Report from the People’s AI Panel on Health and Care

Earlier this year, in collaboration with the Scottish Government, we convened a people’s panel to discuss the use of Ambient Voice Technologies (ATVs - also known as ‘AI scribes’ or ambient' scribes’) in GP surgeries. The report of this panel is now available - you can read it here.

The People’s AI Panel on Health and Care was a collaboration between the Scottish AI Alliance and the Scottish Government’s Digital Health and Care Division as part of a commitment to ensure Scotland’s AI future is guided by the voices of the public. The aim was to create the space for people to learn about, deliberate on and shape views around the potential use of Ambient Voice Technologies in NHS GP practices in Scotland.

ATVs, most often provided by private companies, leverage Large Language Models (LLMs) to generate GP consultation notes by listening to the conversation between patient and doctor. Some see this as an opportunity to free GPs from paperwork and return valuable time to patient care, while others feels that there are unanswered questions of privacy, equity and accountability.

The report covers the panel's discussions, the key tensions and expectations they identified, and the Scottish Government's response to the findings.