Applied Radiology

The end result of every case that a radiologist interprets is, quite basically, a report. Voice recognition and related technologies need to save radiologists time when possible and aid in the workflow. Many radiologists, having been exposed to scars from earlier iterations of voice recognition technologies that were less than optimized to their workflow, are highly sensitized to the introduction of any technology that could possibly distract them from their core mission of caring for their patients and interpreting the imaging studies to the best of their capabilities. The radiologist’s workflow, or readflow, is hence a critical consideration in the development or implementation of any voice recognition and related technologies.

Central to workflow considerations is the art and science of understanding Human Computer Interaction (HCI). Too many healthcare-related applications are designed without consideration for important parameters, such as user-centered design guidelines, usability, automation, hand-eye coordination and radiologists’ flow in reading studies and capturing the data within the report. It is not an inconceivable concept that radiologists need to spend more of their time with their eyeballs tracking the images, looking at pixel data and regions of interest that are pertinent to the patient study. Any time looking at dropdowns, menu options, and onscreen streaming text transcribed from voice equates to time away from core interpretation processes.