UCLA: AI scribes reduce doctors’ working hours and increase well-being

Artificial intelligence (AI) tools designed to automatically document patient visits show promise for reducing doctors’ time spent on paperwork and improving their work experience, according to a new randomized clinical trial conducted at UCLA Health.

The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine AI, examined two commercially available AI scribe applications – Microsoft DAX and Nabla – in real clinical practice. Among 238 physicians in 14 specialties and 72,000 patient encounters, researchers found that Nabla users reduced their documentation time by almost 10% compared to usual care (control group), while both tools showed potential benefits on physician burnout and work-related stress.

“Documentation burden has become a leading cause of physician burnout, with physicians often spending two hours on paperwork for every hour of patient care,” said lead author Dr. Paul Lukac, chief AI officer at UCLA Health. “This is the first randomized…