That simple, easy, clear dictation practice is what the crappy schools use.
Posted By: deb on 2009-06-11
In Reply to: I agree about the poor training, but s/m - mtmtmt
Then the person graduates, thinks they know what they're doing, and are totally shocked when they start trying to do REAL MT work. One of many reasons these cheap, crappy, found-out-about-it-on-a-matchbook-cover schools AREN'T recommended.
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My final exam was all but ' simple, easy, clear
transcription. It was 70 pages long, 98% accuracy, the audio was mediocre. It was a good school, but not M-Tec or Andrews.
Practice Dictation
I'm looking for free practice dictation in oncology/hematology. I'm coming up with nothing on Google. Can anyone point me in the right direction? I've got a job lined up, but I need more practice before I start. TIA for help!
Practice Dictation
I am starting the practice dictation portion of my training. The first examples were someone from the school that I chose doing the dictation and then I moved on to actual doctor reports.
My question: How common is it for doctors to talk like they have a mouthful of marbles? The first one was awful and there was no way I could decipher what he was saying. I had my husband listen to it and he looked at me like WTH?
The practice is on CD ... does that make any difference? Are the files that are received better in clarity?
This is really disheartening. I feel lost and am beginning to wonder if I can even do this.
I loaded the first 20 practice files and about half are understandable. The rest is a just a garbled mess.
Any input is sincerely appreciated.
Practice, practice, practice!! What in particular are you having trouble with?
.
For every crappy course that's out there (sm)
SOMEBODY will pop up and say, "I took that course, and I got a job." Sure, some people get lucky. But for every couple of people who post that they were able to get a job, there's a LOT of people who can't get a job. "Everyone wants 2 years of experience." That's true, but with a GOOD education (Andrews or M-TEC) that 2-year requirement is WAIVED at many places.
So if you don't really care about finding a job when you finish, go ahead and take a crappy cheaper course. Then you can join the ranks of people posting all over the internet that they can't get a job, "because everyone wants 2 years' experience."
Its hard to even ask a simple question here...
Roxie, I have to respond to you. I feel as though you are being attacked here and it is just wrong. I look at this board and I have been transcribing about two years. I feel that many transcriptionists here are just rude. I know what you were asking and I can say that I worked with an internship program for three months and that got my foot in the door to work for another national company. The pay was terrible but that was okay. I just wanted to work and learn about the real world of transcription outside of the schooling environment. I am sorry you felt attacked. I hardly ever post because I see how new MT professionals get treated here. It is just a disgrace to our profession. Seasoned Transcriptionist must not remember what it was like to just start out. Give her a break. Please.
ShortHand is another good one. I didn't like IT; not simple enough for me! nm
s
Let's be clear . . .
M-TEC is the only school that has been THROUGH THE APPROVAL PROCESS.
You made it sound like they're the only one good enough to get the approval. That's not accurate. They're just the only one who's finished the process so far.
Just to be clear . . . (sm)
You received a certificate from your school.
You did not receive a certification, which is only awarded after passing the AAMT exam.
Here is a more clear example SM
1. MT who can work 4 hours during the day only, needs family time. Average line counts, good quality. Runs out of work, only wants certain work to supplement.
2. MT who works 2nd shift, asks for more work from whatever account needs help when work runs out. Will take work late into night if line count needs boost or come on early if TAT is out on his/her accounts.
Who is more valuable to the owner of the business?
Simple words like "grammar" are NOT what a spellchecker is for. Not if you have "excellent
X
You need a GOOD education to have the experience waived. Simple as that. NM
x
I would steer clear. (sm)
You said they e-mailed you offering you work and then asked for money. I'm a little unclear as to if you contacted them first or not. If not, I would definitely steer clear. Employers in this business don't generally do that if they are legitimate because there are so many MTs looking for work. I know people have been e-mailed off this board, and were offered work but they had to shell out money first and it turned out to be a scam. I realize it's only $11.95 but it does sound fishy and if it is a scam you don't want to give those type of people any more money. JMO. Please post again if you find out more information.
Hear ya loud and clear!!
I am also having trouble getting my foot in the door anywhere. Frankly, my toes are a little sore!
If you can't taype a simple English sentence properly, you're not going to find a job. nm
x
Yes, I understood perfectly. You came across loud and clear.
x
To be clear, this is the posters view of the mentioned school
and not the opinion of MTStars. MTStars has no position pro or con on any school even if they are a sponsor. We are merely a venue for people to post within the Terms of Service/Disclaimer of mtstars.com
Easy for you to say
Sure they are worth more than that. But the world is apparently changing and not everyone can afford to "hold out" and not work until the right thing comes along. I'm very happy for you that you could do so, not everyone is so fortunate and may have to scratch a little for a while. I suppose you would prefer that newbies just never get work at all if they have to start at a low rate? That's not fair. Then again, if they don't work right out of school, you'd probably say they "went to the wrong school." Give newbies a break. Wern't you new once yourself?
