A recent incident shows how an error in data entry can make every day life difficult. Jack MacKay, a Surrey resident is caught up in documentation hassles because his birth certificate has a space in his surname.
The problem occurred when 61-year-old Jack Mackay tried to renew his driver’s license. He noticed that the spelling of his surname was not correct and that it had changed from Mackay to Mac Kay. The authorities responded that the error was not their mistake, but because that was how his name was spelt in his birth certificate. If he wanted the name on the driver’s license to get corrected, he should first correct his name on his birth certificate.
According to the CTV news report on the matter, Mackay felt that the mistake was a data entry error, which could be corrected easily. He requested the Vital Statistics Agency in Manitoba to make the correction to his birth certificate. However, they have asked him to get his mother to certify that she had made a mistake in her son’s birth certification application. Mackay has refused to make his mother sign anything.
With both his driver’s license and his replacement marriage certificate being affected, Mackay is still waiting for the province to admit to what he believes is a data entry error.
Data Entry Errors in Birth Certificates
Errors in birth certificate can occur at hospitals when the name of the child is entered in their database. Manual errors in data entry usually happen when data is entered fast. Some other reasons for wrong data entry are:
- Hitting the wrong key
- Information at input level is wrong
- The same information is typed twice
- Interchanging digits in numeric data
These errors can be avoided by double checking the final entries. Handling even large volumes of data with speed, ease and accuracy using the latest tools and techniques are important.
There are established data management companies who provide accurate services managing multiple industries. Specialized services offered would include multi-lingual keyboarding services and double keyboarding services. To maximize accuracy and reduce redundancy, professional service providers use double and triple data entry techniques. Minimizing errors such as the one mentioned in this article comes down to quality control. A simple error can cause major problems depending on the level of accuracy expected in the work.
