AI-driven documentation improves physician well-being and patient care

Key Takeaways:

• AI-driven ambient documentation tools were linked to marked reductions in burnout and improved well-being among healthcare professionals in two large health systems.
• Physicians reported benefits such as more time with patients, improved work–life balance, and a renewed sense of joy in clinical practice.
• While findings are promising, researchers emphasised the need for broader studies as current results may reflect the views of early adopters and more enthusiastic users.
  

AI scribes transform clinical documentation

Artificial intelligence (AI)-driven scribes that record patient visits and generate draft clinical notes for review have been shown to significantly reduce burnout among healthcare professionals. According to a new study led by Mass General Brigham (MGB), these tools also improved overall well-being.

The study, published in JAMA Network Open, surveyed more than 1,400 physicians and advanced practice providers across two major healthcare systems – the Harvard-affiliated Mass General Brigham in Boston and Emory Healthcare in Atlanta.

At MGB, the use of ambient documentation technologies was associated with a 21.2 percent absolute reduction in burnout prevalence after 84 days. At Emory Healthcare, clinicians reported a 30.7 percent absolute increase in documentation-related well-being after 60 days.

Burnout and its link to electronic health records

More than half of physicians in the United States experience burnout. A key driver is the time spent maintaining electronic health records (EHRs), particularly after working hours. Anticipating the need to complete notes following patient appointments has also been shown to contribute significantly to stress and fatigue.

“Ambient documentation technology has been truly transformative in freeing up physicians from their keyboards to have more face-to-face interaction with their patients,” explained study co-senior author Dr Rebecca Mishuris, Chief Medical Information Officer at Mass General Brigham, faculty member at Harvard Medical School, and a practising primary care physician. “Our physicians tell us that they have their nights and weekends back and have rediscovered their joy of practising medicine. There is literally no other intervention in our field that impacts burnout to this extent.”

Benefits and limitations of AI-driven documentation

Physicians and advanced practice providers who piloted the tools highlighted several advantages. These included greater opportunities for “contact with patients and families”, enhanced “joy in practice”, and the potential to “fundamentally [change] the experience of being a physician”.

However, some users reported drawbacks. A minority felt that the tools added time to their note-writing or that they were less effective for certain medical specialties or visit types. Importantly, since the pilot studies began, AI vendors have continued to refine their technologies based on user feedback, and the underlying large language models have become increasingly sophisticated.

“Burnout adversely impacts both providers and their patients who face greater risks to their safety and access to care,” said co-senior study author Dr Lisa Rotenstein, Director of the Center for Physician Experience and Practice Excellence at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine at the UCSF School of Medicine. “This is an issue that hospitals nationwide are looking to tackle, and ambient documentation provides a scalable technology worth further study.”

Study design and findings

The research team analysed survey data from pilot users of ambient documentation across the two systems.

• At MGB, 873 clinicians were surveyed before enrolment, and then again at 42 and 84 days. Response rates were approximately 30 percent at 42 days and 22 percent at 84 days.
• At Emory Healthcare, all 557 pilot users were surveyed before the pilot began and again after 60 days, with an 11 percent response rate.
  

Researchers measured various indicators of burnout at MGB and well-being at Emory. While results were consistently positive, the authors cautioned that the findings may be skewed towards more enthusiastic early adopters due to the limited response rates.

Scaling up ambient documentation

Mass General Brigham first launched its ambient documentation programme in July 2023 with just 18 physicians as part of a proof-of-concept pilot. By July 2024, the programme had expanded to more than 800 providers, testing two separate AI technologies. As of April 2025, the tools have been rolled out to all physicians within the system, with more than 3,000 regularly using them.

Plans are also underway to extend the technology to other healthcare professionals, including nurses, physical and occupational therapists, and speech-language pathologists.

“Ambient documentation technology offers a step forward in healthcare and new tools that may positively impact our clinical teams,” noted lead study author Dr Jacqueline You, Digital Clinical Lead and Primary Care Associate Physician at Mass General Brigham. “While stories of providers being able to call more patients or go home and play with their kids without having to worry about notes are powerful, we feel the burnout data speak similar volumes of the promise of these technologies, and importance of continuing to study them.”

Future directions

The study authors emphasised the importance of ongoing evaluation. Researchers plan to continue measuring rates of burnout and time spent on clinical documentation both during and outside of working hours. They aim to determine whether improvements persist as the technologies evolve or if the early gains plateau or decline over time.

Overall, the findings suggest that AI-powered ambient documentation tools hold considerable promise for reducing administrative burdens, supporting well-being, and enhancing the patient–clinician relationship, though their long-term impact remains to be fully understood.