Reid Health, a rural healthcare system in the US, has entered an enterprise-wide agreement with Abridge, a generative AI (GenAI) technology provider for clinical documentation.

Currently serving 280,000 individuals in the states of Indiana and Ohio, Reid Health has a main hospital campus in Richmond, Indiana, along with 50 satellite locations across seven regional counties.

The adoption of Abridge's AI solution is aimed at automating clinical documentation in real time, allowing clinicians to dedicate more time to patient care.

The technology can be combined directly with Epic’s workflow, minimising the burden and distraction caused by repetitive administrative tasks for clinicians.

This is particularly beneficial in rural areas, where clinician burnout is exacerbated by workforce shortages and extended working hours, Abridge said.

Reid Health, with its network of more than 3,100 employees and over 170 providers, recognises the need to alleviate the administrative burden that is a leading cause of clinician burnout.

Abridge's technology has already been in use by some Reid clinicians for the past six months and will now be available to all.  

The health system, according to Abridge, has reported significant improvements post-deployment of the new AI technology, including an 87% reduction in response time to patient calls.

Clinicians have also experienced a 60% reduction in after-hours documentation time and an 86% decrease in the effort required to complete notes.

In addition, patients have noticed that their clinicians are more present during office visits.

Reid Health vice-president and chief information officer Muhammad Siddiqui said: “Abridge is expanding access to care. The freed-up time has increased efficiency for the entire care team to where we've dropped responses to patient calls down to seconds.

“You don’t have to be at a massive, urban healthcare system to have access to AI technology that makes a meaningful difference in the lives of providers and their patients.”

The collaboration with Reid Health follows Abridge's successful deployments in numerous other health systems, such as the University of Vermont Health Network, CHRISTUS Health, and UPMC.

Mayo Clinic, Epic, and Abridge recently established a partnership to develop an ambient documentation workflow for nurses, further showcasing the potential of GenAI in healthcare.