MY QA took out the semicolon. What do you do

I work QA and no way does a semicolon go there! [2008-07-15]
x

I would put a comma but definitely not a semicolon. [2008-07-15]

Semicolon -- Am I Wrong? [2008-07-14]
The QA people in my company insist that a semicolon goes in the following sentence - I beg to differ. What's your take? He appeared comfortable; in no acute distress or pain.

Replace semicolon with comma, remove comma [2008-07-04]
.

MY QA took out the semicolon. What do you do? [2008-07-03]
He then underwent an ultrasound in March 1999; at which time, he was noted to have BPH. Thanks in advance for your help!

I think she should have replaced the semicolon with a [2008-07-03]
comma and should have taken out the other comma you have in there.

Agree with this, shouldn't have a semicolon. [2008-07-03]
x

You don't need a macro. Just add a semicolon in front of [2008-02-15]
your yo abbreviation so autocorrect will back up and take out that space. Then type 34;yo and it will expand to 34-year-old.

Use the semicolon [2007-10-31]
Name it something like ;y with your expansion being -year-old

markers...I settled on semicolon (sm) [2007-09-25]
for phrases and the straight brackets, i.e. [, and ], for the word markers after playing around with it. I kept hitting the shift key when I tried to use / as a marker. For times when I want to use a semicolon, I made a short form jj (and now I don't remember why, but there WAS a reason, lol). Anyway what's important is that you settle on what's comfortable for you. The markers were a big change for me, too. Good luck and keep trying! You can do it!

{@KEY BkSp}-pack-per-year is for Shorthand. Using the semicolon works with both Shorthand and [2006-07-25]
;yo = -year-old ;py= -pack-year etc...

Busywork for QA [2008-10-15]
You're right on target... most doc couldn't give a rodent's backside about a comma versus a semicolon versus a hypen or whether drugs are capitalized. I spent years and years MT'ing in NYC large hospitals and never heard of QA. We'd either have a supervisor give it a quick once-over, have one of the older MTs proof it, or give it directly to the doc, who usually signed it as it was. The bottom line with QA, when you think about it, is that THEY'RE PAID TO FIND FAULT. If they found nothing wrong with your dictation, the MTSO would think, What do I need to pay you for? So guaranteed, they WILL find something wrong with you dictation, and change it around the next time the same situation presents itself. This way, they're showing management they're on the ball and are vital to the MT process. More often than not, their corrections are personal preferences and not verifiable as wrong or right... but they right, right? On top of that, many of them can't give any kind of feedback without adding a condescending, holier-than-thou, often rude comment.

Independent contractor [2008-09-27]
I have worked for this PT company for 4 years and he has always paid on time, never a problem with paycheck and I personally knew him when he was a salesman for Lanier, so I am comfortable with him. It is a big step to take and he a 5-year contract with hospital so there is plenty of work. I am a pretty organized person, but if it was not for that darn insurance. Someone told me that the company that I am working for FT will have open enrollment in November and they are changing to a new insurance but you have to be producing 1000 lines a day to qualify. With their platform it takes around a 10-hour work day just to get to the 800 lines. That is what we all thought, 800--no problem. Boy did we have a rude awakening, everyone is struggling. It basically boils down to how much of a hassle for doing own taxes very peace of mind and get back to what I really like to do without someone dinging for every little comma, semicolon, hyphen and incorrect verbage. I am a good MT but here lately I am beginning to doubt just about everything I type and I am always having my head in the BOS. I have been doing this for 29 years, but I do feel like I am just coming out of English class and just a newbie which is not a good feeling at my age and exp. I want to like to do my job but right now not feeling that. Thanks for input all.

AAMT BOS says yes....but I still don't like it. [2008-07-17]
I would not have used a semicolon but according to AAMT BOS2, pg355, they are correct.

Semicolon -- Am I Wrong? [2008-07-14]
The QA people in my company insist that a semicolon goes in the following sentence - I beg to differ. What's your take? He appeared comfortable; in no acute distress or pain.

