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

I read it a couple of yrs ago. Also, re thyroid testing------there are important

Posted By: things to remember in testing: on 2006-02-20
In Reply to: Had thyroid checked many times, totally normal. My mom - BTDT

You can have NORMAL thyroid test results........fine and good.  That only shows, however, that your thyroid is functioning.


It does not show you are utilizing the thyroid properly, though.


By that I mean are you absorbing the thyroid correctly.


That testing is more complex and time consuming.


My friend who has MS had quite a time getting her doc to do the testing correctly.  As you know, MS makes you super fatigued anyway - and whe the thyroid aspect is off kilter, you are wiped out.  Her testing was kind of like a blood glucose testing over several hours.  She went in for testing every 30 minutes or so and sat at the lab for the whole time. 


So, that may be something the article was alluding to as far as thyroid malfunctioning.  You may be MAKING thyroid fine but not absorbing it.




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

I read that there is some idea it may be related to THYROID imbalance. Maybe
.
If you're testing for a company, set up isn't that important.
s
RE: Very important read !!
For those who could not see the URL, I hope you can see it in this mail and EVERYONE sh




Just something to think about. 


 




The link below will take you to a page explaining the House and Senate versions of the bill and a link to send an email to your representatives in Washington indicating that patients have the right to be made aware that their personal information and medical records are being sent overseas for transcription. The letter is already written for you!

http://www.rallycongress.com/support-fo ... formation/

ould act on this !!
A very important read !!
Just something to think about. 

 


The link below will take you to a page explaining the House and Senate versions of the bill and a link to send an email to your representatives in Washington indicating that patients have the right to be made aware that their personal information and medical records are being sent overseas for transcription. The letter is already written for you!

http://www.rallycongress.com/support-fo ... formation/

NO FEE REQUIRED (IMPORTANT READ)
Signing the petition and getting e-mails to Congressmen is FREE !!!!  The fee would only be if you wanted letters hand delivered to the Congressmen.  Please don't let the mention of a fee stop you.
Regarding testing. I have given in-depth testing but I have come to find that sm

no matter what a company wants, be it ESL specialist, etc., the best test to give ANY applicant is one that is not planned, one given right on the spot, verbal, one that has not been scheduled so the person has had no time to get nervous, but throw about 15-20 questions at them, general knowledge for their level of skill, and it can tell you wonders about their knowledge that is retained!! I actually find that the retention rate of folks hired this way is actually higher than intense testing given by some of these larger national companies.  We all know that it takes sometimes a couple of weeks for even the best MTs to understand (I am speaking of the ESLs or bad dictators).  There are some companies that give these as tests and what does that tell?  Tells nothing and means nothing!  Some of these that do well on these actually cannot do the work.  How do we know that these folks have not actually had someone else do the test for them?


I find the best way is to pull a pop test on the spot in the middle of the interview and it works!  Don't ever give the same questions to two separate applicants.  Have a database of questions to pull from.  Score from the ones you ask and move on from there.  If the person cannot do the work, you know it in a day. 


I believe it was the old EDiX that used to give over the phone questions, but they still scheduled this and people had time to get nervous.  This way there is no time and well, you would be surprised at what folks actually do know...and in some cases...what folks actually do not know when given multiple choice, but to me this is an excellent way of testing, takes very little time, which I personally consider to be too valuable to waste 3-4 hours on a test, which someone who is experienced and has worked for 10 to 15 years in the field should not be required to do anyhow, should not be asked to do.  When you have worked 12 hours during that day for a company (and some have), why should they have to take 4 hours to do a test?!


Think about it!!


I have recently spoken to other recruiters from other companies and they have agreed with me on this and I hope it catches on because it certainly is less time consuming and tells you all you need to know without giving them the actual work to do.


 



 


 


 


