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Pushing the Envelope on ICR Accuracy in Hand-written Forms

5 minutes, 6 seconds read

The need for and consequently the number of solutions for reading hand-written forms in an automated manner has been on a rise for as long as one could remember. Almost all businesses to varying degrees utilize paper-based forms that are filled by customers by hand. Most if not all of these businesses convert this handwritten information into the digital format. Depending on the technological sophistication or the size of the business this digitization might be done manually by one or more data entry specialists or through an automated solution. 

It’s easy to see how the manual route may not be an ideal solution for medium or large-sized business. Some of the apparent drawbacks of manual document processing are:

  1. The cost of having data entry specialists quickly add up as more documents need to be digitized necessitating adding more resources.
  2. Manual data entry is a slow process.
  3. Manual data entry is error-prone and requires a quality inspection which is costly and not fail-proof.

Many businesses have realized this and have transitioned to some form of a partially or fully automated solution to this problem. However, it’s not all rosy for these businesses either. The problems these businesses face is primarily related to the accuracy of the current solutions in the market. 

Shortcomings of Existing Hand-written Document Processing Solutions

The industry average for ICR (Intelligent Character Recognition) accuracy at the character level is about 70% and it will drop significantly if measured at word level which is what matters at the end. Such automation may allow for reducing the number of data entry personnel but with such a low level of accuracy, there will be a need for increased quality check resources, which are often more expensive than data entry resources hence diluting the cost-benefit of automation. Moreover, since the quality check is a slower process than data entry, this kind of automation doesn’t even address the speed problem.

Some of the reasons that result in a low level of accuracy among existing document processing solutions are:

  • Poor form design
  • User input not in line with the format
  • Noisy images
  • Misaligned documents
  • Low-quality scanning of documents
  • Spelling mistakes by the user
  • Overwriting/corrections by user

While we may not have control over some of the above factors such as form design and user input, we can definitely improvise the data extraction models to account for the other factors such as image noise, misalignments, spelling mistakes etc.

Our ICR Solution

The Document Parser solution in FlowMagic provides an intuitive user interface where data can be extracted from any standard form in three easy steps:

Step 1:   The user annotates the form (this is a one-time exercise for each new form) using an easy and intuitive UI. During annotation, each input field can optionally be labelled as mandatory. The user can specify the datatype for each field as alphabets, numeric or checkbox and also set the context for the field e.g. Name, PAN, City, Car Make, Date etc. Once done, the saved template can be used repeatedly for reading forms of the same type as long as there are no changes in the form design. In case of a change, the saved template can be easily modified. 

Step 2:   The user uploads one or more forms and chooses the corresponding template (from previous annotations). The system automatically extracts data from the forms.

Step 3:  The system exports the output in CSV, XML or JSON as desired by the user. If any field was marked as mandatory during annotation, the system also outputs a list of all mandatory fields that are blank.

Salient features of ICR Document Parser

  1. The standard form being annotated can be any number of pages. The input form need not have the same number of pages. If there is a mismatch between the pages in the input form and the template, the system does a matching and runs the data extraction on matching pages only. This also means that the input form need not be sorted correctly.
  2. The system can read handwritten as well as printed forms.
  3. The system corrects for minor misalignments during scanning of documents or documents scanned in the wrong orientation.
  4. The system has inbuilt dictionaries for various contexts such as Name, Cities, States, Countries, PAN, Profession, Marital Status, Relationship, Amount, Car Make, Date, Gender.
  5. The various data types supported by the system are alphabets, numeric, alphanumeric, checkboxes and special characters.
  6. The system corrects user errors or scanning issues by performing data type and dictionary checks (see examples below).
  7. The system checks for mandatory fields to make sure the form is completely filled.

Examples of Data Read/Corrections Made by an ICR

Benefits of ICR

Flexibility – you can annotate a wide variety of forms with complex inputs and data formats using the multiple data types and contexts built into the system.

Speed – Both annotation and data extraction are very user-friendly and fast. The system can extract data from a five-page form in under 30 seconds.

Scalability – The system is highly extensible and once set up for one type of form can easily be scaled for multiple forms or to process documents in bulk of the same format.

Accuracy – The character level accuracy of our model is over 90%. Word level accuracy depends on the form design and quality but in general, varies between 75% and 85%.

Workflow

ICR (Intelligent Character Recognizer) workflow

No matter what solution you use, you can always benefit from these best practices for form design to improve the accuracy of your ICR:

  1. Have all instructions in bold at the top of the form.
  2. Instruct the user to write clearly in block letters as the form will be processed by a machine.
  3. Provide examples of how to enter data wherever there is a scope for confusion.
  4. Instead of providing a free form space for data entry, it provides a clearly marked space with a specific location to enter each character.
  5. The overall space should be large enough to contain the requisite data to avoid user writing outside of this space.
  6. Have enough separation between the space for two fields to avoid overlap.

