There are no two ways about it: if you're looking to upgrade your patient documentation game in 2024, AI-powered medical scribes are the way to go.
Whether you're a doctor, nurse, physio, chiro, vet, or massage therapist, having an AI helper can take a huge load off your back.
In this article, we’ll explore the best medical scribes to save you hours of scrolling – and days of testing. We’ll take a good look at the leading medical AI assistants available and help you find the perfect one for you.
We run through:
- A brief introductory course on AI medical scribes
- What you should try to keep in mind before you choose one
- What are the top 5 options on the market right now
Let’s dive in!
What are AI medical scribes, and who could benefit from using them?
AI-powered medical scribes are virtual assistants that can listen in on patient encounters and automatically document the visit in the electronic health record (EHR).
To achieve these goals, these AI assistants use natural language processing and machine learning to transcribe the conversation, extract important medical details, and input the structured notes into the patient's chart.
The idea behind AI scribes is to save doctors and other clinicians time on administrative tasks so they can put all of their energy into patient care.
Another huge perk of these virtual assistants is that they also ensure thorough, accurate documentation to support proper coding and billing.
Some of the top professionals who can benefit from AI scribes:
- Physicians - automate note-taking during patient visits and exams. Structured documentation improves care coordination and reduces liability.
- Nurses - log vital signs, medications, procedures, and other care details through voice so nurses can stay present with patients.
- Physical therapists - dictate exercise routines, progress, and goals into structured notes without pausing treatment.
- Chiropractors - voice SOAP notes during adjustments and treatments to reduce after-hours charting.
- Psychologists - take session notes hands-free to maintain engagement with clients on the couch.
- Vets - record medical histories, symptoms, and care plans during exams without slow typing or writing.
- Massage therapists - document health goals, progress, and soft tissue findings - hands-free.
What should you keep in mind when choosing an AI scribe?
All of the best AI medical scribes share certain features, or should at least have some of these features below.
Here are the most important factors to check for:
- Accuracy should be off the charts - The best AI medical scribes can thoroughly document patient encounters, with little need for corrections or edits. Look for scribes touting high accuracy rates – some can even go above 99%!
- Flexible integrations - Seamless integration with your EHR and workflow (tools like Zoom, for instance) is absolutely necessary. Seek out scribes that connect to all major EHRs like Epic, ChronoHealth, etc.
- What’s private stays private - Patient data must remain private and secure. Only choose HIPAA-compliant AI medical scribes – and make sure they use encryption.
- More templates than you can count - The ability to customize note templates just the way you need them is a huge perk, so make a note (pun intended) to find scribes with customizable templates.
- It’s easy and intuitive to use - An intuitive, user-friendly interface will minimize the learning curve. Test out demos to gauge ease of use. Many AIs have free trials.
- It keeps getting better and better- AI and machine learning allow scribes to improve continually.
- Always on, never off - Anytime access means more time for patient care. Many scribes offer 24/7 support and availability, but not all, so make sure they’re on their game before you sign up.
- You won’t have to get a second mortgage - Costs can add up, so reasonable pricing is invaluable. Many tools have affordable subscription services.
The Best Medical Scribes in 2024
With so many options, it was hard to narrow down the list of the best AI medical scribes in 2024 to just five - but we managed to get the job done.
Of course, if you’d rather like the TL;DR approach, you can’t go wrong with our first pick on this list, which is why we’ve given it a well-deserved top billing!
Here’s the complete list:
#1 Lindy
Lindy makes it to the top of our list by virtue of its cutting-edge AI tech that listens, understands, transcribes, and perfectly streamlines every part of the note-taking workflow.
Here’s how it does it:
- It’s got extremely fast and accurate speech recognition (99%) that recognizes specialized terminology across a variety of specialties from the get-go.
- Lindy makes it very easy for notes to go into the EHR, so it reduces waiting and reprocessing. Plus, information is pulled automatically from all sources within the EHR to auto-populate notes.
- It easily integrates with most EHR systems like Epic, and workflow tools like email clients, Google, Zoom, etc.
- Real-time charting assistance that suggests text based on keywords spoken and data within the patient record. Then, it’s up to you to review, accept, reject, or ignore these suggestions.
