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Warning to not go to work for them if you don't already. Had a  lot of problems and finally got away.

I have been working as an employee with the EXText system/Wordclient by Dictaphone.  I really love the "esp" system that is part of this program as I find it very quick and easy to use.

Years ago I tried IT and didn't really care for it, but I don't know if I didn't become familiar enough with it. 

I guess it comes down to an Expander that works with just hitting the spacebar and entering the shortcut I know I am getting with that abbreviation.  Really mastering the shortcuts without having a list to choose from.

If anyone out there has any recommendations for a similar expander as the Dictaphone esps, I would love to hear what you have to say.

Thanks.

anything I can do about this.  It's my right pinky.  Should I splint it? 

Thanks

Please give me feedback on this company ASAP! Good/Bad? Thanks.

Just wanted to know how long it took some of you out there before you were off of QA? I am talking about when you were fresh out of school, just starting your first job. I know that everyone is different, but I am curious about how the average person does.

I am almost a month into my first job and still on QA. Most dictators I do well on (all clinic/office notes) and I have even got quite a few with 100% accuracy. A couple of them make me feel like I don't know anything.

So what's the consensus?

Doc says: The patient was taken to the operating room and placed on the operating table in the supine position.  ASR interprets: The patient preoperatively. Tablespoon position. It should also be noted that this doc says the same sentence at the beginning of all his operative reports, so this has been corrected multiple times. Terrible program. eScription might be a good company to buy us. I have heard that their speech recognition program is very good.  

I have experience with hematology/oncology but not radiation oncology.  What exactly is the difference?  Is it a difficult jump from one to the other?  Broad learning curve?  Any info would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks.

Just wanted to share a link with anyone who could use a little positivity today...it's truly worth it

http://www.greatday.com

Peace...out.

I don't know if this is really where to post this, but I'm not a new MT. I have been doing this for almost 3 years. I have been working for companies and want to get my own doctors. Any ideas on how to advertise? I was thinking of mailing flyers, but am not really that creative and don't really know what to put on there. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Has anyone switched to cable phone with this company? I currently have Verizon and am thinking of switching.  Apparently I will save a good amount of money. Does it work just like a regular phone - other than having no phone service when the power goes out? Does it work well with Dictaphone, Lanier, etc?  Pros/cons? Thanks in advance for any info!

My husband's co-worker's wife is losing clients to cheaper labor overseas. She owns an advertising company and would charge $25,000 per client, and now they're paying $600 for the same thing, but not here. She has lost about $100,000, and they are struggling now. These people have tapped into something that is really hurting our country. I'm afraid for our kids' future and what they might not have, nevermind ours. I just thought I'd throw this out there. I know this is nothing new to hear.

Do you ever just want to scream - Normally line count is around 1200 or so (depending on which system I'm using), but they put you on an account where the dictators are so bad that you end up with a 400 line count for the day.  And the dictators whose primary language is not english and they have very strong accents seem to just speed talk and the whole report sounds like just a few words when it is actually an 8 or 9 minute dictation.

Does anyone else have these days or am I just in the wrong career field.  Been doing this for 8 years and this is bad.  Yesterday at the end of the day I had such a headache and my line count was just over 400.  I quit working for the day and figured I'll get a good nights sleep and start fresh in the morning and sure enough I'm getting the same as yesterday.

Just curious if other MTs go through this too.

I am doing my very best to keep a positive outlook that something else will come along.  Anytime I see something in my local newspaper I apply.  I have also registered with agencies, but it seems like all they want to offer me are more transcription positions. 

I'm tired of looking up information because a dictator only gives you "partial" dictation, such as addresses, etc.  Do these educated human being know that there are more than one William Smith and many different ways to spell Smith.  This takes time AWAY from my fingers typing - and if that happens, I'm not making money.  I'm about ready to send it to QA with a blank and let them figure it out.

I cannot wait to get out of this business!  How do these ESLs make it out of med school?  How in the world can the professors understands them -  Oops, I'm sorry --- the professors are probably from another planet too!  

I work for an oncologist and I am no longer IC. I am on the doctor's payroll.

Should I ask him to provide plain paper? He does not want me to use his nice linen paper for progress notes that are going out to doctors only on new patients.

Please let me know what you'll think - thanks  

I've been an IC for over thirty years and the medical offices are now asking me if they can search for old records?  What, they don't keep their own records anymore?  Do all MT companies now offer searchable databases on their company servers for the physician's staff or do they install databases on the physician's computers for this sort of thing?  I've been asked to provide this and I'm thinking "wow, can't the office staff open word and find the appropriate folder and file?"  Is this now a standard item offered by MTSO's?   What happened to medical office management software?  Are transcription companies now becoming electronic medical records suppliers?  If so, please let me know.....If so I've become a dinosaur!

I'm on Guru and Elance for freelance work, and I have been a Transcriptionist for 17 years.  Now, if you're not familiar with Guru or Elance, it's a site where potential employers can post projects for anything and you bid on them, BUT YOU have to pay Guru if you are awarded the project.  And a lot of times, the projects posted will state what the project pays IN TOTAL, and a lot of times it is $40, $30 - EVEN $10 for something like 2-3 hours of transcription.  $10!!! For what could be up to 10 hours of time of transcribing, plus, I believe, you have to pay Guru a portion of that. 

