The Benefits of Online Education W 2. Flexibility · and backpacks, wondering who will be sitting next to them in class, and if they’ll like the teachers; high school kids are checking

In This Issue

We’ve all seen those com-mercials on TV about

completing a bachelor’s degree from home; the young college student is sitting on the bed in their pajamas and fuzzy slippers, typing away on their laptop. Let’s face it, no matter how silly the commercials seem, the vast majority of us would prefer to complete our education without hav-ing to relocate to the college of our dreams, bypass the quarterly ritual of the midnight class registration process, and be able to study and take tests when we want to, not when the college has designated for us. With the technological advances improv-ing education across the globe, the availability of online options has increased significantly. As with any new product or service, there are some who are immediately wary of it, but online education has some sig-nificant benefits.

1. ChoiceWith diversity

in program options available, online education offers the opportunity for in-dividuals to partici-pate in programs that are not offered in their geographical area. This is es-pecially true for professional training such as medical transcription. Online education also offers great opportu-nities for students in rural areas, as well as internationally, where col-leges or vocational training centers are not feasible.

The Benefits of Online Educationcollege rates, there are many other factors that make it cheaper over-all. These factors include savings in room & board, textbooks, and gas money. Online education also affords you the opportunity to keep your day job, so students often still bring in their normal salary. Career Step offers professional training programs that cost less than the av-erage expense for one semester of college, while allowing you to be-come workforce ready in as little as 4 months.

Volume 14 | Issue 5 | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2011

Case Studies in Success . . . . . . . . . . . 2

The Computer Grader . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Personal Accountability . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Student Spotlight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Moderated Chat Schedule . . . . . . . . . 5

Graduate Spotlight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Med Gab July/August Answers . . . . . 6

From Thoughts to Threads . . . . . . . . . 7

Finders Keepers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Work Smarter, Not Harder . . . . . . . 10

Speech Wreck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Med Gab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

2. FlexibilityOnline education has opened doors to

individuals who, due to busy schedules, may not be eligible for the traditional college environment. Like Career Step, there are many online institutions that offer open enrollment, independent study programs to suit most schedules. With most programs allowing a year to com-plete, instead of the traditional 4-month period often used by colleges, you should have ample time to complete the course while studying on your schedule.

3. Networking OpportunitiesWhen attending a traditional college

or university, you may network with a small group of individuals in your local area. With online education, you get the opportunity to network with individuals around the country—even around the world. For example, at Career Step you will encounter students from all across America, but you may also encounter Canadian, Australian, and South African

students too! Network-ing with peers from di-verse locations can open many doors to employ-ment opportunities pre-viously unattainable in your local area.

4. SavingsAccording to US News, the aver-

age cost per year for a traditional public 4-year college can range between $9000 and $20,000. The average cost for pri-vate 4-year colleges can jump to between $15,000 and $35,000 per year. While the cost of taking an online bachelor’s degree may only be slightly less than the private

“The majority of us would prefer to complete our ed-ucation without having to relocate...”

Continued on pg. 8

2 SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2011 STEPPING UP

Online EducationWith the advent of autumn,

many of us find our thoughts turn to the start of school. Elementary kids are focusing on new clothes and backpacks, wondering who will be sitting next to them in class, and if they’ll like the teachers; high school kids are checking the school policy regarding cell phones in the classroom; college-bound students are making housing arrangements and wondering about new room-mates. If you’re new to the Career Step program, you’re excited too! If you’ve been in the program for a while, you may be ready to recom-mit to your progress after the last flurry of summer activities. Edu-cation is in the air!

With increasing use of technolo-gy in education, many students from elementary school to adult educa-tion will be accessing classes online. In this issue of Stepping Up we are focusing on education, as well—spe-cifically online education. We’ll dis-cuss the benefits of online education in our feature article and touch on aspects of online learning through-out a discussion on motivation, re-search help, and forum activity. You will find a comparison of the Career Step ideals to Cornell University as part of our year-long theme of Ivy League colleges and the similarities between top-notch university mis-sion statements, and Career Step’s. Of course, no issue would be com-

plete without the wonderful stu-dents and graduates in our spot-light articles. Finally, don’t miss out on the humor in the Speech Wreck and Med Gab articles.

It’s time to scoot the kids out the door in the morning, and then grab a sweater and your lap-top. Spend a few minutes on the porch to enjoy the autumn air, the change of the leaves, and this is-sue of Stepping Up before you log in to the course for another day’s study. Enjoy!

Case Studies in SuccessThe Cornell Approach

“Cornell’s mission is to dis-cover, preserve, and dis-

seminate knowledge; produce cre-ative work; and promote a culture of broad inquiry throughout and beyond the Cornell community. Cornell also aims, through pub-lic service, to en-hance the lives and livelihoods of our students, the peo-ple of New York, and others around the world.” –Cor-nell University mis-sion statement

As I read this mission statement for one of the lead-ing educational institutions in the US, I was struck by how well it articu-lates the intentions of Career Step, as well. Of course, we clearly realize Career Step’s scope of influence and educational offerings is nowhere near Cornell University’s; however, our in-tent and reasons for offering the best

We are concerned that the program be the best it can be in terms of qual-ity and availability. In this sense we disseminate knowledge.

