Mayo Clinic is Using AI to Listen to Emergency Room Visits

The Mayo Clinic is using "Ambient Listening" technology to record patient interactions with nurses in emergency rooms, with the data processed by AI. The recording system is opt-out rather than opt-in, meaning some patients may be unaware of it, raising concerns about informed consent and the accuracy of AI-generated notes compared to human-written ones.

Mayo Clinic, the massive U.S. hospital network, is using what it describes as “Ambient Listening” to record patient interactions with nurses, including in emergency rooms, then using AI to process that collected data. The recording is opt-out, rather than opt-in, and at least some patients are likely not aware the recording is happening. The recording brings up questions of informed consent and whether the generated notes may be accurate enough. A study last month found that AI-powered scribe tools sometimes produce much less accurate notes than humans depending on the situation. 💡 Do you know anything else about AI use in healthcare? I would love to hear from you. Using a non-work device, you can message me securely on Signal at joseph.404 or send me an email at joseph@404media.co. This post is for paid members only Become a paid member for unlimited ad-free access to articles, bonus podcast content, and more. Subscribe Sign up for free access to this post Free members get access to posts like this one along with an email round-up of our week's stories. Subscribe Already have an account? Sign in