Well, I've never been awarded anything because quite frankly, I can't compete with the $40 and $25 per audio hour people.  I mean, really, I don't think I can transcribe an hour of multiple voice transcription that for every hour of transcribing, I'm only making $10 and then have to give a portion of that to Guru. 

Here is my curious question - the people bidding on these projects have just as many years, if not more, of transcription experience and they are bidding $40, $30 or $25 for the WHOLE project.  Why would experienced transcriptionists sell themselves so cheap!  It baffles my mind. It actually frustrates me because I can't help but think there are transcriptionists out there with 5-10+ years experience working for $7/hour and sometimes less, especially when the whole project pays $10 or $20.  Yet, it seems that the projects are always awarded. 

Just curious as to the thoughts some of you may have.  Oh, and by the way, these are being awarded to US transcriptionists most of the time.

Hello. 

First, I want to apologize if this is not on the right board.  I wasn't sure where to put it.

Second, I am not looking for pity...just advice.

I have two wonderful children (a 5 year old and a 5 month old) who are my life and because of that I have left there father (verbally abusive to everyone) to make a better life for all of us.  I am a new MT (have only been in the business for 4 months now and make enough to pay rent but that is all.  With an infant it is hard to work during the day so I start my work around 7pm and work until it is done.  I am not that fast yet but am gaining speed and could handle another small account.  Can anyone tell me how they have made single parenting work as an MT or have any ideas on how to make it work, please.  I am deperate to stay home with them.  Honestly, daycare cost would kill my paycheck if I had to work outside of the home and I am trying to stay off of government support. 

I appreciate any help or advice I receive.

Thank you.

my local animal shelter.  I took him to the Vet the next day to have him checked over because he had a few things going on with him:

1.  He was covered in ticks.  I had pulled several off him when I got him home and the Vet pulled several more off in her office.  The ticks really aren't an issue now as Frontline was applied at the Vet's office, and any ticks that remained have died and dropped off.  I have not found any more on him, although I was very shocked that the animal shelter allowed him to get in that condition.  The Vet was appalled.

2.  He had a terrible cough.  Very deep and raspy.  The Vet said she thought it was a respiratory infection but could not rule out kennel cough as he had been at the shelter for over a month.  She prescribed an antibiotic and we are 1 week into taking it.  The cough seems to be getting better, thank goodness.  It just sounds horrible.  I also have to give him a Benadryl twice a day.

3.  He had an infection in both ears.  Beagles like other dogs such as Bassett Hounds, with the long floppy ears, have to have their ears cleaned on a regular basis.  His obviously had not been cleaned in some time.  So I have to put ear drops in his ears twice a day.  He hates it, but his ears are getting better.

The shelter did not have any information to give me about him.  They told me he was picked up as a stray and they kept him for as long as they did in case someone came to claim him.  After a month, they put his picture on their website, thus putting him up for adoption.  I had been wanting to get a Beagle for quite some time, and when I saw him on the web, I decided to go get him.  If I hadn't gotten him when I did, and no one else came along, he would have been put down after one week.

I would have taken him anyway even if I had known prior of his medical problems.  I fell in love with him immediately.  He is very loving and is housebroken already.  I have yet to hear him bark though.  I'm not sure if this is because he can't, won't, or if it makes him cough so he doesn't do it yet.  It's also not common (around here anyway) to find a full-blooded dog of any kind at the pound.  There are other animal rescue organizations that specialize in that.

I have seen him go through increadible changes in the last week.  His coat is shinier and his eyes look brighter.  I can tell by his behavior that he is feeling better.  My concern is that every time he drinks water he coughs and hacks afterward.  He will cough until he gags and then he is fine.  He doesn't vomit though.  It's almost as if he is breathing water through his nose while he is drinking.

I was just curious to see if anyone else had encountered this before with their dog?  I love him (Buster) to pieces already and feel that I did a good thing by saving him from certain death.  I just want him to get better.

Thanks.

Anyone know of companies that will give newbies with schooling a chance?

I never knew there was Google for medical transcriptionists, too. Well, I've found this and am over the moon. It works, too. See link below.

Has anyone ever had this happen.  First time for me but, you hire into a new company, they give you a list stating what day time cards should be turned in, and what "pay days" are.  All sounds normal so far eh??  Now, you hand in your time card exact day they want it, which in my case would be 5 days before "pay day".  Well, pay day is here today, I have no check in the mail.  I telephone the payroll department just to be told that they send out the paychecks on "pay day".  Now, correct me if I am wrong, but I would think a stated pay day would be the day I receive my pay, not the day the company mails out their bills!

Does anybody know anything about this job, i.e., ins and outs, good and bad, know anyone who has done it, etc?  I am trying to find a "better way" than MT but no clue as to which direction to go.  I also wondered about surgical scrub tech job.  Willing to do a 1-year certificate school but don't know about 2 years of school.  Any info would be much appreciated.  Thanks.

If I buy Word 2007, can I put it on more than one computer in my house or is the license restricted to just one computer?  Thanks for sharing if you know the answer.