Because the industry is always changing and evolving, there’s always a sense of improvement and explo-ration. Creativity is needed to work around problems that arise so solu-tions are beneficial to the students, the graduates in the field, the industry it-self, and Career Step as an educational institution. We know we are training the very people who will participate in the changing face of healthcare documentation and, through excellent performance and creative thinking, will emerge as leaders in the field. We produce creative work here and now; we have confidence our graduates will carry their creativity forward.

Promoting a culture of broad in-quiry is a healthy part of any educa-

medical transcription and editing edu-cation available comes from the same wellspring.

Career Step is dedicated to keep-ing up to date with the changes and

adjustments to the medical documen-tation industry and to have these current issues re-flected in our cur-riculum. In this sense we discover knowledge. Along with changes, however, there is a great deal of

knowledge that remains as a neces-sary baseline for all of our students. We keep this foundational material firmly in our program, as well. In this sense we preserve knowledge. Finally, we make every effort to share what is necessary for success through the pro-gram through the curriculum itself and our student support offerings. Continued on pg. 10

Continued on pg. 9

The Computer GraderRed & Blue Marks, Hydra Heads, and Wanting to Scream

One of the most consistent comments/complaints we

hear in Student Support is how maddeningly frustrating it is to work with the computer grader. This is a perceived two-headed hydra: first, with the objective material, in the front half of the course; second, in the practicum, with the dictated reports. According to Greek legend, the only way to subdue a hydra is to lop off the heads and cauterize the stumps, one by one—yeech! If you realize the nature of this beast, however, and that you always have the last word, and you can quell that urge to scream—I’ll explain!

Nature of the Computer Grader

First off, you have to keep just a few things in mind:

Human beings are great. We are re-ally smart and we can make judgment calls and decisions based on content and meaning. Machines can’t. They only do what they’re programmed to do, and no matter how great their pro-gramming is, they don’t really think, and they just can’t make meaning-based decisions.

The reality of the MT workplace and the CS program is you’re deal-ing with a lot of information that can often be displayed correctly in more than one way. This is common, un-avoidable, and absolutely normal.

When you submit work to the com-puter grader it simply compares your work to the key in the database. Any differences between what you submit-ted and what’s on the key are detected and highlighted. Remember this vital fact: The computer only provides feedback based on a comparison of your work against the key. The computer does not actually correct your work.

Okay, now that is settled, let’s take a look at the heads of the hydra. Let’s address the front-end experience first.

Hydra Head #1: Computer Com-

parison in the Objective Portion of the Program

The Objective portion is the part of the program before the midterm—the first half. The exercises, tests, and exams in this part of the course are very close to a traditional learn-ing layout, with retyping, matching, multiple choice, and fill in the blank questions. It’s pretty straightforward most of the time, but we do see some questions. Probably the most common question involves an answer that has more than one possible correct format in the key.

For example, an exercise on abbre-viations asks you to provide the ex-pansion for the abbreviation DVT. We know you can correctly expand this as deep venous thrombosis or as deep vein thrombosis. The key contains both of these options, and is set up to accept either one of these correct ex-pansions as correct. Again: The key will accept either deep venous throm-bosis alone, OR deep vein thrombosis alone, but not both together, and not with the OR in between.

Scenario A: you answer deep venous thrombosis/deep vein thrombosis (with a slash between the words), and you’re marked wrong. Why? Your answer is correct, isn’t it? Well, yes, of course it is—in content. But it doesn’t match with the key (the key does not include an option that includes a slash), so the computer (which is only a dumb ma-chine) detects this and returns it as incorrect.

Now, if you get at least 50% of the answers on an exercise or test correct,

the rest of the answers for the ones you missed are provided. In this case, the results will show that

deep venous thrombosis OR deep vein thrombosis

is correct. The two correct op-tions will be shown in red, and the OR is shown in black. On the results page, the correct answers to missed ques-tions are shown in red. The reason OR is shown in black is it is not part of the answer; it’s only separating the correct options on the key.

Scenario B: Sometimes students see the results the computer shows as in the key, with all of the possible correct answers, and then copy and paste these results into the answer field—because you can’t go wrong by copying the key, right? And then, of course, it comes back as incorrect again. It looks like this:

Your answer: deep venous throm-bosis OR deep vein thrombosis

The key: deep venous thrombosis OR deep vein thrombosis

Why? How could this possibly be

counted as incorrect? Remember: Be-cause you’re not required to supply every possible variation of a correct answer (and when you think about it, if THAT’S what you had to do it real-ly WOULD be unfair); you only need to provide one correct answer to be counted as correct.

