Take constructive criticism and LEARN...
Posted By: Tish on 2007-08-25
In Reply to: I was let go... - Feeling unsure...
I worked for this company and the only reason I quit was I needed a job where i worked 4 hours and that was it. I absolutely LOVED my job with them. They were encouraging yet at the same time made me aware of what I needed to correct, as quality is of utmost importance in medical dictation. I made notes and reviewed the corrections sent back to me in order to undo my errors. The Editor (Rose) taught me so much by giving me these corrections cause it has helped me become a better MT. It is so important in this field to be accurate and have good grammar and spelling skills. Maybe this field isnt for you, but definitely even look into getting perhaps a used grammar/english textbook or the AMMT Book of Style to review, as that might be less expensive than going back to school. I have talked to other MTs who have been in this field for 35 years and said they STILL learn something new every single day. Keep an open mind on this job and learn all you can. In the long run you will be a better MT for it.
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- I was let go... - Feeling unsure...
- Take constructive criticism and LEARN... - Tish
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Look inside if you want criticism. If you can't take it, don't. -sm
The one-space after periods I was only made to do at MedWare. It's very unnatural.
I never typed post-operative in my life, it's always been postoperative.
Contractions were never, ever allowed unless as a direct quote. -- Can't should be cannot. It's one word.
As for the rest, I've been doing it that way, except q.4h. (I don't put a space like you have) for years.
Why the continued criticism? Are you the owner?
Without the comma, the sentence was fragmented and was not complete. I don't know about the other sentence as I must have gotten that one right. I see a lot as an Editor as well. Like I said, I've been doing this for well over 20 years and I don't need to "brush up" as you say.
yes I know I spelled criticism wrong...
don't shoot me!!!
Constructive
No one likes being corrected, even in a nice way, especially if doing the same thing the same way for years. Us QAs out here are just like you, employed by a company, we are not the almighty rulers of the world. We are employed to do a job which is not easy and many feelings get hurt along the way. Many MTs just want to be left alone to do their work even if it is incorrect. Thats not an option these days, the work must be correct and quality is mandatory, not an option.
Can anyone please tell me what constructive
I have been following the discussion below about impolite QA and some of you have mentioned receiving constructive feedback from QA and/or mentors. Would someone please tell me what this constructive feedback looks like? Where I work they just fill in the blanks, but I never receive any comments. I often ask questions but receive no response. What am I missing? I hope for some sort of feedback from the QA people and/or my manager but it never happens. Maybe I have been spared the rudeness that some of you experience because they never comment. Which companies offer feedback, tips, constructive criticism? What does the feedback/mentoring look like? Thank you for your responses and help.
If you have nothing constructive to say, then
xx
The answers have been constructive. sm
What I don't understand is why you think they're not. People are stating the truth--the employer calls the shots, not the employee. Just because the truth isn't as comfortably "warm and fuzzy" as you want it to be, doesn't make it less true. It seems that this point is missed very frequently on this board and to try to convince this person that it is the employee who decides the working terms is both cruel and non-constructive. (There are so many cliches that I could use right now I'm not even going to start.)
There have been several posters who lament the loss of jobs to overseas competition but instead of laying blame at the feet of workers who want to call the shots, they instead try to blame the people who are hungry for jobs and are willing to work at getting and keeping jobs that are "too demanding", "too demaning", "not family-friendly" for US workers. Employers are also to blame when their biggest concern is the bottom line and not upholding the society that allowed them to become employers in the first place.
A very good book to read for more on this subject is The World Is Flat by Thomas Friedman. It is a long book but if you're really interested in understanding what is going on in the world today and being prepared for the reality of tomorrow, it's worth the read. Of course, it also requires a mind willing to see the problems that both workers and employers have created.
Constructive feedback is ...
providing commentary and suggestions on improving the MT's work process (i.e. 'hearing' ESL's better or maybe a more refined search process, etc.) in a professionally worded fashion. Most times when an MT leaves a minefield of blanks in a report it's because he/she because of their lack of experience wasn't able to 'hear' what the dictator was saying.
