... dictation, speech-recognition software can be used to manage email, streamline repetitive tasks on the PC, reduce transcription and charting costs, speed up information turnaround and protect employees from repetitive stress injury (RSI).
Voice recognition can be integrated with most electronic medical record (EMR) applications to make those programs more effective and easier to use. Searches, queries and form-filling are all faster to perform by voice than using a keyboard. Charting, prescription writing, aftercare instructions, order entry, database searches, document assembly/automation and patient record management software programs are all highly conducive to control by speech. Rapid hardware advancements and improvements in the technology itself have increased the software's utility, accuracy, speed and ease of use.
The market leader in this area is Philips, which in 2001 launched its Intelligent Speech Interpretation technology with automated punctuation, hesitation filtering and formatting. Intelligent Speech Interpretation allows the production of high-quality documents with the minimum of human intervention by using sophisticated analysis of meaning. To ensure accuracy Philips also uses a synchronous playback technology, which allows the recognised text and the audio file to be played back simultaneously.
Philips has just enhanced SpeechMagic to enabling adequate speech recognition in Citrix environments. The deployment of speech recognition and digital dictation applications from Citrix servers is a key competitive factor and is important in the centralisation of IT administration, applications and the delivery of data. A further advantage is that it will provide an extremely high level of security, since no files are stored locally, and will thus dramatically improve the protection of personal data, a key factor in all medical data systems.
However, to get a real glimpse of where voice technology will take us within a few years, take a look at the Sony TalkMan for the PSP. Launched at the Tokyo Games Show in September of last year, this software uses a microphone that clips onto the top of a PSP. It is basically a language translation system, but using both voice input and voice output. Speak a word or phrase into the microphone and the system will produce spoken output in the chosen language. Initially these are confined to Japanese, Chinese, and Korean, but later this year a European version will be launched with six languages: French, English, German, Spanish, Italian and Japanese.
This may only be a games machine program, and much like any phrase book is limited in its vocabulary to a small selection of scenarios and a few languages. It is thus a long way from being a universal translator. However, it demonstrates the possibility, and within a few years that possibility could become a reality. Not only could we be talking and listening to machines, but they could be acting as translators thus finally breaking down one of the last great barriers to universal human communications.
