Scribe job

[ChemYoda]

Hi all, I'm wondering if anyone here who is a scribe just finds their job stressful. I'm working with a physician who is difficult to work with and makes us get items for patients when clearly that's not in our job description. I have no problem with getting items but he/she does not have to be such an ass about it. Furthermore, i feel pretty bad about being slow at filling out the charts; I feel like I'm pissing off the doctors. I have already had 4-6 days of on job training, but I'm still slow. I feel frustrated and the job just gives a lot of stress.

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[QuestionsAnswers]

It is a steep learning curve. It tends to get better/more routine as you do it for a longer period of time.

Most everyone feels frustrated by the low pay and high stress nature of the job. As you spend more time in it though, you will get more used to the stress and it should lessen to a degree. Try to give it time if you can, and work with other physicians if you can.

 

[ChemYoda]

It is a steep learning curve. It tends to get better/more routine as you do it for a longer period of time.

Most everyone feels frustrated by the low pay and high stress nature of the job. As you spend more time in it though, you will get more used to the stress and it should lessen to a degree. Try to give it time if you can, and work with other physicians if you can.

How long did it take you to get fast at it? How fast would you say you were after 5 days of on the job training?

 

[Sardinia]

@ChemYoda Out of curiosity, is this job one of your first healthcare related jobs out of college?

 

[Wolfpack93]

After five days of job training I'd be surprised if you felt comfortable being able to fill the charts out quickly. It seems that the doc your working with is probably expecting a bit much, I wouldn't worry about it too much. Like others have said it is a steep learning curve. I didn't feel comfortable until about a month at this job. You'll get the hang of it it just takes a while.

 

[ChemYoda]

@ChemYoda Out of curiosity, is this job one of your first healthcare related jobs out of college?

Yes and still in college.

 

[Sardinia]

Yes and still in college.

That's rough. I was somewhat comfortable with top 100 drugs & common categories, anatomy, physiology, and medical terminology/abbreviation before starting. I imagine it would seem very steep to climb without having a solid foundation to give you a starting point.

 

[DocJuan]

Hi all, I'm wondering if anyone here who is a scribe just finds their job stressful. I'm working with a physician who is difficult to work with and makes us get items for patients when clearly that's not in our job description. I have no problem with getting items but he/she does not have to be such an ass about it. Furthermore, i feel pretty bad about being slow at filling out the charts; I feel like I'm pissing off the doctors. I have already had 4-6 days of on job training, but I'm still slow. I feel frustrated and the job just gives a lot of stress.

Haha I've been in your shoes. It depends on your learning curve, the doctor, and the company. Some doctors are HORRIBLE to work with and treat you like a toddler. You're not to speak unless spoken to and if you do say something you run the risk of being complained about to your supervisor.

On the other hand at my new hospital, the doctors are sooo chill and treat you like a colleague. You can joke and laugh and have conversations with them as long as you get your work done. Further more they love teaching you stuff, even unsolicited.

In terms of being slow with notes. The doctor should understand if they're overwhelming you. You're not a servant and have the right to request they slow down a bit. But if you take really good notes, you should be able to fall any number of charts behind and still be fine. It's not really about competing the charts quickly, but accurately. Are you allowed to use notepad or type while scribing?

 

[Sardinia]

@ChemYoda One more thing. When you're a scribe you are probably working in the role as an employee for a private contractor that the hospital has decided to employ for its services. When the doctor is asking you to do extra then you should honestly be considering it as part of the package. In this sense you should be putting your company in the best light. If you don't like serving your customers e.g. physicians to help them streamline the process then you're going to have trouble in other areas of healthcare. Also if you think the ER doctors you're dealing with might be obnoxious, wait until you get some working experience in the OR.

 

[ChemYoda]

Haha I've been in your shoes. It depends on your learning curve, the doctor, and the company. Some doctors are HORRIBLE to work with and treat you like a toddler. You're not to speak unless spoken to and if you do say something you run the risk of being complained about to your supervisor.

On the other hand at my new hospital, the doctors are sooo chill and treat you like a colleague. You can joke and laugh and have conversations with them as long as you get your work done. Further more they love teaching you stuff, even unsolicited.

