Generative AI App Aids Emergency Room Note-Taking

Medical technology developer Augmedix has launched a generative AI-powered mobile app that can automatically create medical documents for emergency departments.

Augmedix Go drafts medical notes from patient visits. It is designed to reduce workload burdens for clinicians by automating note-taking responsibilities.

“We have built a sophisticated platform designed to enable clinicians to be present with their patients while trusting that Augmedix technology is doing administrative work unobtrusively in the background,” said Manny Krakaris, Augmedix’s CEO.

The Augmedix Go app connects with Bluetooth microphones to capture patient conversations. It was developed using a combination of proprietary large language models and models from Google Cloud's MedLM suite of medically-tuned models.

Augmedix built the note-taking solution using previous data from its work in care settings to fine-tune the solution enabling it to be used for patient re-evaluations and in-progress care updates.

“The workflow in the emergency department requires technology that can accommodate complex conversations and a plurality of recordings capturing multiple, non-sequential interactions with a single patient,” according to Augmedix. “All of which occurs in a typically noisy environment.”

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Augmedix tested the tool in pilots with HCA Healthcare before a general release. During the tests, physicians in four HCA emergency departments used the tool to automate their note-taking responsibilities. Patients consented to the use of the automated note-taking tool at a 99% acceptance rate, the company said.

“Using Augmedix allowed me to spend more time with my patients and less time in front of my computer,” said Veronica L. Cassese Klasko, a physician assistant at HCA Florida Trinity Hospital. “I was also able to essentially eliminate charting after my shift was over, which makes a huge difference.”

“Despite how loud it was in the department, Augmedix got the note content right,” said Michael Borunda, emergency department director at HCA Florida Trinity Hospital. “After careful review, I had no edits and was able to send my note straight to the electronic health record.”

The company said it used feedback from the HCA pilot to improve the tool ahead of its general launch.

“The work we’ve done on Augmedix Go in the emergency department demonstrates how the Augmedix team has worked to build a strong, long-term relationship with HCA Health care and provide us high-quality, successful deployments,” said Michael J. Schlosser, HCA Healthcare’s senior vice president for care transformation and innovation.

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