So… how do you get the answer to this question correct? All you need to do is answer with either one of the correct answers. There are two ways:

STEPPING UP SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2011 3


Personal AccountabilityResponsibility: Have you got it?

Abraham Lincoln’s famous Get-tysburg Address began with

this: “Four score and seven years ago….” It may seem like the program is tak-ing you four score and seven years, but you can do it! As you use personal ac-countability to work through the pro-gram, you will find it very rewarding. A large part of personal accountabil-ity is responsibility. Being accountable to yourself means being responsible enough to plan ahead, study hard, and make your actions consistent with your desired results. So practice making reachable goals, building sustainable habits, and in doing so, being respon-sible. Responsibility means being an-swerable or accountable to something that is in your control. It means to be the cause or occasion of something. Be the cause of your studies! The MT program is totally in your control, and you will therefore need to be re-sponsible for every action you take to successfully complete the program. Of course, having a power outage for days at a time or learning of a fam-ily emergency is out of your control; these are not things that can simply be overlooked. However, things that are in your control are the same things for which you are responsible.

In elementary school, my parents were willing to help me on my proj-ects if I started them early enough. If I procrastinated, I was on my own. Remember making dioramas in third grade? Did you ever wait until the night before to start gluing felt onto a shoe box? I did, and when that hap-pened, I wouldn’t have finished my project unless I stayed up late. Was it my parents’ fault that I was tired the next day at school? No. Was it my teacher’s? Of course not. Being re-sponsible in the future would require me to not only take the blame on my-

self for staying up late but also to start on my project earlier the next time.

In third grade, I learned that re-sponsibility requires a lot of the same qualities we’ve talked about in previ-ous issues: managing time, setting goals, and having discipline. Let’s dis-cuss a few things that will help you be more responsible.

First, plan ahead. Use the study planner tool to set, adjust, and keep to the number of hours you’ve en-tered in your schedule. “I’ll work in the program when I have free time” doesn’t really work. In our busy lives, “free time” hardly ever happens! Plan to make time for working in the pro-gram. Plan and set aside time for tran-scribing every report. Plan on when you want to take the final exam, and then do the necessary practice and research beforehand. If I would have planned ahead and set aside time to work on my diorama before the night before the due date, it would have paid off. Planning ahead will increase your responsibility as you make time, not just use free time that may never come. So, plan, plan, plan!

Next, stick to your plan. Unex-pected things will always come up, this we know. They could almost be called expected, if you think about it! Responsibility comes when you can answer to these unexpected things with even more determination to stick to your plan and complete your goals than before. Be honest with yourself, and work as hard as you can to make your plan a priority. Speaking of hon-est, Honest Abe also said, “You cannot escape the responsibility of tomor-row by evading it today.” Don’t put off your studies just so you can have

momentary joy looking at Facebook. Of course, we all need breaks, but as a rule of thumb, let’s follow President Lincoln’s advice and make sure we do things today so we don’t regret any-thing tomorrow. If you eliminate dis-tractions and increase your dedication to your plan, you will succeed. Take that, unexpected everything!

Lastly, study hard. My family has always encouraged each other by say-ing, “Work hard, play hard, be enthu-siastic!” Make your actions consistent with your desired results, remain en-thusiastic, and you will be successful. After all, where do the best of the best start out? Olympic gold medal-ists don’t start training a week before their event. Instead, they exercise, run, skate, swim, flip, fence, dive, curl, wrestle, box, ski, and hopefully sleep for months and years to prepare! They can see the end from the beginning, and they make sure they’re putting in the amount of work that is necessary to yield the results they want—a gold medal. So, turn off your T.V., sign out of your e-mail, and buckle down. You can do it! If things go wrong, keep truckin’ along. Blaming yourself or others doesn’t help anything—my third grade self will tell you that. Don’t let yourself get discouraged. The MT program is a lot of work, but it’s a lot of good and fulfilling work. It will help you succeed as a medical transcriptionist as you work hard, are enthusiastic, and take responsibility for your actions. Responsibility—have you got it?

-Melanie GassinCS Skills Assessment Team

Personal accountability: Standards you set and promises you make to yourself about your level of performance and mode of behavior. It involves accepting responsibility for your choices and how you choose to react to any situation; it affects all

areas of your life, it shapes your personality and, in many cases, influences your level of success in your chosen field


Student SpotlightLinda Berge

yes, they run the house. In 2007, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Thank-fully, we caught it very early. How-ever, I did have a double mastectomy, reconstruction, major staph infection, multiple surgeries, chemotherapy, and more doctors’ appointments than you can ever imagine. The good news, I am now 5 years cancer-free. Changing jobs to a less stressful environment is just what I need to do.

