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The head set worked to begin with so

Posted By: Wanda on 2008-02-18
In Reply to: Sounds like you have your headset plugged - me

if it was in the wrong hole would it have worked in the beginning?  Because it worked until I downloaded the pedal software.


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Ooops, sorry. My last post said "head head." I meant "her head." Sorry.

Where to begin?
Brandy,

Where do you live, most importantly? I am a mom to 3, in Georgia, and am currently homeschooling my son in kindergarten. I can give you some tips, if you want, but there is a lot, too much to post here. IF you want more info, post back and I'll give you my e-mail address or e-mail you privately.
Oh, where shall I begin. sm

The *hoopla* about offshore not being secure is absolutely a valid threat. It may have nothing to do with transmission and everything to do with the value system of another group of people though. At least three VERIFIABLE instances of offshore MTs holding medical records for hostage and at least one where the MT threatened to publish the records on the internet if she was not paid, exist. Hardly *hoopla* my dear. I seriously doubt if the CMT will ever become a mandatory credential and I seriously doubt that for several reasons. After nearly 30 years, the AAMT has fewer members now than it ever had. People are leaving in large numbers. I also have it on good authority that the test the offshore MTs take is not the same one given to US MTs. Personally, I don't put someone down for having a CMT, I just have no great real respect for it or the association. I trust I am allowed my opinion. I worked at a local hospital where the transcription supervisor was a CMT and she could not answer one blank when asked! I actually know a lot of CMTs who are not all that.


Maybe it's your attitude to begin with.

Change your tune.  Be sugary sweet when you think someone is being rude to you and see what happens.  Pay it forward.  Give someone a smile or a kind word.  Let someone in line in front of you.  Just do one little nice thing per day and it will multiply.  People are never rude to me.  Everywhere I go, they know me by name because I take the time to be kind to them.  Gas station, grocery store, bank, school, doctor's office.  You might have to fake it 'til you make it, but you can change your outlook and how you perceive the world treats you.  If someone is "rude" to you, blow it off.  Maybe they're having a bad day and it's nothing personal.


To begin with, I would suggest
Paying for your rent/mtg, food and utilities without fail first.

I ended up in BK 13 so I can't help you with a company name but this is what I learned, food and shelter come first.
That's Why I Posted To Begin With
I didn't make the assumption that 'fast typing' was all it took. I still believe that you have to be able to type fast, but I also have 'top notch computer skills' and can learn well. I wanted to know more about training in this field because I assumed training was a necessary evil. One thing I didn't assume was that the folks on this forum were just downright rude!! Not saying you are, just most of the others that replied to my initial post. I am certainly not looking at MT as a way to pay my mortgage or put my daughter through college. Just a way to fill some free time.

Thanks for your post!
You should have a system to begin with. SM
I recommend mining the Productivity Talk forum for tips and a book such as Saving Keystrokes by Rolland. One high producer strongly recommends Easyscript Express by Levin, an old ABC-based ShortHand method that can be used with a keyboard.

When I first started with expanders, in the Ice Age seemingly, there were no forums like this to consult and I just started dropping definitions in without a good system. I've since had to redo everything a number of times as I wanted my Expander to do more and more for me.

As time goes on, you'll also want to abbreviate EVERYTHING for you, which requires system, both because you can't possibly remember thousands of abbreviations but remembering a few rules is easy AND because you need to have a way to enter various terms that seemingly need the same letters.

One tip just to jump you off: Some systems start two-word phrases with the first two letters of the first word and the first two or three of a second word. However, if you look up "lesions," say, in a medical dictionary, you'll see immediately that starting with three letters of the describing/adjective word and two of the noun (i.e., cocle for cochlear lesion and corle for cortical lesion) would serve you much better. Although if you gaze over just at the ones that start with intra- you'll realize more system than that is going to be needed for more complex terms. I personally start that prefix with "ia" to differentiate from ones that start with inter- "ie". Best wishes.
ADD vs. MT - Let the Battle Begin
Have you tried setting a timer for 20-30 minutes, then giving yourself permission to get up from the desk (setting the timer again for 10 minutes or so), wander around, surf the web a little (on a different computer if you can, it will help keep the surfing bug separate from the MT'ing bug), then when the timer goes off again, go back and set it again for 20-30 minutes and start typing again?

These days, I'm working in bed from a laptop due to back and wrist issues that don't play well with conventional desks, but in some ways that actually helps keep me focused, because it's such a pain in the neck to get up and walk away... I still struggle with wanting to surf while typing though - a problem I never dreamed of having back when my shiny new computer was an IBM PS2 or something like that - where the floppy drive held less information than my cell phone does today!