- Lindy will keep learning as you go along. As time goes by, it becomes even more precise by understanding your speech patterns, accent, and personal abbreviations, and by staying up-to-date on your chosen specialty.
- It’s proactive. After it learns, it will proactively pre-do certain low-stakes tasks to make your life easier – after it gets your thumbs-up, of course.
- Intelligent task management that alerts you and your staff to follow-up items like tests, referrals, and appointments based on details in the notes.
- Fully HIPAA compliant.
- Lindy has helped clinicians and other doctors cut back on note-taking time by a whopping 2 hours per day, on average.
#2 DeepScribe
DeepScribe is also one of the better AI medical scribe tools available today.
Here’s why:
- DeepScribe uses advanced speech recognition and natural language processing to transcribe conversations with over 98% accuracy. Even with accents and mumbling, it gets it done.
- DeepScribe allows you to customize auto-generated notes by adding, deleting or editing as needed. It learns from your edits to improve over time, so you don’t have to do it manually.
- It creates real-time notes, allowing you to review key elements during the patient visit. You can also search transcripts for key terms.
- DeepScribe integrates with most EHR systems for easy uploading of finished notes. It saves providers hours of boring admin work.
- As with Lindy, DeepScribe complies with HIPAA regulations to protect sensitive patient information.
- It's designed specifically for medical conversations, with the ability to identify over 400 common medical terms.
#3 AugMedix
AugMedix Healthcare is an excellent solution for busy clinicians whose workflow includes mountains of paperwork.
Here’s how it does it:
- AugMedix listens so you can focus on chatting naturally with patients rather than jotting down notes during visits. It will then turn your spoken words into detailed SOAP notes.
- Its system is customizable to your unique workflow needs. You can create macros, templates, and shortcuts to make documentation even faster.
- AugMedix seamlessly integrates with your existing EHR system too.
- AugMedix boats excellent ambient listening technology, so it can distinguish between you and the patient when transcribing your encounter notes. Plus, this also allows you to move freely around the exam room without wearing a microphone.
- The platform uses natural language processing to auto-populate information into discrete fields in the EHR, for maximum documentation accuracy and making patient records searchable. This helps you save on additional time.
#4 Suki
At the tail-end of this best AI medical scribes list, we’ve got Suki, a healthcare medical scribe with a big focus on natural language.
It achieves this through:
- Hands-free voice control that allows clinicians to fully focus on patient care without the distraction of note-taking.
- Suki listens and transcribes clinician-patient conversations as they happen, even if they have jargon or hard-to-understand bits.
- It simplifies coding.
- Contextual, ambient understanding makes Suki capable of accurately capturing and reflecting the details of each patient encounter.
- Suki provides suggestions for medical terms during conversations for enhanced accuracy.
- Customizable options that offer the ability to tailor templates, and even have Suki answer your questions!
- Suki saves time, with clinicians reporting time savings of up to 72%.
- EHR/EMR Integration: Securely integrates with leading EHR/EMR platforms for a streamlined experience.
#5 DeepCura
DeepCura is an excellent medical scribe, but it’s tailored specifically to chiropractors (thank you for cracking our backs when we need it).
Here’s where DeepCura excels:
- Automated voice transcription during exams that is accurate and allows the chiropractor to focus on the patient.
- The ability to capture details during range of motion and orthopedic testing by speaking aloud. DeepCura will document findings in the note on its own.
- Automatic integration of objective exam findings like posture analysis, leg length discrepancies, and imaging results.
- Generating chiropractic SOAP notes and other documentation, virtually cutting transcription time to zero. The notes can be customized with templates.
- Seamless EHR integration to update the patient record, avoiding double charting. Of course, it’s compatible with major chiropractic EHRs.
- Securely encrypted data and fully HIPAA compliant.
Summing up
These are, without a doubt, the best AI medical scribes if you want to bring your practice into the 21st century.
Whether you’re a primary care physician, nurse, physical therapist, veterinarian – you name it – leveraging the incredible capabilities of AI can help you save time, maximize earnings, and increase face-time with your patients.