There is much to say about being able to work from home in a comfort-able environment, make your own schedule, and plan your days accord-ingly. For those of you just starting the course, I will not lie to you—it’s tough, but it is worth everything that you put into it. I finished school (the coursework portion) on July 18, 2011. I had been networking—there is that word again—with people all over the United States. If you google “medical transcription companies,” you will be amazed at just how many there are out there. I did my homework, researched the companies that I wanted to apply for, and got started even before my coursework was completed. I called doctors that I knew in other states, told my friends, and just kept putting that information out there.

On July 19, 2011 I received a call and was asked if I would be willing to do some test transcriptions. They had a position open and wanted to know if I was interested. What do you think I did? I said, “Absolutely.” On July 20,

2011, I received a call stating that they wanted me to start immediately. They said that for a beginner transcrip-tionist, I had excellent knowledge of medical terminology, and they were impressed with my skills. Thank you, Career Step. I have not even finished the final and I have a job! Unbeliev-able!

I am so excited. I have been so busy. The real world is awesome, especially when you are doing transcriptions and you know that you are being paid for every line you type. The company requires 1,000 lines per day. It sounds like a lot, but it’s truly not. I have been doing well on detailed treatment plans, and the average dictation runs between 12 and 18 minutes. I been do-ing five reports per day and have not missed my goal.

I encourage you to start network-ing. Get your name out there and do not be shy about it. There is nothing wrong in promoting yourself ! Let your potential employers know your approximate availability date and keep in contact with them and keep them updated. One more thing—the pride you feel when you finish your first paid report and your supervisor tells you, “Wow, you did an amazing job! Everything is perfect,” is more than you can imagine.

Study hard and NETWORK now!

- Linda Berge

Network, network, network. If you are reading this and

you have not started networking, you need to get started! My name is Linda Berge, I’m 53 years old, and I wanted a change in my career. I had always desired to be a medical transcription-ist. After working for 30 plus years in the corporate environment, I decided to make a switch. I searched the inter-net, made some phone calls and found Career Step.

Enrolling was the easy part. I de-cided that the best way to get a new job in a new area was to network. So, each time I went to a doctor’s appoint-ment, I would talk to not only the nurses about my new career change, but also the doctors. It is amazing how interested people become when they see you studying. I would print out my root words, acronyms, flash cards, and anything else I was studying and take them with me. At one appointment, I spent almost an hour with my doc-tor talking about root words and why I had decided to make the change at my age. Each and every person who I came in contact with and learned of my desire to do medical transcription thought that my new career path was the best choice for me and an awesome career move.

Here is a little about myself. I have been married to the same wonder-ful man for 27 years. We do not have children, but we do have two adorable little yorkies, Rambo and Rocky, and

Please join us for Career Step’s Thursday moderated live chat room sessions. The topics vary weekly and include course-related topics, industry topics, and employment issues. This is a very user-friendly system—you just click on the chat room and join the fun! www.careerstep.com/forums

1st Thursday of month, 12-1 pm Mountain, Industry Topic/Skills Assessment team 2nd Thursday of month, 12-1 pm Mountain, Student Support team 3rd Thursday of month, 12-1 pm Mountain, Industry Topic/Guest

4th Thursday of month, 12-1 pm Mountain, Graduate Services team 5th Thursday of month, TBA, wildcard topic when applicable

Moderated Chat Schedule


Graduate In The SpotlightJune Bolen

I took my course work seriously. I kept a binder with handwritten notes, printed pages from the online course, anatomy diagrams, and notes on any-thing I had to research. The grammar threw me even though I remembered doing well in grammar in school. Did something change? At least I knew my weakness, so when it came time for the final, I really brushed up on my grammar, studied all my handwrit-ten notes, and practiced the suggested practice reports noted in the forum. Full of nerves, I took my final. I took my time as I rechecked and relistened to the reports. When I finally submit-ted it, I felt pretty confident.

My heart jumped out of my chest when I saw the email from Jovina Orme relating my final exam results. I had passed the exam with honors! After the elation of the results sunk in, I got busy working on my résumé. I took advantage of the resources Ca-reer Step offers. I typed my first of-ficial résumé and sent it to graduate services for review. Alesa Little was especially helpful in constructively suggesting positive changes to my ré-sumé.

When I was working on my final draft, I received an email referring me to a company that was looking to hire MTs. They had hired from Ca-

reer Step in the past and have been especially pleased with all of their new hire graduates. I signed on, sent a copy of my résumé, tested for the company, and got a phone call within the hour.

I am pleased to say they made an offer I could not refuse as an inexpe-rienced graduate. The company seems to understand the importance of ap-preciating hard-working people. I have been working for 3 weeks now and can honestly say I am extremely happy and satisfied in my choice of ca-reers. Every day I see improvement in my typing and editing skills. I can see a long successful future ahead!

So, stick with it. Don’t be discour-aged. There will be easy days and there will be tough days. Every day in the Career Step program was an op-portunity to learn something new, as is every day on the job. Take advan-tage of the programs and assistance offered. I am living proof that it can happen, and if you set your mind to it, it will happen for you, too!

