Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 Feb 1;32(2):375-380.
doi: 10.1093/jamia/ocae295.

Ambient artificial intelligence scribes: physician burnout and perspectives on usability and documentation burden

Shreya J Shah  1   2 , Anna Devon-Sand  2 , Stephen P Ma  1 , Yejin Jeong  2 , Trevor Crowell  2 , Margaret Smith  2 , April S Liang  1 , Clarissa Delahaie  3 , Caroline Hsia  3 , Tait Shanafelt  1   4 , Michael A Pfeffer  1   3 , Christopher Sharp  1 , Steven Lin  1   2 , Patricia Garcia  1
Affiliations

Ambient artificial intelligence scribes: physician burnout and perspectives on usability and documentation burden

Shreya J Shah et al. J Am Med Inform Assoc. .

Abstract

Objective: This study evaluates the pilot implementation of ambient AI scribe technology to assess physician perspectives on usability and the impact on physician burden and burnout.

Materials and methods: This prospective quality improvement study was conducted at Stanford Health Care with 48 physicians over a 3-month period. Outcome measures included burden, burnout, usability, and perceived time savings.

Results: Paired survey analysis (n = 38) revealed large statistically significant reductions in task load (-24.42, p <.001) and burnout (-1.94, p <.001), and moderate statistically significant improvements in usability scores (+10.9, p <.001). Post-survey responses (n = 46) indicated favorable utility with improved perceptions of efficiency, documentation quality, and ease of use.

Discussion: In one of the first pilot implementations of ambient AI scribe technology, improvements in physician task load, burnout, and usability were demonstrated.

Conclusion: Ambient AI scribes like DAX Copilot may enhance clinical workflows. Further research is needed to optimize widespread implementation and evaluate long-term impacts.

Keywords: ambient intelligence; ambient scribes; artificial intelligence; documentation; informatics.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

T.S. reported having a patent for Well-being Index Instruments and Mayo Leadership Impact Index, with royalties paid from Mayo Clinic, and receiving honoraria for presenting grand rounds and keynote lectures and advising health care organizations on clinician well-being. All other authors have no competing interests to declare.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Post Survey Likert scale results (n = 46).
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Post survey results of perceived time savings (n = 46).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Shanafelt TD, Dyrbye LN, Sinsky C, et al. Relationship between clerical burden and characteristics of the electronic environment with physician burnout and professional satisfaction. Mayo Clin Proc. 2016;91:836-848. 10.1016/j.mayocp.2016.05.007 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Gardner RL, Cooper E, Haskell J, et al. Physician stress and burnout: the impact of health information technology. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2019;26:106-114. 10.1093/jamia/ocy145 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Apathy NC, Rotenstein L, Bates DW, Holmgren AJ.. Documentation dynamics: note composition, burden, and physician efficiency. Health Serv Res. 2023;58:674-685. 10.1111/1475-6773.14097 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. McPeek-Hinz E, Boazak M, Sexton JB, et al. Clinician burnout associated with sex, clinician type, work culture, and use of electronic health records. JAMA Netw Open. 2021;4:e215686. 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.5686 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Tajirian T, Stergiopoulos V, Strudwick G, et al. The influence of electronic health record use on physician burnout: cross-sectional survey. J Med Internet Res. 2020;22:e19274. 10.2196/19274 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources