This quality-enhancing blog explores:
- Why should a processor pay attention to maintaining correct spacing between words in ICSR narratives?
- Tips to easily remove extra spaces without manual checking one by one (Images included)
Table of Contents:
- Why leaving extra spaces is significantly an error?
- Tips to Eliminate Extra Spaces in Narrative
- Unforeseen Tip
- Formatting
- Unconventional Tip
- Thoughts
Narrative is a very important factor for all the cases, the purpose of the narrative in the ICSR cases is considerably an important role to summarise and understand the case.
Why leaving extra spaces is significantly an error?
Neglecting to remove extra spaces in narrative writing within ICSR (Individual Case Safety Report) cases can be an easily overlooked but critical mistake.
Though seemingly small, this error can have significant repercussions during case submission through E2B format.
As electronic submissions are sensitive to such issues, the presence of extra spaces in the narrative can trigger the detection of unrecognised symbol formats in the E2B generation process.
Consequently, many companies consider this an error, as it makes the narrative difficult to read and comprehend. It is essential to ensure clean and properly formatted narratives to maintain the accuracy and effectiveness of the E2B reporting system.
“The art of narrative writing lies in the brushstrokes of words that paint vivid worlds, create unforgettable characters, and leave a lasting impression on the canvas of the reader’s imagination.”
Tips to Eliminate Extra Spaces in Narrative
To identify the spaces between the words:
Copy and paste the text paragraph you want to format or if you even write in the MS-word or Libreoffice writer.
You can identify the spaces inside easily by selecting the whole paragraph or certain texts/sentences you want to check and toggle the ¶ :
or by pressing
- MS-word: Ctrl+Shift+8
- Libreoffice writer: Ctrl+F10
You will able to see the dots between the words like an example below:
A little single dot {.} represents a normal space called word space, If you find more than one spaces you must format that text in to normal space by deleting the dots in to spaces.
Unforeseen Tip: In the final case routing stage, consider generating an E2B report feature within your database, if available. This report can help identify and correct extra spaces in your narrative. It highlights extra spaces and special characters like %, #, and @.
While its effectiveness may vary based on your database system, it’s a proven method within the Argus safety database.
📢 If you’re unfamiliar with the list of safety databases, we invite you to explore our existing blog, which contains comprehensive lists and features on this topic.
Formatting:
In the program in which you’re working, press the Search and Replace hotkey or its equivalent. Search for two spaces and set it to replace with a single space.
For instance, if you want to replace double spaces with single spaces, you can do so by double-tapping the space bar in the “Find” box and tapping the space bar once in the “Replace” column. Then, hit Enter to apply the change, and all double spaces will be replaced with single spaces.
Different programs use different procedures to activate this feature:
- Microsoft Word: Press “Ctrl+H” to access the find-and-replace tool.
- LibreOffice Writer: Press “Ctrl+H” to activate the Find & Replace function.
- Notepad: Press “Ctrl+H” to activate the Find & Replace function. (This is for who familiar with this editor)
Unconventional Tip That Delivered Results:
Finally, this method might be considered controversial, but it has proven effective in the databases I’ve worked with.
To locate any extra spaces, such as two consecutive spaces, navigate to narrative tab and select all text by pressing “Ctrl+A” and simply press “Ctrl+F” to bring up the find column.
Input how many spaces you want to locate with in the search field, and it will automatically highlight the occurrences within the narrative section.
This straightforward method allows for direct searching within the database without the need to copy the content outside or employ a separate editor.
Thoughts
What are your thoughts on this article?
Would you consider it potentially improved your productivity and saved you time by introducing previously unknown techniques?
Feel free to share any additional methods you’ve discovered for more efficient error rectification in the comments below.
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