In terms of being slow with notes. The doctor should understand if they're overwhelming you. You're not a servant and have the right to request they slow down a bit. But if you take really good notes, you should be able to fall any number of charts behind and still be fine. It's not really about competing the charts quickly, but accurately. Are you allowed to use notepad or type while scribing?

Everything's electronic

 

[DocJuan]

Everything's electronic

Perfect. So you should have access to notepad. Me using notepad was a game changer in terms of scribing. You can be 20 charts behind. As long as you take comprehensive notes you can just refer back to notepad to complete them. Just make sure you don't accidentally delete the document or you're ****ed.

 

[jtd2081]

Just keep at it. Like everyone said there is a steep learning curve. I have been scribing for a long time and I easily saw 50 patients a few nights ago and was still able to get some homework done. It all takes time. Do not get discouraged about being slow. It is honestly expected from newer scribes. You will get the hang of it and be so happy you stuck with it. Good luck.

 

[deleted600623]

I've just been hired as a scribe at my uncle's pulmonology practice and reading this thread sort of freaks me out. Can anyone give me any tips on what to expect being a scribe? I will have about a month or so to be trained by a scribe in the practice but I just want to have an idea of what to expect when working as a scribe. The only experience I have working with scribes was in a free clinic that I helped open but it was fairly laid back.

 

[jtd2081]

Every place is different honestly. Some hospitals do not have the volume of other hospitals. Of course working in a large hospital's ED will be different than working in a small community hospital. ED has a ton of volume generally so Pulm may be a litter easier though I am sure the notes are much more detailed than ED notes. Take everything you hear with a grain of salt. Some people are naturally good at writing notes while others are less so. Just do not give up if the job is tough. You will eventually get the hang of it. Don't stress over it honestly. It is not worth the stress . Just do the best you can. That is all you can do.

 

[DocJuan]

Just keep at it. Like everyone said there is a steep learning curve. I have been scribing for a long time and I easily saw 50 patients a few nights ago and was still able to get some homework done. It all takes time. Do not get discouraged about being slow. It is honestly expected from newer scribes. You will get the hang of it and be so happy you stuck with it. Good luck.

50 charts?! where do you scribe? And for a single physician? Unless it was urgent care. At my job, between attendings and residents I take charts from up to 6 different providers and 50 charts would be a nightmare shift. I work 12 hours. Granted they do a lot of their own charts. Each resident sees 12-15 patients per shift. But they do get some complicated cases.

 

[deleted600623]

@DocJuan So as a scribe, are you going in with the physician or are you taking their notes and putting it into EHR?

 

[DocJuan]

@DocJuan So as a scribe, are you going in with the physician or are you taking their notes and putting it into EHR?

It depends on where you work but I can choose. I'm lazy and like to sit and/or do homework so I usually choose to sit at a computer and take dictations but if I get bored I can choose a resident or attending and follow him or her into a room and observe the interaction.

 

[deleted600623]

@DocJuan so the essential task as a scribe is simply documenting charts for physicians? Would you recommend working in the hospital or outpatient?

 

[DocJuan]

@DocJuan so the essential task as a scribe is simply documenting charts for physicians? Would you recommend working in the hospital or outpatient?

Yep. It depends on your preferences! I've never worked outpatient so I couldn't say but the hospital setting is, I believe, the most common setting. ER scribes see a lot of different cases and it can be fast pace and difficult. Hospitalist scribes see less but more in depth and learn more. Sorry but as for outpatient, scribing I could not speak to that! But otherwise it really depends on how fast the provider goes and how many patient he or she sees. I would imagine outpatient depends a lot of the specialty.

 

[jtd2081]

50 charts?! where do you scribe? And for a single physician? Unless it was urgent care. At my job, between attendings and residents I take charts from up to 6 different providers and 50 charts would be a nightmare shift. I work 12 hours. Granted they do a lot of their own charts. Each resident sees 12-15 patients per shift. But they do get some complicated cases.

I scribe in a very busy upstate New York ED. I saw 50 in an 11 hour shift with a single, very fast, provider. It was a fun night as that was a record for him, and therefore a record for everyone one else. Legendary. It was great.

 

[jtd2081]

@DocJuan so the essential task as a scribe is simply documenting charts for physicians? Would you recommend working in the hospital or outpatient?