They are VERY easy. nm
not as easy as it looks, my dear...
there's a reason why most MT's don't have their own accounts. It's a bear to figure it out. Do you have the nerve to cold call on 20 to 50 offices? Have you, as of yet, even started on an informational brochure to leave? Have you found a source to let you know who the new doctors are in the area? You say, "I might as well get my own accounts if I have to do so much footwork," but let me ask you, what have you done yet? It takes a lot of self-starting to be an MTSO. No one will babysit you through it. You will have to find the creativity to get started and find out what works. If you would "love to receive all my files off the internet," pretend you have a client who has offered you the work. Then research the options, figure out how you would do it, right down to HIPAA recommendations, prices, and how you are going to get that account covered when you take your kids to Florida on spring break, and then you might have a chance. I have heard it many times "I would love to have my own business," but most people won't take step 1. Good luck  .
I would love any advice on how to start up my own accounts. I'd love to receive all my files off the internet. Any advice...... Please
Is radiology easy?
I would really like to try it, but i dont know whether you will provide the wav file, then only i can say whether it is easy
That's an easy bet when there's no way to prove it
Let's get back to having a serious conversation, not blatant bragging. Most of us have enough confidence that we don't need that kind of nonsense.
PT is an easy field.
i type a PT account from home. Like any other field, you just get used to it and it's easy. I think you should do well. susan
I agree, radiology is easy, but
there is a bigger threat of being replaced by VR unless you are so good that the radiologist will fight to keep you if needed. Most of the terminology is anatomical terms. They don't change like drugs do, so there are no excuses for getting anatomy wrong. You have to have a large English vocabulary, have great grammar skills, have a 99.5% accuracy rate, and not mind transcribing lots of short notes as well as some two-pagers. If you prefer getting 20-minute reports all day, you won't like radiology. Most of the dictators speak very quickly and efficiently, which is what I like.
FTP Voyager is a good one......easy to use
xx
Can you get some different practice tapes?
I learned with the SUM Program and can attest to their ability to train your ears well.
practice materials
has anyone used the practice/study materials listed by a particular ebay vendor? prices are good, and the seller's feedback is terrific.
practice materials
was it from a power-seller w/ a rating of about 1600? i looked at those, too. thought it might be handy for getting my ears back in shape 
Looks like I have some practice ahead of me...
Ok... it's 'get,' not 'bet,' that's supposed to be in my last post. Practice makes perfect. :) And yes, sometimes I do get a little particular!!!
You Will Get Faster With Practice
Ha! I got you beat. My gross typing speed just three weeks ago was 11wpm with tons of errors!
I got a typing program online , downloaded it and started drills for learning the keyboard. I practiced every day for about 2 weeks , but have slacked off a bit. I just did a typing drill earlier this evening and was at 37wpm with 0.46% errors. I know I will improve and get much faster (with accuracy being very important , as well) the more time I spend practicing.
If I can improve I am sure you can , as well. Don't get discouraged and just practice , practice , practice.
Practice files?
Is there an internet source I can find to download 'practice' files, the kind that sounds like a realistic dictation? Because I find my course does NOT prepare me for real-world dictations.
You had a chiropractic practice and..sm
you want to be an MT? Oh my gosh! Let me give you some advice. Open your practice back up. It is so hard to get a good job in MT. Especially for a newbie. It is near impossible. I have 1-1/2 years exp and I can't even get another job because the current one is low of work. I can't tell you a company that would give you a chance. I honestly don't know.
Why don't you go to the chiropractic clinics and give them a flyer or something. You obviously know all the terminology with that specialty and would know it well enough I think to go on your own. That would be my suggestion.
No way to tell. Is the software easy to use? Will you be looking up addresses? Making a log? Having
s
If you need extra practice typing itself...
goodtyping.com
COOL!
Speed comes with practice. A job for newbie
with no experience will pay tops 6 cpl, more likely 5 cpl. If you get a job in a local doctor's office/clinic you can expect $8 to $10/hour tops.
There is so much more to MT than typing. You need to know anatomy, terminology, how to research, be able to do different accents, etc.; though if you don't type fast you'll never make a living as an MT.
I took typing in 9th grade and I was horrible. If you had told me I'd make a living typing I would have laughed at you. I now type about 125 wpm.
Huh. The psych I've transcribed has been easy and boring.
There weren't a lot of shortcuts possible, but it was mostly typing regular English.
Easy or not will depend totally on the type of dictators
s
Employment tests are not easy, even for entry level.
They need to know what you know. Sometimes the things you blank are just as important as the things you get right.
i need sample voice files to practice
I need help. I am a recent graduate and I would like to know what websites offer free sample voice files where I can practice. Thanks
penn foster - questionable practice
I did take a freelance writer's course from penn foster and I found the course not very balanced. There were mainly mutable choice open book questions (for a writer's course?) that were too easy and most of the relevant info I found in other sources.
