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Speed typing engines are our best friends.

Posted By: Sure can! on 2009-04-09
In Reply to: Want to find out what expander is - Old person here

Shortcuts is why.

Tineoafod becomes

There is no evidence of a fracture or dislocation. This is IT. Where the first letter of each word is the shortcut. There are also continues and ability to have entire paragraphs be typed with IT by suggestion several possible continues from TINEO (There is no evidence of); ending the sentence based on the ways you have most consistently.

I am a novice IT user. Am about to try SH was many rave about it but IT has saved my fingers and also helps with the quality as chance of typing typos or word dropping is reduced. I tend to create my own phrases but that was with radiology which is redundant much of the time.

You have several to chose from. Other MTs will come along with better suggestions. Is important to know your program compatibility.

I try to think of this feature as a crossword puzzle and challenge myself to find the correct phrse or word fast to complete report and get on to next. Expanders make our job a bit more fun.


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Other related messages found in our database

Are you using two speed typing engines at the same time?
Or did I read that wrong. If that were possible, it'd be a breakthrough.
Utilize the speed typing engines and begin
storing in their favorite phrases so that a few letters will bring them up. I am working for several physicians. Took me a few months to get all the words into speed typing mode but now that I have, the time I spend typing is cut in half.

Never type a word larger than 4 letters.

chest pain - cp

pneumonia - pnea

atelectasis or infiltrate - aoi

so on and so on - whatever works for you. This is how to make money these days, high production. And the speed typing engines lessen change of typos and other erros.


speed typing
Okay, ladies.  I have been working for 8 months now as an MT and my typing accuracy still is lacking quite a bit.  I have the typer shark program that I use sometimes.  I type about 50 WPM.  Not good enough for me.  I was hoping that somebody could give me suggestions or hope that it will come with time.  I seem to be a little bit better lately, but I keep hearing about MTs who type 300+ lines per hour.  It takes me a couple hours or more to do that.  Depending on the dictator, of course.  One woman said she used to type the news and that seemed to help her.  I just need some encouragement that I will get better, or maybe some people don't. 
speed typing
I also use IT, as it is through the company I work for. I am still getting to know the program. I tried Mavis. I found her to be cute, but annoying. I think am just being impatient. I really like the typer shark program. It's actually fun. I think I will take the time to work on understanding IT, so I can get it to work for me.

Thanks your input. It did make me feel hopeful!
speed typing
Will do! Thank you for the encouragement.
What is your typing speed? - sm
Though most of being a great MT involves excellent listening skills, to make the most of production, IMHO, you have type like the wind and use macros, including macro sentences rather than words only.  Just a thought - when was the last time you took a typing test?  I think there is a free Web based typing test...
Typing Speed

Is there an easy way to calculate word-per-minute typing speed using the lines per hour I can do?  -Thanks.


Typing Speed
I type about 70wpm with about a 98% accuracy rate.  Per a couple online typing tests I took this week.  I'm curious what speed accomplished MTs type?  Is 70wpm fast enough?  If not, are there any work at home classes or software packages to improve typing speed?  Are there any you know work or recommend?  Thanks in advance for your help.
Typing speed conversion
Does anyone know the formula for converting lines per hour to words per minute?
Generally typing speed is

irrelevant, since the typical typing test usually involves straight copying from a printed or hand written sheet.  Any transcription involves other functions than just typing, hence the standard typing speed means nothing. 


 


Typing speed is not the key thing
but how efficient the dictator is in dictating, the distractions, the platform, etc. If you get alot of air ("uh, um, duh...") it brings your line count down big time.

I usually manage 1000 lines (with no distractions) in 4 to 5 hours.
What is your typing speed and do you use a lot of templates or have repetition?
??
I have never listed my typing speed. Never prevented
nm
XX,, I promise you can double that typing speed quickly SM
then triple it, and eventually quadruple it with an Expander used right. You're doing something wrong, but I assure you once you know what it is you can correct it easily and immediately start seeing the benefits having your expander do much of the typing for you.

To begin with, though, most of your increased speed is going to come NOT from inserting blocks of text standard for one dictator but rather abbreviations for the individual words, phrases, and headings you're constantly typing anyway.

For instance, I type RPSV for "reports that." It wasn't hard to remember. Variations of "report" are used constantly, so RP became report, RPS reports, RPG reporting, RPD reported. V is "that." AO is "also" for me, and F is "he", so "he also reported that" becomes FAORPDV and "he also reports that" becomes FAORSV. This is the first time I've seen those on paper; you don't memorize the long forms, just string together the constantly used short ones. Amazingly quickly your fingers remember (muscle memory?) so you don't have think about it.