I personally like the flow and acuity in a hospital but everyone is limited to what is around them and what they want to try and scribe for. I enjoy the hospital but everyone is different. Some like the outpatient feel and others like the hospital. All personal preference. If you have to choice you could try and do both. Gives you more outlook on different specialties which helps you when trying to decide what you want to do.

 

[QuestionsAnswers]

How long did it take you to get fast at it? How fast would you say you were after 5 days of on the job training?

It's been awhile but I did have some hiccups/somewhat rough first week and the doctor did get irked at me about something in the note, but I ended up getting along really well with her after that first week and she gave me good reviews to the CS. I definitely wasn't at full speed after 5 days and I doubt anyone I work with was either... it's one of those situations where you just have to push through the tough period. The docs ideally should be understanding of the fact that you're new. And when you're taking classes don't let yourself get roped in to working too many shifts that your grades are affected.

Additionally, to elaborate further as I think back, my first week scribing was actually pretty tough. I had injured my back the week before in the gym (just soft tissue, nothing too serious) and had had horrible cramping the weekend before my first training week such that I couldn't sleep and had to sleep on the floor because my mattress was too soft. During my first week (training part of the week, on my own after that), I was in enough pain and having such cramping in my lower back that I literally was limping around the clinic where I work (I did find it interesting/surprising that no one, not the doc nor the scribe training me who was quitting commented on it or asked me what was going on).

Anyway, so I made it through the whole week, and on the last day of that week I was on my own at that point, and the Dr. had been happy with my charts for the followups, but then right before the end of the day got pissed at me for including way too much extraneous info in an intake's chart and was kind of mean about it. I was upset that weekend after a rough first week, but I tried to correct the issue and the following week was fine, and this doc and I ended up getting along really well and she gave me really good reviews to the CS. Sometimes you just have to push through a tough period and see if it gets better. In this case I'm glad I stuck it out and you may be too once you're a few months in.

 

[ChemYoda]

Anyway, so I made it through the whole week, and on the last day of that week I was on my own at that point, and the Dr. had been happy with my charts for the followups, but then right before the end of the day got pissed at me for including way too much extraneous info in an intake's chart and was kind of mean about it. I was upset that weekend after a rough first week, but I tried to correct the issue and the following week was fine, and this doc and I ended up getting along really well and she gave me really good reviews to the CS. Sometimes you just have to push through a tough period and see if it gets better. In this case I'm glad I stuck it out and you may be too once you're a few months in."

I had a shift today, and it got really busy about half-way through it. Usually we get different trainers to be with us, but I just don't like the one I worked with. It's like he is not directly an a$$, but indirectly/passive-aggressively he is and comes off as a smarta$$ if that makes sense. I have already made decent convos with other doctors and I'd be very happy to work with them, but I noticed when working with people you don't like, it can make the job more stressful. And just in general in medicine related jobs, I've noticed people aren't usually a$$es directly for the most part, it's usually very passive-aggressive how they get pissed at you or anyone else. And I don't know man, I want to stick with the job, but sometimes I have just been dreading going to this job because I know it's gonna be hectic and people are gonna start getting pissed off at you lol. My $.02

 

[QuestionsAnswers]

I had a shift today, and it got really busy about half-way through it. Usually we get different trainers to be with us, but I just don't like the one I worked with. It's like he is not directly an a$$, but indirectly/passive-aggressively he is and comes off as a smarta$$ if that makes sense. I have already made decent convos with other doctors and I'd be very happy to work with them, but I noticed when working with people you don't like, it can make the job more stressful. And just in general in medicine related jobs, I've noticed people aren't usually a$$es directly for the most part, it's usually very passive-aggressive how they get pissed at you or anyone else. And I don't know man, I want to stick with the job, but sometimes I have just been dreading going to this job because I know it's gonna be hectic and people are gonna start getting pissed off at you lol. My $.02

It can be stressful. Sometimes I feel it's a little silly in a way because we are provided minimal training (i.e., around 5 days) but are expected to write the notes for people with a minimum of usually 7+ years of education and experience more than us... though it seems to work well enough for most docs to want scribes if they are available. If you're on summer break and it isn't interfering with your school work my suggestion would be to give it at least a month and see how you feel, or try to switch providers if possible.