A true QA person of excellence can recall their own journey on the road of transcription, remember that type of frustration and lack of experience, and translate solutions and suggestions to the MT in a manner that the MT can draw upon that experience and going forward incorporate the QA's suggestions into their work process, correcting any deficiencies they may have in putting out a quality document without a lot of blanks.
In the case of where you work, sometimes constructive feedback is as simple as just filling in the blanks. You can use the document that's been returned to you as a sample for training your ear to better hear what that particular dictator is saying when you get him/her again. In this way, you continue to improve and are more autonomous in the work that you do.
I hope this helps.
EXACTLY! Constructive input is always welcome;
nm
First of all, you did not come here looking for constructive advice. SM
You came here to whine and moan about QA and you wanted people to pat you on your head and said "poor little MT, you were right." When you didn't get that, you started throwing a tantrum and telling everyone what big 'ol meanies they are.
By your own admission, you have been an MT for three years. You are in no way qualified to tell QA or the QA supervisor that you like or dislike changes made, account specs, or anything of the sort. Your job is to type according to the account specs and according to whatever other BOS rules QA imposes. Like it or not, this is the job! MTs are called upon to be flexible. Personally, I abhor the BOS, but I like money, I need money to live and feed my kids, so if my employer says do by the BOS book, then that's what I'm gonna do.
I going to go out on a limb here and guess that since you said some of the mistakes you made were "stupid mistakes" you shouldn't have made, then you probably look inexperienced to QA and aren't going to be taken seriously when you complain. When you've become a seasoned MT who makes very few mistakes and then want to complain, you might be taken a bit more seriously.
I have 20 years under my belt. My last QA score (which happened to be yesterday) was 99.5% and that is my consistent score. If one day I get a QA score say below 98%, then I may question it diplomatically. I probably have more experience than the QA person proofing my work, but being condescending is not the way to go. Here you are 3 years experience and you are condescending and go above your QA's head to her boss. Good thing you're starting a new job, sounds like you're going to need it.
That's my 2 cents.
Constructive remarks in message
I have a couple of constructive things to say. First take it to a blog where you can whine to someone who cares. Where you can all wallow in your self-pity while your bills add up and your kids starve and nothing changes the situation. Next, get another job. Stay at MQ if you must, but get another job, be it MT or whatever, that will pay your bills while you whine. Third, get some ambition and help yourselves. Whining to each other will accomplish nothing. Why would I be MQ management when I am offering suggestions to help your plight. I am sure MQ management is very happy with the way things are. They have you whiners that are still there for them to scrape their feet on and not doing a thing about your situation.
LOL. I told you, it's a pet peeve. It was constructive
Personally, I don't like to have errors in any of my writing, personal MB or not, and I would rather have someone tell me on a MB than make a fool of myself elsewhere. To each his/her own.
FWIW, I was not proofreading, just reading. After seeing it the incorrect way umpteen times, I felt compelled to mention it.
Yes, thanks for a thoughtful and constructive comment. SM
Much too rare on this board. I'm shocked by how many people still don't use Expanders and use them very extensively. People need to understand and accept that today's much higher standard of production is set by those who do.
Yeah...let's not try to do anything constructive because everybody is contributing to the problem
I think most of us hear this all the time...let somebody else clean up the mess.
THAT is when constructive feedback helps, not being a jerk about it.
QA should remember how it felt to be MT and struggling to get it right.
I have found no matter how constructive my feedback is... SM
most MTs either don't read it or read and immediately send it to the recycle bin literally and figuratively. So when I send feedback, it is basically a list of their errors, my corrections, and quoting chapter and verse from the BOS if necessary.
Quite frankly, I'm tired of hearing MTs gripe. I used to try to educate and mentor MTs, but it is a thankless job. Someone below said that QA people try to insinuate their egos, but in my experience it is the MTs ego that is getting in the way. So many MTs think they are "excellent MTs" and so many of them are not. At one point, I decided to keep a running log of unacceptable errors that even the most remedial MT should not be making and start posting it here because I'm so sick of MTs posting that QA is unreasonable or big meanies.