thyroid
I have had hypothyroidism for the past 10 years and trust me, take the increased dosage. I have had doctors that actually do not believe in hypothyroidism and cut the dose and then I feel horrible for the next eight weeks until it gets back to normal. The little bit extra you would get in the increase in medication is not going to hurt you any. Actually, I found Armour thyroid to be better for me than the Synthroid. Synthroid never seemed to do anything for me. It only has the T4 hormones in it and the Armour has both the T3 and T4. Some doctors say you don't need the T3, but if your body produces it, you need it. I just feel better taking it. Presently, and over the past 10 years, my dose has increased to 120 mcg. It is an autoimmune disease and your levels will never stay the same. They will always fluctuate until your thyroid stops producing the hormones altogether, which is probably where I am at now. If I don't take my meds for say two months (which I have been known to do at times), I end up getting sick with flu-like symptoms...fevers, chills, nausea, vomiting, muscle aches and pains, etc. It takes a long time to get back to normal, so take the small increase. You may have to increase it again later on. There is also a discrepancy in what some doctors actually think is *normal*, too, so be aware that perhaps you DO need more than what you think you do. Do lots of research....I did. My body tells me what I need...not the doctors...if you know what I mean...even if I have to argue with them to get what I need. I will change doctors until I find one who knows what he is doing as far as the thyroid...or go to an endocrinologist. They know more about it. good luck. e-mail me if you have questions.
thyroid
I had this when I was about 45. Couldn't get out of bed. I RARELY miss work (working at home, I work the rare times I'm ill), but I was starting to miss some work -- I couldn't keep my eyes open. It was my thyroid. Started meds, and in 2 weeks felt better.
I have 2 middle age couple friends. One couple became pregnant from condom failure.
This is not just "irresponsible" behavior! Both couples are "fixed" now, because for them, reliable birth control was NOT. But it's an error to assume this stuff happens to people who are unmarried or irresponsible. Both these couples are raising 2nd families, now, but it wasn't "irresponsibility" that did them in!
Maybe have your thyroid checked? sm
A malfunctioning thyroid can cause those symptoms, I think. I used to work with a gal who was always freezing and slept alot and doc said her TSH was almost zip. He put her on Synthroid and she felt a lot better.
Maybe a thyroid problem?
Have you ever had your thyroid checked?  This can be a symptom.
Thyroid question, please...sm

Hi-


Question about results on TSH (me personally, not a patient!)  I've been on 1 mg of Synthroid, but just got my TSH results.  They are RIGHT on the border of the lowest acceptable range.


My doc doesn't seem to think this warrants adjustment in the dosage, but I thought it should maybe be lowered a bit?  Any advice?  BTW, this is a fairly new doc to me, and I'm not entirely sure if I totally trust him yet, if you know what I mean.


TIA!


Was she tested for thyroid? sm
Pretty common in cats and I believe that's one of the symptoms. Good luck.
Thyroid Problems in dogs. Yep. sm
I had one dog that was on Synthroid and a relative has one that is diabetic with cataracts, post cataract extractions.  Certain breeds are prone to diabetes as a matter of fact.  They get most of what we get, including diabetes, thyroid disorder, Crohn's disease, cancer, cardiomyopathy, seizure disorders.
I would suggest that you have your thyroid checked--sm
It is the number one cause of fatigue and most often overlooked by physicians. Have a complete TSH blood test. T3, T4, free T4, and an iodine uptake test.
Had thyroid checked many times, totally normal. My mom
had thyroid trouble, used her hands constantly in her job and her hobby and never had problems.   Never heard this possible correlation before. 
Might also be your thyroid or Lyme disease. Insist on blood work! nm
s
In 12 years of MT'ing I've never re-read an entire chart. Edit/read as I type. nm
x
Yes, I read your post, and I just re-read it, and I've copied and pasted for you in case

you've forgotten your own words! Your post above is 100% different "flavor" to it, now all positive and cheery! Your first post was 100% doom and gloom every which way, including "raining on your parade", and "if you want to go forward"...God, sounds like she's talking about jumping into oncoming traffic! Here is your quote:


My first boss (the one who hired me as a new grad) gave me some words of wisdom that I haven't forgotten. She said that transcribing at home with small children NEVER works under any circumstance. Either the work will suffer or the parenting will suffer.


****


How can the word "NEVER" in caps be interpreted in any positive way? You took about 8 paragraphs to cover every aspect and completely dash this poor woman's dream.  I'm not blind, I'm not talking about day care at all, I'm talking about the total negativity of your original post! You know exactly what I'm talking about, cause you added some sugar to your second version! And that's much nicer than the first!


oh, sorry, yes that is important sm
the pay is average for a national.  I make $900/week. I think that's pretty darn good!
How important is it to you ...

How important is it to you that your US medical records are KEPT in the USA?


Does it matter to you?  Why or why not?


It's VERY important to me. I don't want anyone in the US much less
outside of the US knowing my business, financial, medical, or otherwise.  If I can't sue someone who has used my information for their personal gain then that is a problem for me.  It would cost me a fortune to sue someone overseas who say sold my information or threatened to put it on the Internet. 
How important is it
Very important. I am HIV and do not want that information going anywhere.
but TAT is what is important and OP...sm

stated that they were having a TAT problem prior - so?  TAT is promised, not met, and so the OP didn't meet her/his end of the bargain.  I promise 24-48 hour TAT and that's what they have been getting from me for nearly 10 years. 