Smartype is probably not the best expander but fine to start on since you have it. Later on, better programs have conversion programs that will allow you to move your abbreviations to that program.

In the meantime, go to productivitytalk.com and start reading and asking questions. If you wish, you can import a whole ready-made dictionary compiled by an MT abbreviations.

But you could also take another tack for now just as a trial. Instead of trying to use Smartype's abbreviations, if that's what you're doing, enter just a handful of your own that you can get very familiar with. I love these that I use and am happy to pass them on to anyone who wishes to try them:

Make T expand to "the"
F expand to "he"
G expand to "him"
K expand to "she"
J expand to "her"
T expand to "the"
B to "but"
Q to "who"
R to "right"
L to "left"
F to "for"
D for "and"

That's more than enough for now. If you do this, I think in a couple of days you'll be loving how a quick tap of the finger drops in all these little words so much that you'll eventually become addicted to abbreviating everything in sight--and to watching your scores on your speed tests rise and rise and rise... Best wishes.
What other search engines to you use that are
x
Desktop Search Engines

Does anyone know of any desktop search engines that will let you use a keyboard command to get to the search taskbar without opening the whole desktop program or mousing to the taskbar, other than Google Desktop? 


I can't use Google Desktop because it doesn't search all the directories in the C: drive.  It only searches the main directory. 


You could use your internet search engines to find
"grand rapids, MI, jobs" and get lots of hits. I'd also check monsterjobs.com for your area, and your state Dept. of Labor should also have a site where you could find jobs in your area. If you are unsure about the search engines, try google.com. It's a great tool for finding anything you could possibly want. God bless.
dogpile.com combines a lot of the search engines together. nm
;
Blog about it on wordpress.com - it will show up in google/search engines. This really works.
Categorize each post with as many tags as you can type related to medical, any words you can think of that people would search for. Maybe someone with SEO experience can chime in here? :) :) :)
The categories show up as "tags" show up in search engines.

We need to blog-
Information about the issue.
A form letter peoople can print/sign/mail.
Contacts/Snail Mail of government officials where people can send the mail too.

We can also give information who they can contact at their local hosptial to find out if their records are going to India/Asia. Most people don't know to ask for the director of health information or operations manager.

Also ad the url to your blog to google:
http://www.google.com/addurl/

We could also link to one another blog's.

Is there someone willing to post a form letter? We could copy and paste it in our our blogs. My writing skills are not good enough yet. ;)

I'm not a Transcriptionist yet but I know about wordpress categories and google. This works!
Friends, really miss Friends :-(
Joey just isn't the same for me
increase speed 3, decrease speed 2...sm
increase backspace 9, decrease backspace 8. At least that's what mine does.
C-phone speed help! PLEASE! Speed key!
I am in tears - typing speedy gonzalez - a total knee replacement, not a standard, dictated in under 1 minute - FULL REPORT!  Can you imagine? I have a C-phone that is just hanging in there, but lost all its programming.  Isn't there a # key on the number part of the phone that reduces speed?  I need it way slooooooooooow!! I'm afraid to just start hitting numbers, though, cause I've lost reports that way!! Anybody have a # to hit for me???
Typing. This is NOT typing, it is transcribing. There is a BIG difference. sm
Transcription includes typing, but so much more.
A little help from my *friends*
I have been doing this for 36 years and I have used word expanders and normals for more than 20 years.  It sure helps when you are typing *the patient* practically every paragraph.  I just type tpt and viola...same with the headings, Review of Systems, etc.  Every little bit helps.  To those who dont use expanders and normals, just think how much more money you could be making and how less tired and sore you would be at the end of the day.  *Long live the expanders*.
friends
My daughter is 20 and I still can't stand her friends...........
friends.
Excellent post. Your kids are lucky to have parents like you and your husband.

One of my friends did that...
for the exact same reason.  However, their first ceremony was private, and they did not expect anyone to give them gifts for both weddings.  But in your case, I would think a gift for the first wedding would be more helpful to them since they may not have all the things they need for their home together.  I certainly would not feel the need to buy for both ceremonies.
have many friends? lol
lololol
Looking for old friends

I have been trying to locate some people form my old High School - Figured with all of you out there someone might know someone and pass this on. I went to Garrett Hign School during 1977 thru 1981.