So here is a very unacceptable mistake I've seen this morning and I've only been on the clock for an hour...
"pressure ulcer on the left heal"
Of course, when I sent feedback to this MT, she emailed me saying "ha ha, oh it's just a typo." Problem was she did it repeatedly throughout the entire report -- not just once but every instance the dictator talked about the left heel ulcer, she typed "left heal ulcer."
Now, MTs, tell me that I'm not supposed to roll my eyes and be a little irritated that I had to spend fifteen minutes listening to her entire report because such a basic error sends up warning flags, when I should have just had to fill in her blanks.
Thank you, that is certainly constructive. How about 17 years, you want me to just change to accomm
nm
Would it kill you people to give constructive advice instead of insults and insensitivity?!?
I understand your frustration. I think you just need to sit down and have a talk with your employer. Find out exactly what they want your status to be. As an employee, yes they do have the right to dictate your hours, where you work, etc., but they do not have the right to jerk you around. If they want you to work at home, then they need to provide for that, not you! Anyone who says otherwise is wrong! In any industry, if a company wants you to commute, they pay for gas/mileage. If they want you to have a cell phone/pager, they either pay for it, or they provide an allowance for it. If they want you to work at home, they provide equipment. It sounds to me like they want way too much and are giving very little. Just because a person/company is the employer, it does not give them the right to treat people like dirt, sending them on wild goose chases, interfering with their life, schedule, expenses, etc. I am sorry you have received such critical and insensitive comments. I hope this works out for you. Blessings!
She didn't say she put "no-no" in her feedback and used baby talk in her constructive criti
I wish she were on my QA team. She sounds wonderful!
learn something new every day - thanks
See - learn something new every day. Thanks. I just knew about some laws passed locally last year on a city/county basis.
Did you learn
on the job, or were you taught by a friend, or self-taught?
Most of those tests nowadays are geared toward grads of official MT programs.
Learn something new every day don't
you. A consult is similar in format to an H&P, but 2 different things - for example, an elderly patient with diabetes breaks a hip and needs surgery. Most likely they are admitted to ortho, but need an endocrine of internal medicine consult to determine if diabetes is stable enough for surgery and no other medical problems that might be a contraindication to surgery, or need treatment prior to surgery.
You will never learn to do them...
unless you tackle them head on. You do what you can with the report, and you do what you can with the next report. You cannot avoid difficult dictations. If you don't learn to do them, you will never make any money and will probably get into trouble for abandoning too many reports.
Why would anyone want to learn it???
nm
Learn something new every day...sm
Outlook and outlook express are two different things I guess. I never knew this, but that's what I am being told. Outlook has a calendar option but outlook express does not. Very interesting indeed. Let me know if you all hear anything different from this.
Thanks for all your help. I have decided to try the yahoo calendar for free and see how that works. So far, it's perfect! Thanks for the info everyone! 
thats it! You have to learn the sm
hard way to understand. For my own personal experience, I have gone through a horrible illness and I know more than ever the importance of medical records that are perfect. I have seen some really bad stuff out there in medical records, my own included that not only is a disgrace but downright dangerous! I have always done my job with the idea that there is a patient behind all of this and they deserve the best we can give them. With all the ruckus about the state of our health care system these days, why would any MT not understand that this is not about us and lines typed and cpl etc. ITS ABOUT THE PATIENTS!!!!!!!!! you are right, the money comes later. Its a career long learning experience, one that I hope never ends on the learning part. Sounds to me like you have also been through enough life to understand all of this. The younger ones won't get it until they have been at this for many years. The only problem is, with some of the attitudes of "I won't do this and I won't do that" they won't be in the business years from now!
Learn from history
and think very carefully about this person and his sob story. Boo hoo!
His child is cruel toward animals, chances are this child is being mistreated in some way by someone. This is a red flag that something in not right in this child's life regarding the adults. Children are NOT naturally violent--it is learned behavior.