Good luck!
Does it have 3 letters, begin with an M?
If so, I'm there too...Ain't life grand???
The one time I asked for one, they said no. Ask and if they say no, begin looking elsewhere.
dd
The rules for Op notes are a little different. You may begin a....sm
sentence with a numeral; so, you would never spell out cc for blood loss, IV fluids, urine output etc. In the indications section, if a sentence starts with a number e.g. "Three days ago the patient" or "One day prior to surgery, I spell out the number. Otherwise, in the body of the report or in the headings, I use the number.
Don't get excited. You should have provided it to begin with. nm
x
How do you begin to come up with a line rate..
to pitch to a new account?  Been working for others as an IC, now contemplating approaching an account on my own.  No clue how to not hang myself and selling out at too low of a rate vs giving a quote that's too high and will make them back off quick.  Would it be a good "rule of thumb" to take what you make as an IC on someone else's accounts and add .05cpl?  From what little I've gathered over time, that's about the ballpark of what the MTSO gets paid per line for the account vs what the IC gets paid to do the typing.  Does this sound about right to those of you who have experience with this?  Tks
I promise you - I begin work at 7:00 p.m. - I'm only PT, and my day always begins with
stat, H&Ps, consults, etc! I love it!
When they have me working mornings I am getting special procedures, ops, caths, and don't like it one bit! Maybe 2nd shift would work for those who just can't see themselves working from 11 to 7. Good luck!
Nope. It was a small account to begin with.
The work never went anywhere.  The company has not lost contracts.  I'm not being "phased out" either.  The workload simply doesn't suit my needs any longer.  I can do it in my sleep, so I'd like more work that's more challenging.
I would never begin a sentence with an abbreviation, for one thing. nm
x
I begin my day, every day, with a nice 2 to 3 mile walk with
This gives me time to think, alone time, fresh air and of course exercise. I love to walk and it seems that since I began doing this I am less stressed out. Have you had your thyroid checked??? Just wondering if that could possibly cause hair loss. I wish you the best.
Was taught in my program that all those eye words begin with
s
That is assuming they could even understand the dictation to begin with.
I would love to see the doctors having to listen to dictation.
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.


Okay. Where do I begin? I need some advice! My husband is in real estate. sm

               He owns 5 houses (rents 4), and just closed on a house on Friday that he needs to "flip" really quick! Basically, it's a 30,000 profit IF he sells it quick! We've never bought a house to flip before, but have purchased them for rental property and to gain the equity. Okay. I'm spoiled. Very spoiled. Or you could call it blessed! We are both Christians with good jobs. I only work part-time and then we live off of his salary and the 700 we make in rent that is extra after paying ALL the mortgages. But we are in a real bind now. We have renters who owe us 2 months of rent, well now 3 months of rent! They won't take our calls, you know the rest of the story!  This house that my husband bought on Friday cost us ALL of our cash because we had to put some down and then pay closing costs (close to 4,000!).  So now, for the first time, we are broke (NO cash flow whatsoever now). And I'm struggling over here! I mean, we can't even go and get ice cream tonight.  I'm really questioning our decision to purchase this house.


See, we had no idea UNTIL closing (honest to God), just how much it was going to cost! So, we couldn't back out of it. We were thinking 2000 on the high end.  I completely flipped out when the attorney told us how much we needed to write a check for!!!!


 


We've gotten a couple of calls on the house, but obviously no takers. My husband went straight from the attorney's office to the house to put up for sale signs in the yard! It's a cute house. We just need someone to buy it ASAP!


So, if you've ever wanted to meet the people on the Carlton Sheets infomercial - here we are!!! yes, we've made a lot of money in real estate, but there are huge, gigantic RISKS! You could go for the gutso (like we did and buy all these houses) and you could lot a lot if it doesn't work out. The loan we got on this new house is a type of loan I've never heard of before. It's just a "quick" loan where you need to pay it back pretty quick in the hopes that you will make the 30,000 in equity that the house did appraise for.


What do you do on a budget? What do you do when you are so broke you can't even buy ice cream for the kids? I want to cry now, even though I know some of you out there have zero sympathy for crazy folks like us...Well, I need some ideas on food.  What's cheap to make and cook? I put 30.00 in my SUV last night and that will have to last me until the 15th!


