Plop Plop, Fizz Fizz...

I used to transcribe medical dictation for a group of orthopedic surgeons. I enjoyed medical transcription. It could get quite tedious but it was a good learning tool.

The owner of the practice was notorious for his time management skills. He put them to good use while dictating. The good doctor would dictate everywhere. Among his favorite locations: while navigating traffic, during his lunch break while chewing his food and of course while on the toilet.

One day after transcribing for 6 hours straight, I got a little giddy and decided to relieve some stress. I transcribed the tape exactly as it was dictated. It took some doing, but I was able to type out every, honking horn, expletive, burp, slurp, fart and plop. Once I was done I passed it around to the other transcribers, we all had a good laugh and continued on with our tasks.

My fatal error was placing the non edited version of the patient note on the chart for the doctor’s review and signature. Needless to say, he was not amused. That was pretty much the end of my transcribing hijinks. You’d think someone that creative with his time would have had a better sense of humor. I always seem to learn the hard way.