However, I might suggest you work on your grammar skills!
Posted By: nm on 2005-11-30
In Reply to: She explicity stated she would fail the test - not even working yet
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grammar, honey, grammar...
Not at all intending to say I was better than you. Merely pointed out that grammar is an integral part of MT and one area in which you are handicapped. I felt my post was respectful, informative and fair. However, feel free to sink your two grand into MT schooling and then try to find a job. I've been at this for over twenty years and I'm telling you right now-- you won't find one...
I would suggest
I would suggest:
AAMT BOS (Book of Style)(www.aamt.org), Stedman's (www.stedmans.com) Quick Look Drug Book (I like the hard copy better than the CD - Also, I have Bilips Drug Index and I don't like it as much as the Quick Look Drug Book), every Stedman's Word Book Series and Stedman's Medical Dictionary. If available on CD get them! If only available in book form, then you are stuck with the book. It's easier/faster to look things up when you have the software (I just find the drug book cumbersome on CD). The CDs are really awesome. You can search on partial words/phrases, etc.
By the way, if you join the AAMT (you would be a student member I assume - the membership is discounted)... you can get 30% off of most of Stedman's products. You might think I am crazy for buying ALL of Stedman's Word Books, but when I was doing the hospital account, I transcribed for EVERY specialty out there and I got my moneys' worth for every last one of them. The Pathology and Lab Medicine Words is a especially needed..these doctors abbreviate all over the place and it really helps.
As far as foot pedals go, I started out with an Infinity USB pedal (www.martelelectronics.com - they seem to have very reasonable prices) but as accounts change, so do the pedals. I now have the USB pedal, a 9-pin foot pedal, and a dictaphone pedal. Whatever training you choose, they will tell you what pedal you need for the course and it will probably come with the training (my opinion is that Andrews seems to be the best ... they say M-Tec and Career Step are wonderful too.. but if I had to do it again, I would go to Andrews). Then when you get a job, if that pedal isn't right, they will provide you with one or tell you what you need to buy.
As far as expanders... when I started out I bought Stedman's Smartype, a good program, but never used it. Word has autocorrect which I was using and I loved it. Just started a new account that doesn't use Word or have its own expander, so I purchased PC Shorthand. It's wonderful and works with everything I've tried so far ... it even works in IM, web searches, Word, Excel, e-mail, etc. My plan is to use PC Shorthand forever now even if I get another account in the future that uses Word. You can download it free for 30 days and buy it later (www.pcshorthand.com). If you get it and start training, I suggest you add everything you learn as you go so that you are ahead of the game when you get a job.
I hope this helps. If I remember anything else, I will send you another post. With all my stuff on CD.. the only thing on my desk is a little pad, the drug book and AAMT BOS..everything else I use consistently is right there on my PC.
Good luck to you!
I would suggest
utilizing a word expander. Especially on drug names. Every time you have to type the name of a medication, put it in your word expander. That way the next time you have to type it you only have to use your abbreviation and you don't have to think about the proper spelling or capitalization. I would also start entering every commonly used phrase and *normal* words in your Expander as well. A Word Expander will help you a lot.
Which is why we always suggest (sm)
the only 2 schools that have graduates who do get jobs right out of school.
Otherwise it's a jungle out there.
I suggest you take an MT course
I believe it would be in your best interest to take an MT course because there is more to being a productive MT than just knowing a few medical terms. If you choose an accredited school, they will have a list of companies that will accept you after you graduate even without 2 years of experience. Have you inquired about trying an internship locally to get an idea of what MT is all about? You could be done or almost done by the time you have your first child, so why not gather information from at least the well-known schools and do it the right way? As an MT your earnings will be based on production, which means the better prepared you are for the job, the more you will make. If you are looking for a job you can do from home, why not try virtual assistant, and then you would not need to worry about medical terminology! Good luck.
I would suggest trying (sm)
Mavis Beacon. When I began MT school, my speed was around 70 wpm. I am now at approximately 120 wpm after years of transcribing daily. Before I began MT school, I would spend approximately 45 minutes daily on Mavis Beacon trying to practice my skills. Actually, I still do typing practice, even now. It's just something I love to do  . As others have said, typing speed is not the most important part of this job. I find that I move fast because of my knowledge (not having to look up words very often), macros, shortkeys, knowing the physicians' names at my facility, etc. Just practice and you should be fine  .
