How to use voice commands for medical dictation

To maximize the potential of modern voice recognition software, physicians need to invest at least some time in optimizing their dictation workflow. While this requires some extra energy upfront, it is well worth the effort. After mastering the basics of your speech-to-text software, you should learn useful voice commands for medical dictation.

This article introduces using voice commands for medical dictation in Mobius Conveyor. Conveyor is a high-end, next-generation mobile medical dictation software that works on Macs and PCs.

When you dictate using Mobius Conveyor, you can use voice commands for navigation, selection, correction, spacing, capitalization, punctuation, lists, and convenience. All voice commands are available any time you're dictating text.

Mobius Conveyor: voice commands for medical dictation

Voice commands are automatically enabled in Mobius Conveyor. All you have to do to use a voice command is speak the command while dictating.

To begin dictating, ensure Conveyor is connected and press the microphone icon available anywhere in the app.

Beginner Commands

A few easy but essential voice commands will save you time if you dictate regularly. Open Conveyor and try the following commands as you learn them.

Here are five basic voice commands to start with:

1. "Period" - Using punctuation while dictating is easy. Just speak "Period," "Exclamation Point," "Comma," or any other standard punctuation mark.
2. "Caps" - Say "Caps" or "Uppercase" to capitalize only the following letter. You can also say "Caps On" to capitalize the first letter of upcoming words until you say "Caps Off." Similarly, "All Caps" will capitalize all letters of the next word.
3. "New Line" - Tell Conveyor "New Line" to add a new line break (the same as hitting "Enter" once). Similarly, you can say "New Paragraph" to start a new paragraph.
4. "Start List" - If you want to start an enumerated list while dictating, say "Start List." The first line will begin with "1," and you can say "Number Next" to add a new number.
5. "Stop Dictation" - When you've finished your dictation, the easiest way to turn off the microphone is to say "Stop Dictation."

Advanced Commands

Mastering the following commands will make dictating with Conveyor a truly hands-free experience.

Navigation

The most straightforward navigation commands are "Go to End" and "Go to Beginning," which will take you to the end or beginning of the current text field. You can also say "Next Field" or "Press Tab Key."

Selection

You can use voice commands to tell Conveyor to select almost anything. As a simple rule of thumb, just say "Select" followed by whatever part of the text you want to select.

For example, say "Select Previous Word" to select the word immediately preceding your cursor. You can also say "Select [x] to [y]" to select all words between the two words spoken (including the words spoken). You can even say "Select [Phrase up to 4 words]" or "Select Remaining Text."

To deselect selected text, say "Deselect That" or "Deselect All." With practice, using voice commands for selection will be a huge time saver.

Correction

We all make mistakes. Mastering the following commands will save you editing time.

"Scratch that" deletes the most recent phrase. "Undo that" undoes the previous command, while "Redo That" redoes the last "Undo" command.

You can also say "Delete That" to delete selected text or "Delete" to backspace one character if no text is selected.

How to learn new voice commands

There are two places in Mobius Conveyor where you can see a list of supported voice commands.

From the Live screen, swipe left until you see "Commands." Scroll down and try the commands you see, or press and hold a command to view details.

You can also find a complete list of voice commands in Settings --> Speech Tools --> Commands Reference.

Try Conveyor for free

Mobius Conveyor complies with all HIPAA regulations and can be set up by any provider in minutes. You won't need to involve your IT department because the software operates outside your EHR. Like a simple keyboard or mouse, Conveyor is a peripheral device that inputs data without affecting other system software.

If you don't already have a Mobius account, learn why providers love Conveyor or try it yourself for free.