Why does my transcript repeat the same phrase over and over?
Short phrases repeated many times in a row in a transcript come from quiet or non-speech audio, not from anything said in the consult. They are usually cleaned up before your output is created.
Occasionally you may see a short phrase repeated many times in a row in your transcript, for example "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you." or "Okay. Okay. Okay." This text was not spoken during the consult.
These repeated phrases are usually cleaned up when i-scribe creates your output, so they don't normally appear in your note or letter. In most cases you can ignore them in the transcript.
Why it happens
i-scribe uses a speech-to-text model to turn your recording into a transcript. When the audio is very quiet or contains no speech, such as room tone, background noise, or the sound of the microphone or phone being handled, the model can get stuck and output the same short phrase over and over until it picks up real speech again.
i-scribe already filters out clips that are completely silent. Quiet noise is not silent, though, so it can still reach the speech-to-text model and trigger this repetition in the raw transcript.
This is a known behaviour of this type of speech-to-text model, not a fault with your device or account. Our team is working on improvements to detect and remove these repeated phrases from the transcript itself.
What you can do
You don't usually need to do anything, because the repeats are removed before your output is generated. To reduce how often they appear in the transcript:
Pause the recording during long gaps. If you step away, examine the patient, or wait for results, pause i-scribe and resume when the conversation continues.
Limit handling noise. Place your device on a stable surface rather than holding it, and avoid moving or tapping the microphone while recording.
Reduce background noise where possible. Close doors or turn off fans, music and other noise sources near the microphone.
Every i-scribe output, including the transcript, is a draft document and must be proof-read before use.
Will the repeated phrase appear in my note?
Not usually. i-scribe cleans up these repeats when it creates your output. As always, proof-read your note against what was actually discussed.
Does this mean part of my consult was lost?
Usually not. The repetition normally appears in quiet sections where no one was speaking. If you think speech is missing from around the repeated text, contact support with the date and time of the consult so we can look into it.
Should I report it?
You don't need to report occasional repeats in the transcript. If a repeated phrase makes it into your output, or it affects a section where people were speaking, please let us know through support so we can investigate.
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