Sonia Suppan Bugher and Carissa Babson Snyder


Lost track of them many years ago, and there are so many people looking for them now - we were all concerned when they disappeared. Last I heard Carissa was in NC and Sonia in Oklahoma. Tried classmates.com and theya r elisted as "missing" LOL. Who knows maybe they are MT's too.


You are in need of some friends.
Q
I have friends here in ND who say it too.
And, I grew up with an English teacher for my mother, so I know what you mean. Always corrected but now I have a great grasp of the English language.
I'm not saying I want to be best friends with my supervisor,

I rarely take time off unless its an emergency, in fact its been a couple years, and not too long ago there was an emergency with my health.  My supervisor only told me she needed me on working asap, did not inquire about my health, wish me well or to get better.  Its just work work work...which seems kind of cold to me. 


When I worked for a local office and knew them for years, as for favors, meaning i'll work my fingers to the bone, settle for  getting no raises whatsoever, not complain, just give me work that i'm the most proficient at so we both win, like predominantly operative reports or maybe even psych. 


friends and family to appreciate me at my job?
I doubt you're getting raises and I doubt you use your money for "others" and you as well are a poor judge of character.  This initial post was about supervisors interacting more with their MTs so we can put a face with the name and feel like we have someone in our corner, being that we are so remote from coworkers.  Obviously, we disagree, lets agree to do that much.  You just sit and type away and collect your paycheck. 
Oh, I don't know. I've got way more friends now than ever before.
I know all the parents at the school. It's so funny. When I used to work fulltime outside the home, nobody ever waved to me at the schools and hardly anybody came to the kids' birthday parties. If I had a day off and picked up the kids at the school, I'd watch all the other parents talking together but was never included. Now I'm part of it all. I get invited to go to the gym and do coffee or lunch. It's great! I never had time for any of it before.
Going into medicine. I have 2 MT friends
who are already in medical school. One MT I worked with at a large hospital is now an anesthesiologist making about $300K a year. Hahaha Should I hope to do so well. Hahaha

Know 1 who is a psychotherapist now. Know 1 who got her MBA and works in government contracting and 1 who got his MS and works for JCAHO.

Lots of things to do out there! It's much easier to decide what you want to do now that you're experienced in life and know what the real investments and rewards are. I'd go on to commercial flight school if I weren't going into medicine. I have a private license. Would LOVE to be Lear certified! Would love to fly a medical helicopter. You can get funding for those flight programs, too! Not a traditional classroom setup. If I don't get into med school, I may be doing that! Hahaha

why does she invite the friends?
what if it these 2-3 couples that she invites over do not have family that they can visit during the holidays? that could be why she has them over every holiday.
lost friends
Have you tried Reunion.com?
My best friend in high school found me after ten years recently. He found me on reunion.com, and then found my phone number on superpages.com and contacted me. We had both been looking for each other for ten years, and finally he found me. Good luck!
Or his kids' friends...LOL
/
I have plenty of friends...sm

that I know from different places, clubs included, but that doesn't mean that I'm having an affair with any of them...male or female! Before I was married my best friend and I went to a particular club to dance...it was great exercise and more fun than going to a gym. I made several friends there who are strictly friends. We were all single, enjoyed each other's company, and liked to dance...nothing nasty ever went on. In fact, many times my male friends made it easy to shake men whose attention I didn't want. Sometimes people go out just because it is more fun than watching TV. Hubby and I went to the club a couple of weeks ago and I introduced him to people that I knew there. I would hate to think that because I introduced him to people that he would think I'm having an affair. I don't know if I'd be more hurt because he didn't trust me, or because he thought I was dumb enough to take him someplace and introduce him to someone I would have an affair with!


I would also hate to think that my husband would search my cell phone and check the numbers he didn't recognize. My son is in the military and at times his friends have called because they consider me a second mom or are trying to get in touch with my son. Nevermind that just about everyone has had someone call their phone and it has been a wrong number!


If someone gave me a real reason to check up on them, I probably would, but to check up on someone 'just to be sure' is insulting. If someone I care about can't come to me and talk rationally about their fears, then we don't have much of a relationship!