Be friendly, but takes things very, very slow and think of the safety of yourself, your children, and your pet (s). Better safe than sorry.
newbie trying to learn
I have recently finished an online medical transcription course. I have been reading the posting on this website and I'm very intrigued by some of the information. Not to sound stupid, but what are word expanders, auto correct, and shorthand? I have macros on my computer, but I never used them. I am trying to find my first medical transcription job, but it is very difficult as a newbie. I would love to be a productive, accurate medical transcriptionist, but it seems that no one wants to give the newbies a chance. Any thoughts of how to get started? thanks!
It is your job to learn the ESLs and if you can't/won't then you need to
find a new job because you are in the wrong one.
However, once you learn it, it's great!
I averaged $21-23 an hour doing radiology, about $15-17 doing acute care. If I were to go back into transcription, it would be doing radiology.
Thanks, i'd be interested to learn more
welcome; love IT and sure you will too when you learn it. nm
;
It depends on what you need to learn. Sm
Right now I have a gal starting Sep. 1 who has absolutely no med. training whatsoever so we are starting from scratch. She is paying for textbooks, cd's, materials, etc. I am having her pay as she goes along. I am not making any profit on any materials, but when she gets to the transcription part, I will have to start charging minimally for my time. Not sure yet how to go about that.
The second gal has some formal training and needs dictation practice and I am actually in the process of working with a company getting copies of microcasette tapes with approximately 800 minutes of dictation on them and will give those to my students.
I have a few accts. myself so when my students show that they are ready to tackle digital dictation, I may consider "hiring" them in the future. Right now, our goal is to get them trained and ready with my help, and to be able to pass a co. test.
I don't know where that box is to place my email address is and I don't want to post it in this spot. I will try to get my email available for anyone seriously considering getting into the field and being trained with an experienced MT who is willing to mentor them along the way to meeting their career goals.
It was very frustrating to learn but
after 3 months, I have grown to like it.... well maybe I have grown not to dislike it so much. I would still rather work in MS Word. It is NOT the best platform out there to be certain. The spell check is awful and I copy everything into a Word document to double check. You cannot copy back into Emdat though. If there are any changes to make you must type them. For some reason if you copy from Word, although it looks okay to you, on the physician's end it is wrong.
It is nice not to have to worry about the line count. It is VERY nice not to have to save each patient separately. It is nice to have the patients name available (although that is not always the case). Overall, I give it a C.
Hope this helped.
I had to learn the same program sm
Whether it is worth it - is only a question you can answer.
Personally, the platform is so easy; however, I do not get the high line counts I am used to even with their expander. I am so used to working in a Word-based platform with over 5000 auto-correct entries. For me, the transition was not worth it. I could only average 240 lines per hour compared to my usual 350 - 400 lph.
You have to realize, every one is different with different needs and wants.
The packet of policies you mention really is no big deal. Just print them out and read them over and within a week you won't even look at them again. Starting any job is overwhelming at first, but then it becomes routine.
I would suggest you give it a shot. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
As for the ESL account, I have no idea which one that would be - mine is a good mix of all.
Thank you! Learn something new everyday!
.
I like it. Once you learn it, it is easy.
x
Is this so you dont have to LEARN which is which?
If so, no, theres no way.
If you need a shortcut, just put the nongenerics in your Expander as capped. Put your others in like ddiphenhydramine and it will catch on spellcheck and you will know it is generic.
Yes. Use MT while you learn something else. It's never too late. nm
x
Was very difficult to learn and there are
still some things I cannot get the hang of. But, it is the only Expander I am permitted to use so had to bite the bullet after resisting for a few months. Takes about three months go use it effectively. Try using it for a few hours every day. When you get frustrated, close it and type everything out. On short-fuse days, skip it altogether. Over a few months, with this method, you will begin to develop speed and each new problem will be solved one by one so your line count will not get suffer greatly. Using IT requires doing a massive amount of reading initially. But, I have to say, I love it now (and am still learning how to use it six months into using it).
