CHARLOTTE, N.C. — For the first time in four years, data from the American Medical Association shows the physician burnout rate has dropped below 50%.
It’s been a long standing issue for the medical community in North Carolina as health systems across the state are still dealing with staffing shortages, but now with artificial intelligence, some doctors say new technology could combat these issues.
Atrium Health is one of the first health systems in the nation to use Dax Copilot, an artificial intelligence tool that acts as an assistant. The tool listens to conversations with patients and creates a clinical summary of the visit, saving doctors more than just valuable time.
Dr. Rebekah Aurie is one of the many physicians at Atrium Health that uses Dax Copilot in their practice.
Before each visit, Aurie notifies her patients about the tool and asks for their consent.
“I understand you're here for some knee pain, but I did want to let you know that I'm using an AI transcription tool to help record our conversation and turn it into a note. Is that OK with you?” Aurie said when demonstrating the app.
Once a patient grants consent, Aurie places her phone on the counter for the remainder of the visit.
During the exam, the tool has the capability to increase the accuracy of notes, filter out informal conversation, capture and translate conversations in Spanish and has saved Aurie approximately an hour a day of note taking.
“It's been a game changer for sure. I spend so much less time on documentation than I used to. I always felt like I was always charting and always behind,” Aurie said.
Once the exam is finished, Aurie goes back into the file to edit and confirm the accuracy of the summary it created.
“I think it's improved my own accuracy because even if I'm like, 'oh, I can't remember if they said this or this,' I can actually go back and look at the transcription and remind myself of what they said," Aurie said.
The tool isn’t just about efficiency, as it also addresses a larger issue. A study in the Journal of Graduate Medical Education found 75% of physicians credited burnout to time spent charting.
“I would say that was like my number one issue. I’ve been out of residency since 2018, and I was already like, ‘How am I supposed to do this for another 30 years?’" Aurie said.
Aurie says the tool is also benefiting her patients. As Dax Copilot reports, in a survey, “93% of patients say their clinician is more personable and conversational.”
“I think it's just improved my engagement with my patients. I think my patients appreciate that I’m having more of a conversation with them and not just constantly on the computer.,” Aurie said. “We as doctors went into medicine to take care of patients, not to sit at a computer and document. So if we can minimize that, yet still get very accurate notes and get it to our patients faster, I think that's hugely important.”
In a Microsoft survey, health care organizations that use Dax Copilot say five more appointments have been added on average per clinic and 70% of doctors say it’s improved their work life balance.
