The NHS in London is trialling Tortus, a generative AI tech assistant, led by Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children (GOSH).
This technology, focusing on ambient voice technology, enables medics to listen to patients instead of typing up documents, revolutionising patient care.
Funded by NHS Frontline Digitisation, the trial could expand to other regions. It will encompass approximately 5,000 patient assessments across hospitals, GP surgeries, A&E departments, and mental health services.
Tortus uses a fusion of speech recognition and AI to extract relevant medical information from conversations.
Simultaneously, the technology filters out background noise and unnecessary conversations.
GOSH paediatric immunology consultant Maaike Kusters said: “The patients I see in my clinics have very complex medical conditions, and it’s so important to make sure I capture what we discuss in our appointments accurately.
“However, often, this means I am typing rather than looking directly at my patient and their family. Using the AI tool means I can sit closer to them face-to-face and focus on what they were sharing with me without compromising on the quality of documentation.”
As a part of the trial, earlier actors simulated patients to test the technology's robustness by discussing unrelated topics and using various accents.
Tortus successfully identified the medical information and drafted clear clinical letters, demonstrating its effectiveness.
Tortus product manager Hafsa Ahmedi said: “vision is to have AI for every clinician to support them in all of the tasks outside of the actual doctoring – so admin, taking notes and all the follow-ups.
“We know the importance of good clinical documentation, so we’ve built in so many safeguards to not interpret what is being said. It won’t assume something. That really is the doctor’s role, and we never want to change that.”
Before the trial's commencement, GOSH conducted comprehensive safety checks to ensure the technology's security.
All data is deleted after document generation at the end of consultations, ensuring no long-term storage.
NHS England improvement transformation and partnerships director Martin Machray said: “Ambient voice technology is a great example of how AI could be used to support clinicians and improve patient care, so it’s fantastic to see this being evaluated in different NHS settings across London.
“Technology is already transforming the way we work in the NHS in London, and we will continue to embrace the latest innovations to deliver the best possible care for patients, moving towards a digitally enabled healthcare system for the city.”