To learn more about how FlowMagic can improve the accuracy and speed of your document digitization/Intelligent Character Recognition (ICR) or discuss your broader AI goals, please get in touch with us at hello@mantralabsglobal.com

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Empowering Frontline Healthcare Sales Teams with Mobile-First Tools

In healthcare, field sales is more than just hitting quotas—it’s about navigating a complex stakeholder ecosystem that spans hospitals, clinics, diagnostics labs, and pharmacies. Reps are expected to juggle compliance, education, and relationship-building—all on the move.

But, traditional systems can’t keep up. 

Only 28% of a rep’s time is spent selling; the rest is lost to administrative tasks, CRM updates, and fragmented workflows.

Salesforce, State of Sales 2024

This is where mobile-first sales apps in healthcare are changing the game—empowering sales teams to work smarter, faster, and more compliantly.

The Real Challenges in Traditional Field Sales

Despite their scale, many healthcare sales teams still rely on outdated tools that drag down performance:

  • Paper-based reporting: Slows down data consolidation and misses real-time insights
  • Siloed CRMs: Fragmented systems lead to broken workflows

According to a study by HubSpot, 32% of reps spend at least an hour per day just entering data into CRMs.

  • Managing Visits: Visits require planning, which may involve a lot of stress since doctors have a busy schedule, making it difficult for sales reps to meet them.
  • Inconsistent feedback loops: Managers struggle to coach and support reps effectively
  • Compliance gaps: Manual processes are audit-heavy and unreliable

These issues don’t just affect productivity—they erode trust, delay decisions, and increase revenue leakage.

What a Mobile-First Sales App in Healthcare Should Deliver

According to Deloitte’s 2025 Global Healthcare Executive Outlook, organizations are prioritizing digital tools to reduce burnout, drive efficiency, and enable real-time collaboration. A mobile-first sales app in healthcare is a critical part of this shift—especially for hybrid field teams dealing with fragmented systems and growing compliance demands.

Core Features of a Mobile-First Sales App in Healthcare

1. Smart Visit Planning & Route Optimization

Field reps can plan high-impact visits, reduce travel time, and log interactions efficiently. Geo-tagged entries ensure field activity transparency.

2. In-App KYC & E-Detailing

According to Viseven, over 60% of HCPs prefer on-demand digital content over live rep interactions, and self-detailing can increase engagement up to 3x compared to traditional methods.
By enabling self-detailing within the mobile app, reps can deliver compliance-approved content, enable interactive, personalized detailing during or after HCP visits, and give HCPs control over when and how they engage.

3. Real-Time Escalation & Commission Tracking

Track escalation tickets and incentive eligibility on the go, reducing back-and-forth and improving rep satisfaction.

4. Centralized Knowledge Hub

Push product updates, training videos, and compliance checklists—directly to reps’ devices. Maintain alignment across distributed teams. 

5. Live Dashboards for Performance Tracking

Sales leaders can view territory-wise performance, rep productivity, and engagement trends instantly, enabling proactive decision-making.

Case in Point: Digitizing Sales for a Leading Pharma Firm

Mantra Labs partnered with a top Indian pharma firm to streamline pharmacy workflows inside their ecosystem. 

The Challenge:

  • Pharmacists were struggling with operational inefficiencies that directly impacted patient care and satisfaction. 
  • Delays in prescription fulfillment were becoming increasingly common due to a lack of real-time inventory visibility and manual processing bottlenecks. 
  • Critical stock-out alerts were either missed or delayed, leading to unavailability of essential medicines when needed. 
  • Additionally, communication gaps between pharmacists and prescribing doctors led to frequent clarifications, rework, and slow turnaround times—affecting both speed and accuracy in dispensing medication. 

These challenges not only disrupted the pharmacy workflow but also created a ripple effect across the wider care delivery ecosystem.

Our Solution:

We designed a custom digital pharmacy module with:

  • Inventory Management: Centralized tracking of sales, purchases, returns, and expiry alerts
  • Revenue Snapshot: Real-time tracking of dues, payments, and cash flow
  • ShortBook Dashboard: Stock views by medicine, distributor, and manufacturer
  • Smart Reporting: Instant downloadable reports for accounts, stock, and sales

Business Impact:

  • 2x faster prescription fulfillment, reducing wait times and improving patient experience
  • 27% reduction in stock-out incidents through real-time alerts and inventory visibility
  • 81% reduction in manual errors, thanks to automation and real-time dashboards
  • Streamlined doctor-pharmacy coordination, leading to fewer clarifications and faster dispensing

Integration Is Key

A mobile-first sales app in healthcare is as strong as the ecosystem it fits into. Mantra Labs ensures seamless integration with:

  • CRM systems for lead and pipeline tracking
  • HRMS for leave, attendance, and performance sync
  • LMS to deliver ongoing training
  • Product Catalogs to support detailing and onboarding

Ready to Empower Your Sales Teams?

From lead capture to conversion, Mantra Labs helps you automate, streamline, and accelerate every step of the sales journey. 

Whether you’re managing field agents, handling complex product configurations, or tracking customer interactions — we bring the tech & domain expertise to cut manual effort and boost productivity.

Let’s simplify your sales workflows. Book a quick call.

Further Reading: How Smarter Sales Apps Are Reinventing the Frontlines of Insurance Distribution

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