Download PDF
Appl Clin Inform 2025; 16(02): 252-258
DOI: 10.1055/a-2461-4576
Research Article

The Effect of Ambient Artificial Intelligence Notes on Provider Burnout

Jason Misurac
1   Division of Pediatric Nephrology, Stead Family Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, United States
2   University of Iowa Health Care, Health Care Information Systems, Iowa City, Iowa, United States
,
Lindsey A. Knake
2   University of Iowa Health Care, Health Care Information Systems, Iowa City, Iowa, United States
3   Division of Neonatology, Stead Family Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, United States
,
James M. Blum
2   University of Iowa Health Care, Health Care Information Systems, Iowa City, Iowa, United States
4   Department of Anesthesia, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, United States
5   University of Iowa, Institute for Clinical and Translational Science, Iowa City, Iowa, United States
› Author Affiliations Funding This manuscript was supported by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number UM1TR004403.
› Further Information
Also available at
    Permissions and Reprints

Abstract

Background Healthcare provider burnout is a critical issue with significant implications for individual well-being, patient care, and healthcare system efficiency. Addressing burnout is essential for improving both provider well-being and the quality of patient care. Ambient artificial intelligence (AI) offers a novel approach to mitigating burnout by reducing the documentation burden through advanced speech recognition and natural language processing technologies that summarize the patient encounter into a clinical note to be reviewed by clinicians.

Objective To assess provider burnout and professional fulfillment associated with ambient AI technology during a pilot study, assessed using the Stanford Professional Fulfillment Index (PFI).

Methods A pre–post observational study was conducted at University of Iowa Health Care with 38 volunteer physicians and advanced practice providers. Participants used a commercial ambient AI tool over a 5-week trial in ambulatory environments. The AI tool transcribed patient–clinician conversations and generated preliminary clinical notes for review and entry into the electronic medical record. Burnout and professional fulfillment were assessed using the Stanford PFI at baseline and postintervention.

Results Pre- and posttest surveys were completed by 35/38 participants (92% survey completion rate). Results showed a significant reduction in burnout scores, with the median burnout score improving from 4.16 to 3.16 (p = 0.005), with validated Stanford PFI cut-off for overall burnout of 3.33. Burnout rates decreased from 69 to 43%. There was a notable improvement in interpersonal disengagement scores (3.6 vs. 2.5, p < 0.001), although work exhaustion scores did not change significantly. Professional fulfillment showed a modest, nonsignificant upward trend (6.1 vs. 6.5, p = 0.10).

Conclusion Ambient AI significantly reduces healthcare provider burnout and may enhance professional fulfillment. By alleviating documentation burdens, ambient AI can improve operational efficiency and provider well-being. These findings suggest that broader implementation of ambient AI could be a strategic intervention to combat burnout in healthcare settings.

Keywords

healthcare provider burnout - artificial intelligence (AI) - ambient technology - clinical documentation - professional fulfillment

Protection of Human and Animal Subjects

The University of Iowa IRB determined this project to be a non-human subject research.




Publication History

Received: 18 July 2024

Accepted: 04 November 2024

Accepted Manuscript online:
05 November 2024

Article published online:
19 March 2025

© 2025. Thieme. All rights reserved.

Georg Thieme Verlag KG
Rüdigerstraße 14, 70469 Stuttgart, Germany

 

