AI Scribes: A Game-Changer for Doctors, But with Hiccups Ahead
In a bid to free up doctors' time and improve patient care, artificial intelligence scribes are increasingly being adopted in medical practices across the US. The technology has shown promise, enabling doctors to focus on their patients rather than typing notes, but experts caution that there's still much work to be done.
The Penn Internal Medicine practice in Media, Pennsylvania is one of the early adopters of AI scribe technology. When Jeannine Urban visited the doctor for a check-up in November, she had her primary care physician's full attention. Instead of typing on her computer keyboard during the exam, an ambient AI scribe took notes. The scribe provided an organized summary of the appointment at the end of the 30-minute visit.
The quality of the clinical note was impressive, Urban said. It summarized all of her questions and concerns, as well as the doctor's responses. "It made sure we didn't miss anything," she said.
Studies have shown that AI scribes can produce notes that are at least as good as traditional documentation, in terms of completeness, timeliness, and coherence. However, there are still many unanswered questions about their impact on patient care and health outcomes.
One major concern is "hallucinations," where false information appears in an AI output. Kaiser Permanente has found hallucinations to be "quite rare" in its own AI scribe system, but they can happen. The technology requires regular review by a human physician to ensure accuracy.
Even as AI scribes become more widespread, there are worries that the technology will widen the divide between healthcare haves and have-nots. Critical access hospitals and small private practices may struggle to adopt the technology due to limited resources.
Physicians' enthusiasm for AI scribes is a welcome change from their negative reaction to electronic health record systems in recent years. "It's part of keeping doctors happy," said Robert Wachter, professor at the University of California-San Francisco. "Health systems are softening on the idea that recruiting and retaining doctors is expensive."
But with great power comes great responsibility. As AI scribes become more integrated into clinical workflows, there must be careful attention paid to how healthcare providers communicate with patients about these tools.
Ultimately, the success of AI scribes will depend on their ability to support evidence-based medicine and improve patient care. As Epic's Jackie Gerhart notes, "It's so much bigger than a scribe. It's literally listening and acting in a way that tees things up for me so that I can take action." The future of healthcare will depend on whether this vision becomes a reality.
In a bid to free up doctors' time and improve patient care, artificial intelligence scribes are increasingly being adopted in medical practices across the US. The technology has shown promise, enabling doctors to focus on their patients rather than typing notes, but experts caution that there's still much work to be done.
The Penn Internal Medicine practice in Media, Pennsylvania is one of the early adopters of AI scribe technology. When Jeannine Urban visited the doctor for a check-up in November, she had her primary care physician's full attention. Instead of typing on her computer keyboard during the exam, an ambient AI scribe took notes. The scribe provided an organized summary of the appointment at the end of the 30-minute visit.
The quality of the clinical note was impressive, Urban said. It summarized all of her questions and concerns, as well as the doctor's responses. "It made sure we didn't miss anything," she said.
Studies have shown that AI scribes can produce notes that are at least as good as traditional documentation, in terms of completeness, timeliness, and coherence. However, there are still many unanswered questions about their impact on patient care and health outcomes.
One major concern is "hallucinations," where false information appears in an AI output. Kaiser Permanente has found hallucinations to be "quite rare" in its own AI scribe system, but they can happen. The technology requires regular review by a human physician to ensure accuracy.
Even as AI scribes become more widespread, there are worries that the technology will widen the divide between healthcare haves and have-nots. Critical access hospitals and small private practices may struggle to adopt the technology due to limited resources.
Physicians' enthusiasm for AI scribes is a welcome change from their negative reaction to electronic health record systems in recent years. "It's part of keeping doctors happy," said Robert Wachter, professor at the University of California-San Francisco. "Health systems are softening on the idea that recruiting and retaining doctors is expensive."
But with great power comes great responsibility. As AI scribes become more integrated into clinical workflows, there must be careful attention paid to how healthcare providers communicate with patients about these tools.
Ultimately, the success of AI scribes will depend on their ability to support evidence-based medicine and improve patient care. As Epic's Jackie Gerhart notes, "It's so much bigger than a scribe. It's literally listening and acting in a way that tees things up for me so that I can take action." The future of healthcare will depend on whether this vision becomes a reality.
. They need more human oversight to prevent those pesky hallucinations and ensure accurate info is shared with patients 
. Small practices might struggle to adapt due to limited resources, so we gotta make sure they're not left behind 
, this AI scribe thingy is gonna create a whole new set of problems when it comes to access to healthcare 
.
. It's just another tool in the doctor's toolbox. But what happens when it glitches or produces inaccurate notes? That's where the human factor comes in 
. We need to make sure that these AI scribes are integrated into our healthcare systems in a way that prioritizes patient care and transparency.
. We need to be addressing the root causes of healthcare disparities, not just throwing more tech at the problem 
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. It's cool that doctors can focus more on patients and less on typing stuff out 
. But I'm a bit worried about those "hallucinations" though... what if the AI makes something up? 
We gotta make sure those human docs are still keeping an eye on things 
. And yeah, it's true that not everyone will have access to this tech, and that's a major issue 
. We need to make sure healthcare is for everyone, not just the wealthy 
!
. I mean, it's awesome that docs can focus on patients instead of typing notes all day, but what if we're sacrificing quality over quantity? Like, if AI scribes start churning out less-than-perfect notes, how's that gonna affect patient care in the long run? 
. That just seems like a recipe for disaster 
.
, but you know what would be even cooler? If they made AI-powered gardening robots that could help us grow our own food in the city 
! Just imagine having a little robot buddy that can water and prune plants for you while you're busy working or traveling. I had this crazy idea to make a robot that looks like a miniature version of my cat, so it can sit on my desk and 'help' me with work... anyway, back to AI scribes 
. We need to make sure these AI scribes are supporting evidence-based medicine, not just some tech trend 
.