Pay with Dict8

[Chrissols]

Good Morning all Dict8 ladies

@Chrissols - the first thing that Uber mentioned was not taking on new drivers (who they would have to pay the new higher wages to) but spreading the work across existing ones.

Not seeing that much increase in work - still getting gaps with nothing at times.

@Gally123 That's interesting about spreading the work among existing workers, and seems the fair way to do things. I have seen a minimum of 60 tasks waiting all morning so far, mind you, it's difficult getting my head round a new specialty

@Chrissols I did not take on any new specialties as I have enough to cope with, however as other people did (and some of my specialties were on that list) hence I have seen less available as the work is spread out among more people. However, in the gaps (or the Cr*p dictations) I just move to Tpro.

And we finally have an email from DICT8! About time. However, I would take some of it with a pinch of salt as many hospitals may continue with their secretaries working from home on a rota etc (unless they decide to get rid of a few through natural wastage and/or redundancy and then use a company like DICT8).

@Gally123 I haven't done any for Tpro this month, I think I am slowly moving away from them.

@Chrissols I too am seeing a consistent amount of work today, I have never seen this before, even before the pandemic, hence I was never happy to rely on Dict8 for a steady income. I am quite enjoying the new speciality but Dr Google is working overtime today. I do not think I am depriving anyone of work as there has been fairly consistently over 40 tasks waiting to be typed, the majority in the new speciality. Long may it continue.

@deewu yes, I have been on Google more than Dict8 today......and I feel the same in that we cannot be depriving anyone from work as there is a constant flow, not a single gap this morning, and certainly not gone below 50/60 waiting to be picked up

I would have taken on another speciality if the one I wanted was on the list but it was not, unfortunately. I would love to do orthopaedics.

I too got the email! - not much on my specialties either, odd one coming in, fortunately not bad dictations and some newbies, so keeping going slowly but surely, but none of my specialities are the ones offered out. On a good note, I have been accepted with Tpro and had my training the other day and hopefully start next week! . Have to say they are lovely people and very personable

@danblack87 -why don't you ask if you could do orthopaedics? If work is increasing as DICT8 says in their email they may have some extra work coming in for that specialty but not enough to offer if several people wanted to take it on. Or you could ask them to consider you in future if such an opportunity arises. Asking cannot do any harm (I did a few years ago and was lucky) you just have to time it right. Or Tpro has a fair bit of orthopaedics!!

@carosel2 - yes Tpro are very nice and although the work is slightly less paid (and then there are exchange rates etc) I like the change and there is usually some in the evening and weekends if I take time out during the normal day. I have earned about half with them as with DICT8 and added together this month should make a decent amount (but it is a 23 working day month!)

@Gally123 - yes I am looking forward to Tpro even though the rate is not very good, but like you say if there is also weekend work it could top up a bit to what I'm not getting with DICT8, but I will swap in and out during week. Hopefully, this year I might make some reasonable coinage, as for last year £100 a month if I was lucky, albeit it has picked up a bit recently, but still better to have another bow on my string list just in case anything should go dire again, who knows what is round the corner. I

@carosel2 - so far with Tro this month I have earned just over £300 and my lowest month with them was January when work was scarce and it was about £140 so I think you should be okay.

@Gally123 - oh thank you for that!, I'm well impressed. If the work is there it should be doable then, although they said I had to do 150 letters a week, but didn't think they could stipulate how many you should do, as it is self employed work and I really don't think I will be able to do that many, but I will do my best. I've been fortunate that the backlog are my specialties, which is good, but also said I would need to do others too when they built up, but Google will help me with them.

@carosel2 - yes they say 150 letters but sometimes I just do lots of very short letters - just done one of 22 seconds - to make my numbers up!

@Gally123 Ah right! - thanks for the tip, I shall watch how I go

@Gally123: I have asked for orthopaedics in the past several times in the past but was a no go. I will ask. Thanks.

didn't want my list clogged up with new specialties at the moment as need to catch up financially

@carosel2 How are you getting on with Tpro?

@Chrissols - OMG! my head is spinning! I am finding it really difficult to understand the accents even though I am doing my specialties. I have struggled all day with about 6 letters and had to refer back to DICT8 to make some money! lol . They are lovely and helpful, but I am doing VR and I just cannot grasp what they are saying at all. I must have done dozens of timestamps on each letter so far. They will be binning me off end of week! . Some of the letters are very long too, which I am not used which makes it even harder as I a can't make out some of the terminology especially when the VR is picking things up and putting things in that is really bizzare, so it is making it more difficult to try and fathom out what's being said lol!

@carosel2 that's exactly how I was to begin with and thought I would never get it, but it does become easier once you become more familiar. That said, I have given up Tpro now as there seems to be plenty of work with Dict8.

@carosel2 - when I started with Tpro I told them that I was only going to do short letters to start with (less than 1 minute) and they let me pick what I wanted to do from the lists for about the first two weeks. I am not sure which hospital you have been matched with but mine has about 250 letters to choose from at the moment and at times I still pick the short ones to make my number up, esp at the end of the day. Having said that, I have timestamped just about each letter I have done today, for a specialty/doctor I normally manage but she is talking extra fast and pronouncing the drugs differently so I am erring on the side of caution. When I started they said they did not mind 20 stamps per letter; they were rather I was unsure than letting errors slip through. I am sure they are used to people stamping all their letters when they first start and are getting used to the system/voices etc. The main thing I find distracting is when I am checking a letter and they suddenly message....

@Chrissols - yes I thought, oh now DICT8 are sending in the works! and I have just taken tpro on and they don't pay half has much! lol. Well, I will keep going for now, at least, I will probably do Tpro a bit at weekend when there is nothing available with DICT8 and bits in between with both, but I could have earned quite a lot today with DICT8 as there is a fair amount on. It is sods law that, but never mind. If it doesn't prove my worth by end of month I will have to seriously think about just concentrating on DICT8 as it is so much easier. Shame tpro have such a poor return

@Chrissols - the tests they sent were easy and I thought heyho I am on a winner here! but today has brought me back down to earth lol!

@Gally123- haha the messages! yes I think the same as it throws your concentration doesn't it. That's good to know about the timestamps as goodness they have certainly had a few from me today! That has made me feel a bit better. I have stuck to my specialties thinking it would be easier, but they have been really long letters 10 and 15 minutes long, which have proved a bit taxing. I might look at some different ones and see if they are any shorter to get the hang of it better. I must say though, they are really friendly which makes it so much better. They don't make you feel awkward at all

@carosel2 - 10-15 mins!!! I think the longest letter I have seen for my hospital is 6 mins, but I still stick with the shorter ones. Also, you might be better if you work on a Saturday as I think office staff are minimal and then it does not feel like someone is watching over your shoulder, although the first Saturday I worked and as I mentioned I was intending to do some, one of the checkers also worked and I had no end of problems. It was awful - I lost a letter and then the system went funny and I had to log off and she kept saying "that should not happen!" I was more relaxed when I knew she had gone.

@Gally123 - that is hilarious, that is going to be me. I have looked and I have about 176 on at moment. I have been looking at wrong column haha record time!!! although my letters today have been on the long side, but I have just gone back in and seen loads of 25 second ones etc, (managed to look at the right column this time) which has made me feel so much better! lol