A deal is a deal is a deal - whether on paper or not on paper - verbal contracts are also recognized - just ask Judge Judy *lol*


To the OP - I hope things go better for you truly - but remember this:  A promise made is a debt unpaid....that also is in regards to TAT.  Best of luck - things will turn around for you, I am hopeful. 


And this is important. sm

It varies state to state, I am sure.  You need to get the house out of your mother's name.  Where I live, the house has to come out of their name 2 YEARS before they can get in a decent nursing home.  There are a not of variables and when you are running to doctors, doing shopping for 2 people, cleaning, plus working full-time which no one realizes if you are an MT because you are "at home";  you really don't have time to keep all the plates spinning by yourself, with no help, and this issue about my mother's home should have been addressed a long, long time ago.


It's important to ask
questions of a potential employer but sounds like she overdid it.

Have to admit though she certainly doesn't lack confidence!
It is amazing to me how self-important US MTs are ...
You want to point your finger toward offshoring companies using HIPAA as your miserable crutch; however, when it comes to ensuring the legitimacy of who YOU are to handle this sensitive, private, protected information -- well just forget it.

After all, I mean, YOU work at home. And you are a citizen of the US. And no US citizen EVER scammed the public, EVER stole identities, EVER did anything wrong. Talk about self-righteous and self-important. Hahaha

What's wrong? What are you afraid of? Someone might really find out about your lack of control over your own life?

No one has ANY idea what YOU are doing with this information either and if your attitudes and behavior on here were shown to physicians and your own employers (and probably your family and friends), many of you would be out - out of a job, out of respect, out of friends and maybe family, out of most of everything and everyone who has no idea what you are like when you feel your anonymous status is hidden.

I'm entitled to how I feel the same as you are. You might want to get prepared though -- time and the conditions in this world are rooting for my opinion.

With the increasing security risks, insurance costs, etc., in this world -- you might want to get busy cleaning up whatever it is you're hiding because the likelihood of you submitting yourselves to any/all of these things for a job is going up and fast.

Hahaha
If bathing is so important to him
then he could wear some swim trunks in the tub with her. I stated that in my last post also. He would still have the bonding time with her but would be covered so she wouldn't be exposed to that. That was also an idea that was posted by another poster that her brother does I think.
One important point: SM
Spheris insurance is PPO, meaning the insurance is not expensive, however, it does not cover the cost of everything or most things, as does HMO insurance. This is a very important fact. Otherwise, agree with above.
I believe it is important for children too..
That does still does not mean that since you made a mistake in your life that you are not entitled to the same rights as everyone else. Could've, should've, would've. We can point fingers and tell people what they should have done, but the fact is, they have rights like everyone else. Of course you tend to do better financially when you do things in the right order. Life does not always work like you want it to though. I myself got pregnant while on BC with a man I had been with for 4 years. I had my son before I got married. We got married when he was less than a month old. He was our only witness. We have since had another child. I have never been on assistance, but I am lucky enough that we have been able to work out our problems and keep our marriage intact. If I could do it all over again, I would have waited, of course. We have struggled quite a bit by having kids so young. Life just doesn't always work out how you want it to though. I want my daughter to get married first and then have children, as do all mothers. Those are things I will teach her too.
Actually, what the account wants is more important than the BOS.
They sign my paycheck and I will do what they request. Don't care much for the BOS and you need to come off your high horse tell everyone they must be consistent with everything.

Yes, consistency is nice, but if the account wants the numbers spelled out from 1-10 that is what the account is going to get - one, two, three, four, etc. They are the ones putting food on my table.


Thanks for that important bit of advice!
I have been going to try them but I will now wait until my next teeth cleaning next month. I NEVER would have given that a thought before. That would be awful to end up with yellow outlines!

