Time Management/Productivity Problem

I am new to this board, but not to MT.  I have been doing this for 13 years with an acute care hospital.  We went home about seven years ago.  My problem is trying to get in my typing around my family.  I have a 5 yo, 3 yo and 1 yo and my husband is a police officer with rotating schedule.  The kids go to a babysitter three days out of the week and are home on the days my husband is.  My husband is on me all the time to make more money, keep the house in better order, plus take the kids to activities (gymnastics, soccer).  I don't have a problem with any of that, but when he is home with the kids and when I should be able to get more typing done than normal, I end up watching the kids when he is outside, sleeping or is just tired of them.  I personally want to take them five days a week so that I can get into a schedule better.  I feel now that I don't have a schedule because if I get up early, so do the kids and then hubby doesn't get up so I'm taking care of them.  I stay up late, but then the little one will start crying and then I'm back up taking care of him instead of typing.  I feel like everything is chaotic and hubby tells me it is because I don't have a schedule, but I can't make one unless he is going to commit to REALLY watching the kids.  Can anyone offer me some suggestions here?  I am just about ready to scream.  Thanks all.

Tami

• Time Management/Productivity Problem - Tami Zajicek
  • getting things done - subhorup
  • You have a schedule, what you don't have is a supportive husband..not adivce from me..just sympat - glad those days are over
  • Here is my two cents worth, - for what it is worth.
  • Tami, a family counselor could help you with this, a lot. Sounds like - you and hubby need more than time management tips.

The messages you are viewing are archived/old.
To view latest messages and participate in discussions, select the boards given in left menu

that is the problem with working at home - there are so many interruptions.  However, you have to remember that this is a real job - you have to commit your time to it.  If you worked outside the home, would you take a day off to help with the kids, would they let you bring the kids to work with you, and would anybody even ask you to do that? 

I know that flexibility is supposed to be a big advantage of this job, but it is only an advantage if you are willing to give up the income.  You have to decide, do you really want to make the money or do you want the flexibility?  If you want the income, then you are going to have to set yourself some hours, just as if you were working outside the home, and use those hours as working time and once those hours are over, then it is time for your family and home life - just as if you were out in "the world" working.

I have two IM's that work 4 days each and I average about 4,500 lines per week, 525 or so per day each doctor -- about a 30 minute tape, and when I am doing my monthly schedule I schedule 1.5 hours per day for each doc.  So that it 3 hours for that clinic.  My monthly total is about 20,000 lines and so yours is a little higher but if you have been doing them for a while you should have a lot of Expanders saved, physicals saved, etc to save you time.  I can average 350 to 450 lines per hour with them.  So I would guess that 6  hours per da, 3 hours per doctor is what I would shoot for.   Will the one returning from maternity only work part-time and that is why she is only 4100 lines per month?   But again, I look at my schedule each Saturday morning and schedule out what my averages are for the days coming and figure out my schedule.  ON M-Tu, Thu I work 4 hours morning, pick up and deliver, go to a clinic do EMR's for 2 hours, come home and work 2 hours --  my busy days, but then I have 2 IM's, 2 Surgical Oncologists, 2 GI's, 1 Hand surgeon, 1 plastic surgeon and 1 psychologist.   But total I don't put in more than 38 hours with pick up and delivery times.  My two IM's = 12 hours per week, SO = 6 hours, Plastic/hand = 1.5, Psychologist = 3; EMR = 10 and GI's = 4 or so.    Total monthly lines are probably 40,000 or so without the EMR's as I get paid by hour for that.  You just have to set time aside and stick to a schedule which is easier said than done sometimes but find out how your body works and when you are the most productive.  Work with that rather than trying to make your body productive when it doesn't want to be.   Also, again work with expanders, auto correct, etc.  When I do a physical I bring over the one from last year and add in the changes, saves me a lot as the diagnoses are almost the same.   Good luck.  It isn't easy. 

