Next time you visit a doctor, a psychiatrist or even a vet, artificial intelligence could be listening to your concerns and taking notes. or signup to continue reading AI scribes, as the tools are known, are becoming more popular in Australian medical clinics as they promise to save doctors time by writing patient notes, referral letters and even hospital discharge statements. Two major medical authorities have issued guidance for their use in Australia in recent weeks, boosting confidence in the technology and noting that AI has the potential to "improve health outcomes" for patients.
But the guidelines also warn that AI tools should not be allowed to make recommendations about patients' medical treatment or to summarise consultations without oversight. Even medical AI proponents say the technology may never be able to work without close scrutiny and is not designed to replace doctors. Concerns about the use of AI scribes were raised at a recent Senate inquiry into adopting artificial intelligence, where experts revealed the tools were not subject to Therapeutic Goods Administration approval as they were not medical devices.
Despite the absence of rules, Australian Alliance for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare director Enrico Coiera said the technology was in "routine use" within the healthcare system. "Digital scribes are used daily in general practice to listen in on patient conversations and summarise records for them automatically," he said. The Australian Health Pr.