 

[ChemYoda]

It can be stressful. Sometimes I feel it's a little silly in a way because we are provided minimal training but are expected to write the notes for people with a minimum of usually 7+ years of education and experience more than us... though it seems to work well enough for most docs to want scribes if they are available. If you're on summer break and it isn't interfering with your school work my suggestion would be to give it at least a month and see how you feel, or try to switch providers if possible.

Exactly, I was thinking the same thing about our minimal training compared to their years of education. And I'm pretty sure we can switch providers/put in preferences as I work in a pretty large ED. I don't dont feel horribly bad about my skills so far, just some weird patients throw me off and when the ED gets busy. I'll give it a month or two and hope for the best!

 

[MareNostrummm]

I had a shift today, and it got really busy about half-way through it. Usually we get different trainers to be with us, but I just don't like the one I worked with. It's like he is not directly an a$$, but indirectly/passive-aggressively he is and comes off as a smarta$$ if that makes sense. I have already made decent convos with other doctors and I'd be very happy to work with them, but I noticed when working with people you don't like, it can make the job more stressful. And just in general in medicine related jobs, I've noticed people aren't usually a$$es directly for the most part, it's usually very passive-aggressive how they get pissed at you or anyone else. And I don't know man, I want to stick with the job, but sometimes I have just been dreading going to this job because I know it's gonna be hectic and people are gonna start getting pissed off at you lol. My $.02

I just started as a Scribe as well... but I haven't really had any problems working with the doctors. If I tell them that I just started they usually have very low expectations of me because they know that my company's training is only 2 weeks... (like shockingly low to the point where they don't think I know what the malleolus is). I can usually hold my own just because I've taken so many upper division bio classes and I did very well in anatomy and physiology. If I didn't have a background in biology I would be way too slow to keep up.

On my 5th shift one of the doctor's said he was going to test me lol... He refused to give me any charts until he pooled about 12 patients then he slammed me with all of them at once, just to see if I could take good enough notes that I couldn't rely on short term memory. He then randomly picked charts to grade in front of me lol. That was a rough day but I learned a lot.

 

[Sardinia]

On my 5th shift one of the doctor's said he was going to test me lol... He refused to give me any charts until he pooled about 12 patients then he slammed me with all of them at once, just to see if I could take good enough notes that I couldn't rely on short term memory. He then randomly picked charts to grade in front of me lol. That was a rough day but I learned a lot.

He was pimping you. I bet you he's the one who cares the most about you in that hospital.

 

[MareNostrummm]

He was pimping you. I bet you he's the one who cares the most about you in that hospital.

Yeah I realized that, I thanked him for going over the charts with me. Usually at the end of the shift the doctor doesn't have time to tell you how well you did and you never get feedback.

 

[AccessoryNavicular]

It is a steep learning curve. It tends to get better/more routine as you do it for a longer period of time.

Most everyone feels frustrated by the low pay and high stress nature of the job. As you spend more time in it though, you will get more used to the stress and it should lessen to a degree. Try to give it time if you can, and work with other physicians if you can.

I actually found it gets more stressful the better you get at it. This occurred partly as a result of developing a larger clinical acumen but also resulted from realizing how much of a patient's pertinent history I was initially missing


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[MareNostrummm]

It can be stressful. Sometimes I feel it's a little silly in a way because we are provided minimal training but are expected to write the notes for people with a minimum of usually 7+ years of education and experience more than us... though it seems to work well enough for most docs to want scribes if they are available

Someone with more experience in the ER can feel free to correct me, but I think it's because despite that fact that scribes miss some things (especially beginner scribes) we still save the doctor a lot of time by typing up the HPIs and documenting the physical exam, labs, ED course, etc as well as we can. We also provide another set of eyes in case the doctor misses anything. There's been so many times where the triage note conflicts with what the doctor found during the physical exam, and I can clarify it so that the biller has an easier job...

If we save the doctor's time he can see more patients, or give more quality of care to each patient than the typical 15 minutes. More patients/better documentation = more money for the hospital and the doctor. Obviously better and faster scribes are going to make the doctor even more money, but even a noobie can do some work. I've even had PAs fighting for beginner scribes lol.

 

[Technology]

Sorry that this is somewhat off-topic, but how did you guys become scribes? I wish my minimum-wage job was related to the medical field, so working as a scribe seems like a very nice upgrade – although I am sure it requires a LOT more resilience.