Hi all - just wanted to get a few opinions to see if I am being slow or if I have too much work on my plate.  I am transcribing for three doctors, two internal medicine and one orthopedic.  Right now one of them is on maternity leave but I am still having a really hard time keeping up with my work.  How many hours a day do you all think is reasonable?  Do you guys work eight hours a day and call it good?  I find myself on the computer from 6 a.m. until 6 p.m. on weekdays and then I still usually have to work weekends to either catch up or keep from falling behind.    At this point I am wondering if all this is worth it - yeah, I don't have to commute and I can work in my sweats and I'm here when the kids get home, but I don't have time to run errands or god forbid meet a friend for coffee, that's for sure! 

I guess my question is, how do you all manage your time?  Do you have set hours that you work?  Am I slow?  Are you able to sit and work for hours on end without getting up to do other things?  I feel guilty if I stop to clean the kitchen or start dinner or go grocery shopping! 

I have been an MT for going on two years and I have increased my speed significantly but I am still struggling.  I think I am doing an average of about 26,000 lines per month right now and when the other doc gets back from maternity leave that will add another 4100 lines.  Would anyone be willing to post their average lines so I have something to compare to? 

Thanks, any thoughts are welcome

How in the world do you accomplish so many lines.

I am genuinely interested in any advice you might have. I struggle to meet minimums when work is available.

Thanks!

I don't see a board for increasing productivity.  I usually just post questions on the main board but think I will get more information if I post questions on the board specifically for productivity.

TIA

I didn't know if that board is frequented a lot, but posted a couple questions there.

Thanks so much for your time.

Chickadee

Our company is currently using Winscribe dictation system, but they did not buy the transcription side of this, which creates a database and templates and saves the work to a file. 

I am looking for productivity program that works the same way that is reasonable.  ADS may be one but I have no feedback on this. 

Any suggestions.

For anyone who uses Bayscribe, do you do real well productivity wise on one account and then accomplish absolutely nothing on others?  The short notes, the in and out, in and out business; it takes up so much time, I have just spent over 2 hours with just under 200 lines.   Is anyone else's experience the same?

The more targeted your glossaries are, the faster you get to your words and phrases. Are you using doctor- or specialty-specific glossaries combined with your own base glossary?

Are you concentrating on phrases rather than on words? The big keystroke savings kick in when you concentrate on the phrases your doctors say all the time.

More about productivity at the link below. I hope it will give you some quick tips.

Marianne

are wonderful ideas there for every expander, and a lot of help with other programs like word and WP as well.

Your company cannot tell if you use an expander.  You have already set your mind to the idea that you cannot because that would not be verbatim, so you need to have a litle bit of an attitude adjustment, too.   It makes no difference if Dr. Jones dictates:  "The patient was taken to the operating room", it is still the same phrase and I can type that using 5 characters and it comes out the same.  Or I can use 4  characters and have it say "the patient was brought to the operating room".  I am an extremely high producer, doing approximately 400 lph on a very difficult account, verbatim, with 95% ESLs.  But the phrases, instruments, and anatomy all stay the same.  I just make modifications in my Shorthand to accommodate the differences.  And no, I cannot memorize my shortcuts, but I do utilize about 3 different systems for shortcuts, and have about 22,000 words and phrases in there. 

does anyone have any pointers that can help my productivity with voice files.  Voice recognition board not working and productivity board says go to main board.  Help if you can.

Thanks

I fairly new to SR.  I've been MT'ing for 16 years.  I was wondering if there are any secrets to increasing production.  I use Dictaphone SR.  Basically, when I get into the report I do a quick read through and correct any formatting that needs to be done, i.e. bold and capitalize headings, put in paragraphs, numbered lists, etc.  Then I listen to the report from start to finish, editing as a I go along.

I was just wondering is there a faster way to get through a report.  I'm not sure if the Dictaphone SR report quality will improve over time, but right now it requires an extensive amount of editing and correction.  Sometimes it would be quicker to type the darn report!

With all of the talk about expanders, autocorrect, autotext, and productivity we could use a forum for that on mtstars.

Am thinking of switching.  I currently get 400% productivity with SH8 (it types 3 characters for every 1 I type).  Can anyone out there get similar figures with InstanText?