Tips for Success with VR - VR Trainer

Learning to use VR can be accomplished by any MT who has solid MT skills and is knowledgeable about their work.  I do not believe newbies or grads within their first 2 years should be using VR without QA backup (just my opinion).

1.  You have to want to learn to use it effectively.  If you try to do it kicking and screaming, being obstinant, you simply will hinder your learning curve and depth significantly. 

2.  It takes time.  You will not learn it overnight.  Simply "knowing" what keystroke combinations to use will not help you.  Give yourself some time to ramp up on your VR speed and accuracy.

3.  You need to learn VR on the account(s) you are most comfortable with if at all possible.  If your company is trying to force you to use VR on accounts you are not familiar with try having a very serious (and/or series of serious) discussions with your manager or supervisor.  Yes, I know the realities of this work.  Most of the time, however, you are going to VR on your account.  Just try to avoid working VR on just any account until you are accomplished with your primary/secondary accounts.

4.  Make sure you understand how VR works.  Speech/Voice recognition software works basically the same way regardless of the platform.  Most all speech recognition software is produced ultimately by Nuance but still yet they all function the same way.  The speech engine is the software that is making the voice comparison to produce the written transcript.  The engine can "learn" and starts by the "draft" that the company uses for a dictator.  ** Important:  When discussing working on VR with your employer or when you are interviewing for a VR/editing position, ask what accuracy percentage they require on their drafts! You want at minimum of 75% (80% to 85% or higher if you can) or I would refuse.  Just my educated opinion here.  **  The dictator's reports will first go through a drafting process and the VR technicians will review it for accuracy.  They will give it an accuracy rating.  The higher the rating the more accurate the transcript was for the dictation.  Companies set their threshold or accuracy % they will accept on drafts.  The lower that score, the more you (the VR/editor) will have to change.  You cannot correlate this score with the amount of lines you will have to do or your effort but you do not want to work on VR for a company who accepts/allows drafts with less than 75% accuracy. The engine can learn but the company will also determine what percentage of corrections must come in for that particular word or phrase in order for the engine to adapt its transcription to the dictation.  Remember that this is a team effort:  If you have MTs who do not make their corrections appropriately, they do not help this process.  You should report those MTs who are defiant and don't want to do the work correctly--they are a detriment.  Do the work right, it will learn.  Do it wrong, you hurt everyone in the process so respect the process, respect your fellow MTs.

5.  Learn the keystroke combinations.  Learn how the company wants you to handle redundant text and hidden text.  Learn how the company wants you to handle transcription errors so that the engine can learn.   Learn this so you don't have to think about it at all. 

6.  Practice! Practice! Practice!  Do all the VR you can.  It's the only way you will learn it.  You must be able to handle the keystroke combinations, redundant and hidden text issues, error reporting, etc., as smoothly and without any thought just as much as you don't think about how to spell "heart" or "the patient."  You don't think about how to spell those words - it is 2nd nature to you.  This is what your goal should be for the VR process - your hands knowing what to do should become as 2nd nature as your foot does with driving the foot pedal. 

Remember:  Unless you have very high accuracy drafts for your dictator, this is not smooth work usually.  It is choppy.  It is start-and-go (like basketball).  Relax.  The more tense you are, the more you physically and mentally will resist and get frustrated.  You really do have to meld with the software itself to be most effective.  It will take you some time and effort to become comfortable and efficient.

I can personally attest that if you make effort, learn your software/keystrokes, and practice diligently with an open, accepting mindset, you will be successful.  It will not stress you (with the exception of the normal stresses we face doing MT work anyway) further and your production willl increase.  You really can make as much financially with VR as you do with MT.  You also have a good (not high but a fair) chance of making more depending on your company/account/dictator. 

I truly hope this helps someone here. 

VR Trainer