How to Choose an AI Medical Scribe

Start with your workflow. Do you see many short visits or a few long ones? Do you chart in SOAP, H&P or a custom format? The answer decides which features matter.

Templates: can you keep your own note structure, or are you adapting to the vendor's? Check whether custom templates are included in the plan you would actually buy.

EHR: do you need notes pushed directly into your record, or is copy-and-paste acceptable? Direct integration is often a higher-tier or enterprise feature.

Privacy: ask what happens to the audio, how long transcripts are kept, who can access them, and what agreements the vendor will sign. Get the answers in writing.

Accuracy: try it on your own real visits, in your own accent and specialty vocabulary, before committing. Vendor accuracy numbers are hard to compare because methods differ.

Cost: compare on your volume. Some plans cap notes per month, others use token or usage allowances. Multiply by your typical month, not the marketing example.

Exit: check how you export your notes and delete your data if you leave.

For a summary of what several vendors publish about themselves, see the best AI medical scribes guide.