2024-04-25 from ctvnews.ca

The Ontario government is launching an artificial intelligence program they say will help reduce the paperwork burden on family doctors while also removing a requirement that employees provide a doctor's note when off sick.

The announcement was made by Health Minister Sylvia Jones in Toronto on Wednesday.

“Our government is launching an innovative program called AI scribe for more than 150 primary care providers that safely uses artificial intelligence to automatically summarize or transcribe conversations with patients who consent into electronic medical notes,” she told reporters.

Officials noted that patient information will continue to be protected under the Personal Health Information Protection Act. They cite research that suggests AI scribes reduced the time doctors spent on after-hours documentation by up to 50 per cent.

The Ontario Medical Association (OMA) says that family doctors spend about 19 hours a week on administrative tasks. This includes about four hours writing notes or completing forms for patients.

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