OHIO — Doctors across the United States are turning to artificial intelligence to ease administrative burdens and combat burnout, a move aimed at addressing a projected shortage of doctors over the next decade.
According to the American Medical Association, physician burnout could lead to a shortage of up to 124,000 doctors by 2034. The AI tools are assisting in streamlining tasks and allowing physicians to spend more time with patients—part of a growing effort to preserve the healthcare workforce for the future.
A separate survey by the American Medical Association found about 66% of physicians surveyed in 2024 reported using AI in their practice, an increase from 38% the previous year.
The Ohio State Wexner Medical Center is among the institutions integrating AI into both administrative operations, including email, word processing and database management, as well as into electronic medical records and patient care systems.
For example, physicians using AI to develop patient care plans, streamlining billing and transcribing notes during appointments.
Dr. Colleen Reidy, a family medicine physician at Ohio State Wexner Medical Center, said the introduction of AI into her workflow has made a notable difference. She uses a tool that listens in on her conversations with patients and automatically transcribes them into medical notes, reducing the time she spends on documentation by 10 hours per week.
“It’s a huge weight off my shoulders, because I feel like one, I can really listen to my patients and not feel like I'm trying to multitask so much,” said Reidy.
AI’s potential to ease administrative burdens is also being recognized at the leadership level. Dr. Ravi Tripathi, chief health information officer at Ohio State Wexner Medical Center, said AI has helped reduce the time physicians spend on paperwork by 40%, freeing them up for more meaningful clinical work.
“Our intent is to return the joy of medicine back to clinicians,” Tripathi said.
Tripathi said, in the past, doctors would take notes by hand before transitioning to computers, which often created a barrier between the doctor and the patient. Five or ten years ago, physicians relied on dictation after seeing a patient. The recorded notes would be transcribed, a process that could take anywhere from minutes to days and then reviewed for accuracy, causing delays in finalizing medical records.
He said what makes AI so transformative is its ability to capture and process documentation almost instantly—within 15 to 30 seconds, or up to a minute—right after the patient conversation ends.
“From a patient perspective, patients were worried that they're not going to be as involved with their physicians because their physicians are being replaced by artificial intelligence. But the opposite is true. The patients are getting a much more engaged physician during their visit and can have better conversations,” Tripathi said.
However, some patients are cautious about the use of AI in their healthcare interactions. Reidy said some patients decline its use during their visits. She acknowledges this hesitation.
"It's not a perfect system; the AI can get some things wrong," Reidy said.
Despite the tool's design to accurately capture medical terminology and transcribe complex jargon, she said doctors still need to review the transcriptions to ensure accuracy.
For patients concerned about the privacy of their medical information, Reidy reassures them that the recordings are securely deleted, fully encrypted and stored within their medical chart.
“It’s not like the computer is taking over," she said. "We are still making the medical decisions."
A survey from Ohio State Wexner Medical Center found Americans support doctors using AI for tasks like documentation. About two-thirds of those surveyed expressed support for AI in reducing errors, shorter wait times and improved doctor work-life balance.
Medical professionals and industry leaders agree that patient trust and physician oversight remain crucial. Tripathi said, AI’s growing role in healthcare is helping doctors reclaim time, which is vital is addressing the growing doctor shortage, allowing them to refocus on their core mission: delivering quality care to their patients.