With the news organization Stat reporting that more than $1 billion has been invested in the AI scribe industry this year alone, it can be difficult for physicians to determine the verifiable impact of this augmented intelligence (AI) technology.
A multicenter quality improvement study published today in JAMA Network Open will help sort the hype from realistic hope. Here are the key takeaways that physicians in primary care and other specialties need to know, as reported in the study, “Use of Ambient AI Scribes to Reduce Administrative Burden and Professional Burnout.”
Question: What is the association of using ambient AI scribes with physicians and health professionals’ administrative burden, burnout, time documenting after hours, and time and attention for patients?
Findings: This quality improvement study of 263 physicians and nonphysician providers across six health care systems found that after 30 days with an ambient AI scribe, burnout among those working in ambulatory clinics decreased significantly from 51.9% to 38.8%. There were also significant improvements in the cognitive task load, time spent documenting after hours, focused attention on patients, and urgent access to care.
Meaning: These findings suggest that AI may have promising applications to reduce administrative burdens for clinicians and allow more time for meaningful work and professional well-being.
A JAMA Network Open invited commentary, “The Ambient AI Scribe Revolution—Early Gains and Open Questions,” published with the study lends perspective on the findings.
This study “validates and extends the work of early adopters, observing a net reduction of 13.9 percentage points in burnout and a reduction of 6.2 percentage points in severe burnout across 186 clinicians. These results were robust when controlling for demographic and site characteristics,” says the commentary.
Physician “burnout is a public health crisis,” the authors added. “Using new technology to fix burnout created by older technology will require a concerted effort, including partnerships between health systems and industry” as shown in the new study.
JAMA+ AI provides a window into the premier scientific content, educational reviews and commentary on AI and medicine published across JAMA®, JAMA Network Open and the JAMA specialty journals. JAMA+ AI builds on that published content with new multimedia materials, including interviews with authors, videos, medical news and a regular podcast.
AMA members can explore a range of peer-reviewed research and clinical information published by the JAMA Network™, which brings JAMA together with JAMA Network Open and 11 specialty journals. Published continuously since 1883, JAMA is one of the most widely circulated, peer-reviewed, general medical journals in the world. If you are an AMA member or interested in becoming one, learn how to access these educational materials and innovative tools.
Also new this week in JAMA Network
“Body Composition and Cardiometabolic Risk in Children,” published in JAMA Network Open. This repeated cross-sectional study provides a picture of the evolution of cardiometabolic risk factors in children over the last 30 years, showing that, in Spain, despite the concerning prevalences of excess weight, lipid parameters and blood pressure have improved over the studied period.
“Cumulative Cardiovascular Health Score Through Young Adulthood and Cardiovascular and Kidney Outcomes in Midlife,” published in JAMA Cardiology. The findings of this study suggest that a higher cumulative cardiovascular health score from 30 to 40 years of age was associated with markedly lower risks of cardiovascular disease and kidney events in midlife, highlighting the importance of sustained primordial prevention efforts throughout early life. JAMA Cardiology also published this invited commentary on the study: “How Cardiovascular Health in Young Adulthood Affects Kidney and Cardiovascular Risk Later in Life—Lifespan Lessons.”
What AMA members get with JAMA Network
The subscription cost of JAMA is included with your AMA membership, plus unlimited digital access to all JAMA Network journals, including: JAMA, JAMA Network Open, JAMA Cardiology, JAMA Dermatology, JAMA Internal Medicine, JAMA Neurology, JAMA Oncology, JAMA Ophthalmology, JAMA Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, JAMA Pediatrics, JAMA Psychiatry, and JAMA Surgery.
The online journals include many helpful features for students, residents and fellows, including full-text PDFs, clinical challenges, archived editions, audio and video author interviews where authors give their perspectives on a study’s objectives, findings and implications.
There are several ways physicians can leverage resources from the JAMA Network to help them in their clinical practice:
- Take CME courses and earn AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™.
- Fulfill maintenance of licensure (MOL) and CME requirements on JN Learning™, the home for all JAMA Network CME.
- Read concise summaries of clinical guidelines and recommendations in a streamlined format designed for today’s busy physicians.
- Access one-page articles that present key facts in patient-friendly terms to support you and your patients.