-June Bolen

As I sit here in my office at home on the east coast of

Florida, tropical storm Emily brews south of me in the warm waters of the Caribbean. Believe it or not, this tropical storm reminds me of why I chose to attend Career Step. I have had the pleasure of being involved in many exciting and challenging careers, most of which have been self-employment in my husband’s businesses. Life can throw you a curve ball just like the unpredictability of a tropical storm. Just like that, I needed a career that would be stable and provide a consistent, predictable path.

An acquaintance of mine explained to me she has been transcribing for about 20 years. With her encourage-ment, I looked into a career in medical transcription. I did extensive research on the job availability and stability and researched many distance learn-ing schools. I found Career Step to be the most professional of all the com-panies I interviewed. From the exten-sive education in medical terminology to the very practical experience in the practicum, they had it all. They also boasted a 95% hire rate for the students who graduated with honors or above. From that conversation on, I decided I was going to be a Career Step medical transcription honors graduate.

July/August Med Gab Answers

1. Doogie Howser2. Royal Pains3. Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH)4. Cliff Huxtable5. Northern Exposure

6. Private Practice7. ER8. Doctor Quinn Medicine Woman9. General Hospital10. Gregory House


From Thoughts to ThreadsLaptop or Desktop?

I am looking at purchasing a new computer and cannot de-cide on whether to buy a lap-top or desktop to suit me better for MT. I worry that the laptop may not be as comfortable for the many hours I will be sitting at the computer but I like the portability of the laptop. I have always had a desktop but again I feel the future is with the lap-tops. Any opinions?

I am using a laptop with a docking station . This allows me to use any peripherals I like, but mainly my ergonomic keyboard in proper position . (Don’t even THINK about using a laptop keyboard .) With its large, high-resolution screen, it gives away almost nothing in usability to a desktop .

It is a refurbished Toshiba with a dual Intel processor, 4 GB RAM, a 320 GB hard drive, and a DVD writer for less than $450, so it gives away nothing in performance, either . The price was comparable to similarly equipped desktops .

I already had a second ergo keyboard, so I bought another docking station and mouse . I leave the duplicate gear at my girlfriend’s house, so I can study and work there too . I have all the amenities of a desktop and portability as well . I only have to carry the computer and a footpedal between the two locations .

It’s my first portable (I have several other PCs as well) . My brother, who helped me make the decision, says he has had nothing but a laptop for several years and has ‘never looked back .’ I’m beginning to understand why . I wholeheartedly recommend a laptop .

I personally use both! I have a young child at home, so as I go through the training, many times I am doing it on my laptop so that I can be in the living room with her.

I also recently bought a desktop, definitely more powerful than I need as an MT, but I switch to the desktop when I have to do long transcribing, and use the desktop at night when the baby is asleep.

As for using the laptop as an actual MT IDK, I type just as well on my laptop as on my desktop.

I think it’s probably a personal decision.

What sort of docking station do you use? I’ve begun to investigate those . I use a large monitor, standard keyboard, and a wireless mouse when I transcribe . I get tired of hooking up all the peripherals each time and then unhooking them so I can surf the internet in comfort on the couch .

So far, I’ve been really interested in the Belken universal docking station . It has 5 USB ports, which is one more than my laptop alone has . That would be very nice as then I can sync up my Blackberry or iPod while transcribing . (I’m too impatient to not multi-task!)

Why not think about using a laptop keyboard? I’ve been using it for 3 years now and love it! The space between the keyboard and the edge of the laptop is perfect for resting my wrists and typing. And this is a cheap laptop.

Really, it’s up to your discre-tion. I love laptops’ portability. I chill out on my couch doing reports, or move to the dinner table for some rigid support. I’m not stuck at an office desk in one room. But some people like that and need that. So it depends really.

Well considering how much typing MTs do, I would tell you to consider your wrists .

I know that with my ergonomic keyboard I do not have as much wrist pain as with my laptop keyboard . I also know that I can type faster on an ergonomic—which means MONEY! So con-sider if you have weak wrists (which women have weaker wrists than

men) and then maybe go test drive a laptop somewhere and see if you like typing on it . (Although from personal experience go with the bigger screens in laptops . It is worth it!)

I’ve been using a Targus ACP45US, a low-end universal DS, because it has PS-2 ports for my old keyboard, and it’s small. (Remember, I bought two, one to travel with.) They have a newer one, which is all USB. They retail for $99-$179. I got mine as refurbs from Micro Center for about $20. I love it because I leave my Ethernet, mouse, keyboard, and speakers attached. I just disconnect the

Continued on pg. 8


Continued from pg. 7 - From thoughts

Continued from pg. 1 - Education

5. Much Less IntimidatingFor me, the most stressful part of

the first day of any given semester is choosing an outfit that allows me to feel comfortable yet serious about my learning, searching for the class-room, finding a seat I like, and hoping that the people who sit around me are friendly. After settling into your seat, you hope that the professor doesn’t ask you a question you don’t know the answer to. Online education has a cer-tain degree of anonymity that helps to assuage the student’s fear of saying or wearing the wrong thing. Students can think about their responses lon-ger, respond when they feel comfort-able, and the content doesn’t progress until they want it to.