That rate is better than most. You do learn
the ESLs. You just have to "train" your ears. I remember my first day on my current account. I had all ESLs and I had so many blanks and was so stressed, but now I would rather do these ESLs than some of my American docs. I still have times when I will have a blank with these docs but it is rare. When you get corrections back print them and keep a file for future reference and if you can relisten to the report once you get corrections and see if you can hear what they are saying this time.
Took me about a week to learn it. I sm
forced myself to do it the IT way (using their marker keys), and started out using it 1 hour a day. I purchased mine at fitaly.com for full price. I have seen it used on ebay & here on the equipment board.
because in med school they learn to be even
cockier and they also learn how to dictate even faster. They also learn to pretend that everyone's physical exam is exactly the same no matter what their problem really is and, by the way, the Transcriptionist should know what that physical exam entails from the very first report. So, they all decided to save their money and just be a P.A. instead of an M.D. 
yep, for some it's a big deal so learn it *LOL*
The patient will be seen for followup in a week.
Followup one week.
The patient came in for follow up of her acne. (I believe this can be hyphenated to follow-up.)
The patient will be seen for followup care in a month. (This, too, some MTs hyphenate to follow-up but I do not.)
The BOS has this very issue - Book of Style by the AAMT 2nd edition - discussed in it.
Where did you learn all these tricks?
I have the program and have really not got into it too much yet, but the manual leaves a lot to be desired. It is very highly recommended so I intend to keep on trying. I bought it about a year and a half ago, and admit I finally gave up and put it on the back burner, but I really want to learn how to use it. I will add, though, that I have had a lot of trouble learning the tricks with Word, since I am on my own and having to teach myself.
Is it easy to learn?
Thanks
It will help you learn MD names and
I think help you get a realistic idea of your nursing career. I don't have kids though. I hope you have a good support system.
Good luck to you.
LIve and learn...
her name? Isn't that a little unprofessional and childish on your part. Too bad you got a bad deal, but you chose her. Maybe she's making more money doing something else or had a family emergency. Did you have her sign a contract because if you didn't then you really have no leg to stand on. I just personally think it is poor taste on your part to try to smear her name. I wish you would produce your full name so that I don't work for you in case I want to quit - you won't smear my name. Grow up and quit  ! Just find someone else!
The system will learn...sm
If everybody types PhosLo in the beginning, the system will learn it that way and will eventually put out a draft with PhosLo in it. However you type things is how the system will learn it. At first, we were told every number had to be Arabic, even cancer stages and factors, but because of complaints by doctors, we started typing stages with Roman numerals. It has taken a while, and it isn't perfect, but the system is learning to type Roman numerals when the word "stage" is in front of it. Good luck with E-scription...I love it!
You have to learn not to take it personally - sm
when I started I was basically thrown to the wolves doing acute care, but I hit the ground running and became a good MT. In one of the jobs I had at the time (had 3 PT jobs my first year in order to get exposure to many types of work and good experience), the person doing the QA was less than nice at times. He would make the corrections and send them to me, but if I did a repeated error or did no pick up on the diagnosis from the assessment (usually repeated in start and end of report) I would get a nasty comment. If I made a repeated error his patience would just go and again with the nasty comments. I was "scared" of him for a long time but once I got used to his ways and took his comments as constructive criticism I did a lot better. Now he does not even look at my work (yes I still work there) and we have a nice working friendly relationship. The key is to (again) not to take the comments personally. QA sees report after report of mistakes and maybe yours that day was the one to break the straw, who knows; Also most importantly LEARN from the corrections. Make notes of words you have problems with, I use an address book, A-Z and write down any unfamiliar and new terms, got that tip on here from someone else, works great. Also remember there is such thing as a dumb question.
learn something new all the time
Thanks for all the input, I worked for a company prior to this one and "pay day" was the day I physically had a check in my hand via mail and if pay day landed on a Sunday or Holiday, it was always in my hand 1 to 2 early...it had me worried there for a minute
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