Now Online: The SUM Program for Medical Transcription Training
 

HPI has partnered with Computer Systems Design and Programming to offer SUM Program dictations to schools online! This eliminates lost and damaged CDs, shipping delays, lost transcripts, heavy briefcases, the need for a transcription lab, and more.  It also enables each teacher to handle more students, and provides the student with a real-life work flow experience.

Here is how it works:

• All SUM Program audio files, transcript answer keys, and a template for each report reside on our vendor's server.
• An instructor's module allows the instructor to assign, grade, and track students' progress.
• Each student is assigned a unique login ID.
• Instructors assign students reports to transcribe. These assignments show up in the students' "status screen."
• If a student is interrupted during a report and needs to log off the system, this report is held in a "transcribing" folder on the system's server to finish later.
• Students use the SUM Program foot pedal to access the dictation, much as they will when they work for a transcription company.
• Students can complete their assignments from any computer with an Internet connection.
• Instructors log on, display transcribed reports, and select "Grade" to run the compare feature that compares student transcripts to the transcript answer key. (Because the student transcribes in a template, there are fewer formatting discrepancies.)
• Instructors view the student's marked-up document and the answer key in side-by-side windows.
• Instructors right-click each marked difference and choose from a selection of error types.  Each error type has an assigned point value that has been pre determined by the school.  (For example, one point off for a wrong medical word, one-half point for a typo, etc.)
• A pop-up comment box allows the instructor to insert a comment about the error.
• "No error" is also a choice when the student has transcribed an acceptable variation rather than an error.
• When finished, the instructor clicks "Ok" and the program calculates a score using a formula that factors in the length of the report and the sum of the error values.
• The student can view the graded report and can learn from the identified errors and the instructor's feedback.
• The school pays HPI the regular per-student price for SUM Program content, and pays the technology vendor a nominal fee (around the cost of an additional textbook) per student.

SUM Program Online - Advantages For Students:

• Students complete transcription assignments from any PC computer with a high speed Internet connection.
• Students have a “Status Screen” that tells them the status of each assigned dictation, so there is never confusion about what still needs to be completed.
• When students are interrupted in the middle of transcribing a dictation, the dictation is held in a “transcribing” status for later completion.
• Prompt grading and instructor feedback enhances the learning process for the student and makes perpetuating the same errors less likely.
• Students can print or save copies of their original and graded transcripts for future reference.
• Students transcribe using "real-world" technology, so they are more job-ready when they complete the program.

SUM Program Online - Advantages For Teachers:

• Teachers can easily view the student’s progress online to know who completed assignments, who did not and who’s way behind.
• No tedious proofreading!
• Grading student transcripts is much faster because discrepancies from the answer key are highlighted.  Teachers just need to indicate the error type and write a comment to the student (optional).  Once the error type is indicated, a score is automatically generated.
• All transcripts are stored electronically, so no lost assignments and no heavy briefcases to carry around.
• Teachers have greater clarity about student error types and can adapt the curriculum to address weaknesses.

SUM Program Online - Advantages For Schools:

• No shipping, inventory tracking, or waiting for materials to arrive.
• Eliminates need for a transcription lab and technical support personnel.
• Semi-automatic grading will enable each teacher to help more students.
• This method of dictation and transcription report delivery is also used by employers, so it provides an on-the-job work flow experience.

Send an e-mail to DebCook@hpisum.com to let us know that you are interested in The SUM Program Online and seeing a demo.