a doctor, and pay a courier to go back and forth picking up tapes & dropping off printed reports. Have found a way for the doc to easily send me his transcription digitally, but they still want their reports printed and sent to them. The courier is kind of expensive to just deliver reports. Wasn't sure if Priority Mail with Signature Confirmation would be a HIPAA compliant way of sending reports? Or possibly a Fedex option? Does anyone know of a relatively inexpensive way of getting reports delivered (about 40 miles away) that would be safe and HIPAA compliant? Faxing is not an option, as most are printed letters and the fax quality is just not great. Would appreciate any thoughts/ideas at all. Thanks!


Complete Discussion Below: marks the location of current message within thread

The messages you are viewing are archived/old.
To view latest messages and participate in discussions, select the boards given in left menu


Other related messages found in our database

Yes, me too, but I still drop off printed reports
The phone system just makes it easier to track reports, no more broken tapes, etc. Plus, drs like it when they can call with an urgent document instead of waiting for pickup. I was hesitant (old dog not wanting new tricks) but I really like it a lot. It also is more secure as far as HIPAA, each dr has a different log-in and all.
Charging for printing/mailing reports
I just spoke to a doc interested in my services and one of the questions he asked was how much I would charge for printing and mailing the reports to him. The cost of paper and shipping is pretty easy to calculate, but the cost of ink as well as my time is a little more difficult. Is there some easy way to calculate this for an estimate or would some of you mind sharing your rates? I appreciate any help or advice on the matter. Thanks!
Does this seem fair? To charge .16 per line - includes printed reports, copies on disk for one year

and delivery.  I do travel twice a week to this office.  Plus, at times I will fax or email the reports free of charge.  I live in Southern California in an upscale area. 


 


Thanks again!


It's two. Look at how it comes out printed... (s/m)
... two spaces between sentences is easier to read and more professional looking. One space is hard to read and amateurish... like what you see in cellphone texting!

Even if they tell me one, I'm still gonna do two - I'd be embarrassed to put my initials on it otherwise.
Keep mailing

I have always just done mass mailings, 100 or so and always received anywhere from one to three responses and some of those accounts are with me 18 years later.  Now it is more word of mouth.  I am also listed in the phone book and receive some from that -- mainly a one timer transcription but those are good cash jobs.   Again, it is hitting the offices once every three months or so and they recognize your name.   If they do seem interested or if there is a particular office I want, I do follow up with some cookies or treats for the office.  Good way to get past the front office.  I have already been told it is dorkey to do this.  But I do it.  I have someone from our church that makes homemade cookies and the large ones, so for a special price she will do a dozen or so and when she wraps them, on the second wrapping is my business card so as they receive the cookie, the first thing that she see is my card.  Costs a little but has worked for me.   Have used pens, calendars but the cookies do seem to work the best.  If there were enough of us doing private accounts we might be able to bring back some of those from overseas as I tell the doctor -- I do not have overhead, big expenses so I can pass those savings onto you with excellent personal service.  I do some extras -- cut apart chart notes, envelopes, etc.  Again, I make a good living, my accounts pay on time and yes I provide them with a personal service on a first name basis and we all work together.  They know after this many years that if I raise my rates it is because it is necessary and never give me a bad time.  Never question my line counts, delivery time or what.  So keep at it, find your niche and go for it.  The downside is -- sometimes you get a bad account just like the nationals,  you really have to think and plan for time off and there are days you want to run away but all in all, I would not change having my own accounts for anything in the world.


 


IIt's a fun show. I printed out the
recipe for the Chipotle pasta that the judges wanted seconds on. I'll make it this weekend.
Mass mailing

I usually do a mass mailing out to those clinics/solo docs/specialists with one to two in an office - usually 100 to 150 flyers, brochures.  Then if anyone calls or if there are offices I am interested in picking up or know do have companies do their dictation, I stop by with a dozen cookies --homemade and leave with a brochure.  Gotta get past the receptionist and sometimes that is the way to do it.  I try to go at times I know the offices are not the busiest, right before afternoon hours, right before lunch, etc.  I have gotten inquiries from perhaps 5 to 7% of my mailings, which they tell me is quite high and have picked up my last two accounts from mailings/call backs, etc.  They have all stayed with me.  I have not done a mailing in close to five to six years because I have had my accounts for so long.   But that is what I did.  I am thinking of getting my nephews and on a Saturday morning putting flyers underneath office doors in several medical buildings we have that are next to the hospitals here in Portland.   Also send out to orthodontists, psychologists, counselors, podiatrists, chiropractors, etc.  If you can do digital, then send flyers out to outlying smaller cities where no one delivers or picks up.   There are accounts out there just gotta dig for them sometimes.   But be willing to do it all, pick-up, deliver, printing, envelopes, copies, to get your foot in the door and then word of mouth works very well.   Good luck. 


