JAMA Netw Open

The ambient scribe is listening …

March 3, 2025

Artificial intelligence–driven ambient scribe use for drafting outpatient visit summaries was linked to greater clinician efficiency, lower mental burden related to documentation, and a greater sense of engagement with patients, according to this prospective quality improvement study. After a 7-week trial, clinicians generally viewed scribing positively, although opinions varied on accuracy and completeness of notes.

Study details: This prospective, single-group, pre/post quality improvement study involved 46 clinicians, including physicians, nurse practitioners and physicians’ associates, and was conducted in 2024 at an outpatient department of an academic health system in Philadelphia. Primary outcomes: time in notes per appointment, same-day appointment closure, after-hours work, perceived clinical documentation burden, and clinician experience. Various questions were assessed by 7-point Likert scales, Standard System Usability Scale (SUS), or net promoter score (NPS) formulas.

Results: Ambient scribe use was significantly associated with 20% less time in notes per appointment (from 10 to 8 minutes), 9.3% better same-day appointment closure rate (66% to 72%), and a 30% reduction in after-hours work per day (from 51 to 35 minutes). SUS scores showed ease of use. NPS scoring reflected mixed feedback about qualitative experiences.

Source:

Duggan MJ, et al. (2025, February 3). JAMA Netw Open. Clinician Experiences With Ambient Scribe Technology to Assist With Documentation Burden and Efficiency. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39969880/