So, you are friends with his wife?
I loved watching his shows...so sad. Hope his family is making it through this okay.
OH... wasn't it! My friends and I were all saying that.
It was like that's all we get after all that anticipation! lol! But it is getting better already. I just love Bailey.
Did you see on Fox & Friends this morning...
or the news in general, that the group from Kansas that has been protesting at soldiers' funerals is coming to PA (that's where I'm from) to protest AT THE FUNERALS because of something Gov. Rendell said about them?
Yay! I have friends! Thanks, I appreciate that. I'm just trying to keep it honest. nm
x
I have friends who feel the same way
Not necessarily just MT friends, but in general. Some enjoy the independence of working for themselves. I on the other hand don't think I make a very good boss! I for some reason prefer mostly to be a cog in a machine. I'm glad there is something for everyone. Sometimes trying different ways helps a person figure out what is the best fit for them.
Going fishing at the crick with friends.
Having a BBQ and fireworks with the kids.  Then we're having a big birthday party for a couple of people in the family.
For parents, what do you think of your kids' friends?

I am wondering if it's ME or if it's my kids' friends that's the problem.  I just can't stand barely any of them.  We have little sailors running around cussing, compulsive liars, thieves, two-faced "unfriends", blackmailers, anger management problems, slobs, and perverts running around here.  And the violent and graphically disgusting games these kids try to play.  Is this everywhere?  Or am I just overly sensitive?  Parents can't choose their kids' friends because the kids'll rebel against the control, right?  I just feel like I can't have anyone over here because I'm constantly correcting them and cleaning up after them.  They don't listen worth a darn anyway.  I certainly don't want my kids to go to their houses if these kids behave this badly here.


I tried going into details, but this post got so long.  I don't think it's our neighborhood either because we have to drive for playdates with some of these kids.  What, do we just attract the people with issues?  I try to tell myself that these are just kids or perhaps their home life isn't in line with the same value system as we have.  I try to be tolerant because some of these kids have had problems in their lives.  However, having problems is no excuse for bad behavior.  I'm no perfect prude and neither are my kids.  We've had our share of problems.  I also know I can't "shelter" my kids from the outisde world.  But geez, it's just ridiculous.  Whatever happened to the days when parents were parents and kids behaved?  Children should not be cussing, stealing and telling horrific stories of murder and incest.


To give you an example, one of these little punks even told the whole neighborhood that my husband and I were druggies and dealers.  We found out about it when our elderly neighbor came over and told us.  We've always been totally against drugs, not even experimenting with them when we were teens.  Plus, we both have to go through yearly drug screening tests at work, too.  What is with the world today?


Love your handle, Ma of 4 and their friends and
I can relate. I was mom to my kids' friends, too. I swore many time to claim them as dependents on my tax returns. They practically lived at my house.
One of our friends' child just passed away.
What do you do for someone in this situation?  I know to send a card and go to the service.  I don't think flowers are a good idea because people send so many that it's just a hassle to find somewhere to put them until you have to throw them away.  Money, a cooked meal?  I spazzed out and didn't know what to say to them except we're here for you.  I can't believe I got up this morning griping about my own situation when so many other people have so much that's worse.
Yes. One of my best friends -- she began seeing married men
which was intolerable to me. I tried to look the other way. She wouldn't even try to hide it from me...wanting to talk about it, wanting me to MEET them. I finally just told her that I loved her very much and enjoyed our friendship but that something had changed so drastically for her to believe it is okay to live like this and it was in direct conflict with everything in my life. I just could not support someone who was intentionally pursuing such a hateful, devastating lifestyle. These weren't mistakes. She saw men she wanted and it was a game to her.

It hurt me very much. Many people who didn't know the reasons behind it blamed me for being a horrible person for dumping my best friend.

It was hard not to discuss her lifestyle to defend my actions.

I feel for you.
you ask all your friends to email you rather than call. nm
;
I used to work in a clinic, and have friends who do now.

7 years ago I worked in a clinic and lost the job when the clinic joined a larger physician group who outsourced transcription.  I went to work for the company they were using then.  With that change I almost doubled my income.  That MTSO later went out of business.  Ironically, now I work for the MTSO who currently has that account.  Some of my coworkers with the first company have gone to work for a large clinic in the area who has brought some MT work back in-house.  They took a cut in pay but have better benefits and much better hours.  I have found that you pretty much have to be in the right place at the right time, or know somebody.  The first clinic job I got was when I went to apply at the local hospital and the director at the hospital sent me over to the clinic.  Almost all of the opportunities I have gotten over the years have come from knowing someone.  Sometimes the best thing to do is to ask around.  I know a lot of transcriptionists in the area, and several people who work in clinics in the area.  This is where I get most of my leads.