It is now easier than ever for doctors in Saskatchewan to dictate notes after they provide service to their patients.

Clinicians who use Fluency Flex, a self-edit dictation software, to dictate and edit their notes no longer have to rely on accessing a hospital computer to use the tool. It is now available for use on their own laptops. 

This small change is making a big difference when it comes to convenience and efficiency. Dr. McKenzie Lim, who works in Swift Current’s Northside Medical Clinic, says this software helps with workflow and it makes it much easier to complete his charting in a timely and secure way.  

“I utilize Fluency Flex on my personal laptop as part of my virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) access for the Emergency Department, and at home to complete discharge summaries. I find that it helps a lot with my workflow and not feeling tethered or physically reliant on the hospital for simple matters like charting,”

Fluency Flex gives clinicians the opportunity to quickly and accurately create patient documentation and distribute it to other health-system partners. It also provides templates that they can fill in; using a microphone, their spoken notes are automatically transcribed into the document. Doctors can then review and confirm those inputs before finalizing the notes.

Improving workflow

This increased availability is the result of a 2022 pilot project that aimed to increase access beyond existing computer workstations in medical facilities. During the pilot, a physician carried a laptop with Fluency Flex throughout her day within the Regina General Hospital. She was able to dictate and chart in the moment, as well as utilize her laptop to share information with patients and capture their thoughts in her notes. Clinical notes were produced more quickly and patient consultation was more thorough.

Having formerly used the transcription services provided to physicians, Dr. Susan Fingas is seeing similar improvements in speed and usability with Fluency Flex. She’s a hospitalist working at Pasqua Hospital in Regina. 

“It is a huge time saver when preparing for discharging a patient,” she explained. “If you already write electronic notes, then it saves a considerable amount of time for the dictation process. Even if you prefer to dictate your note entirely, with Fluency Flex you can see your dictation on-screen and self-edit as you go.”

“I recommend Fluency Flex to my hospitalist colleagues on a regular basis to improve accuracy and save time.”

You can check out 3sHealth’s Dictation and Transcription page for more information on Fluency Flex and other services. To understand how to access self-edit dictation software on your personal laptop, send 3sHealth’s Dictation and Transcription team an email, including the best phone number to reach you, and any questions or ideas you may have.