Patti


They were probably printed in India. nm
 
Printed material
Yes - by the same poster who is now filling the Wicca and Witchcraft boards with spells!
Try e-mailing the SPF file to yourself. sm

if you still have your old computer...this advice might not help if your old computer is gone.


Good luck!


Chickadee


Would you mind e-mailing me with the name

of the TASP?  I have been looking for information on TASPs and have contacted a few and of course they all say they are reliable, bla bla bla.  The two that I actually was able to get hold of by phone took almost a week to get back to me, so I'm not impressed already. Thank you very much. 


I wouldnt pay them for the work that they held up.  Get all the proof you can of when the clinic sent the work, when it needed to be returned, etc.  If you lose the account over something like this, that means the TASP gets less money too.  Doesn't make sense to me. 


I have the printed version, and it's not very useful. (n/m)
*
Turn it around on them. Ask them for a mailing label

wait for their reply.  If they tell you they're going to hold your check, tell them again that if you'll be more than happy to return the equipment if they send a mailing label or arrange for pickup.  In that letter / email, mention also that after 30 days you will be charging them for storage and after 60 days you will be forced to sell the equipment to recoup your losses for your last paycheck and will send them the remainder of the sale profits.  Keep sending them letters every week or so to show good faith in trying to contact them and work out a solution to the problem.


It doesn't mean that's what you have to do, but tell them it's one of your options and see how they respond.  If they threaten you with court, tell them that you have copies of all correspondence regarding return of the equipment, but they have been unreasonable.  If they really want their equipment bad enough, they'll pay to get it back.  This expense should not fall on the shoulders of the MT.


How are you delivering the work? Are you e-mailing it
or actually delivering it to his office. This would make a big difference since you are paying for gas to drive there, paper and ink to print out the reports, etc. Perhaps you could charge by the page. Personally, I would charge the same for everything since he will have more old patients than new ones, and you said the template is shorter for rechecks. Also, a lot of times they make changes to the template and you still have to edit.
based on posts below regarding supervisors not e-mailing, etc
 does anyone know what a work at-home supervisor's job duties area and what salary they are paid.  looking for a supervisory job so i can quit the grind of transcribing but need to know more about duties and pay.
I got the email in a mass mailing that was done in error
Then one of the owners of the company tried to weasel out of it in a subsequent email.

It happened. I was there, and so were you. Shame on you for trying to mislead people once again!
The last call I received after a huge mailing (sm)

And I mean huge, over 200 brochures with over 25 years of experience and a digital system -- they were willing to pay about 9 cents a line for surgery notes.  Since I live in California, 16 cents would be more like it.  I guess I'm not that flexible.


They must have answered that India ad. 


printed for my dozen coworkers! LOVIT!! -nm-
x
Religion board/Catholic is full of printed material!!!
Whoa
Look for like inside directly from Microsoft about how to print mailing labels

and mailing lists.


http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/word/HA011269731033.aspx


Anyone know how I can take addresses from a Word document and transfer them to mailing labels?

I have several hundred typed out, but cannot for the life of me figure out how to turn it into a mailing list.  I have downloaded Avrey Wizard, but when I try to do it, it asks me about field delimiters and no matter what I pick it doesn't work.  Maybe there is a simpler way??


Thanks!


