AI is a genie, I have to say; and it has been let out of the bottle. It is up to its users to ensure whether it is used ethically or not. Only today, I read that Scarlette Johanssen’s legal team are considering action against a social media influencer who used AI to construct her video likeness and imitate her voice to promote services. Were it not for Ms. Johanssen, we would imagine it was she who had participated in that message.  Exciting times, I always say! 

                       But all is not lost, apparently. On the other side of the fence, AI developers have also been able to create Voice recognition technology which grants a machine or program the ability to identify and understand human speech and, hopefully, tell if it’s human or artificially generated. Well, what this technology mostly does is  that it can convert spoken words into text, commands, or actions. While Voice recognition technology has been around for decades, it has become more advanced and widespread only in recent years, thanks to the development of natural language processing (NLP) algorithms and the availability of large amounts of data.

               Voice recognition technology has found applications in a variety of domains that range from  entertainment and education to business and security. However, one of the most promising areas where voice recognition technology has the potential to make an impact is healthcare, a complex and dynamic field that requires high levels of accuracy, efficiency, and quality. Healthcare professionals and patients can benefit from the application of  Voice recognition technology in a number of ways:

Documentation and record-keeping: healthcare professionals can dictate their notes, diagnoses, prescriptions, and orders using Voice recognition technology  and avoid the time-consuming and unproductive activity of typing or writing,  thus reducing errors and enhancing the quality of documentation. Voice recognition technology can also help update patient electronic medical records (EMR) automatically and securely.

Enhancing communication and collaboration: healthcare professionals, patients, and other stakeholders can have constructive collaborative experiences using Voice recognition technology. For example, voice recognition technology can allow healthcare professionals to access information, share data, consult experts, and coordinate care using voice commands or queries. Not only that,  Voice recognition technology can also enable patients to communicate their symptoms, needs, and provide feedback using their voice.

Providing decision support and guidance: interestingly, this technology is not restricted to being an over-hyped transcription service or facilitator of live conversation;  Voice recognition technology can go beyond documentation and become an intelligent decision support tool that can identify clinical indicators and proactively support clinical decisions. For example, voice recognition technology can analyze the voice of a patient or a healthcare professional and detect signs of stress, fatigue, depression, or other physical or psychological symptoms. based on the voice input, Voice recognition technology can also provide suggestions, reminders, alerts, or feedback.

Improving patient engagement and satisfaction: Personalized and interactive services provided through Voice recognition technology can improve patient engagement and satisfaction, ensuring continuity in the professional/patient relationship and a higher success rate for the treatment program. For example, everything that patients are now being encouraged to do online by clicking keyboards or mice in interactive websites may be achievable by leveraging voice recognition technology to allow patients to access health information, book appointments, check test results, or manage their medications. In the same spirit, when online platforms and information libraries become accessible using Voice recognition technology, patients can access education, coaching, motivation, or entertainment using voice-based applications2.

The Challenges and Limitations associated with the use of Voice recognition technology in healthcare 

Some of the issues that need to be addressed include:

Accuracy and Reliability: For Voice recognition technology to be generally accepted and adopted by the industry, it must be able to demonstrate uncompromisingly high standards of reliability in recognizing and understanding different accents, dialects, languages, terminologies, and contexts. On top of all that, Voice recognition technology also needs to cope with background noise, interruptions, or distortions that may affect the quality of voice input and the interpretation of the message.

Privacy and Security: The importance of the sanctity of the privileged and intimate information related to the patient cannot be stressed enough. For patients to repose even a smidgen of trust in Voice recognition technology, it needs to inspire complete confidence in patients that the voice data that is collected, stored, transmitted, or processed will remain private and secure. Given the rapid and alarming increase in identity theft by unscrupulous agents operating in the cyber world, it is understandable that pensioners or otherwise housebound patients will be at extreme risk of exposure. Therefore, Voice recognition technology must also remain in compliance with the relevant laws and regulations regarding data protection and consent.

Integrating with existing systems and workflows: For it to have an effective influence on the new generation of healthcare processes, Voice recognition technology will need to integrate seamlessly with existing systems and workflows, and be compatible with the commercially available devices and platforms that are used by healthcare professionals and patients. The era of bespoke devices is almost as good as over, and if your solution cannot be mounted on a platform available to the patient, the chances of its success will be very bleak indeed. 

Providing user-friendly and intuitive interfaces: Continuing with the above line of thought, it should be obvious that for it to be generally acceptable, Voice recognition technology will have to offer user-friendly and intuitive interfaces that are easy to understand and manipulate by both healthcare professionals and patients. Once a voice input has been made, Voice recognition technology also needs to provide feedback and confirmation to ensure that the input is correctly interpreted and executed.

Voice recognition technology is a new paradigm in healthcare that holds the promise of many opportunities and benefits for improving healthcare outcomes and experiences. However, it also requires careful design, development, implementation, evaluation, and improvement to ensure that it meets the needs and expectations of the users. Voice recognition technology in healthcare is not a replacement for human interaction or judgment but a complement that can enhance the quality and efficiency of healthcare delivery.