I disagree [2008-07-14]
A semicolon marks a separation when a comma is inadequate and a period is too final - that is what is written in the BOS 2nd edition. A semicolon is used to separate 2 independent clauses, which does not apply here. It is also used to separate items in a series if commas otherwise are used, see BOS for complete explanation, and that also does not apply. A comma would be correct substituting the word and in my opinion. If you have the BOS, then look under semicolon, and you will find the full explanations.

My rule for semicolons [2008-07-04]
is that if the two statements support each other and each statement could be a separate sentence, I use a semicolon. Example: He underwent an ultrasound in March 1999; AT THAT time he was noted to have BPH. The sentence you asked about should be done like 'NM'says: He underwent an ultrasound in March 1999, at which time he was noted to have BPH.

Yes, use ;c for cc to stop Word from capping the first c. [2008-04-24]
The semicolon backs up and changes the first c to lowercase.

selecting from the list [2008-04-15]
The list is numbered so you can hit the number and then your expansion key (the semicolon) or move the highlight bar up or down using the shift or control keys (shift moves it down, control drops it to the last entry and then upward from there) to the line you want and then hit the expansion key (semicolon). I have mine set to 10 lines showing so if the expansion I want is the first or second from the top or bottom I use the shift or control, if in the middle I just choose the number. IT is well worth the money!

huh? [2008-02-19]
the option to save as formatted text is grayed out, cannot choose that option. Now the semicolon thing doesn't work anymore either.

Here's what I do for the numbering -sm [2007-12-23]
I got this from another board awhile ago and saved it. I assigned the hot key of ALT+; so I don't have to take my hands off. When I get to #2, I just do ALT and semicolon and the lists goes to the left margin. Here it is: Record this simple macro and assign it to a hot key: 1. Type #1 and any text you want to, then press Enter. 2. Immediately after #2 appears in your list, start the macro recorder, press the up arrow key, then press Alt + Shift + left arrow and your list will demote to the left margin. 3. Press the down arrow key and your cursor is in place for the second line of text. 4. Stop recording. When typing lists, run the macro when you get to #2.

markers...I settled on semicolon (sm) [2007-09-25]
for phrases and the straight brackets, i.e. [, and ], for the word markers after playing around with it. I kept hitting the shift key when I tried to use / as a marker. For times when I want to use a semicolon, I made a short form jj (and now I don't remember why, but there WAS a reason, lol). Anyway what's important is that you settle on what's comfortable for you. The markers were a big change for me, too. Good luck and keep trying! You can do it!

I can answer a couple of these [2007-08-22]
Use the semicolon with yo to expand out to -year-old (50;yo expands to 50-year-old).To stopexpanding uncheck the AutoReplace box up near the top of the ShortHand program. It's sort of in the middle of where you enter the Keyword and theType It button.

Re: expanding with punctuation, more info inside [2007-06-21]
I have been working on this platform for over a year and absolutely LOVE it. It is not the same as autocorrect expansions. This platform offers a LOT more. I will type this directly from my manual to explain how the ESP abbreviations are expanded: Press or type a delinter (a spacebar, enter, period, colon, semicolon, comma, question mark or exclamation point) that is appropriate to the sentence text or punctuation. The exapansion appears AS SOON AS you type the delimiter. You can highlight entire sentences, paragraphs, etc and enter them directly into the ESP list and make a short abbrev. to retrieve them. To add an ESP, press control, control and type it directly in, or highlight text in your document and then press control control and name your short abbreviation for it. Sometimes, depending if your sentences are really LONG you will have to copy/paste directly into ESP and then give it a short. In addition, with ESPs you can format words to be BOLD by inserting a tag. You can also put a tag in for something underlined, italic, etc. They also allow you to insert pauses and backups in your ESP so that you can type yof and get the hyphen first -year-old female. Pauses are really neat when you want to nest an ESP inside another one. For example: if you put the following entries in your ESP: lt (left) tphp (The patient had pain in the) (The ESPs need to first be created and exist) Now you type the abbreviation containing the pause then press spacebar. The sentence expands to the point of pause and then type the abbreviation you want to nest, press the spacebar and hit enter. The complete next appears in your document. Believe me, this is something Autocorrect cannot do and really comes in handy especially when you have really repitious dictators who always give the same order on vital signs, etc. You can also run a microsoft word macro as part of an expansion if you want. There is a special dialog box that the ESP uses for this. ESPs also allow suffixes to be added to root words (another feature) but this is something I haven't used much yet. You can also create more than one list of ESPs (can have 2 open at a time). This platform also allows you to make normals for really long documents. Say you have a 2 page op report that a doctor will use over and over. You can just bring the entire document in. You can edit these normals at any time. These are like templates that you can insert jump codes, all your headings, numbering formats, etc. On this board, I've been reading a lot about how people run to buy either Instant Text or ShortHand (as these are compatible with Dictatphone) but this is not something you have to run out and purchase. The ESPs offer a lot more than autocorrect. So far, my one list of ESPs has over 20,000 entries and my line counts daily for 8 hours average between 1500 and 1800. Not bad. The platform is REALLY easy to work from as another poster said you can pull up previous dictation from another Transcriptionist and copy/paste directly into the document you are typing. This is a really great feature when you have those really lousy dictators who pretty much say the same physical exam, etc. You can then just follow along and edit as you go. It really is easy to use, and personally I love the Expander and have no complaints. Good luck.

