Monday, October 16, 2006

Lurking

I have been doing a lot more lurking than actual writing on Blogger. I am here at work, and you would think I would have lots to tell (darn HIPPA laws). But when I'm not super busy, I just seem to want to read. I love all the blogs posted to the right. I am facinated by them.

ANTS MARCHING had a blog sometime back about Victorian times. She has lots of blog entries, and I read almost all of them, although I am much more a Dr. Carter fan. She stated that it was a more beautiful time. She also stated that they had Laudanum, to which I have to reply "We have Ultracet!" I do not have a pain med addiction, I will use the Ultracet anywhere to once q six months to once a week, depending on the pain at the moment. My favorite saying about Ultracet is "Yes, my neck still hurts, BUT I DON'T CARE!" It is the only thing that has worked and still allowed my to type a progress note that makes any sense. Works for me.

Monday, October 02, 2006

Monday....again

Ok, It's true, I've had my new keyboard for some time but my muse has not been visiting me lately.

I started my transcription career three years ago and my first docs were a wonderfully clear spoken neurologist from here in the South, a physiatrist from Austria, and an NP from who knows where. Guess who gave me the most trouble?

I don't know why NPs take three pages to say what MDs take a paragraph to say, but it was explained to me by one that their documents are more closely scrutinized, and they leave nothing, and I mean abosulutley nothing, to chance. Every single vital sign. Every single testing sign. It once took her three minutes to dictate vital signs, all which were "within normal limits". I liked her, she was just really long winded. Add to that, she would save up a week of dictation and download it all and expect it back in 24 hours. Nope. Not happening baby.

So the first time I sat down to do her transcription, I didn't know that our company had a "dumping" policy. i.e. if you only "dump" once a week, then we (the transcriptionists) have a week to get it all back to you in one day incriments. You dump 3 hours of dictation a week, we have to get back to you at least 36 minutes a day. This is so that our other doctors are not paying or being pushed back due to a dumpers lack of diligence in dictation. They download daily, they get their transcription back daily. So, I get this three hour dictation from her. I finished my other doctors and got started on her. I was up until 3 a.m. at which point I had just finished an 18-minute note, hit the wrong key, and deleted it all. I literally cried. I was so exhausted, and at that point I still thought that it had to be in by 6 a.m., and this was NOT the last noted she had dictated. I tell you, I was ready to QUIT and go work at Wal-Mart. I finally got her done, called in to the office, and told them I was not working that day, Friday, that I would do all of Fridays transcription(which was due in on Monday) on Saturday. My boss called and let me know that I had just completed a weeks worth of work and to take it easy. I think I cried all morning from exhaustion. Then my mom IMed me and let me know that my dad had just died. I cried all after noon too. Such was my introduction into medical transcrition. It got better.