welcome; i printed it out and have it hanging beside my desk. current AAMT BOS, electronic addition
:
In a time where holey jeans and a t-shirt that has some vulgar words printed on it, I'd say YES
c
The MR reports were being filed. Referring physicians/medical care providers reports were not.
This is a hospital radiology department with in-house MTs and a clerk who is in charge of the report distribution.
The two sentence normal reports will balance out the 3 page reports.
I am Wendy too
I made a card with a nice close-up photo of hers printed oblong-shaped with a red background, a huge
blank space beside the photo for my message written in silver ink, and some pressed tiny flowers to decorate the edges, then I laminated. She was so proud to show it off to her friends. (You might want to use this idea next year, maing sure you press small flowers first, or you can think of other decors).
It never was safe. nm
x
To be safe, 30,000-40,000 (NM)
nm
I think it's safe. We do it all the time. You
sit right there with them and watch everything they do as you talk to them. Once you terminate the connection, they can't get back in without your help and permission the next time.
Better safe than sorry - money aside - LM
Way, way back when I was a student in college & lived in a dormitory, I started with right-sided pain walking back from classes one day. Next morning I was doubled over in pain & running a fever. Roommate called our floor "House Mother" to get me some help & for some unknown reason she thought I was "faking" it when I said I couldn't go to my classes - got me no help & told me to go to my classes. Thank God for my roommate "who knew me" & knew I had never missed any of my classes & stood up to our "House Mother". My roommate just happened to have an older brother (a coach at the local high school) She called him - he came to the dorm, saw the shape I was in & carried me out to his car & took me to the campus hospital. After all their examinations - they shipped me to the city hospital & thankfully the doctor there felt it was imperative I have surgery & did so with phone permission from my parents - thinking I "did" have a ruptured appendix. Come to find out, I had a ruptured ovarian cyst, was hemorrhaging internally, & was a mess. I was 18 - they took part of my ovary & went ahead & took out my appendix while they were in there.

Simply put -if I had had pain for 3 days which was not improving - regardless of the price, I'd have it checked out. I'd rather pay $100 to find out nothing was wrong & have my peace of mind than suffer the possible consequences of ignoring it. You just never know!

If I knew I had done nothing strenuous or out of the ordinary for me to cause this pain, i.e., all of sudden from sedentary to working out 24/7, I'd check it out- immediately !!
I'd rather be scared & safe than sorry!
I have surge protectors & an APC battery back-up system; however, I have those so I will have an alarm & time to close my applications safely without loosing info during a storm (Hopefully). That being said -"I will not work during a thunderstorm/bad lightening." When my APC beeps - I backup & close what I've been working on, close all applications, log off & unplug everything!

NO - it's not safe to work during a thunderstorm/bad lightning!! Your time and/or comittment at work will have to play seconds to saving your life - & I'm not kidding that this is a possibility. Anything plugged into an electrical socket, including a phone, has the potential of being hit with lightning. I just won't risk playing with Mother Nature !! I've read of too many who have and have lost !!
OMG...these are hilarious...I think it's safe to say we all have

So no real safe way to put...
a "bug" in their ear that you're available if they want you huh?
Melatonin can be useful and safe for some ... BUT
there can be side effects. I used it several years ago to help with sleep problems and it did help, and I thought I'd finally licked the problem. Unfortunately, I began to suffer from depression, which I had never experienced before. Since the Melatonin was the only change I had made before the depression, I stopped it, and the depression subsided. I later learned that depression can be a side effect of using melatonin for some people. I hope this is not the case for you and that you are able to continue to enjoy the sleep benefits of melatonin. However, if you find yourself becoming depressed, consider that the melatonin might be the cause.
Is Red Bull safe? sm
Does anyone know exactly how it works chemically? Is it different than caffeine?
I am glad you are safe

You said:   "I know the definition of an addict, and I, in no way, resemble or exhibit an addicts behavior."


I question whether you do know the definition of addictive behavior.  Going away by yourself in a hotel room without telling anyone where you are in order to withdraw from opiates is not what most people would do if they do not have something to hide.  Being a pain patient does not exclude one from becoming addicted.


Safe Family Act

The case I referred to was settled perhaps 2 years ago.  In that case, the grandmother already had custody (not adopted) of the older 2 siblings by filing in court herself.  In the case of the youngest child, he was premature, in a different county, and as the bio already had a history of not being able to take care of her children, the child was taken to the foster home the day he was released from the hospital.  This grandmother is a kindergarten teacher and grandfather has classification clearance in the Air Force.  Even though the grandmother had the older 2, they did not give her the opportunity to have the 3rd child.  She hired lawyers and finally did everything herself by terminating parental rights (bios don't like having to pay child support to the grandparents!) and then was able to adopt the 3rd child. 