Do you know how it might affect crowns??? I assume it will leave them the same color they are. Mine are a little lighter than my natural teeth.
Although MT accuracy is very important,
I think the source of dosing medication comes mostly from the physician's order sheet.  I agree with the other poster that a cascading effect is very possible when later dictation and charting is based on the previous records.  Also, there are other safeguards and checks made in terms of operations, and they would not be based simply on the H&P.  If a doctor bases any operation on just an H&P I would consider him incompetent.  This does not excuse the MT who is not careful in documentation. 
Get yourself a system...most important..
With Autocorrect, you have to remember everything!  So I had to come up with a system that I would remember them.  I use the letter *J* for anything that ends in *tion* or *sion,* the letter *Z* for endings with *ize* or *ization*, *x* for words that start with prefix of *ex*, for capitalizing abbreviations, such as HPI that you want to capitalize in a sentence, would be *xhpi.*  I use *U* as in uhpi to bring up History of Physical Illness when needed in a sentence, as *HPI* will come up all caps for headings.  I also have a system that I will use the first two letters of two words if I have already used the first letters of two words, such as *cp* for chest pain, *chpr* for chemistry profile.  If those first two letters are used for something, I go to the first three letters of the first word and the first two letters of the second word.  Also will use maybe the first four or five letters of a word.  Also, have phrases, such as *sdnh* for she does not have, *shnos* for she has not seen, and just a lot of those types of things. Saves a lot of time.  Also have, of course, what the docs constantly say, their little phrases they use all of the time.  However, I do forget I have some of these things in there, and have to keep refreshing myself as with about 5000 abbreviations, it gets wicked!!  But it really helps to have a system that helps you to remember what you have in there. 
Important - see message

I too use Smartype with 2003 and have the same problem, but I wouldn't give up and found out why.  What it is when you have a text box (when you jump around using the F11 key to fill in the box) you have to hit the delete key first before you type.  If you type without deleting the box first, it will freeze or lock up.


The same thing happens if you hightlight text and want to type over the text.  You have to hit delete first and then type.  If you highlight and then type without deleting the text, it will lock up.  I have trained myself to use the delete key at these times and rarely does it freeze up now.  Every now and then I'll forget or accidently do something that will trigger it to lock, but it is not very often.


You can use it, but you have to train yourself.  It is a Word problem I was told.  If you have any questions, e-mail me and I will try to help


Important ? re. digital(sm)
I get the heebie jeebies worrying that dictation will be erased/lost in the transfer. Is there any backup which will prevent this happening? Where I live if anything is lost, things fly and tempers flare. Scared to death of this happening. How wonderful that you are sharing, kudos to all of you. We need more of this helping attitude.
The MOST important question is.....

Very important - thanks for your post.
Take care of your kids and be flexible while they are still young.  Take the time because they grow so fast.  If that means losing a buck here and there, so be it.  I for one would not trade getting my son to his ballgame or being able to see my daughter receive an award at school for all of the money in the world.  I will carry those memories with me forever.  We can work on-site when our children are older and no longer need us so much.  What a great feeling!  Glad you are making the switch back/welcome once again!  We missed you!!!!  
Most important I think is spelling

Not the spelling police, but I thought your post was cute!  Seasoned????  How about proofing your typing?  Just kidding  .  I'm joking!!!


 


That's why it is so important that there is uniformity regarding...SM

style and format which the BOS has tried to do.  I don't always agree with the BOS, but at least it is trying to standardize things.  Things like spelling and terminology misuse are pretty much black and white -- either you spell correctly or you don't. 


Another practice that the MTSOs have gotten into is allowing the clients to dictate their preferences to the point where it is in direct opposition with the accepted norm and sometimes are just totally incorrect!   Facilities hire MTSO for their expertise in medical transcription and, therefore, should let us do what we do best rather telling us how to do our job.  I don't tell the doctor how to treat the patient and he shouldn't tell me how to do my job.


With the exception of formatting, the MTSOs should be giving the clients a copy of the rules and standards MTs follow.  I understand that formatting will change from client to client and in my opinion, that is an acceptable variation.


I worked for an MTSOs who contracted with a client -- a hospital -- whose transcriptionists had "always" typed gravida and para values in Roman numerals, i.e. gravida III, para II.  When the MTSO contracted with the hospital, the MTs typed it according to the BOS, but were quickly corrected by a file clerk in the HIM department stating we were doing it wrong.  Did the MTSO stick up for its MTs and say we follow the BOS and that is the accepted norma?  Nope.  An email went to the MTs saying that on this particular account gravida and para should be expressed as Roman numerals!


This shouldn't be happening!  We are professionals and should be treated as such.  We are not show dogs jumping through hoops!


So see, I'm not some evil QA person who lives to find errors.  I am a QA person who sees problems on both side of the issue!


IMPORTANT - Real VNC

Please ladies.  If a company ever ever ever installs this on your computer, get rid of it!  The program itself is for technical support but it also can enable a company to get into your system without your knowledge.  This happened to me and I caught someone from that company remotely taking over my keyboard and mouse! 


