Healthcare facilities have come a long way from handwritten notes and paper files used to document patient appointments and treatments. Now hospitals, clinics, and other organizations store patient data and documents electronically, utilizing a system of electronic healthcare records (EHRs) to keep practices of all sizes organized and data accessible. But new technological advances are again looming on the horizon to change medical facilities once more, and that is the large-scale incorporation of AI (artificial intelligence) tools. 

AI’s purpose is to save humans time by taking over tedious or repetitive tasks so physicians and other staff can focus on doing their jobs and taking care of patients. AI medical scribes are one specific tool that’s been getting a lot of attention lately because of their ability to automate and streamline clinician paperwork.

How do you know if an AI medical scribe can benefit you, and if so, which one do you pick? Below are several factors to consider when making the right choice of AI scribe for your health system: 

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• What AI medical scribes do
• The benefits of including an AI medical scribe into your practice
• The best AI medical scribes of 2024

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What is an AI medical scribe?

How artificial intelligence made it into the healthcare field

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When you think of the word scribe, chances are you imagine a person documenting events or taking notes at a meeting as they occur. An AI scribe does exactly that, except it does it from the convenience of your smartphone. In addition to seeing patients and providing medical services and treatments, doctors are also responsible for documenting visits and updating patients’ progress into their electronic notes. This can be a very time consuming ordeal, creating more work for doctors who need to find the time to sit down and actually input the information. Typically note-documentation happens at the end of the day or after normal business hours.

This type of administrative work is essential to maintaining accurate records, but it is a drain on physicians. AI has already benefited a variety of industries, and it was only a matter of time before it entered the healthcare field. An AI medical scribe is software that listens but doesn’t record the information exchange between doctor and patient during a visit. The doctor verifies recording consent with the patient, and then opens the application and instructs the AI to start listening. 

Afterwards, the doctor can look at the exchange and make any changes necessary, then the information is sent to the patient’s EHR and saved for documentation. Perhaps most importantly for patient data security, the information and conversation is not recorded in the AI system, but rather resides in the patient’s file. Hospitals, clinics, and offices that have employed use of an AI medical scribe have reported a reduction in time spent after hours documenting and updating patient files. Using this type of AI is a game changer, and allows doctors to concentrate on their patients’ concerns and questions, instead of worrying about inputting information into a computer during the visit, or writing everything down only to transcribe it later. 

Initial data shows that AI scribes have been effective. A 2023 Kaiser Permanente study rolled out an AI scribe to 10,000 doctors in 21 locations in northern California for a 10 week period. The physicians who used the AI technology quickly adopted it and it was widely used— findings reported that not only did it cut down on administrative documentation, but it was also decidedly accurate.

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How do AI medical scribes operate?

What do AI medical scribes use to transcribe encounters?

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All you need is an application on your cell phone in order to reap the benefits of an AI medical scribe. This advanced software is not without its limitations of course, but the doctors who have adopted it have found that it is helpful and accurate. How does the AI do what it needs to so effectively?

• Natural language processing (NLP). AI medical scribes (like other forms of AI) utilized NLP to listen and process language into text. This technology is designed to operate using machine learning models and by having exposure to huge quantities of datasets that feature natural human language. The application “learns” what to listen for and by sifting through millions of pages of text, will recognize words and sentences spoken by the doctor and the patient. 

• Voice recognition. The AI scribe will also be adept at different linguistic cues, speech patterns, and can even learn to filter out ambient background noise. This type of AI is essential to recording accurate notes since every human’s voice is different and there are a wide variety of accents and voice inflections among diverse populations. 

• Adaptation and analysis. The most important part of the machine learning process is how the application not only listens and transcribes, but analyzes the data to extract important information and build on its knowledge. An AI medical scribe will start to learn speaker intent, the relationships between two speakers, as well as the emotional attitude of the speaker just by the words it picks up. 

This is advanced technology that can really make a difference not only from a time/cost saving perspective, but can also benefit the patient as well. 

