How chiropractors capture patient history findings by voice

Chiropractors who want to record patient history by voice can follow these steps, check what to prepare, and compare tools before choosing one.

By XP Daily · 2026-10-31

XP Daily is published by the makers of DaysAid, QuickDictate and YTSort, which are compared here alongside other tools.

Dictate each finding into the note you already have open, then read the text back before you save it. The steps below work with any dictation tool, and the tools section compares the options.

Option	How it captures speech	Cost	Computers it runs on
Handwritten or typed notes	You write or type each finding yourself.	Not published here.	Not applicable.
Other dictation tools	Check the tool's own page.	Not published.	Not published.
QuickDictate	Types what you say into whichever window you are using. ^[1]	Free for personal and other noncommercial use, with no subscription or account. ^[1] Commercial use needs a separate licence. ^[1]	Windows 10 and 11 only, 64-bit. There is no Mac or Linux version. ^[1]

What you need before you start

Capturing patient history by voice takes a little preparation. Have your intake questions written down, so each answer has a clear place in the note. Open the note or form you will fill before you begin, because the text lands wherever your cursor is. Check that your microphone picks up your voice clearly in the room where you work, and say a test sentence to confirm it.

Make a short list of the medical terms you use most often and check how they are spelled in your records. A dictation tool is only as useful as the words it gets right. Finally, check your practice's rules on where patient information may be stored and which outside services may process it. Those rules come from your practice and the bodies that govern it, so read them before you choose a tool. Plan to dictate between patients or after the visit, not while you are examining someone, so your attention stays with them.

Step by step

These steps work with any dictation tool, including a plain typed note.

Open the note. Start with the note or form open and the cursor where the first finding goes.

Name the topic first. Say the heading, such as 'onset of pain', so the text sits under the right part of the history.

Dictate one finding at a time. Speak in short, plain sentences and pause between them, so each finding is easy to check on screen.

Say the medical terms clearly. Speak each term at a steady pace and check the spelling as it appears.

Correct as you go. If a line is wrong, delete it and dictate it again. A short fix now is easier than a long correction later.

Read the history back. When the patient has finished answering, read the full history once, out loud or on screen.

Mark what needs checking. Note anything unclear, such as a date, a medication or a dosage, and confirm it with the patient before you save.

Save into your practice's system. Move the finished text into the records system your practice uses, following its own rules.

Review the note after the visit. Read the finished note once more before you sign it, so the record matches what the patient told you.

Dictating right after a visit, while the details are fresh, keeps the note accurate. Keep each session short. If the first few notes come out with errors, slow down on the terms that go wrong and check them more closely until the pattern settles.

Tools that can do it

You do not need special software to start, and the options below are worth comparing against your own setup.

Handwritten or typed notes. You write or type each finding yourself. Nothing is published here about cost or limits because it depends on what you already use.

Other dictation tools. Other dictation tools exist, and this page has no facts about any of them. Check each tool's own page for how it works, what it costs, which computers it runs on, and whether it sends audio to an outside service.

QuickDictate. QuickDictate is one option among those listed here. It is a Windows program that types what you say into whichever window you are using. ^[1] You hold a key while you talk, or press it once to start and once to stop, and you can change both keys. ^[1] You can list words and phrases that are sent to the speech service to help it recognise them, and a replacement table fixes spellings such as 'Chat GPT' to 'ChatGPT'. ^[1] While you dictate, other apps' audio is muted or turned down, and it returns to its old level when you stop. ^[1] Saying 'scratch that' discards the text you just dictated instead of inserting it. ^[1] You can use ElevenLabs, Deepgram, OpenAI, AssemblyAI, DashScope or Google as the speech service, and that service bills you directly. ^[1] With five of the cloud providers, words appear while you are still talking. ^[1] It runs only on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11. ^[1] It is delivered as an .exe file on GitHub, with a built-in updater that works silently. ^[1]

Common mistakes to avoid

Dictating while examining the patient. Speaking during an exam divides your attention and can make the record less accurate. Dictate after the visit or between patients instead.

Trusting the first draft. Speech tools make mistakes with unusual words and names. Read the note once before you save it.

Leaving sensitive text on screen. A window full of patient information may be visible to others in the room. Angle the screen away and close the note when you step away.

Skipping your practice's rules. Where patient information may be stored and which outside services may process it are set by your practice and its regulator. Check those rules before you connect any cloud service.

Using a tool the computer cannot run. Check the operating system before you install anything. QuickDictate runs only on Windows, so a clinic working on other systems needs another option. ^[1]

Expecting one setup to fit every patient. Medical vocabulary and speaking habits vary. Adjust your word list as you learn which terms come out wrong, and check the first few notes closely.

Frequently asked questions

Can QuickDictate be used at a chiropractic clinic for commercial work?

QuickDictate is free for personal and other noncommercial use, with no subscription or account. ^[1] Commercial use needs a separate licence, so a clinic using it for paid patient work should check the licence terms before relying on it. ^[1] Speech services you choose to connect bill you separately for their own service. ^[1]

Does QuickDictate work on a Mac?

No. QuickDictate runs only on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11, and there is no Mac or Linux version. ^[1] A practice that works on Macs will need another dictation option, so check that tool's own page for the computers it supports. Facts about other tools are not provided on this page, so those details are for you to confirm.

Can QuickDictate type into a records system web form?

QuickDictate types what you say into whichever window has focus, such as an editor, chat box, terminal or web form. ^[1] So a web form in a records system can receive the text, provided that window is active when you speak. ^[1] Check that your records system accepts typed input from other programs before you rely on it. You hold a key while you talk, or press it once to start and once to stop, and you can change both keys. ^[1]

Can QuickDictate keep patient speech on your own computer?

You can install a speech model that runs on your own computer, such as Whisper Large v3 Turbo, and then dictation needs no internet connection or API key. ^[1] If you choose a cloud speech service instead, that service bills you directly. ^[1] Read the terms of any service you connect, and your practice's own rules on patient information, before you dictate real patient details.

Does QuickDictate save the notes you dictate?

QuickDictate keeps a history of your last 50 dictations, which you can browse and filter. ^[1] That history survives a restart or an update. ^[1] If you sign in, preferences such as hotkeys and language can sync between PCs, but API keys, audio and transcripts are never synced. ^[1] Treat the history as you would any record of patient information, and delete what you no longer need.

QuickDictate is free for personal and other noncommercial use, with no subscription or account. Cloud providers bill you separately for their service. ^[1]

Try QuickDictate

Sources

QuickDictate's own description of itself (the product of this site's publisher)