MT Connections

Keeping the Flu Away

2009-11-19T03:10:00Z

I sure hope I don't have to go to the doctor during flu season this year! The media has me paranoid about germs. It's like having my mother whispering in my ear "Did you wash your hands?" a hundred times a day. It seems everywhere I go there is complimentary hand sanitizer or wipes for customers. Makes me want to go home and shop on-line. People are coughing into their elbows, which is apparently a good way to confine the germs, but is still a reminder they have the germs in the first place. Everyone...(read more)

Children Embrace Change as an Opportunity

2009-11-15T16:29:00Z

If you have been following this blog, you may remember a year ago my blog " The Birth of a Medical Record " when our first grandson was born. Hard to believe that Ryan turned 1 this week!Equally hard to believe the changes that have occurred in his life, his parents’ lives, the economy, the government, health care and the world at large in just 12 months. We seem to move along at warp speed sometimes, and we need to accept that change is certainly a new normal for most of us. Children see change...(read more)

Better, Stronger, Faster

2009-11-09T13:14:00Z

Better, stronger, faster is a marathon-training mantra. Last Sunday was the ING NYC marathon. Watching runners of all calibers run 26.2 miles never fails to amaze me. The top finishers have athletic ability that push the limits of the human body. The greater number of over 40,000 runners are inspiring in their own way. Their athletic ability may or may not be above average., their clothing or running style not remarkable, and they do not have paid sponsors. However, I am sure each of their stories...(read more)

Reality MT

2009-11-05T12:05:00Z

It’s a good thing my computer doesn’t have a webcam or I may frighten my employer away! Picture this…old comfort clothes, ice pack wrapped around my head, Bose headphones over the ice pack, another ice pack on the back of my neck (imagine the bad hair day when those ice packs come off!), coffee at arms’ reach, and a chair massager doing its charm. Not a pretty picture now, is it? Fortunately, I do not look like this every day or even very often but when a bad headache or neck pain strike, this is...(read more)

Truth or Fiction?

2009-10-30T01:00:00Z

All of the Halloween costumes and decorations this week, especially the graveyards and skeletons, provoked a memory from ACE a few months ago. One of the presenters, Mike Tabor, DDS, showed photos and mentioned some fascinating information about The Body Farm in Tennessee and pointed out books by physicians involved with this project. Up until then I thought the books with that title were purely fiction! I was sure I even had a book by this name that I hadn't read yet. It was time to learn more and...(read more)

Can You See Me Now?

2009-10-21T21:39:00Z

I am just getting back from the PA-AHDI Educational Conference in Lancaster, PA. What a great meeting! We had more than 100 attendees from 12 states, a dozen exhibitors, and four generous sponsors. It was apparent that attendees, exhibitors and speakers were eager to share, educate, network and have fun in the process. While much of our business, continuing education and even socializing can be done electronically nowadays, there is nothing like a face-to-face meeting to bring together all pieces...(read more)

Meaningful Use Begins in the Classroom

2009-10-14T02:15:00Z

I have been spending a lot of time babysitting our 10-month-old grandson. Suffice it to say I enjoy this immensely but my energy certainly isn't what it was when his father was this age! One day it dawned on me that the baby's early attempts to learn the English languageare similar to learning medical terminology. I currently teach Advanced Medical Terminology at a local community college. Some days I literally go from baby talk to teaching 12 syllable words like "esophagogastroduodenoscopy" in the...(read more)

It Takes a Team

2009-10-05T18:58:00Z

Our state association, PA-AHDI, is holding its annual meeting in less than two weeks. This is the first year I have been actively involved in the planning. I had NO idea how much is involved for many months ahead of time! It takes a team to run a successful meeting and PA-AHDI has that team. Did you know that booking a hotel may entail on-site touring, meetings, and phone conferencing before the property is chosen and a contract is signed? Did you know this is often done over a year in advance? Did...(read more)

Sleepless Over Speech Rec

2009-09-28T18:08:00Z

Let me warn you - I did not get much sleep last night! Or for a few nights. Or maybe it has been a few weeks. Hard to tell in my sleep-deprived brain. I do know that I am edgy and a bit stressed. Sometimes that is a good thing as it gives me lots of energy and keeps me vigilant that I am paying the right amount of attention to those things that are important and looking the other way at the very-annoying-but-not-so-important things. However, my mood meter was further riled this morning when I happened...(read more)

Virtual Vision Board

2009-09-24T19:08:00Z

I am using a virtual vision board and I am lovin’ it! Half the fun was thinking I was the first one to take the vision board concept to the virtual level – but a quick Google search showed I was definitely not the first one.That’s OK – I am still lovin’ it! Let me share how this came to be… The second day of AHDI ACE in Nashville began early, but unlike the day before there was time to grab coffee on the way into the conference hall. I thought that alone was a treat! Little did I know that the first...(read more)

It's Back to School Time!

2009-09-08T01:21:00Z

preschool: nametag K-6: backpack; crayons, pens, rulers, markers; new sneakers; new clothes; haircut; bus pass 6-8: backpack; pens, rulers, markers, calculator; new sneakers & shoes; new clothes; haircut (maybe); bus pass; cell phone high school: backpack; pens, rulers, markers, calculator, lab kit; new sneakers & shoes; new clothes (new wardrobe?); haircut (maybe); bus pass (car?); cell phone; sports physical; spending money college: backpack; pens, rulers, markers, calculator, lab kit,...(read more)

Twitter in the OR

2009-09-03T19:18:00Z

The last time I had surgery I distinctly remember how grateful I was that they put me to sleep in the first few minutes in the OR. Seeing all the equipment and those faces behind masks and gowns, while reassuring that I was indeed in the correct place, made me a little nervous but happy to soon be oblivious to what was about to happen. Well, apparently some people may be quite interested in exactly what is going on - and they aren't just the people in the OR or the waiting room! Recently a 70-year-old...(read more)

Summer Reading

2009-08-26T22:48:00Z

Ahhh....I have just finished a new book, The Second Opinion by Michael Palmer (2009). There were a zillion things I could have been doing but this book kept calling to me. Maybe I could call it research for teaching and/or my medical transcription work? The main setting was a cutting-edge medical facility, the Sperelakis Center for Diagnostic Medicine at the Beaumont Clinic in Boston. Doctors, patients, state-of-the-art medical equipment and drugs - it had every element that keeps a medical language...(read more)

Professionalism is a Verb

2009-08-18T15:01:00Z

At AHDI ACE in Nashville, AHDI held is first annual Integrity Awards. While awards have been given annually in the past, in 2009 AHDI altered the program to focus on contributions made by individuals and corporations that better align with the association's focus on integrity, and for the first time AHDI did not announce the winners until the final night of ACE. Per AHDI, "each truly represents the innovative thinking and best practices the association hopes to showcase for the sector." Accolades...(read more)

Power of 10

2009-08-10T23:47:00Z

Did you ever feel like little fish in a big ocean? Do you feel like your one voice cannot make a difference in the rapidly changing field of healthcare documentation? Are you feeling our industry will be left behind when the EHR is integrated throughout our country? Are you worried the EHR will not serve the patient well with a point and click framework? Is the current economy adding to your fears of job security? Do you keep your thoughts to yourself or just among your MT peers? Now is your opportunity...(read more)