AI scribes in general practice: questions to ask before you switch one on

Few AI tools have spread through Australian general practice as quickly as the AI scribe. It listens to the consultation, then drafts the clinical note, a referral or a patient summary. GPs who use them often describe getting back the hour they used to spend on notes after the last patient left.

That is a real benefit, and worth having. It also means recording some of the most sensitive conversations anyone ever has. Before switching one on, a clinic should be able to answer the questions below.

1. How will we get the patient's consent?

Ahpra and the National Boards have published guidance on meeting professional obligations when using AI in healthcare. Among other things, it expects practitioners to involve patients in the decision to use tools that record their consultation, and to obtain informed consent. The RACGP has published practical guidance on AI scribes that makes similar points.

In practice that usually means a notice at reception, a sentence in the new-patient form, and a quick verbal check at the start of the consultation, with a genuine option to say no. Some consultations, such as those about family violence, mental health or sexual health, may call for switching it off without being asked.

2. Where does the audio go, and how long is it kept?

This is the question that separates products. Ask the vendor directly:

• Where is the audio processed, and where are transcripts stored? Is any of it outside Australia?
• Is the audio deleted once the note is generated, or kept? For how long?
• Is any patient data used to train or improve the vendor's models, even "de-identified"?
• Which subcontractors (cloud hosts, AI model providers) can access it?

Health information is sensitive information under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), and Victorian providers also have obligations under the Health Records Act 2001 (Vic). If data goes offshore, APP 8 can leave the clinic accountable for what happens to it there. The answers should be in writing, not in a sales call.

3. Who checks the note?

The draft note is a draft. Scribes can mishear drug names and doses, attribute a symptom to the wrong person when a parent and child are both talking, or include something said in passing that doesn't belong in the record. The treating practitioner remains responsible for the accuracy of the record, so build time into the workflow to read and correct each note before it is saved.

A useful habit for the first few weeks: compare a handful of AI notes against what you would have written yourself, and keep a short list of the kinds of errors you see.

4. Is it a medical device?

The Therapeutic Goods Administration has indicated that scribes which only transcribe and summarise a consultation are generally not regulated as medical devices, but that products which go further, such as suggesting diagnoses or treatments, may be. If a scribe offers clinical suggestions, ask the vendor about its regulatory status and whether it is included in the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods.

5. What happens to everything else it hears?

Consultations wander. A patient mentions a partner's diagnosis, an employer's name, a worry about a child. Ask how the product handles third-party information and whether the clinic can control what ends up in the note versus what is discarded.

6. Does it fit our systems?

The practical questions matter too: does it work with your clinical software, does it handle the accents and languages of your patients, and what happens if the internet drops mid-consultation?

Where private AI fits

Many clinics will reasonably choose a well-established cloud scribe with clear Australian data residency and strong contractual terms. Others, particularly those with sensitive patient groups, prefer that recordings and transcripts never leave the practice at all. A private AI server can transcribe and draft notes on-site, with the same model also available for letters, summaries and searching the clinic's own documents. Either way, the questions above are the right place to start.