6. Increased Bonding and Camara-derie Between Students

Career Step offers online forums and informal chat rooms where stu-dents and graduates can gather to get to know one another. Many other on-line institutions also allow these tools; there appears to be an increase in stu-dent/graduate bonding and camara-derie over traditional college environ-

ments. With these safe environments populated by others in the same boat, great friendships can and are forged every day!

7. More Instructor-Student Inter-action

One of the most intimidating and frustrating things about a traditional college or university environment is the lack of personal attention from the professor. It’s often difficult to get in contact with your professor in class, and it is especially frustrating if the professor is taking questions, but one person is monopolizing the time. With an online learning environment, most institutions provide a direct link to instructors and support personnel so that you get a live person on the phone or an email response within 24 hours. Some online institutions even have instant messenger capabilities with their instructors so that you can get a quick response if you cannot get to a phone while working in your course.

8. New and Exciting TechnologyIt can cost a lot to update an entire

college or university to the latest tech-nology; therefore, many institutions

just can’t keep up with the rapidly evolving ways to learn. Online insti-tutions definitely have a technological advantage! The latest technologies can be incorporated more quickly into their programs and a world of differ-ent mediums is available. At Career Step we have been able to revise and update our educational platforms and courses as technology in the medical industries evolves.

There are many additional benefits to online education that we don’t have room to list here. It may not be for everyone, but if you dedicate yourself to completing an online course or pro-gram, the benefits may far outweigh your initial concerns. While staying in our PJs all day may not be as feasi-ble as those commercials make it seem, the possibilities and benefits of online education just might inspire you to dust off those fuzzy slippers, set up a home office space, and excel with your online training program.

- Alesa LittleCS Graduate Support Team

DS and foot pedal and I’m ready to go.

Thanks everyone! As for my wrists, well, I already have been diagnosed with carpal tunnel a year or so ago so maybe a desktop with an ergonomic keyboard would be best for me .

I work from two different places, so I need to be using a laptop. I do bring my Microsoft ergonomic wave keyboard and my trackball mouse with me to use with the laptop. There is no way I can type on the laptop keyboard without errors and marked pain.

I will be getting a desktop machine, soon. I plan on this being my main work computer. But if I am still going between

NC and TN, I will keep using the laptop when I travel.

I work on my laptop and love it . As I’ve mentioned elsewhere on these forums, I have a corner desk with an unusually deep keyboard shelf, so I’m able to rest my laptop on this shelf, thus ensuring that the keyboard is at the correct height for typing . That, I believe, is a key factor . Also, I need to use the glide pad b/c every mouse on the market gives me wrist pain within a very short time, and the fact that my hands never leave the keyboard even for mouse-clicks keeps me effi-cient . And as a bonus, having an LCD screen reduces flicker, thus reducing eye-strain, and having it in a position where I’m slightly looking downwards not only reduces eye strain (b/c the lid is partly lowered over the eye, keep-ing it moist) but also reduces neck/shoulder strain for me .

I also have made a homemade wrist rest for my mouse. I took an old washcloth and an old soft potholder, folded them up and safety-pinned them together, and then used some double-sided tape to keep the thing from moving around on my desk. This has SIGNIFICANTLY improved my typing comfort level!

-Alesa LittleCS Graduate Support Team


inders KeepersFSometimes something we hear in a report is difficult to research and verify. A wild goose chase through our

resources is not much fun if it’s not also successful, but sometimes we find exactly what we’re looking for. These moments are powerful learning moments. We’re calling this column FINDERS KEEPERS because when you research and find what you’re looking for you’re likely to keep it in your permanent knowledge banks!

Recently I read a survey showing that an overwhelming majority of us don’t know how to use CTRL+F. Wow! This is an essential trick that can save you lots and lots of research time—you HAVE to know how to use this.

Basically, CTRL+F allows you to search any document or web page for a letter, word, or phrase, and the com-puter hands you the results in a frac-tion of a second, instead of skimming over the content the old-fashioned way (with your eyeballs).

To perform this search, you simply click within the content you want to search (like a medical article), and hit the control key (CTRL) and the F key on your keyboard together. Now, type in what you’re looking for (like a drug name) and click Enter. In the blink of an eye the computer will search the entire article for any and all instances of the drug name you entered. Unlike your eyeballs, it won’t miss a single one! It will show the results as high-lights in the document, making it easy for you to look at the areas where the term appears, and easily determine

if you’ve found the information you need.