 

[MareNostrummm]

Sorry that this is somewhat off-topic, but how did you guys become scribes? I wish my minimum-wage job was related to the medical field, so working as a scribe seems like a very nice upgrade – although I am sure it requires a LOT more resilience.

I was volunteering at my local hospital when one of the managers of a local scribe company came around looking to recruit. A lot of scribes were leaving this year because they were starting medical school in the Fall. Since I had a bachelor's degree they offered me an interview. We had 2 weeks of training with tests everyday. Classroom training wasn't that hard but I had just finished my MCAT so I didn't have any other commitments at the time.

On-site training is completely different, and is where the steep learning curve of scribing really comes in. You can literally be drowning in patients if your ED is swamped. This is why recruiters really like to see that you have a flexible schedule. If you're a student taking classes full time you aren't going to be able to work a lot of shifts, and you're never going to improve.

 

[Sardinia]

Sorry that this is somewhat off-topic, but how did you guys become scribes? I wish my minimum-wage job was related to the medical field, so working as a scribe seems like a very nice upgrade – although I am sure it requires a LOT more resilience.

Need to wait until you're 18. Most typical scribes are 21/22 and doing this as part of gap-year.

 

[Anxious Affect]

I was comfortable scribing after 1 month (although still slow) and pretty good after 2-3 months. After 6 months, I was rarely stressed during a shift. Keep an ongoing digital notepad on your laptop to document everything you cannot keep up with, and you can stay a little later than the doctor during those initial shifts to perfect your charts.

Even if you dislike your doctor, NEVER be afraid to ask for repeated information, a physical exam finding you were unsure about, etc. At the end of the day, if that particular patient sues your doctor, he will be thankful in court that you made your chart as accurate to your ability as possible. Your "annoying" questions will remarkably increase the chart's accuracy, which may become extremely crucial later on. Also, physicians typically read over their charts in-depth after each shift, so your doctor will eventually notice the effort you put into each chart and (hopefully) begin to respect you more. In my particular ER, the doctors were awesome, but some took longer than others to warm-up to new scribes. It's a little frustrating at first for some of them to go from a veteran scribe to someone new, especially the doctors who aren't as computer-friendly and rely more heavily on their charts being completed for them.

 

[MareNostrummm]

I was comfortable scribing after 1 month (although still slow) and pretty good after 2-3 months. After 6 months, I was rarely stressed during a shift. Keep an ongoing digital notepad on your laptop to document everything you cannot keep up with, and you can stay a little later than the doctor during those initial shifts to perfect your charts.

Even if you dislike your doctor, NEVER be afraid to ask for repeated information, a physical exam finding you were unsure about, etc. At the end of the day, if that particular patient sues your doctor, he will be thankful in court that you made your chart as accurate to your ability as possible. Your "annoying" questions will remarkably increase the chart's accuracy, which may become extremely crucial later on. Also, physicians typically read over their charts in-depth after each shift, so your doctor will eventually notice the effort you put into each chart and (hopefully) begin to respect you more. In my particular ER, the doctors were awesome, but some took longer than others to warm-up to new scribes. It's a little frustrating at first for some of them to go from a veteran scribe to someone new, especially the doctors who aren't as computer-friendly and rely more heavily on their charts being completed for them.

I'm pretty sure this is why they love asking for a 2 year commitment... veteran scribes can help an ER run so much faster. We get paid $18/hour after a year.

 

[Anxious Affect]

I'm pretty sure this is why they love asking for a 2 year commitment... veteran scribes can help an ER run so much faster. We get paid $18/hour after a year.

Wow, that's very lucky. Our wage is pretty much capped at $12 regardless of how many years you work... I think now it actually may be lower, the company just lowered the starting pay to minimum wage and our turnover rate is increasing. It's hard to commit to 2 years when you're struggling to pay rent and buy food.

 

[MareNostrummm]

Wow, that's very lucky. Our wage is pretty much capped at $12 regardless of how many years you work... I think now it actually may be lower, the company just lowered the starting pay to minimum wage and our turnover rate is increasing. It's hard to commit to 2 years when you're struggling to pay rent and buy food.

Yeah some companies really don't care, they can find another desperate premed who needs clinical experience very easily.