All they need to get in is your IP address and they can see your whole screen.  I was told by an independent IT person that they can log your Keystrokes and get your financial info if you have it stored.  I just had to change all of my banking and credit card accounts and run multiple scans on my computer.  I am an IC with my own computer and they installed this to run in the background as soon as I boot up the computer even though for tech support we used an entirely different program.


 Yes, I absolutely ended that contract, but I just wanted to let everyone know so the same does not happen to them. 


It depends on what is really important...s/m

I worked in an ER for 6 years (clerical) and have a sister and a brother-in-law that are nurses.  I also worked on the floor at the hospital and knew that I could never be a nurse.  Yes, my sister and brother-in-law make great money, but my sister never sleeps (works nights) and both miss holidays all the time.  this year, my brother-in-law works Christmas day (11a-11p) and new year's eve (11a-11p).  To me, no amount of money is worth missing the holidays with my kids.  if you don't have kids then maybe nursing is for you.  however, if you have kids and want to be able to go to school functions, not work holidays, and have the flexibility (I'm IC so work my OWN schedule), then I would definitely look into MT.  As far as the pay goes, I have only been doing MT for about 5 years and have made the same rate per line since starting.  I don't have company benefits (again, IC) but my home benefits outweight the hospital benefits i had when I worked there (not as an MT).  On some days (easy doctors), i can make as much as my sister (w/o her night shift) and other days I make average.  Sorry, going on and on...  but I would definitely consider experiencing each aspect of both fields before putting your money into schooling. 


PS:  Used to my computer fixing capitals at the beginning of sentences and fixing spelling errors (funny how we get so used to our autocorrect, huh). 


This is mot important issue, IMO.
x
DG, critically important, not just SM
an aid. In future no one will be able to make a living at this work without extensively using one, including specifically editing.

You tell the Expander to record the Keystrokes you use to do a correction dozens of times a day and then give those functions one- or two-key abbreviations. That way, a tap of a single key, or maybe 2 taps, will change the case of a letter (delete old one, shift+new letter) or insert the word "The" at the beginning of a sentence and then lower-case the first letter of the next word. A function key can be instructed to open a new screen and send a standard message to QA. That sort of thing.

And you will need a professional-quality expander to do the job.
nope don't think I am important sm
at all, but telling the truth. That is the problem with too many folks, too unwilling to do the work over the years to learn what they need to learn and do what needs to be done. Sorry if I hit a nerve but I didn't say anything that wasn't true!
To me, this is the most important finding: - sm
"The average transcription price ranges from 11.9 cents to 13.2 cents per line, depending on whether the services provided are onshore, offshore or a mix of both."

There are some problems with the methodologies used to produce these KLAS studies, but setting those aside what's instructive here is that around 10 years ago a different study showed the average industry price to be 14 to 17 cents per line. Offshoring and cutthroat competition, and to a much lesser degree technology, have resulted in lower prices, and that can only do one thing - put downward pressure on the wages paid to transcriptionists.

Predictably, then, wages in our segment of the healthcare industry have stagnated or declined, while in most other segments prices and wages have risen - in some cases much more rapidly than the rate of inflation.


Experience is more important than
what school you went to. Experience helps you pass the tests. I'd hire someone with hands-on experience & able to pass the test any day before I'd hire a newbie graduate from CareerStep, Andrews, etc. You'll do fine.
Oh I've read that site and continue to read it...sm
I agree...much motivation there. I have tried to quit numerous times in the past and did successfully quit when I was pregnant for the first time many years ago but I have never managed to summon up the strength or resolve to stay quit. Thus the "need" for a financial investment in my efforts. It somehow makes it more motivational to know that I have $$$ invested in this effort over and above the $$$ saved on cigarettes.
Who had time to read?LOL I only get a chance to read This Old House once in a while. (nm)
x
I forgot the most important thing. SM
Even with a child proof home, 3 kiddies under 5 can still get in plenty of mischief when you take your eyes off them for even a second.  Your eyes have to be off them more than a few seconds if you're trying to do a job.  HIRE SOMEONE TO HELP YOU, PUT THEM IN DAYCARE OR WORK AT NIGHT WHEN THEY'RE SLEEPING.....PLEASE!
Sometimes it's not the income that's important - it's that you were THERE. Sounds like you

Just get rid of this ball and chain.  Remember, when you "get off the train" at a man's station --- that's where you are stuck.


If that station isn't where you want you AND YOUR KIDS to be, even if you just leave with the clothes on your back - LEAVE. 


You know in your heart if his lifestyle is what you want for your children.  If it isn't, then first get away from him.  Men are the biggest energy vampires in the world.  They will suck the life right out of you.