I would suggest contacting the...
director of any school you are interested in and explaining your situation. I was in a position very similar to yours and contacted Susan Francis of M-Tec and Linda Andrews. Both offered me a discounted rate, M-TEC's based on the materials I already owned, and Andrews based on pure sympathy I think. I don't know about a "shortened program," but M-TEC does have more than one option (Basic, Premier, Tier I, Tier II) and I think both programs are self-paced, so the fact that you have experience should help you to fly through the material quickly.
Your writing skills
concern me more. It appears you have not learned punctuation. I'm not trying to be mean, but there is enough to learn without having to learn basic writing skills too. I'd rather see English whizzes go into MT.
writing skills
well, I wasn`t being all picky on here. I see mistakes,typos on here all the time. Sorry
My suggest would be to spend some
the Medquist board on this site and forming your own opinion. Frankly, I don't know anyone who works there who is happy anymore.
Honestly, I would suggest you try to
locally find a job in a hospital, clinic, or doctor's office. You would be getting your foot in the door and getting some on-the-job training all at the same time. That's how I got started, and I would highly recommend it. There's also a lot to learn in the beginning, and it's so much easier to have others around to ask.
Lisa/Tech Skills
Lisa,
Did you attend that in AZ? I almost did that but decided to go another way.
What do you consider good grammer skills?
What is your very good in all the other parts of MT and only average in the grammer.
Continuing to improve your skills
Continuing to improve your skills will help you convince someone to give you a break.
Your posts are full of spelling and grammatical errors. If an employer needs someone whose work is well-written and has NO spelling or grammatical errors, and they see writing from you that looks like your posts here, do you think they will believe you're capable of doing the kind of work they need you to do?
Your school should have pointed this out.
interview/skills assessment
I go in for an interview/skills assessment for the job I talked about in a thread below in a few days.
The employer knows I have never done MT before and have not had a transcription course. Also knows I took Med Terms, lots of health science courses and MS Office training. I am thinking I need to brush up on what I already know and say I know, but do you think I should spend any time looking through an MT textbook I have at home (author is Fordney - its the text they use at our local tech college)? There will be about 1-2 mos of FT training if I get the job. I'm just thinking that when I get to the part where I have to do some transcription, I would be more comfortable if I had a basic idea of how to format some of the more common reports.
I plan on reviewing mostly med terms, and how to use special characters in MS Word and just plain old spending some time messing around in MS word so if I have to use it at the assessment, I can do it blindfolded. I was thinking about looking through a list of the most commonly prescribed medications too so I have the spellings fresh in my head - I tend to have a photographic memory when it comes to spelling so simply reviewing a list might help me if I have to spell a drug (and most likely will have to do so).
Does anyone have any other recommendations?
Google it. I would suggest staying away
from TVPS.com
I have used this company and had no problems. http://www.theprogrammers.com/wavp.html
Excellent skills are very much in demand
Excellent skills and a teachable attitude are always marketable.
If you have excellent skills and do the work the way the employers want it done, you will have many more options to choose from. If you take a course that doesn't teach all that employers expect you to know, it doesn't matter how hard you work and how much you put into it, you won't get anything out of it. You can't get out of a course what isn't there, no matter how hard you work. I recommend getting the best education you can and working hard. That pays off in the longterm.
It has to do with the education you received and what your skills are.
If you paid for a crappy course and didn't learn half of what you need to know, why should a company let you prove what little you did learn? They know which schools provide GOOD training and which do not. You also need grammar help, it's "should have" not "should of," if you don't know simple English grammar why should anyone trust your medical terminology skills?
I highly suggest you get a computer with XP - sm
99% of the companies out there do not use Vista. So either get your hands on an old one or buy a new one with it (I special ordered mine from Dell), or reformat your existing computer and get rid of the Vista. I use an Aircard which works great with every company I have tried it on so far, I would just say yeah, I have high speed....you do, it is just wireless. I had some trouble recently and the tech guys kept telling me my aircard would not work, etc. I told them I had been using it for 6 months just fine.....turns out it was a problem at their end and once they fixed it my aircard worked fine as always. Try www.lts-inc.com they will hire newbies and always have lots of work.
