Tips

• How do you make lines and maintain quality? - Frustrated
  • Thanks for the tips! - Frustrated
  • learn the basic tricks. sm - Sm
  • I emailed you; hope it helps. - Busy MT'ing
    • why don't you share with everyone? - i'd like to know too pls
      • Tips - Busy MT'ing
        • Thanks Busy!! Tips from pros are always appreciated as I'm learning ... - Sara
      • Yes, please do! Every bit helps. - mt4ever
        • Yeah, what's the big secret? - nm
          • Busy must be too busy - nm - LOL

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I've had to slow down to make sure I'm not making silly mistakes. I also need to listen carefully, especially to the Indian doctors, as that is my worst trouble.

The good news is that it's getting better. I offered to quit, but they wouldn't hear of it. I also got a word right that my QA had said was wrong, so that was encouraging.

All the best to all my fellow MTs out there, and thanks Busy MT'ing for all the suggestions.

After 17 years in the business, I still do this.  Gage your progress all day by the clock and the lines.  Do not divide the minimum line count by 8 and do that per hour.  This is not productive.  I don't know what time you start transcribing but set a line goal to meet by 10:00.  Be reasonable in this.  Try to meet it but don't fall to pieces if you don't.  Say you want to make 800 or whatever lines by your lunchtime.  If you have not done this, delay and/or shorten your lunch break.  Know that you have got to pick up the pace to meet your goal for the day.  If you are ahead, just keep that up until you can increase your total daily goal again.  Only set your goal for say 10:00, lunchtime, and quitting time.  If you are behind in any third, try to make it up in the next until you hit your goal.

The second thing is be focused and dedicated until this comes natural to you and it is not such an effort.  Playing soft low music in the background also cuts down on stress sometimes. 

I was in your shoes as a newbie with more than 100 doctors and 32 specialties.  Thought I would drown and knew I had to find a way to speed things up.  I was not taught about Expanders in school so it took me a while to catch on.  But then it occurred to me that a great deal of what I was transcribing was the same thing no matter what doc or specialty -- things like:

last visit, next visit, the last time, the patient, the patient presents today with, I will, she will, he will, returns for, referred by, return in 2 weeks, the abdomen, the chest, the right upper extremity, the left lower extremity, heart is regular rate and rhythm, with his, with her, feels good, feeling good, hurts when, is able to, is unable to, numbness and tingling, aches and pains, pins and needles, light touch, was palpated, performed by, no guarding, no rebound tenderness, MRI results, CAT scan, CT scan, abdomen and pelvis, wounds are well healed, no erythema, no drainage, no ecchymosis, no sign of infection, no pain, no tenderness, range of motion is, blood pressure is, on the left, on the right, left hand dominant, right hand dominant, due to, due to the fact that...    you get the drift. 

When I started entering THESE kinds of things that were said repeatedly, then my lines went up.  The other things -- medical diagnoses (except for the most common ones) and odd medical terms -- I didn't concentrate on making expansions for them as much as I did the common phrases because I did not hear them in every report like I did the other things.  We type a lot of common words and the same phrases over and over no matter what specialty or doc.  I enter these especially, and then add the other things as they present themselves and if I have time.     

I also enter drugs with and without their most common dosages as they are dictated.  Saves a ton of time next time around.   

Some days I make a game out of it -- Today I will enter all phrases that have to do with coming and going:  The patient presents with, the patient came to see me today, the patient presented with, the patient returns complaining of, etc.  AND she will return in 2 weeks, I will call her with the results, she will be seen on a p.r.n. basis, she will be seen as needed, she will call for the results...

Other days I put in phrases that begin with a period of time:  Over the weekend, over the last few days, over the last week, over the past few months, over 2 weeks ago, over the last 10 years, in the near future, in the next 2 weeks, next week, next month, next year, yesterday, last night, in the morning, in the evening...

Another day I will concentrate on phrases that begin with "on" like:  On the left side, on the right side, on the right side of the, on the left side of the, on the hand, on the foot, on the arm, on the leg....

Then I do the same with the word "in" like:  In the fingers, in the foot, in the hand, in the abdomen, in the lungs, in view of, in view of the fact that...

Yes, it takes times to make these shortcuts, but you only have to do it once and it's in there.  It's a delicate balance between time spent doing this and time spent in production, and yet once they are entered, you've got yourself a short form that you can use from then on out.  Time lost today will pay off tomorrow.  You just have to balance it and in the beginning it's tough because you are starting from scratch but believe me -- the day will come when you use mostly short forms and start to fly.  And you'll find that the time spent entering the short forms will decrease the more you do it, too.  It will become a habit to enter them on the run as you type.  You should expect to go slowly with this at first because it's new to you and you have to figure out a system that works for you.  It will seem overwhelming but after a couple of months you will begin to notice a difference if not sooner. 

My best timesaver yet:  the letter w for "with"  either alone or with another word or phrase:  with, with ecchymosis, with tenderness, with pain, with rotation, with edema, with drainage, with symptoms of...  Do the same thing for "without."

If you have the time, try to put in at least one short form from each report you type, then two, then three, etc. as your pace picks up.  That way your production doesn't drop too much while you do this. 

I recommend using an Expander program that is NOT tied into your place of employment, one that is YOURS and you can take it with you if you leave there.  You never want to have to do this all over again!  Make one or two backup copies nightly or at least every few days depending on how much you enter.  Put them on CDs or something external so that you will never lose it in a crash.  Then get away from it all or you'll fry your brain! 

Good luck!  It CAN be done with time and perseverance.  Just be patient and keep at it.