The benefits of using an AI medical scribe

• Reduces the burden of physician documentation. This is one of the major benefits of adopting an AI medical scribe. While an AI scribe can benefit a variety of positions in the healthcare field, primary care physicians find that it was especially helpful with their tasks. These doctors see all kinds of patients during the day with all kinds of concerns and questions, creating lots of notes and documentation. The medical scribe helps take this task away from them, freeing them up to focus on other essential work tasks. The additional time saved from not having to sit and enter information did not, however, have to be spent fitting in more appointments. Doctors can choose to use that time for longer appointments, or they can take more breaks to help them stay focused on the patients they do see and reduce burnout. 

• Enhances the patient/physician relationship. Most patients are fine having the AI medical scribe listen to the conversation knowing that it isn’t recording and allows the physician to focus on their immediate concerns. This enhances the doctor/patient relationship during a visit because the physician is no longer concerned about entering information as the patient speaks to include in their record. They can have a better, more focused conversation that keeps both parties involved and focused on the matters at hand.

• Generally easy to use. Doctors in the Kaiser Permanente study were pleasantly surprised to discover that the AI applications are generally very easy to use. Most just used their cell phone to store the app and only needed to access it when they were with a patient. You can easily stop and start the listening, and some AI will respond to voice commands to do so as well.

• Can be integrated with EHRs. This is a huge concern among facilities that are considering adopting AI medical scribes—will it integrate with their current system of EHR management? The verdict seems to be that yes, it’s relatively seamless to merge the two. The AI communicates with the EHR system via an API (or other mode) to upload transcriptions and other pertinent patient information. In addition, it can also update EHRs with new patient information, and retrieve information from the EHR that is already there. 

The best AI medical scribes for 2024

Which AI scribe should you consider looking into?

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If you’re considering trying out an AI medical scribe, be prepared for the variety of choices out there. Depending on the size of your facility, you’ll want to choose one that’s easy to scale and fits within your budget. A small private practice will have different needs than a large hospital, so look around and choose one that makes sense for your particular situation. 

Other things to look for in an AI medical scribe

• Ease of integration with systems already in place. This is essential to an AI medical scribe, so ensure that the product will operate with your EHR system.

• Security for patient data. Most AI scribes do not record conversations, and they are not stored. You’ll want to ensure your scribe protects patient data by erasing it after it is saved in the EHR system.

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Top AI medical scribes to consider

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Playback Health

Utilizing advanced AI scribe technology with seamless note generation, transcription, and translation capabilities, Playback offers one of the best AI medical scribes. Founded by top neurosurgeon, Dr. David Langer, who initially developed the platform for his own practice, Playback is SOC 2 and HIPAA compliant and even patented its own security credentialing system. With the proven ability to save clinicians up to three hours per day on note automation, increase productivity by 20%, and guarantee 99% transcription accuracy, Playback is the clinician-backed scribe of choice. 

Dax Copilot/Nuance

If you’re looking for one of the best medical AI scribes that partners with Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare, then consider giving Dax Copilot a try. This scribe was ranked #1 for improving physician experience in a 2022 KLAS Emerging Solutions Report and can reduce documentation time by up to 50%. This is an easy-to-use AI scribe that can eliminate repetitive tasks and make patient data easier to input and manage.

Tali AI

One of the most secure medical AI scribes is Tali AI, which is HIPAA compliant, and offers data encryption both in transfer and at rest. It can connect seamlessly with EHR systems and offers a free trial. Its interface is easy to use and provides clinicians with highly accurate dictation notes. In addition to generating notes and saving doctors time, it also offers a Medical Search option which provides immediate answers to questions by sifting through the latest medical research in seconds. 

Zirr AI Medical Scribe

If you’re looking to save valuable physician time that can easily be used elsewhere, you’ll want to consider the Zirr AI Medical Scribe. This AI scribe is HIPAA-approved, and even offers a free trial before you purchase. Zirr AI is easy to use, and you can either sign up for their $99/month plan or create your own custom plan for your practice. Clinicians love that they no longer need to be at a computer when they’re with patients, and it saves them time each day. 

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Which AI medical scribe will you choose?

AI medical scribes are a great step forward when it comes to saving time and enhancing the relationship between doctor and patient. They allow clinicians to spend more time conversing with the patient and less time worrying about all the data entry that typically follows. There are a variety of applications to choose from, so make sure you find the one that fits best with your facility!

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