 

[DocJuan]

I'm pretty sure this is why they love asking for a 2 year commitment... veteran scribes can help an ER run so much faster. We get paid $18/hour after a year.

That's great!! We get $15/hr and I assumed that was the highest.

 

[DocJuan]

Yeah some companies really don't care, they can find another desperate premed who needs clinical experience very easily.

It's borderline exploitation!!

 

[ChemYoda]

I just started as a Scribe as well... but I haven't really had any problems working with the doctors. If I tell them that I just started they usually have very low expectations of me because they know that my company's training is only 2 weeks... (like shockingly low to the point where they don't think I know what the malleolus is). I can usually hold my own just because I've taken so many upper division bio classes and I did very well in anatomy and physiology. If I didn't have a background in biology I would be way too slow to keep up.

On my 5th shift one of the doctor's said he was going to test me lol... He refused to give me any charts until he pooled about 12 patients then he slammed me with all of them at once, just to see if I could take good enough notes that I couldn't rely on short term memory. He then randomly picked charts to grade in front of me lol. That was a rough day but I learned a lot.

Ha sounds like a cool doc! And your training was 2 weeks? We only get ~5 days of on floor training!

 

[MareNostrummm]

Ha sounds like a cool doc! And your training was 2 weeks? We only get ~5 days of on floor training!

Classroom training was 2 weeks. Onsite was 4-5 days depending how long it takes for the boss to think you can go solo

 

[nm06003]

Scribe in the ER if you can, you'll see a broad area of medicine. If you have time then scribe at a private clinic after. I worked 8 hour shifts and saw around 20 patients max with a doc in the ER. If I was working with a PA who did the less work up cases then around 30 was average (but still on the really fast end). Afterwards I was working at a urologist's office and saw around 40-50 patients every day. It sucked the first day but you get the hang of it. My notes had to be completed and signed (I was logged on as the physician) by the time we walked out of the room.

And PS, no matter what anyone says, EVERY ONE is slow in the beginning. I was a trainer for a year and didn't have a single trainee that wasn't slow lol. It's ok, don't worry and speed is something that you improve on outside of bedside training. The key thing trainer's are looking for is that you know how to document well.

 

[nm06003]

I'm pretty sure this is why they love asking for a 2 year commitment... veteran scribes can help an ER run so much faster. We get paid $18/hour after a year.

My company was starting people at minimum wage by the time I left. When I first started it was $1 above MW. Private clinic jobs easily pay in the $15-$18 range. I'm surprised an ER here was paying their scribes at $18, what company were you guys in? And I agree, our ER had the same problem with turn over rates. Docs would be relieved when they worked with someone who had 1+ year of experience. Big difference in flow.

 

[MareNostrummm]

My company was starting people at minimum wage by the time I left. When I first started it was $1 above MW. Private clinic jobs easily pay in the $15-$18 range. I'm surprised an ER here was paying their scribes at $18, what company were you guys in? And I agree, our ER had the same problem with turn over rates. Docs would be relieved when they worked with someone who had 1+ year of experience. Big difference in flow.

I can't post the name for privacy reasons, but its a Scribe company that started only a few years ago. If you really need to know you can PM me. All the other companies in the area pay much less. We start $3 above MW. Depending on which ED and what day I am working on I can easily hit 30 charts, but usually around 20... it can get pretty scary since I'm new. I hate the feeling of falling behind.

I can tell the doctors REALLY like working with experienced scribes. I'm trying to improve as fast as I can.

 

[Ironale]

I train and do quality assurance for a big site with ScribeAmerica (ED). We routinely see 40 in an 8-9 hour shift and it can be very hectic the entire time. You will definitely learn how to chart quickly and efficiently, the key is to work a lot in the beginning. Once you get past the learning curve it's easy and you can spend more time learning about the cases you see.

Stick it out! Though if it's not ED I don't know how interesting a scribe position would be. Outpatient clinics, even for specialty care, seems monotonous.

 

[iwh]

I train and do quality assurance for a big site with ScribeAmerica (ED). We routinely see 40 in an 8-9 hour shift and it can be very hectic the entire time. You will definitely learn how to chart quickly and efficiently, the key is to work a lot in the beginning. Once you get past the learning curve it's easy and you can spend more time learning about the cases you see.

Stick it out! Though if it's not ED I don't know how interesting a scribe position would be. Outpatient clinics, even for specialty care, seems monotonous.

Holy ****. I work 9 hours shifts and saw 19 patients last night and it was hectic. Even the providers were talking about how that can be unsafe for them and the patients because they're so rushed. I'm baffled as to how you see 40 in that time period.

About scribing in other departments, I was asked to start scribing in family medicine, and the providers in the ED told me that it will be hell compared to the ED. I guess since the appointments are scheduled, depending on who you're working with, you go from patient to patient and see probably one every 10 or 15 minutes.

 

[Coltuna]

Hi all, I'm wondering if anyone here who is a scribe just finds their job stressful. I'm working with a physician who is difficult to work with and makes us get items for patients when clearly that's not in our job description. I have no problem with getting items but he/she does not have to be such an ass about it. Furthermore, i feel pretty bad about being slow at filling out the charts; I feel like I'm pissing off the doctors. I have already had 4-6 days of on job training, but I'm still slow. I feel frustrated and the job just gives a lot of stress.

Be patient! I've had the opportunity to work in an orthopedic setting and ER setting as a scribe, and the one big similarity of the two was the challenge of getting accustomed to EMR system of the facility and the SPECIFICS for each doctor. Once you figure these two out, the rest comes naturally.

 

[QuestionsAnswers]

That's what I think about it at times also. At my clinic we're expected to write the notes based on a physician's preferences, which includes stylistic aspects (writing in their voice/style) ... so sometimes, especially early on, you'll be working with someone you have only worked with once or twice and be thinking, "I have 5 days of formal training and I'm supposed to write the assessment for someone with 7+ years of training and as many years in the field as I've been on this planet?" You get the sense of it more after awhile, but there is still that curious irony that the docs require 7+ years of training, licensure, multiple exams, etc. to be qualified for what they do, but it's OK to have minimum wage scribes doing the doc's duties in the permanent medical record with only a few days of training and so many days experience? And yes I know the docs always review the charts before signing but it's still a wonder the system works as it does.

 

[Coltuna]

Holy ****. I work 9 hours shifts and saw 19 patients last night and it was hectic. Even the providers were talking about how that can be unsafe for them and the patients because they're so rushed. I'm baffled as to how you see 40 in that time period.

About scribing in other departments, I was asked to start scribing in family medicine, and the providers in the ED told me that it will be hell compared to the ED. I guess since the appointments are scheduled, depending on who you're working with, you go from patient to patient and see probably one every 10 or 15 minutes.

Holy ****. I work 9 hours shifts and saw 19 patients last night and it was hectic. Even the providers were talking about how that can be unsafe for them and the patients because they're so rushed. I'm baffled as to how you see 40 in that time period.

About scribing in other departments, I was asked to start scribing in family medicine, and the providers in the ED told me that it will be hell compared to the ED. I guess since the appointments are scheduled, depending on who you're working with, you go from patient to patient and see probably one every 10 or 15 minutes.

Haha this takes me back to memories of seeing 20-25 patients per morning or afternoon scribing in orthopedics. New patients blocked for 15-20 minutes and follow up patients blocked for 10 minutes.

 

[jtd2081]

I was comfortable scribing after 1 month (although still slow) and pretty good after 2-3 months. After 6 months, I was rarely stressed during a shift. Keep an ongoing digital notepad on your laptop to document everything you cannot keep up with, and you can stay a little later than the doctor during those initial shifts to perfect your charts.

Even if you dislike your doctor, NEVER be afraid to ask for repeated information, a physical exam finding you were unsure about, etc. At the end of the day, if that particular patient sues your doctor, he will be thankful in court that you made your chart as accurate to your ability as possible. Your "annoying" questions will remarkably increase the chart's accuracy, which may become extremely crucial later on. Also, physicians typically read over their charts in-depth after each shift, so your doctor will eventually notice the effort you put into each chart and (hopefully) begin to respect you more. In my particular ER, the doctors were awesome, but some took longer than others to warm-up to new scribes. It's a little frustrating at first for some of them to go from a veteran scribe to someone new, especially the doctors who aren't as computer-friendly and rely more heavily on their charts being completed for them.

Wait doctors read charts? You are from an alien hospital