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Manage auto-texts

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The auto-text feature enables you to define standard blocks of text (often consisting of one or more paragraphs, also called 'normals' or 'canned text') that your users can insert into their document with a short voice command. Using auto-texts reduces the time the user needs to dictate and improves the consistency of documentation.

Auto-texts are displayed to end users in the personalization & help window > What You Can Say > Auto-texts. To access it, the user can say what can I say while recording or select the menu icon on the speech bar.

Browser, .NET and COM editions: Users can also define auto-texts for their own user account from their Dragon Medical SpeechKit client app, via the Manage Auto-texts page. They can select a block of text they have dictated and say make that an auto-text or select the add icon + to add a new auto-text manually.

Android and iOS editions: Mobile users must have a Dragon Medical One or Dragon Medical Direct license to define auto-texts for their own user account. For more information, see the end user documentation delivered with the product.

Defining an auto-text in the Nuance Management Center

Scenario

  • For this example, your users are radiologists who frequently read chest x-rays. Most of these are normal and the doctors frequently say PA and lateral views of the chest revealed a normal-sized heart. The lungs are clear of any active infiltrations.
  • You define an auto-text called 'normal chest' that contains this information.
  • A doctor says the voice command <keyword> normal chest to insert the information. For example, if you have defined the keyword insert, a doctor would say the voice command insert normal chest.

Proceed as follows:

  1. Sign in to NMC and select Speech Recognition > Manage.
  2. Select your Organization.
  3. In the tree view, select Auto-texts and the level you want to create the auto-text for (site, group or user).
  4. In the Auto-text group, select Add.
  5. Enter a Name (normal chest), a Description (optional) and select a Language.
  6. Optional: Change the Spoken Phrase.
  7. In the contents section, enter 'PA and lateral views of the chest revealed a normal-sized heart. The lungs are clear of any active infiltrations.'
  8. Select Save.

Auto-text name and spoken phrase

The Name field contains the title of the auto-text (this is generally what users must say to insert the auto-text); make sure it's unambiguous and easy to pronounce. It's strongly recommended that you give the auto-text a distinctive name that can't be misinterpreted as speech to be recognized. This helps to ensure that it's correctly inserted.

By default the Spoken Phrase is the same as the name. If how the auto-text name is written and how it's pronounced are very different, change the spoken phrase (how it's pronounced) to reflect this. When you enter a spoken phrase, follow these rules:

  • Use alphabetic characters only. Don't use:

    Digits (for example, use 'twelve' instead of '12') unless they are part of common words (for example, use '3D' instead of 'three D').

    Punctuation marks (for example, ., ", ! or ?).

    Symbols (for example, +, & or $) except for hyphens used in compound words (for example, 'C-spine').

  • Follow standard capitalization rules (for example, use capital letters for proper names).

  • Avoid using capital letters (except for acronyms or if the standard capitalization rules require it, see above).

  • For acronyms that are spelled out, use capital letters (for example, CIA); if they are not recognized, separate the capital letters by spaces (for example, C I A).

  • For acronyms that are pronounced as words, use lowercase (for example, use 'pet CT' for 'PETCT' or 'pick' for 'PICC').

  • Don't use very short names that are acoustically difficult to capture (such as one syllable only).

  • Use full words instead of abbreviations (for example, use 'without' instead of 'wo').

  • Check for typos.

Considerations when working with auto-texts

  • To make auto-texts available for specific users, make sure to select the corresponding site or group in the tree view.

  • Actions on the group level (for example deleting an auto-text) override those on the site level. Actions on the user account level override group and site levels.

  • Auto-texts can only occur once within a site, group or user account, but the same auto-text can occur in different entities on the same level (for example, two groups) or on different levels (group and user of that group).

  • You can't create two auto-texts with the same name, even if different spoken phrases are defined.

  • You can't create two auto-texts with the same spoken phrase, even if different names are defined.

  • For more information on inserting auto-texts, see the Dragon Medical SpeechKit end user documentation delivered with your product.

  • Auto-texts can contain fields. Fields are gaps in the auto-text where users can enter specific text, for example, patient data. To add a field to an auto-text, enter '[ ]' in the auto-text's contents; you can enter any text between the field delimiters as default content, for example, 'CBC results [within normal limits], vital signs [within normal limits]'. When users insert the auto-text, they can decide whether to replace the default values with new text or use the default values.

  • By default, auto-text fields are indicated by square brackets, []. To change the characters used as field delimiters in Dragon Medical One, users select Options > General and enter their preferred characters. Once the user changes the field delimiters, the new field delimiters are used in all Dragon Medical apps for that user's account. Any previously defined fields using different field delimiters no longer work.

Keywords

A keyword is what the user says to tell the system that an auto-text is to be processed and displayed.

Defining a keyword in the Nuance Management Center

In the following example we'll define the keyword 'insert', so that when the user says insert the system identifies that an auto-text is to be processed and displayed.

  1. Sign in to NMC and select Speech Recognition > Keywords.
  2. Select your Organization and enter 'insert' as the Leading Keyword for English.
  3. Select OK to save your settings.

Important information

  • You can define a leading keyword (said before the spoken phrase) and/or a trailing keyword (said after the spoken phrase).

  • 'insert' is the default leading keyword for English.

  • If a keyword is added or deleted, it's applied to all auto-texts that are defined in your organization.

  • The maximum number of characters for a keyword is 25.

  • You can only use alphabetic characters to define a keyword. As with spoken phrases, special characters aren't allowed.

Searching for auto-texts in the Nuance Management Center

Search for an auto-text in the Manage Auto-texts screen using its name.

To view the list of auto-texts associated with a user, group or site, do the following:

  1. Sign in to NMC and select Speech Recognition.
  2. In the Auto-texts group, select Manage.
  3. Expand the tree structure for the corresponding level.
  4. Select a site, group or user.

You can refine your search via the Display all levels and Show disabled auto-texts options.