To all of you who struggle every week like this, my heart goes out to you. It truly does.  Now I know what it feels like to live in desperate need every day.....


They're not thrown to the dogs when they had no work to begin with!
nm
Every company is different -- I worked FT for one as an employee but worked a split shift - sm
So I never took breaks. I would work 5 hours, break for about 4 hours then do another 3. Another company I worked for did not care what hours you worked (IC) but wanted a min. amount of work each day, 500 for PT and 1000 for FT-- BUT they paid you by how many lines an hour you put out, the higher the lph the higher up the scale you made per line in pay; they have since changed everyone to a flat rate with incentive. But bottom line, if you are an IC it does not matter what hours you work, though many ask for a schedule and ask you to stick to it, they just want you to meet line requirements daily, i.e. 1000 per day, 1200 per day, whatever it is.
I got up early, worked during naps, and worked when DH got home.

You have to be disciplined to make yourself work when baby is napping instead of maybe watching TV or doing housework, etc.   


I might also go the route of having a teen come into your home, or either trying a mother's morning out program at a local church/daycare.   I've been home since my youngest was born and he has never been in all-day daycare, but I did have him in a mother's morning out program 15 hours a week at a local church.   It didn't help a lot with my work schedule because I had an older son in school and was a room mom and tutored other kids, but that might be an option.  The only problem with the mother's morning out program is they are around other kids and tend to pick up every germ.  I finally took my DS out of the program because he stayed sick.  You were supposed to keep them off if they had green nasal discharge and I did, but no one else did.  Every time I got him well after 2 to 3 days back he would be sick again.  Other than that it was very good for him because he would not have had a chance to be around kids his age otherwise. 


Went right over your head
You take them into your home then and may God have mercy on YOUR soul.

La-la land here you come
CT of the head
Could it possibly have been No ventricular system dilatation?
Off the top of my head,
General: Ask.com, Dogpile, Gigablast, Yahoo

Medical: GenieKnows (http://health.genieknows.com/search), WebMD, Entrez/PubMed (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/)

You can also use Stedman's @ Work (http://www.stedmans.com/AtWork/section.cfm/25)

Although I am not sure what you mean by "reliable."
Just off the top of my head,
I am assuming this is a group effort. Give them a weekend stay at a great motel. Do they camp? Give them a gift certificate for several nights stay at a great campground. Do they have a favorite restaurant? Gift certificate. If they have some collection, add a piece to it (crystal, silver, art). I can imagine it's a hard decision. Best of luck with it.
I think this poster hit it on the head
nm
Of course I hit the nail on the head.
I'm your psychic network friend.  And I also have a hard time playing nice and sharing in the real world.  Especially when the masses are idiots.  You know what I mean?
Head of Household nm
x
P.S. Don't be afraid to go over the head of
your local boss, they are likely to stonewall you. You should follow protocol and START there, but do not hesitate to carry it further if not satisfied.......... the protocol for this is actually outlined on QNET.
hit the nail on the head
i totally agree with what you're saying -- nothing is across the board, like when the statutory people in some office only needed to get 4000 lines in a pay period and others went from 5000 to 6000 and then I think they finally after about a year or so decided that it needed to be across the board. that doesn't go over so well.
Being treated as people would really be the nice part.
Exactly! You hit the nail on the head
It seems it would be for everyone's good.
You have hit the nail on the head here!
I cannot agree with you more! I have over 20 years experience (hospital, orthopaedics, urology, cardiology, etc). I absolutely love medical transcription and I am very good at it (years of experience, not bragging). I have always earned a very nice paycheck and have had to turn work down locally because I was in high demand - that is, until MQ came along. Now, it's absolutely ridiculous.

Now, I have had to reduce my lifestyle. I can't buy my children the clothes that I used to. We have to watch every dime. AND - this is with working TWO JOBS now instead of one.

My reputation is practically useless now. So, just as you have said, even though I absolutely LOVE MEDICAL TRANSCRIPTION, I have no choice but to return to school at 40-something years old and study nursing. I have a 23 year old daughter who earns more money than I do, even though I USED TO EARN MORE!

