Can an AI-Powered Scribe Curb Physician Burnout?

In 2024, Mass General Brigham, the largest health system in Massachusetts, piloted an AI-powered ambient note-taking program among a subset of clinicians to address increasing rates of staff burnout and turnover — largely driven by the administrative burden of clinical documentation in the electronic health records (EHR). The pilot program aimed to test AI tools which used natural language processing to record, transcribe, and summarize physician-patient encounters, reducing time spent on documentation and allowing physicians to focus more on patient care. Early results showed promising reductions in clinician burnout, intention to leave, and increased physician efficiency. But concerns about the technology, including the generation of inaccurate notes with errors or hallucinations, made physicians resistant to learn and adopt it into their workflows.

Harvard Business School Associate Professor Susanna Gallani and host Brian Kenny discuss the challenges leadership at the health care organization anticipated as they considered scaling the AI technology responsibly in the case: The AI Scribe: Enhancing Physician Presence and Curbing Burnout at Mass General Brigham.