  • References

  • 1 Shanafelt TD, West CP, Dyrbye LN. et al. Changes in burnout and satisfaction with work-life integration in physicians during the first 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Mayo Clin Proc 2022; 97 (12) 2248-2258
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 2 Trockel M, Bohman B, Lesure E. et al. A brief instrument to assess both burnout and professional fulfillment in physicians: reliability and validity, including correlation with self-reported medical errors, in a sample of resident and practicing physicians. Acad Psychiatry 2018; 42 (01) 11-24
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 3 West CP, Dyrbye LN, Shanafelt TD. Physician burnout: contributors, consequences and solutions. J Intern Med 2018; 283 (06) 516-529
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 4 Shanafelt TD, Schein E, Minor LB, Trockel M, Schein P, Kirch D. Healing the professional culture of medicine. Mayo Clin Proc 2019; 94 (08) 1556-1566
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 5 Murad MH, Vaa Stelling BE, West CP. et al. Measuring documentation burden in healthcare. J Gen Intern Med 2024; 39 (14) 2837-2848
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 6 Moy AJ, Schwartz JM, Chen R. et al. Measurement of clinical documentation burden among physicians and nurses using electronic health records: a scoping review. J Am Med Inform Assoc 2021; 28 (05) 998-1008
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 7 Gidwani R, Nguyen C, Kofoed A. et al. Impact of scribes on physician satisfaction, patient satisfaction, and charting efficiency: a randomized controlled trial. Ann Fam Med 2017; 15 (05) 427-433
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 8 Shah LSM, Borycki EM, Shah JA, Kushniruk AW. Effects of medical scribes on patients, physicians, and safety: a scoping review. Knowl Manag E-Learn. 2021; 13 (04) 559-629
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 9 Ghatnekar S, Faletsky A, Nambudiri VE. Digital scribe utility and barriers to implementation in clinical practice: a scoping review. Health Technol (Berl) 2021; 11 (04) 803-809
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 10 Crampton NH. Ambient virtual scribes: Mutuo Health's AutoScribe as a case study of artificial intelligence-based technology. Healthc Manage Forum 2020; 33 (01) 34-38
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 11 Coiera E, Kocaballi B, Halamka J, Laranjo L. The digital scribe. NPJ Digit Med 2018; 1: 58
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 12 Friedberg MW, Chen PG, Van Busum KR. et al. Factors affecting physician professional satisfaction and their implications for patient care, health systems, and health policy. Rand Health Q 2014; 3 (04) 1
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 13 Valid and Reliable Survey Instruments to Measure Burnout. Well-Being, and Other Work-Related Dimensions. Updated May 18, 2022. Accessed September 20, 2024 at: https://nam.edu/valid-reliable-survey-instruments-measure-burnout-well-work-related-dimensions/
    PubMed
  • 14 Maslach C, Jackson SE, Leiter MP. Maslach burnout inventory. In: Evaluating Stress: A Book of Resources. 3rd ed.. Scarecrow Education; 1997: 191-218
    Search in Google Scholar
  • 15 West CP, Tan AD, Habermann TM, Sloan JA, Shanafelt TD. Association of resident fatigue and distress with perceived medical errors. JAMA 2009; 302 (12) 1294-1300
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 16 Patel RS, Bachu R, Adikey A, Malik M, Shah M. Factors related to physician burnout and its consequences: a review. Behav Sci (Basel) 2018; 8 (11) 98
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 17 Balloch J, Sridharan S, Oldham G. et al. Use of an ambient artificial intelligence tool to improve quality of clinical documentation. Future Healthc J 2024; 11 (03) 100157
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 18 Tierney AA, Gayre G, Hoberman B. et al. Ambient artificial intelligence scribes to alleviate the burden of clinical documentation. NEJM Catal 2024;5(03):
    PubMed
  • 19 Erickson SM, Rockwern B, Koltov M, McLean RM. Medical Practice and Quality Committee of the American College of Physicians. Putting patients first by reducing administrative tasks in health care: a position paper of the American College of Physicians. Ann Intern Med 2017; 166 (09) 659-661
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 20 Swensen S, Shanafelt T. Mayo Clinic Strategies to Reduce Burnout: 12 Actions to Create the Ideal Workplace. Oxford University Press; 2020
    CrossrefSearch in Google Scholar
  • 21 Garcia P, Ma SP, Shah S. et al. Artificial intelligence—generated draft replies to patient inbox messages. JAMA Netw Open 2024; 7 (03) e243201
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 22 Tai-Seale M, Baxter SL, Vaida F. et al. AI-generated draft replies integrated into health records and physicians' electronic communication. JAMA Netw Open 2024; 7 (04) e246565
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 23 Kernberg A, Gold JA, Mohan V. Using ChatGPT-4 to create structured medical notes from audio recordings of physician-patient encounters: comparative study. J Med Internet Res 2024; 26: e54419
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar