Links, Interesting, and Fun Stuff for MTs!

I'm trying to set up a list of sites that I use on a fairly regular basis. Watch this space because I will be adding new links often. I'll also be adding my word lists to my blog in separate posts. Enjoy!


OB/GYN  posted by Bobbie - Thanks
Virginia med  posted by Bobbie - Great site
Med Games
Trivia
MT Shine
ABCZ Lists for Instant Text and Shorthand
Lab Test Directory
Accent Practice
Drugs.com
http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cder/drugsatfda/index.cfm?fuseaction=Search.Search_Drug_Name
Xmarks Bookmark Saver
Freedictionary.com
 The Free Dictionary
Google
Department of Labor/Medical Transcriptionist
Sutures, Drains, Adhesives
Grammar
Puncuation Rules

Working Through the Report

 The very first thing is always the hardest part. Deciding to stop putting it off. You've got work to do. A goal to reach. Get off your duff and get to work! At least that's what I have to tell myself when my family has thrown me a few curve balls in too rapid of succession and I really don't feel up to it.

After making the decision to put my fingers to the task, I try to make sure my desk is cleared off and set up to be most efficient for me. I have my coffee or soda, my hardcopy references like my medical dictionary, English dictionary, thesaurus, Pill Book, Gray's Anatomy, Stedman's books, notebook, binder, pen, and phone on top of my desk. I also have my reading glasses for that stupid tiny print they use in most of these books. I'm thankful every day for Ctr + and - to adjust the size of the letters on my screen. I love reading. I don't love glasses. Go figure.

With BenchmarkKB, Career Step, and Gmail tabs open and Shorthand primed and ready, with my trusty noise-canceling headphones I am ready to listen to dictations. Or am I? Nope. I have 2 browsers open at all times. I may never need the second one, but sometimes I need to open the same page in different browsers for research. Many times I have Career Step open in the second browser so I can research the information in the course. I often use my own saved copies of previous reports in Word to research as well. Like when I can't for the life of me remember how to format an Ophthalmology report. Please save me from that beasty!

I usually use a modified 3 pass method for transcribing, just like what they tell you to do in the Transcription Consultation. First pass is for listening and transcribing what I hear easily. I generally need to change the speed of the dictation because I just don't type fast enough straight, and I'm not good enough to keep up (yet) with Shorthand. If there's a word I know but can't seem to spell, I plug it into Benchmark, Google, or The Free Dictionary. Usually that's enough to find what I'm looking for and type it correctly in it's place.

The Second pass is for plugging the holes. Usually it's a medication, dosage, laboratory value, and (thank you doctor mumble/speed talker) vital signs. It would be so much nicer if the numbers that actually affect patient care were clearly spoken. Don't you think? This is also when I listen over and over to those hard to hear sections of bad audio, cut off words, slang, abbreviations, diagnoses or tests that doctors also like to mangle into unrecognizable mush. I take this time to proofread the document and see if there's anything else that I can fix. Then I hit submit.

I add up my errors and put that into the points to deduct. When it tells me what percentage I scored, I take the whole report from the report number to the last of the footnotes and put it into a new Word document.

The Third pass is for retyping the report while listening to the dictation and keeping an eyeball on the comparison over there on my open Word document. How pretty it looks sitting over there with all those patriotic colors! So distracting. My new report looks good. I've proofread it for typos, run the spellchecker, and bravely hit the submit button again. If it's a clean report, I input 0 points to deduct and copy and paste the whole thing to my Word document again. With the lovely little 100% showing that I've put in the time, effort, research, and work to make the best report I could.

I save the whole thing, both versions of my report, under the report number, the module, type and specialty. You might be wondering why I don't just keep the finished report and get rid of the first one. Because I NEED to see where I had problems in the report. I can't see what I need to work on if I don't have the comparison report with the colors.

I love the searchability of Word. When I need to look up a type of report I can find it. If I have a doctor that is just beating my brain, I can search for other report numbers closest to the one I'm working on. Nine times out of 10 I'll find a report by the same doctor and can look at what he did with the last one.

I think the biggest problem that students have is panicking when the first submission comes back and they've missed things they think were right, or the comparison shows a style difference they didn't think was there. I've developed a little bit of a Zen attitude toward the comparison. I've done everything I possibly can to get a good report. Is there an error? Maybe. Is there a style difference? Probably. Am I learning from it? ABSOLUTELY!

Should I feel defeated because I don't know everything about this report, dictator, or specialty? No. Should I feel like I will never "get it" just because I didn't this time? No. I'm still learning. Mistakes, Homer-like D'oh! moments, and style issues don't have the power to overwhelm me. I take a break. Go play around, ruffle the dogs, do the dishes, visit the forum, and come back ready to tackle the next challenge.

If life was that simple and straight forward, I'd have it made!

Don't Panic - Where There's a Will

PANIC seems to be the word of the day. Career Step is not making it easy for us. But then, if it was easy everyone would do it!

When I started the Medical Transcription Editing course back in June, I was in a state of anticipation, excitement, and near panic. Then I started really diving into the material and thought, "What the hell am I going to do now?" In my case, I had time before starting the course to really get deep into the material available on the forum. I'd read post after post regarding what to expect, but until I was in it, I really didn't have a clue.

Now, almost 6 months later, I'm still asking myself the same question. "What the hell am I going to do now?" When I was in the Objective modules, the book learning, I felt fairly confident that I could figure things out.

The modules that really tested me were the ones dealing with punctuation and grammar and the modules dealing with pharmacology. Apparently, I didn't learn to use punctuation in my 12 years of education, and other than the few medications that I had personally taken, I had no frame of reference  for anything in the pharmacology module. I'll work through pharmacology in an upcoming post, but for now, this is my take on commas, prepositions, and, just for fun, flagging.

I finally had to break down punctuation to what I was getting wrong and figure out how to minimize those mistakes.

COMMAS! 

I sincerely hate these insignificant, tiny flea-like marks. So tiny and yet containing so much power. They should have a town named after them. Welcome to COMMA, IDAHO! Please use appropriate punctuation at all times!

I listed out the rules. What do you know? That actually helped!
Here's my list taken from CS; condensed, simplified, and worded so that I could understand them:

1. Commas join 2 independent clauses with a coordinating conjunction. Independent clauses can stand alone as a sentence or be joined by a word like "and" or "but" with a comma. (Sentence, and Sentence) Coordinating conjunctions: For, And, Not, But, Or, Yet.

2. Commas separate items in a series. (word, word, and word) The comma before and is determined by account instructions. Using that last comma is the formal usage, but that is an optional comma unless your account specifies differently.

3. Commas set off an introductory phrase. Use a comma if the first part of the sentence CANNOT stand alone. Do not use a comma if the first part can stand alone.

4. Use a comma to set off extra or nonessential information to the basic understanding of the sentence.

5. Use a comma to set off a prepositional phrase at the beginning of the sentence if it is 4 words or longer. (I'll plug in a full preposition list shortly.)

6. Use a comma to set off a single word like however, also, no, yes, or well that begins a sentence.

7. Use a comma to separate a dependent clause if it comes first in the sentence. (A dependent clause cannot be made into a sentence of it's own.)

8. Use a comma to set off NONESSENTIAL information in the body of the sentence. (Say it falls in the middle somewhere.)

9. ESSENTIAL information does NOT get separated by commas. (Intuitionally, this seems backwards to me but it's the rule!)

10. Use a comma between coordinate adjectives. (Your sentence uses two descriptive words and then a noun. Can you use "and" between the descriptors? Are the words interchangeable? Equal?

11. Use a comma to set off parenthetical phrase or an "aside". (So and so were fighting, which I thought was dumb, over a cat.)

12. DO NOT join independent and dependent phrases with a comma and a conjunction. In its simplest form, this kind of sentence can be joined without the comma by just using the conjunction. (I couldn't help myself and didn't try.) 

This list is not the definitive, exhaustive list that you would find in an English Grammar and Punctuation book. However, it gives me everything I need to make a clear, clean sentence. At least when I pay attention to it. Nobody's perfect.

PREPOSITIONS Preposition list

aboard about above absent according to across after against  ahead of along alongside amid amidst among around as as far as as well as at atop before behind below beneath beside between by by means of despite down

due to during except far from following for from in in addition to in case of in front of in place of in spite of inside inside of instead of in to (into) like mid minus near near to next next to notwithstanding of off on on account of on behalf of on top of

on to (onto) opposite out of outside outside of owing to over past plus prior to regarding round save since than through throughout till times to  toward under underneath until up upon with with regards to within without

I had a teacher in the 7th grade that made us write them 10 times in sets of 5, adding the next 5 to the list each day until they were all written repeatedly. There was much whining and complaining, but I still remember most of them without looking. Thank you Mrs. W!

Flagging

Believe it or not, it is not the end of the world to put a flag on your report. It's really very easy. That little curvy thing above the 9 on the keyboard, 3 of the little Underlines, and the little curvy thing above the 10. There ya go! All better. No? Ok, ok. It doesn't make me feel any better either, but I have to remind myself I'M LEARNING. It's okay not to know something. It's okay not to hear something.

There will be times in the working world where we have to flag. It's a fact. From audio quality, to speech quality, to doctors making up their own words, it's all part and parcel of what we've signed on for. I compare it to the job I had for the Department of Fish and Game. I was an outdoor janitor. Yep, you guessed it! Poop and Garbage duty. If I didn't want to deal with the smells and slime, I shouldn't have applied for the job. There's good and bad about every job. Knowing for a fact that there will be times when you have to flag is just part of this particular job.

Happily, the fact that we need to flag for other reasons too helps keep us employed. Like when the doctor dictates that the patient has a broken right index finger in one section and later refers to splinting the left big toe. Hey, I'll take job security in all of it's forms. Now, if the government hadn't made personnel cutbacks I'd still be working Poop and Garbage duty. It wasn't like people stopped being people.

Why I Am the Caretaker

No, this adorable, sleeping puffball isn't mine. I borrowed her image for demonstration purposes. And... I was thinking about one of my friends in KOKO (Keep On Keepin On) who has a sickly pooch. Voila! You get cuteness to view.

I'm so tired. Exhaustion is stalking me today.

It's just been one of those long, long weeks. Wait, it's barely into Wednesday. Hmm. Insomnia does it every time. Short bouts of insomnia can be a blessing in disguise. You sleep for a couple of hours and then you're ready to rock and roll. That's what it's been like for me that last few days. Three to five hours of sleep and I've got all the energy in the world! Yes, totally an illusion. But, if it makes me happy for a few hours, I'll take it. I get a lot of things accomplished while the rest of the household is in dreamland. Well, the kids anyway; mom sleeps less that I do.

The last week or so has felt like a marathon. Minimal sleep and very long days taking care of everything that needs to be done. Mom really wants to help me with the housework and such, but right now is fighting with fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, COPD, congestive heart failure, renal insufficiency,  Sjogren syndrome, and a multitude of other ailments that cold weather make so much worse. As you can see, there's a reason she moved in with me. Unfortunately, she's a proud woman and her bouts of depression because she CAN'T help just makes it that much harder for me to do what needs to be done. I have to try and wait until she is asleep to do dishes, laundry, or just about any other household chore. If I don't, she tries to do them. Imagine standing at the sink doing dishes and your heavyset mother comes to help. Sweat pouring down her face, wheezing, and struggling for breath and unable to move more than a couple of inches without turning purple. Holidays just bring out the stubborn, independent attitude all the more. How do you tell someone with so many health issues that you're worried they're going to stroke out or have a heart attack from being pigheaded? Believe me, I've tried several times.

Crud, now I've made myself unhappy. Should I leave that last paragraph in? ....... Yeah, I guess I am.

Sometimes I feel like I'll never figure out how to organize my day enough and get enough sleep to be able to get everything done. Between trying to keep my kids in line, playing push-me-pull-you with mom, working on the Career Step course, and just trying to have some time to enjoy the few things I allow myself; I'm surprised I sleep at all!

I guess when you lay everything you do during a day out in front of you, and I mean everything; the good, the bad, the chores, the arguments, the parenting, the animal training, the time wasters, and the time savers; it all comes down to one thing. Are you doing what needs to be done?  For the most part I can say yes.

It would be nice if I could add sleep without being exhausted first to the list. But, you know what? For my part, I wouldn't have it any other way. I'd love for my kids and pets to be well-mannered and well-behaved. I'd love for my mom to be a healthy 60-year-old woman. I'd love to have someone come in a clean my toilets. None of that makes a difference to what I see as my role. I guess I'm the caretaker.

You know those old black-and-white episodes of the Addams Family? Now I know why Lurch looked like death warmed over. He was exhausted from taking care of that crazy, lovable family!

Online Behavior - What's Important

Is it easier to make friends online? I don't like to think that I'm anti-social. Maybe it's more along the lines of having the mentality that believes that people can see ME. That maybe they're judging and don't like what they're seeing. That leaves me wide open for all sorts of psychoanalysis. But online, I don't feel like that. It's only in person, and usually only really evident in a group of 3 or more people. How I got to this point is pretty much an account of every day of my life, but I won't get into it. Of course, if your family is anything like mine they have no problem actually saying the judgments that happen to cross their minds.
It's always the same old thing, some people have no social sensor. Nothing that governs whether or not they should say something. Either that or they just don't care if what they say is or isn't acceptable, polite, or even tactful. You can say some pretty harsh truths and get away with them, if you put yourself on the other side of the conversation first. My children remind me every day of the differences in the ways of teaching manners and socially acceptable behavior I grew up with and they did. Of course, spanking is considered abuse. (Very quietly... I don't think so!) A well-placed and well-timed smack on the butt isn't a cure for bad behavior, but it is not abuse, especially if it is effective in breaking the habits that would turn your parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents over in their graves.  I sure as hell am not going to go up to someone and say the things my kids think are okay to say! Like I said, NO SENSOR! I shudder to think of the shape of my backside if I tried that when I was a kid. Currently, my mother lives with me and my two teenagers. She asks me on a regular basis if she can please thump them. I tell her no, but it's never the answer I really want to give. Don't tell them that though!
Sorry, off topic, again!
I like to think of my interactions with people online as more open and less threatening than in person. In person, there's always the worry that my makeup is smeared, my hair looks like a bunch of ferrets have been playing hide and seek, and my weight, height, eye color, chin, etc. will be judged and found wanting. Online, I can let my real thoughts and feelings be put out there without the worry. If you can't see me then the only thing that can be judged is my intelligence, competence, and character. I'm okay with that. I've got a high level of intelligence. I'm quite competent in dealing with the things I have learned. My character is straight forward and caring. No secrets, lies, or attempts to make anyone think I'm any different than I really am.
As physically insecure as I may be, I don't have any doubts about who and what I am inside. People seem to like me when I'm willing to let them. Hmm. Worrying over looks and how I'm going to be perceived limits what I can offer. I'd rather be approachable. For me, that means just letting my care and concern show in the words I write. It's okay for people to react in any way they want to online. The ones that become my friends come to me because I've written and showed that I care about the things they care about. That I'm not going to put them down for not knowing something or making a mistake. That I will support and encourage them without reservations or hidden agendas. Sometimes, it's just being able to run things through my head for a little while before posting a response. If you ask a question and I know the answer, you'll get the answer. If you have a problem and I have advice or experience, you'll get my perspective. I can't help it. (Typical water bearer. No judgment. Lots of input so you can make your own choices fully informed.)
I don't understand people who feel that stating judgments is acceptable, either in person or online. You don't want to be judged. You don't feel that others have the right to make judgments about you, so why would you say it to someone else? It just doesn't make sense.
I think everyone wants information, support, and encouragement. Online, the physical interaction created by body language never becomes an issue. I'd rather be able to concentrate completely on what a person is saying, think about it, spend some time researching information if needed, and then posting a reply with some consideration and care behind it.

