What impact will voice recognition technology have on the industry?
Voice recognition technology has been threatening for some time to replace human transcriptionists. It turns out that there are a number of problems with this. For starters, the fluctuating speech patterns, accents and non-verbal noise common to one degree or another in the dictation process render voice recognition cumbersome at best and seriously flawed at worst. Voice recognition is far from a panacea. In its current state, the technology is unwieldy and inefficient. Even as the technology evolves, there will always be a need for expert oversight and rigid quality control to ensure that the content of transcribed reports is accurate and devoid of unintended material. It is also not reasonable to expect highly paid physicians to assume responsibility for the editing, formatting and processing of large quantities of medical documents. Even if physicians were interested in assuming these duties – which most clearly are not – cost considerations would cry out against it.
Voice recognition technology has been threatening for some time to replace human transcriptionists. It turns out that there are a number of problems with this. For starters, the fluctuating speech patterns, accents and non-verbal noise common to one degree or another in the dictation process render voice recognition cumbersome at best and seriously flawed at worst. Voice recognition is far from a panacea. In its current state, the technology is unwieldy and inefficient. Even as the technology evolves, there will always be a need for expert oversight and rigid quality control to ensure that the content of transcribed reports is accurate and devoid of unintended material. It is also not reasonable to expect highly paid physicians to assume responsibility for the editing, formatting and processing of large quantities of medical documents. Even if physicians were interested in assuming these duties – which most clearly are not – cost considerations would cry out against it. Basic economic