So, thanks a lot all you big corporations who are living high on the hog because of my expertise. Keep in mind, it won't last long, at least not with my help!
Woo Hoo! You hit the nail on the head!
nm
You hit the nail on the head.
Yeah, they do, don't they?  And they all support each other.  Must have no life whatsoever that she needs to come on here and incite these angry posts just to get some weird satisfaction in her life.  And then she has to agree with herself to give her wretchedness some validity.  What a giant loser.
You hit the nail on the head!
!!!!!
You hit it on the head. Office has always been
chaotic, but now the tension is so thick you could cut it with a knife.  Whatever you do, don't ask a question or you will join the headless horseman on his midnight ride.   
head lice
I have a question for all you moms out there.  My husband called me from work and said that the day care called his secretary and told her to pick up her daughter because she had head lice.  My son attends the same day care but is in a different group because he is older that his child with the head lice.  I told the day care to call me if even one in my son's group has lice and I will pick him up right away.  What would you all do?  I send him to day care because if he is home he and his 12-year-old brother fight all day and I don't get anything done.  He is five.  Should I just go get him and not chance it?  Any advice appreciated.
head lice
There was an extensive breakout in my child's school at one time.  All the kids had it.  I would just go get some Nix and treat him now.  When my son got them I did not know you could not see the things.  The only way I was able to tell was to hold a sheet of white paper and comb his hair catching it on the paper, they look like little specks of pepper, but if you watch closely they change shapes (move).  I would not be too horrified, it is bound to happen in day care.
I know several kids who have had head
lice including my own. I have used mineral oil to get rid of them. Just put it all over their hair and put a shower cap on for an hour and then comb it out with the nit and lice combs you can buy in any drug store. You may have to wash the hair after this 2 or 3 times because the mineral oil is hard to get out. I know people that have used mayonnaise also. The oil and mayonnaise smother them. You will have to vacuum good and wash sheets and such as noted in the above message. You have to also check them a week after treatment and treat tem again if necessary. Also, I know people that have sprayed hair spray on their kids every morning before school to prevent them from getting lice. I don't really know if this works or not. All the schools my kids have gone to will not let them back in until they have been checked by the school nurse. I hope this helps.
head lice
I have a Robi-comb that I use every time I think there's a chance my girls may have gotten around lice. It's made by EpiLady. It's basically a bug zapper for the hair. You run it through their hair and it zaps all live bugs. It doesn't hurt the child unless you happen to touch one side to their ear and the other to their head. I've done that! It feels kind of like static electricity. But it's deadly to lice. It will kill them instantly. But keep in mind this only kills the live bugs. It doesn't do a thing for the nits. After I check for live bugs I always check for nits - especially at the base of the neck and behind the ears.
head lice
Also remember that the nits can take up to 2 weeks to hatch. So keep checking!! They start out tight on the head - usually dark brown. Then after they hatch they turn white.

I've been through lice two times. Been there, done that, don't EVER want to go there again!!!

Good luck!!!
Head lice
It has been 15 years since I had to deal with that but still remember it vividly.   Throw all your combs and brushes out and replace.  Give everyone their own.   There is also a wide comb that comes with the treatment.   If you comb your hair you will see lice on the comb if you have any. Wash all your bed linens even pillows. Put all stuff animals in a garbage bag closed for 10 days that will kill the lice.  If you wear hats wash them.  Also I had to spray my car cushions with a treatment that on the market at that time.  Also your couch cushions etc.   You never think you can get rid of them but you will.  At the time my daughter had them her whole dance class had them.  I think she probably got them when the kids put their belongings in the cubby holes  or top of others coats because her regular class did not.  Hope this helps.
I have RCA, behind the head, less than 8 bucks
from Wal-Mart...they are the lightest, good-sounding pair that I have ever had...love 'em!
Head phones
I have never used noise reduction head phones, but the best head phones I have ever used are the ones that came with the Olympus 4000 transcription system.  You can buy the head phones separately.  I think they are about $50.  This is a lot, but versus the others I have bought in the past (around $25) there is simply no comparison.  I also use them to listen to music on my computer.  They are great!  I have a Soundblaster card on one computer, but even on my other computer the sound is much better than with regular head phones. 
You hit the nail on the head... sm
Taylor is warm and genuine and he looks like he is having a great time.. also not changing his style or music choice just to fit what might be expected. I love Chris, he's talented in his own right and he's the same way as Taylor being genuine and true to his song style. I hope these two make it a long way. I think Ace is good looking, but that's about as far as I think about him.. his song choice last night made me say, "huh?"....
Head bubble
Yes, it's disgusting. Try submerging your head under water, i.e., swimming or tub, etc. When you come up, pinch both sides of your nose closed and blow as hard as you can. Usually works for me. Good luck.
I would discuss it with the head of QA....nm
/
Thank you, you hit the nail on the head.
Thank you for saying that, I was thinking the same thing.