I would suggest the Wav Pedal Infinity
You can try e-bay, transcriptiongear.com, or executive communications. This Infinity reads all files. Also, you can download Express Scribe for free from www.vancedigital.com. I would get the newest Stedman's spell check, I love Stedman's. I have no clue on expanders, sorry, I only use word and autocorrect.
The company usually provides the software if they use an online platform. Some do require you purchase a particular software, i.e., DocShuttle. It all depends on where you apply and what they use.
Welcome to MTing....
I too was going to suggest switching feet.
Also, check yourself to make sure you are not sitting there with your heel down and your toe hovering over the pedal while you catch up with yourself. Even after 37 years on the job, I still catch myself doing that one. Be sure and take your foot completely away every possible chance you get. You could also try rearranging some things under your desk to try out different angles and positions of your legs and feet, and make sure you are not straining in any way to actually reach the pedal. Best of luck!
Being in the right place with the right skills at the right time helps too
//
I agree 100% with you on this "social skills" thing..sm
I am sure you will get some flack on this one, but I agree with you. Daycare has become way to convenient for some moms to dump their kids for eight hours, and sometimes more, a day.
I also have to disagree with the other poster who says a teacher can spot the kids who never got out of the house and went to daycare or preschool before entering school. That is just not true. My 11 y/o never went to preschool and she has been an honor roll 4.0 student since day one. She will actually advance to 7th grade next year and skip 6th grade.
I have a bachelor's in business and I am a CMA. I dont use either right now because I want to be home with my kids too. I chose to stay home and do transcription to keep me in the medical field and be home for my kids.
I will never chain myself to my computer and put my kid in daycare in order to meet a line requirement for the day. It just wont happen. I am lucky to have found my employer who lets me have that freedom.
So you can't do the ESL doctors? Your skills may be what's limiting your success
Your skills may be limiting you. Do some work on them. See if you can bring your work up to the level necessary to do well. You can do it!
This is a wakeup call for those with inadequate skills
As technology allegedly improves and new medical procedures and techniques are created, we all have to keep our skills up. Those who have not are having a tough time keeping job these days. They may want to blame it on the changes, but it isn't the changes, it's their lack of skills. We finally have come to the place in this industry that people can't just listen and type what the doctor says. Anyone who got into this business with less-than-excellent skills is now getting a wakeup call. I think that's what this poster is telling us. She has had a wakeup call and she has seen other unqualified MTs getting a wakeup call. Those who are prepared and continue to build on their skills have a present and a future in this industry.
You are good at "grammer". I suggest reading
your post again. I can't type but about 45 wpm if I'm typing from a piece of paper, but doing transcription I can type about 100 wpm. Some companies request you type so many wpm, but I don't know how they measure that or what difference you make. Many companies do require a minimum lph though. Of course accuracy is more important than speed, but if you are getting paid on production you want to be able to type fast as well as accurate.
I would highly suggest getting Stedman's Smartype and Spellcheck -sm
if you are using MS Word or Wordperfect. If using WP 5.1 DOS then find the above programs I mentioned for DOS (hard to find but out there). You should be able to do at least 800 lines in 8 hours if you apply yourself. As for looking drugs names, Smartype is a lifesaver, also with repetition you will learn the drug names. My first year I looked up a lot of drug names, though once I had some experience and then I had my Smartype those days pretty much ground to a halt. I rarely have to look anything up anymore. I am no speed demon myself and only average about 140 lph after 4 years, sometimes more, sometimes less, just depends on who I am doing.
Looking for a newbie in South Fla. with excellent communication skills
For cardiology account.
Hi, 'me': You suggest taking a mentoring program
for newbies.
Could you name some companies or schools which offer mentoring programs?
