The Current State of Digital Scribes in Primary Care: A Scoping Review

Abstract

The purpose of this scoping review is to explore the current state of digital scribe technology in primary care, focusing on how automatic speech recognition (ASR) and natural language processing (NLP), which are foundational technologies behind artificial intelligence (AI) systems used in digital scribes contribute to their effectiveness, integration, and adoption. The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) guidelines for scoping reviews was utilized alongside reporting according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews. Searches through PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature yielded 29 relevant studies from 14,866 studies, spanning six countries and from 2018 to 2024. Digital scribes demonstrated effectiveness in reducing documentation time, which directly enhances workflow efficiency and allows clinicians to spend more time interacting with patients. Digital scribes, while promising in improving clinical documentation, face significant integration challenges and adoption barriers, particularly in adapting to diverse healthcare workflows. The findings of this scoping review reveal several implications for the existing literature on digital scribes, particularly regarding the need for comprehensive studies on effectiveness in real-world primary care settings. This study highlights the promising role of digital scribes in primary care, where ASR and NLP technologies have demonstrated the potential to enhance documentation accuracy, streamline workflows, and reduce clinician burden.

Keywords: artificial intelligence scribes; automatic speech recognition; digital scribes; electronic scribes; natural language processing; primary care; scoping review.