I’m Marianne K. — lifelong note-taker, devoted big sister, and the person behind Medi-Type.
For nearly three decades, I worked as a medical transcriptionist, the kind of person who made sense of fast-talking doctors and scribbled dictations. Most of my career was spent in family medicine and ophthalmology practices, which means I’ve listened to — and typed out — tens of thousands of patient stories. I didn’t always know the full context, but I knew when something sounded serious. I knew the difference between confusion and clarity in a doctor’s voice. And more than anything, I knew how easy it was for patients to leave those appointments feeling overwhelmed and unsure.
It wasn’t until my sister Lisa began having eye problems that I really saw how much gets lost in translation. She came home from her first retina consult with a glazed look and a folder full of pamphlets she didn’t understand. “I think they said something about fluid?” she told me. That night, I sat with her, reading through every line of her paperwork and explaining what it meant. We called the office the next day with a better list of questions — and suddenly, the whole picture started to come into focus.
That moment changed everything for me.
I realized that all my years of listening, transcribing, organizing — they weren’t just about words. They were about making sense of the medical system. About helping people feel more in control of their care.
That’s why I created Medi-Type — a site that started with a simple question: What if patients had a place to learn the basics before they were sitting on the exam table?
Medi-Type is my way of giving people the language and tools they need to advocate for their vision health. While the original Medi-Type focused on medical information management, the new version is designed for everyday people who want answers they can actually understand. Whether it’s knowing what to ask at your next eye exam, understanding how vision can signal other health problems, or figuring out what to do when your eyesight suddenly changes — this site is here to help you ask better questions and get better care.
I don’t have an MD after my name. But I’ve spent 30 years behind the scenes, listening carefully. I know how to translate medical speak into plain English. And I know how powerful it is when a patient feels like they get it.
Thanks for stopping by — I hope you find something here that helps you see things more clearly.
— Marianne