Finding Ideas

Yesterday, I spent the day working with my brother. He was moving. How is it that even though I don't get tapped for the packing and carrying part of things anymore, but I still get the clean up duty? Oh wait, I can answer that! I used to clean houses for a living! Today turned into one giant fight with my body. Hello... Dipstick...If you haven't done something for a while, you're body makes you sore the next day out of revenge. I know it's lactic acid in the muscles and joints that aren't used to certain motions, but it sounds more interesting when I say it's revenge.

For the last week or so, my fingers, wrists, and arms have been complaining. Yesterday's cleaning spree just made them louder. I sat down and typed out 1 report. A 5 minute dictation took me over an hour! Why? Because my fingers refused to cooperate with the signals my brain was trying to send them. I finally just took some Tylenol and ibuprofen and laid down. I went to sleep right away and woke 6 hours later feeling more like myself.

I'm not sure why my fingers, wrists, and arms are so achy. I'm wondering if it's the fibromyalgia that I was diagnosed with last month. I really should do more research about it. Right now, I know that it's a chronic pain condition where the muscles are sent inappropriate signals through the nerves telling them to feel pain. I don't know if regular use of certain muscles will increase the signals or if sudden use of muscles that aren't used to it will increase the signals. Knowing more about it will probably help me to not provoke increases in the pain signals. I do know that sometimes it's more about just rolling with the punches.

I've been reading through a couple of the blogs started by my fellow Career Step students and alumni. Both of these ladies have great insights into MT, the career and learning how to become an MT. They've inspired me to increase my posting frequency and work on the content. http://virtuallytheretranscriptionists.blogspot.com/ and http://clubhousemt.blogspot.com/

I started this blog when I knew I was going to be enrolled in the Career Step Transcription course and then got so busy with the school and forum that I let it slide. Of course, as you've probably noticed, life has also been an issue.

It's interesting that I never really thought about what it would be like after I graduated. I just thought about what the training is and trying to do my best with that. After searching through my own experience with the school and how active I've been in the forum, I realized that I really do have a lot to say.

Along with spending dedicated time with reports, I'm going to mine my posts on the forum and work through some of the issues I have posted and commented on there. Ideas have to come from somewhere. Right? Well, let's see how it goes.

See you later!

IT'S TAKEN ME LONGER THAN I WANTED

It's been a while since I've written anything. I guess I should start by saying that I slowed way down after getting a little way into the first section of reports.

There were a lot of things going on that contributed to the breakdown of consistently hammering out reports. Part of it was frustration with stuff going on at home and part of it was frustration because I couldn't concentrate. (Because of the stuff going on at home.) Vicious circles, gotta love 'em.

Basically, financial issues and stress pushed me into a tailspin of worry. Never having been one who could live in the now, dealing with tomorrow when it gets here, I tend to let things overwhelm me. Considering that I had no clue how the next month's bills were going to get paid, I was definitely overwhelmed!

Half of the financial issues have been dealt with, but there are still a lot of concerns coming up. I've been better dealing with not knowing where some of the money will come from because there is at least something coming in on a regular basis.

As far as my reports go, I'm doing a lot better now! I'm getting anywhere from 5 to 10 reports finished a day. That's not working constantly or even in dedicated blocks of time, which I really need to be doing if I want to get finished with the course and start working.

I've made a promise to myself that I will spend 5 to 8 hours of dedicated REPORT time daily for the next week and see where that leaves me. If it turns out that this feels good and I'm getting good grades on each report then I know I've found the answer to the problem I created for myself by letting worry overwhelm me for too long.

I really want to get finished with these reports within the next couple of months so that I can start applying for jobs toward the end of the hiring slow down. The slow down usually happens from November to February. That should give me plenty of time to get my act together!

How's that for positive thinking?