Physician Perspectives on Ambient AI Scribes

Abstract

Importance: Limited qualitative studies exist evaluating ambient artificial intelligence (AI) scribe tools. Such studies can provide deeper insights into ambient AI implementations by capturing lived experiences. Objective: To evaluate physician perspectives on ambient AI scribes. Design, Setting, and Participants: A qualitative study using semistructured interviews guided by the Reach, Efficacy, Adoption, Implementation, Maintenance/Practical, Robust Implementation, and Sustainability Model (RE-AIM/PRISM) framework, with thematic analysis using both inductive and deductive approaches. Physicians participating in an AI scribe pilot that included community and faculty practices, across primary care and ambulatory specialties, were invited to participate in interviews. This ambient AI scribe pilot at a health care organization in California was conducted from November 2023 to January 2024. Main Outcome and Measures: Facilitators and barriers to adoption, practical effectiveness, and suggestions for improvement to enhance sustainability. Results: Twenty-two semistructured interviews were conducted with AI pilot physicians from primary care (13 [59%]) and ambulatory specialties (9 [41%]), including physicians from community practices (12 [55%]) and faculty practices (10 [45%]). Facilitators to adoption included ease of use, ease of editing, and generally positive perspectives of tool quality. Physicians expressed positive sentiments about the impact of the ambient AI scribe tool on cognitive demand (16 of 16 comments [100%]), temporal demand (28 comments [62%]), work-life integration (10 of 11 comments [91%]), and overall workload (8 of 9 comments [89%]). Physician perspectives of the impact of the ambient AI scribe tool on their engagement with patients were mostly positive (38 of 56 comments [68%]). Barriers to adoption included limited functionality with non-English speaking patients and lack of access for physicians without a specific device. Physician perspectives on accuracy and style were largely negative, particularly regarding note length and editing requirements. Several specific suggestions for tool improvement were identified, and physicians were optimistic regarding the potential for long-term use of ambient AI scribes. Conclusion and Relevance: In this qualitative study, ambient AI scribes were found to positively impact physician workload, work-life integration, and patient engagement. Key facilitators and barriers to adoption were identified, along with specific suggestions for tool improvement. These findings suggest the potential for ambient AI scribes to reduce clinician burden, with user-centered recommendations offering practical guidance on ways to improve future iterations and improve adoption.

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