You can use this to search any Word document or webpage content, so it’s very versatile.

Give it a try! If you haven’t been using CTRL+F, you’ll be amazed!

References: http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2011/08/crazy-90-percent-of-people-dont-know-how-to-use-ctrl-f/243840/

#1 DVTYour answer: deep venous throm-

bosisKey: Correct!

OR

#2 DVTYour answer: deep vein thrombo-

sisKey: Correct!

And that’s all there is to that! One hydra head down, with no screams…

Hydra Head #2: Computer Com-parison in the Practicum

The second hydra head rears up af-ter the midterm, when you begin tran-scribing dictated reports.

In the practicum you’re scoring yourself, and dealing with many in-stances of acceptable variation, so it can seem a little dicey. Once we’ve subdued this one, however, you’ll know how to interpret the highlights, what they really mean, how to score

them, and why the computer compari-son tool is really your friend.

Acceptable Variation

There are lots and lots and lots of examples of acceptable variation with regard to style and format choice in the practicum. Acceptable variation is one of the most difficult ideas to grasp.

Yes, it’s frustrating and a little overwhelming to see so many varia-tions. We MTs tend to be precise, de-tail-oriented (dare I say compulsive?) people. We kind of prefer our lines to be clearly drawn, with definite rights and wrongs. These tendencies gener-ally serve us very well in this industry, BUT the reality of the industry is there are lots of acceptable ways to work ac-cording to different account preferences, and when we’re working we may be asked to switch back and forth be-tween accounts a lot. We have to be able to recognize and differentiate be-tween something that is a real error (a misspelling, an incorrect lab value, a wrong term, for example) and some-

thing that’s really only a matter of ac-count style preference.

The program would be a lot sim-pler for you and for us if we pretended there was only one way to handle for-mat and style, and we trained you that way. The problem is, this approach would not realistically prepare you for the workplace; perhaps you’d breeze through the course, but then you’d be angry with us for not adequately training you for the job. We don’t want you to be mad at us, so we ex-pose you to lots of acceptable varia-tion now because it’s much better to grapple with and master this concept as a student than it is to struggle as a new employee.

In the next issue we’ll break this down further by learning how to in-terpret the highlights in the practi-cum, what they really mean, how to score them, and why the computer comparison tool is really your best friend. Until then, battle on!

- Jill McNittCS Student Support Team

Continued from pg. 3 - Grader


Work Smarter, Not HarderOh, the Places You Can Go!

I was struggling to know what to write for this issue’s Work

Smarter Not Harder. As if by fate while sitting at my computer, I saw the cor-ner of a colorful book under my main bookshelf. I reached over and found it to be my very well loved edition of the book Oh, The Places You’ll Go! by Dr. Seuss. As I thumbed through the worn pages, I had a big “aha!” moment: In order to work smarter, we need the motivation to know we can succeed. That motivation is more successful when it comes from within—no one else can motivate you to do something unless you are already raring to go! Here are some ways to find your mo-tivation to complete your Career Step program and beyond.

We are often scared to look inter-nally because we are afraid that what we will find might be more discourag-ing than what we knew before the in-trospective look. However, in finding motivation to complete the MT/MTE program, the first and most important step is taking a hard look at why you wanted to enroll in the first place. Do those motivations still hold true? If so, great—you are well on your way to success! If they don’t (because some-

times they won’t), that’s okay too. You just need to determine what the new motivations are and how they fit into the grand scheme of completing the program and securing employment.

Once you have determined the mo-tivations behind taking the program, it is time to set micro goals to achieve on a weekly basis. One big mistake in attempting to motivate ourselves is that we misunderstand the true nature of the time it takes to enact goals. We tell ourselves that we are going fin-ish the program by X date, and then we become overwhelmed by the goal, paralyzed because it seems unachiev-able, and put it out of sight and out of mind. If we are going to have the motivation to know we can succeed, we need to set small goals that are ab-solutely achievable. I like to take my day planner every morning and write 6 work goals to achieve and 6 personal goals. They can be something as small as “complete 2-4 pages in the pro-gram” to start or “smile at a stranger.” Once you have your daily and weekly goals written down, get to work on achieving them. There is no better feeling than seeing a to-do list full of checkmarks at the end of the day. You

will feel accomplished, and if you can keep your motivation up by achieving these small goals, you will continue to step yourself towards your big goals of graduation and employment in the medical transcription field.

You should be proud of yourself when you achieve your weekly goals and you should reward yourself for your efforts. It doesn’t have to be any-thing big or expensive, but it should be something you feel excited about—even if it’s just a little time to your-self to go for a run, devour some tasty ice cream, purchase a new resource for your home office, or (my personal fa-vorite) get a fun book to read if you have some spare time.