We DO exist, really we do!! [2007-04-19]
We work long hours. We glady take the ESLs that others find hard or impossible to transcribe. We go the extra mile when you are behind to help you get caught up because we all know if the client is not happy, none of us will be making any money. We don't need endless emails from your QA telling us where to put a hyphen or a semicolon. In fact, we probably do not even take up much QA time at all. Yes, we are out there. And we are working hard, getting paid a very good cpl rate because our MTSO(s) appreciate us and pay us well. Here's hoping that when and if, for whatever reason, one of us is looking for a position, we will meet up with you and it will be a MATCH! You may be able to recognize us by our lack of enthusiasm in our accomplishments. Because we realize that our resumes speak for us and our tests will stand out.

What version of Word? That can't be set in newer versions. I had to do a macro --sm [2006-06-03]
I hope this link works for you. It shows how to make the macro. I use alt + semicolon for it because it seemed those would be a convenient shortcut to use. H Here's the link (you'll probably have to copy and paste it): http://fitaly.com/board/msword/posts/1629.html

I can solve your year old problem [2005-12-23]
you need to type it into autocorrect like this ;yo (semicolin and the yo right next to the semicolin) I also add the m(male), (f( female) or g (gentleman) etc. Then you type for example, This 55;yom (-year old male) and it will work perfectly. I'm not sure why the semicolon works this way, but it does. Let me know what you think.

I'm always stunned when people are surprised about this (sm) [2005-12-23]
We're in the business of making money from production, and MTs aren't reading the help file on their Expander to see how to get the most out of it? I posted about Ctrl+K and a whole slew of entries that would make things easier (such as go back and change diagnosis to diagnoses, scroll down and back, delete words/lines in various directions, etc.), and MTs were gushing about how wonderful, how they never knew. Just very strange to me that MTs wouldn't know these things until somebody told them. On that jolly note, here's another help (I'm not the original poster): Use a semicolon for prefixes and suffixes:For example make entries like this: ;tand make the expansion -typem;and make the expansion microz;and make the expansion izationetc. you get the ideaNext time you're flying along you and hear microhematuria, all you have to do is type m;hematuria. Same goes for hospital;z , which now expands hospitalization. You can even use these to combine with your shortcuts. For example, if you have a shortcut ho for hospital and you want to type hospitalization, you could then just type ho;z . Also worth checking out is the remarks feature of Shorthand. Have something you're always forgetting? Make a remark in Shorthand. My company wants times 3 transcribed as x3. Since I'm having a heckuva time remembering this one, I made a remark for times that pops up a warning window every time I type the word. And know you can LINK dictionaries together. You can also create a shortcut that will automatically hide the suggestion window when it's in your way as well as bring it back up when you're ready. It's all in there!

But the help file is so long and boring to read. [2005-12-23]
I know about linking and hiding the suggestion window. Other than that, I don't know many semicolon or Ctrl functions. I put hospitalization in as hosn. I wish somebody would teach a Shorthand Expander class or come up with an in-depth book going over specific SH features. The other expander books I bought were lame.

