A community of 30,000 US Transcriptionist serving Medical Transcription Industry

Reference preference - Lorrie

Posted: Dec 02, 2010

I am new to MTStars and am currently enrolled as a MT student working toward completing an AAS degree. I am in my 6th quarter and starting to transcribe documents and reports in all the different fields. This week our transcription class discussion was centered around different reference resources and guides and I was wondering what are some of the favorites that are actually used by experienced MTs. I have never worked in a medical profession and making a huge transition after becoming unable to walk and stand to perform my previous career as a hairdresser. I am not afraid to invest in my future and would appreciate some feedback as to what are some of the best techniques for researching unfamiliar terms and words. I am looking forward to any information I can gather here and value your experience and recommendations. Thank you in advance.

references - meowmix

[ In Reply To ..]
My personal number one preference is Dorland's Medical Dictionary -- looking up a work in hard copy is extra assurance that you have it correct and not guessing that you "possibly" have found "the right word" in an Internet search. Second on my list would be The Surgical Word Book by Tessier. Third on my list would be Saunders Pharmaceutical Word Book by Drake and Drake as a great base for "all" drugs on the market with the exception of those released throughout the following 12 months after the publication of the edition purchased. For those updates I prescribe to the Monthly Prescribing Reference, which I receive monthly. And last, but not least, once you have established yourself as a transcriptionist and actually have a transcribing position, I would invest in the Stedman's word books, of which there are many and specific to most all fields of medicine.

Books unrelated to the medical field that are extremely important are an English Dictionary, a World Almanac and a World Atlas, all of which I use at least one or more times a week. The World Almanac comes in the handiest for me to look up names of colleges and universities.

Many transcriptionists rely solely on the Internet for finding "the missing word," however, being a beginner with no basis other than school, finding the "work" in hard cover and then confirming the word you have found with a definition to make sure it fits is still the best way to attain accuracy and "learn it right the first time around."

references - Lorrie

[ In Reply To ..]
Thanks so much. An opinion from someone who has first hand experience means a lot to me. There are so many choices and I do agree I have a couple of tghe older editions of the Stedman's word books and the ones I have helped me tremendously.

Glad to be of help! Another thing I do is write new - words, drugs, etc. in the books - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
as I go along, helping to keep the books up-to-date longer. Also easier to read, if I write it big!

I sometimes flat sound-alikes or other problematic words with an asterisk & a notation.

A highlighter pen is great for making something you look up frequently stand out more.

The Word Board here can be helpful, as well, though you usually have to wait a while for the answer. If possible, I set aside a report where I asked a question here on MT Stars, in hopes that someone knows the answer before I'm due to send the report. In addition to putting "sounds like" for the troublesome word, putting the whole sentence the word is in really helps a lot.

One thing that helps me a lot with some words is to leave a blank, and then keep on typing. Sometimes the dictator will say the same word further down in the report, and this time it will be understandable. Or, sometimes you'll suddenly realize what it is, after knowing the patient's situation better. And sometimes, the reason I didn't get a word is that I had a "brain fart", and just wasn't hearing it right! Very often, once the whole report is done, if I go back and listen to the blank again, that word will suddenly seem as clear as a bell, and I'll think "DUH! Why didn't I hear that the first time?!"

(I meant "FLAG sound-alikes", not "flat"! ;) - Brain-fart MT

[ In Reply To ..]
.

I use all the Stedmans's Word Books. I have - a Dorlands Medical Dictionary, - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
but rarely refer to it anymore, mainly because it takes to long. I use Google CONSTANTLY. You have to be careful about using it as a reference, because there is a lot of misspelling and misinformation on the Internet, but it's really helpful for when you're checking to see if a drug is brand-name or generic, or just trying to figure out what an unintelligible word MIGHT be, so you can then look it up in the appropriate reference. I often type parts of the sentence the word is in into Google, and get good results that way.

I also have a pathology and lab medicine book, an English dictionary, and a thesaurus.

Of all my Stedman's books, the two that are the most valuable to me, and get the heaviest use, are the Medical and Surgical Equipment book, and the Abbreviations book. I couldn't work without those!

reference - Lorrie

[ In Reply To ..]
Thank you for sharing your experience. I am very appreciative.

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