These are just a few tips, but they build a great foundation to success. Oh the places you can go if you follow these tips! “So…be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray or Mordecai Ali van Al-len O’Shea, you’re off to Great Places! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So…get on your way!” – Dr. Seuss

-Alesa LittleCS Graduate Support Team

Continued from pg. 2 - Successtion. For example, at the present time there are many questions being posed regarding governmental changes in healthcare documentation, as well as ongoing discussion involving emerg-ing technology and the effects of participating in a global workforce community. Let’s jump right in and explore these issues. Let’s ask the necessary questions, let’s bring up the necessary discussions, make the necessary points, and be part of the process so we can fully participate in the outcome! These issues affect our Career Step student community, of course; they also go well beyond.

From the beginning Career Step’s primary purpose has been to enhance the lives and livelihoods of our students and graduates. Our best moments are those when a gradu-ate reports to be happily working in the medical documentation field as a direct result of our training. Career Step’s original founder, Andrea Anaya, began the seminal medical transcrip-tion program in an effort to better her circumstances as a single mother. She felt very strongly that the train-ing should have a positive impact in the lives of those who learned it. Al-though Andrea has passed the Career Step torch, nearly two decades later

we still uphold this desire with all of Career Step’s current offerings.

It’s gratifying to see how our goals and desires as a school, a company, and as your training choice are similar to the intentions of a noble and re-spected university like Cornell. Rest assured you are taking the best train-ing available for this field. Thank you for choosing Career Step!

- Jill McNittCS Student Support Team


Speech WSome facilities feel that speech recognition engines can take over the jobs of medical transcriptionists. For

regular readers of this column, you’re well aware that this isn’t possible. But let’s entertain the idea a bit. What if speech recognition engines could also take over the jobs of physicians? What sort of findings would be noted on a physical examination?

reck

If a speech recognition performed the physical examination...

PHYSICAL EXAMINATIONGENERAL: A 58-year old female in no acute distress. Appears to be a kidney stone.HEAD: Normal phallic and dramatic.EYES: She has cats and rats.EARS: She has had gradual hearing loss on the right thigh, as well as a persistent itch. We went ahead and urinated the right ear. She felt like the urination finally scratched the itch she could not get at.NECK: Subtle.LUNGS: Constipation.HEART: Rate of aggression. Regular rate and rhythm.ABDOMEN: Be mine.BACK: She has pain medial to the AC joint where her boss is usually situated.EXTREMITIES: Without clubbing, cyanosis, or a demon, although she has testicles on her right foot.NEURO: Alert and oriented x3. Insight and judgement were fair. Ignition was intact.

If a physician performed the physical examination...

PHYSICAL EXAMINATIONGENERAL: A 58-year old female in no acute distress. Appears to be getting thinner.HEAD: Normocephalic, atraumatic.EYES: She has cataracts.EARS: She has had gradual hearing loss on the right side, as well as a persistent itch. We went ahead and irrigated the right ear. She felt like the irrigation finally scratched the itch she could not get at.NECK: Supple.LUNGS: Clear to auscultation.HEART: (Rate of, no, wait, correction). Regular rate and rhythm.ABDOMEN: Benign.BACK: She has pain medial to the AC joint where her bra strap is usually situated.EXTREMITIES: Without clubbing, cyanosis, or edema, although she has vesicles on her right foot.NEURO: Alert and oriented x3. Insight and judgement were fair. Cognition was intact.

Stepping Up is published bimonthly by Career Step for its students, graduates, and client partners .

This newsletter is produced for electronic viewing and print . The electronic version is available to all current students and graduates at no cost . Print subscriptions are $25 for one year and $40 for a two-year subscription .

Career Step Quality Medical Transcription Training

4692 North 300 West, Suite 150Provo, UT 84604

Phone: 800-246-7837 or888-657-5752

Fax: 801-491-6645Email: SteppingUp@careerstep .com

Website: www .careerstep .com

Jill McNitt, Editor-in-ChiefHeather Garrett, Associate EditorMelanie Gassin, Associate EditorAlesa Little, Layout Editor


Med Gab

1. Room Hut Toy Darth Write Is ___________________2. Anna Pull Uh Day ___________________3. Abe Row Kin Fee More ___________________4. Dough So Fizz Hone Met His Son ___________________5. A Scallop Pole ___________________6. Down Cat Chuck Old ___________________7. Up Pin Decide Us ___________________8. Police Stake Might Emperor Sure ___________________9. Hair No Sand Throw Talked Tour ___________________10. Eye Run Deaf Inches See ___________________

Sometimes when comparing what you heard to the comparison grader, you have to sit back and wonder, “How did they get from that to that?!” In the spirit of deciphering medicalese, the puzzles below contain a set of unrelated words that make up a familiar medical phrase. Hint: It helps to read the phrase out loud and sometimes quickly to understand the hidden phrase. Good luck!

Documents

The Benefits of Online Education W 2. Flexibility · and backpacks, wondering who will be sitting next to them in class, and if they’ll like the teachers; high school kids are checking