NHS AI scribes wrote the wrong drugs and diagnoses into patient records
Healthwatch England warned that AI scribes used across the NHS are entering incorrect diagnoses and wrong drug names into patient records. Despite at least 27 different transcription platforms operating in English surgeries and the technology being promoted in the government's 10-Year Health Plan, the MHRA has chosen not to regulate transcription-only tools as medical devices.
Artificial Intelligence··Midday
Scribes hallucinated drugs and reversed diagnoses
Healthwatch England reported that ambient AI scribes transcribing consultations are confusing look-alike and sound-alike drug names and generating incorrect diagnoses. Clinicians have reported instances of the software hallucinating medications that were never mentioned during the appointment. In one case, a patient was given a diagnosis of demyelination when their scan read "null demyelination"; the scribe had dropped the word that reversed the meaning. A summary letter omitted an instruction to request a repeat migraine prescription, and another patient's record showed an undiscussed Prozac prescription.[1], [2]
Patients usually catch the errors in records
The errors were usually caught by the patient rather than the doctor reviewing the transcript. Healthwatch England warned that such mistakes could lead to patient harm if left uncorrected, particularly when patients do not regularly check their medical records or lack the medical knowledge to spot subtle alterations in diagnoses. The watchdog is now calling for robust dispute and correction mechanisms to handle the transcription errors.[1], [2]
MHRA exempts scribes from device regulation
At least 27 distinct AI scribing platforms are already in use across GP surgeries and hospital trusts. Pharmacy Business notes that the technology was promoted in the government's 10-Year Health Plan to cut administrative paperwork, but the MHRA has opted not to classify AI scribes as medical devices, leaving no standardised national safety oversight. The regulator's August guidance states that a system that only transcribes what was said is not a device, while one that suggests a diagnosis or a treatment may be, leaving transcription-only systems outside direct medical regulation.[1], [2]
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