The other problem with this course was lack of writing for it, lack of practical lessons in the course. The course was designed as a half hearted reporters course that assumed the writer has a college level writing ability. (I had high school level from 17 years ago)
The other problem was lack of professionalism with grading the manuscripts and fuzzy grading system. The Editor (mystery editor-would not disclose who, where or what qualifications the editor had.) was NOT a professional, missed basic mistakes and went out of her way to find mistakes that were not in the script. If she did not care for your story you a poor grade a failed it. (Only 4 manuscripts [test] were required out of 14 test total.
When I called for help, the man on the phone said he could only answer questions from the text book, he could not tell me who graded the manuscript, he said they were sent off campous but would not say where. He then stated, that I would not want to talk to the editor anyways.
I researched the accreditation--which means noithing but they filled out forms and paid a 1,000 dollar or less fee and garentee the MININIMAL standard.
They are a real school, that just moved to Scottsdale AZ by the way, but they operate at a min requirement.
The price is double what the course is really worth, save your money and go to a local college.
If she is a recent graduate she has NO experience, just school practice.
Why would she need a mentoring program if she went to a good school?
Forget "approved" schools. AAMT set the criteria, then approved schools that didn't meet i
Stick with Andrews or M-Tec (both of which happen to be "approved") but forget about any others, they are not worth it.
dictation
Approximately how many hours of transcription would it take if you have one hour of dictation and can type about 80 wpm. Thanks.
dictation help
What if the MD is dictating, you are a 1/4 of the way through, he is interrupted by a colleague, then comes back starting with the beginning again (prepped & draped, etc)then seems to go in a totally different direction and subject then where he left off? Do you continue to type what he is saying, even though it makes no sense to the first part of the report? Do you make a note of it for the editor? Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks, VERY NEW MT...
Help with dictation please
Hello,
I'm stumped on a sentence in a discharge summary I am working on. As part of the Laboratory Data section, the doctor says:
Chest x-ray showed no TECUTE PROCESSED. Well, at least it sounds like tecute processed but that obviously doesn't make sense! Any ideas?
Dictation tapes
Where can someone get dictation tapes for practicing? I am already set up at home and would like to keep practicing until I get a job. I would not like to invest alot of money into these tapes.
Dictation tapes
Thanks
Difficult dictation.....
I was hoping that someone could give me some advise for difficult doctors that dictate with a very strong acient!! I need help!! Any advise would be great! 
Thank you!
Try speeding up the dictation just a bit. sm.
Seriously, speeding it up just a little sometimes smooths it out. I got this tip from an MT with over 20 years experience. I wouldn't do it the first time through, but when you're listening again, try it.
Dictation volume
Hi all, I was just wondering if anyone else was having problems with the level of dictation available to transcribe. I work for Eagle's Landing and I'm finding that the dictation is very sporadic. When I first started it wasn't that way but ever since Hurricane Katrina the dictation has been low. Right after Hurricane Katrina there would be days with no dictation because the docs were gone to New Orleans to help out. Now the doctors are back but there is still the same problem. I am actually going to be set up on a second account so that should help me but I'm not sure when they are going to do that for me. I've heard that we are getting several new clients soon so maybe that will help. What I've started doing basically is actually keeping up with the amount of work per hour (low, medium, high volume, comp issues, etc)on an excel spreadsheet for each day of the week, I'm going to continue doing that for each week of the month, so eventually I will have several months I can look over and see if this is a chronic problem or an acute problem. I'm really hoping that this is just a temporary slow period of time. I think my frustration has also been compounded by the fact that I've had computer problems myself, the system at Eagle's Landing goes down sometimes for maintanence, and just being a new MT.
I really do plan to stick it out but I don't believe that the service would be honest with me if this is a problem that is going to be ongoing so I feel I need to keep my own records. Right now I'm living at home with my mom but eventually, in a year or so, I want to be able to move out and support myself so I need to see if this job has some stability. I understand there will be less stability than other jobs because that is how this industry is but I need enough stability to know that I can support myself atleast. As I said before in one of my earlier posts, I only started 3 months ago,(back in July) so I definitely know that the early frustrations just take time and experience to work through so I do plan on sticking it out. I guess my concern with lack of dictation is that it is something I cannot control, my speed is something I can control, I can work really hard and get better at that, but this is something I cannot. The problems with the sporadic dictation I would say have been going on since the middle of August, it does not seem like very long but it seems like forever when I'm trying to build up my speed and when I'm new at this. Anyway, I would appreciate some feedback on this from new MTs and more experienced MTs. Oh, also another thing I've noticed just from reading this message board and others is that a lot of MTs keep up with their line counts on a spread sheet. What I tend to do is watch my production based on the number of minutes I type. Should I be looking more at line count than minutes and also keeping track of that more closely? I have noticed that I do not follow my life count as diligently as others. And finally I want to thank everyone for the input I've already gotten from this board, it has been very helpful to me, and I have definitely taken the advice to heart and used it.
You don't record the dictation (see msg)
with the c-phone you dial in, and plug a foot pedal and headset into the phone itself and transcribe that way rather than hearing through your computer speakers. (I assume voicewriter is similar)
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