The act gives the state 24 months (period) to close a case on children in state care.  If the bio is not agreeable to giving custody to relatives, the case can remain open and the bio has the opportunity to go to drug rehabilitation, parenting classes, get a stable job and prove they can independently provide for themselves BUT while those children are in foster care, the clock is ticking.  Some bios don't want to do all those things or cannot in that time frame.  If the state realizes the bios are going to make the time frame, and no relatives are involved, then yes, the child can be adopted by the foster care.  The case workers are overworked and under a lot of pressure to get cases closed so the state gets a good Federal score and gets bonus money...so yes, there are cases when it is easier to adopt the child to a foster parent than to relatives...then relatives have a fight they should not have to be fighting.


I knew when my GD was born that someday this was going to happen and I put myself in a position to be available and willing to take her.  I listen to her night terrors.  She asks why mommy doesn't call - I tell her mommy has to take a test (drugs) and then mommy can visit again.  It can be maddening because now I have to supervise the bios visiting the child.  No overnight visits.  Some states require background checks on other people who may care for the child.  Can't place her on my insurance as she is not adopted.  I got state benefits and part of that means I have to take my own daughter to court to get child support (bio dud has his own court case).  Some states make relatives become foster parents to keep their own grandchildren.  I'm single so now I work 2 jobs. The state closed my case as it became a private petition.   But whatever I go through, what she gives me is priceless. 


A Cross pen or pen set is always safe. :-)
nm
Thanks for the help. To be 100% safe I'm going to call my tax guy
x
Frosting is safe....for now!

How bad is that?!  I've eaten leftover frosting after the container was opened so it "wouldn't go to waste," but I still have the cake mix to make cupcakes and am too much of a tightwad deep down to waste it like that...and I'm just not in the mood to bake nuthin' today. 


So I ate a couple of teaspoons of straight-up honey and called it good.  Grocery run...gotta make one!


Safe mode sm

Have you tried to delete program under safe mode?  That is your best option right now. 


Also, when you said you accessed task manager and you have 37 running, do you mean processes running?  Because if you will under task manager, you have "applications, processes, performance, users, etc." 


Oops, meant to ask first, what operating system do you have? 


Let me know.  I will be in and out of this site, so it may take me a bit to get back to you. 


Going to safe mode now
Just found a site that walked me through how to try the safe mode route. Hope it works... I don't have my laptop backed up for work yet!
As for 37 task managers, that's what I meant, as if I had pushed ctrl/alt/dlt 37 times. Lots of other processes running, but 37 task managers open (that were not there before). I think the gremlins were having a party!
And I have Windows XP. Wish me luck and hopefully I'll talk to y'all tomorrow. Thanks for all your help.
I think you're safe.
I'm sure there's a possibility something could happen, but millions of people get theirs direct deposited so they must have some good security measures in place.

I've done the direct deposit for probably 6 years now and never had a problem. You get your refund much, much faster too.
Sure, nothing is 100% safe anymore.
It's only as safe as the technology you use and set up you have, which is constantly changing these days. But just because you are "wireless" doesn't mean you can't have a connection as secure as any other.
Try it in safe mode...sm

Shut down the computer.  As soon as you turn it back on, begin pressing the F8 key repeatedly.  You should come to a black and white screen with an option of starting in safe mode.  Arrow down to this option and press 'Enter'.  The computer will then start in safe mode.  Try it from there.  Hope this helps. 


Does anyone know when the Safe ID bill comes up for vote?
(regarding our medical records being sent out of the country).  I have already emailed my senators and am encouraging everyone to do the same.
Don't buy dolphin-safe tuna...
http://www.greenpeacefoundation.com/dolphinmark.html
SO glad he is back, and safe.

Is this a safe place to vent? (SM)
I truly hope none of my co-workers visit here, but maybe they won't recognize my vent.

I feel like last man on the totem pole where I work. I will say it sometimes makes me feel like I get all of the leftovers from other people. They take what they want and I'm left to grab what's left, if there is anything left. It's also different rules for different folks. I get called on them if something happens but others do not. I keep telling myself, suck it up, do your own stuff, whenever you get it, and just keep on going. Don't worry about the others. The money is good and it's a great account, I just sometimes feel I am dumped on from time to time. You know, what's good for the goose isn't good for the gander, type thing.

Does anyone else deal with this? People are nice when things are going good, but if they're having a bad day, you get crapped on? I sometimes feel like a little kid with their words and treatment.


America voted and you are SAFE!
Hooray for Taylor baby!!!!!
know of any safe hairstyle sites?
I got a fatal virus last year from a hair site -- would sure like to look at hairstyles or 'try them on' without the worry.  Thanks.