A few more tips for those interested [2005-12-23]
I use the number 8 key for my ectomy words. For examply. Appendectomy is programmed as a8 Cholecystectomy c8 Hysterectomy h8 Tonsillectomy t8 You get the idea. In the rare instance that this interferes with another word (i.e. T8 on a spine exam. I type t8n which means (NOT) so it will expand to simply T8. instead of using the semicolon, I do pretty much the same thing but with the slash / on the right side of the keyboard. I use this pretty much when i can divide words such as t/a therafter. u/w underwent u/g undergone l/h lightheaded. for family members I use the number 9. For example, b9 is brother s9 is sister sil9 is sister in law d9 is daughter gm9 grandmother gd9 grandaughter. I use the letter z quite a bit to just to phonetically shorten words. For example. dz disease anz aneurysm rz resolve rzd resolved rzg resolving bz because czd caused czg causing etc. If i here a z sound in a word I take advantage of it. My psych words take the prefix nut. nuts is psychosis nutc is psychotic lol. Cute, I know, but I never forget these. For really common words that I type a zillion times: AR anterior pr posterior ll lateral ml medial I try to make these as short as possible. KEEP THE TIPS COMING. This is great to share.

Trouble using Expanders;ARRGGGHHH [2005-12-23]
I've always typed without an expander, but a year ago got a job with a national. Since then, I've been trying to use Expanders for almostthat whole year. I tried Shorthand, which I like a lot, but a problem there is different quirks with it; like freezing up sometimes, no ability to capitalize the first word in the sentence, and a few others. Three weeks ago, I decided to upgrade to Instant Text Pro V. Well, can't get the hang of it. Can't remember the marker keys. Always want to hit the space bar to expand 1 word, then I get something completely different and vice versa for phrases, I want to hit the semicolon. I can't seen to watch the suggestion window and the screen I'm typing on at the same time for either of them...and my memory went out the door years ago. So, I have deduced 2 things: I am very uncoordinated, and am in the first stages of Alzheimer's. Is there any hope for me? Will I ever get the hang of IT? I think I would really love it more than SH, since it does capitalize the first letter of the sentence, and that's my weakness. How long did it take everyone to become a speed demon using IT? I am feeling quite dumb and useless right now, not to mention my production went way down instead of up. Am I a person who should stick with straight typing? I was doing 1000 lines a day when I first started....now down to 600!

To me, it looks as if you did it correctly. [2005-11-05]
I wouldn't use a semicolon in that sentence.

depends upon the sentence [2005-10-18]
This is only what I would do -1. use a semicolon to preceded 80% ... or ...2. write out 80%: Eighty percentI think either one would be acceptable. But, again, a lot of it has to do with my own personal preference.

Having IT provide phrases, sentences is its best advantage. Two words together. [2005-09-22]
But one word? By the time it arrives in the layout screen, you have typed all but the last letter. claudicatio - semicolon of the - bracket I miss Word's auto correct boohoo

I work 2 jobs. One is ER with DS thrown in and the [2005-08-29]
second job is everything but ops since that is all someone wants on the account I'm on. It's not all cut and paste. Make macros for common phrases. If you find you keep spelling something wrong, make a macro of the wrong spelling so that it automatically corrects it. I write down my words that keep getting stopped in spell check and at the end of the day I make a macro of it to put in the correct spelling. If it needs a capital letter, make a macro so that it capitalizes for you w/o hitting the shift key. If it's an abbreviation that needs to be capitalized,macro a macro of it. Lowercase pt comes out as PT, pmh comes out as PMH. I use pmh- to make it print out as past medical history and put a semicolon after pmh; for it to print out in capital letters. I have macros for the % sign. 1P = 1% and goes all the way up to 100p for 100%, 1L is 1 liter, 1h = 1 hour. If you are constantly typing certain headings fordoctors make a macro of it. I have one doctor that wants all different headings than on the template we are given. I madea template just for him where everything is capitalized and bolded the way he wants so that saves me a ton of time. Make macros for your common meds. Also put correct caps of meds into yourspellcheck. If Icapitalize something like prednisone, it will make it automatically a lowercase w/o stopping on it except if it is the beginning of a sentence.