TIA
grammar
I don't mean to be so critical, but it seems that quite a few people on this forum have poor grammar and very bad spelling. These are two VERY important skills in this profession. I think it would be wise for some people to reconsider their choice in professions. If you never liked Engish in school or did not do well in in this subject, this will not be a good job for you. You will spend too much time correcting yourself. Please think about this.
GrammAR
"What is your very good in all the other parts of MT and only average in the grammer."
You are poor in both grammAr AND spelling. How do you expect to be good with medical terms if you don't even understand basic English?
Grammar
"... mispelling of English terms such as there/their and your/you're. Some MTs tend to think the way a poster spells on an MT board says something about their mastery of the English language."
It does. Either you know correct English grammar, or you do not. If you use the wrong form of a word, it's because you obviously do not know the difference, not just because you happen to be typing someplace besides "at work." Get real.
grammar
Are you the grammar police? I believe that was a simple mistake and I do know the English language, but I am also a happy person you on the other hand do not seem to be. Thank you though for the wonderful uplifting message you left me.
Grammar
grammar
Thanks! sounds like a great idea.
Grammar gals
Hey just wondering if everyone in this business was a top notch grammar gal in high school? 
Since grammar and punctuation are
very important in MT & you say you're having some trouble in that area, you could pick up a copy of a college grammar text book such as 'Little Brown Handbook' and brush up on it. I found it very helpful.
verbatim/grammar
I used to get hung up on the same thing. Do what you feel most comfortable with. When you get a job, they will tell you what they want you to do. Just realize that it very difficult to type exactly what they are comparing you to. Look at it and see if it really an error or just preference of formating.
PCDI teaches some grammar...
Believe it or not, PCDI actually does have a good section of their lessons put aside for grammar. I have still not mastered grammar (I'm not even close), but the lessons that PCDI gave me for grammar sure helped refresh some lost and forgotten rules!
and lots of grammar errors.
It is always good to have dreams.....
Without good grammar you would not even pass - sm
the test(s) you take in order to get a job. They ask a zillion grammar questions, which word to use (affect/effect; their/there; advise/advice), spelling, etc. Also all MTs, no matter how many years experience, be it 1 month or 15 years, must be able to take criticism (and learn from it). That is the first lesson you must learn. No matter how good a MT course is reputed to be, you will still have plenty to learn at the end of it. Many have the attitude that they all the all-knowing diva of MT and everyone else is full of it. So the OP needs to get rid of the chip on their shoulder, I know people here can be quite harsh and some of those here could be a bit more tactful, but bottom line is that they are right.
Grammar Text Book
Hey sm, just looked for that book on Amazon and there are quite a few different Little Brown Handbooks, could you tell me the ISBN#, author and edition? Thanks.
Most services are looking more for proper spelling, grammar, and
sentence structure than they are layout. I don't give a hoot what the layout looks like because I have my own way of doing things that I train the MT on how to do upon hire.
Not true, I made a 95 once. But grammar and spelling
are key issues as stated below.
There is no need to correct grammar or spelling mistakes on this board. (NM)
Goldbird
couldn't agree more - grammar is critical yet not taught in the MT schools sm
I find it makes or breaks any MT I take on. I wish they would focus more on it. Most people can't figure out plural possessive or whether to use affect or effect.
Nice advice, however, learning good grammar usually falls somewhere
between grades 1-8 and, even more so, 9-12, if you are lucky enough to be exposed to good schools. If they have not been the afforded the opportunity to attend a solid grade school, as well as a high school, with teachers who emphasize and demand the importance of correct grammar, they are going to be left behind when it comes to MTing, or have to take some English classes to catch up on what they missed during the early days of learning.
The egregious grammar errors are much worse than misspelling one word.
Congratulations is not a word used frequently in MT, it was just an example. I'm being honest (and trying to be helpful) suggesting she brush up on grammar. Definitely meant no offense.
Search the boards and send out resumes, and review your grammar and punctuation
s
aren't we lucky this site has you to correct our spelling/grammar usage.
maybe you should consider editing.
Wrong. As I said, her English vocab & grammar were great, but PCDI didn't teach her enough medic
With an adequate school she would have been great. She had been a secretary for years and had transcribed business dictation previously. She just couldn't learn enough terms in 3 months or whatever.
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