By Ann Brandstadter Walter Reed Hospital Communications
The Defense Health Agency (DHA) is rolling out ambient listening technology across the Military Health System (MHS) to improve patient care. The capability acts as an “AI scribe,” analyzing conversations between patients and providers to automatically generate clinical notes. This allows providers to stay engaged during visits and focus more on the patient.
Following a successful six-week pilot project at four military treatment facilities (MTFs) in late 2025, the technology was introduced to providers at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in early February. The tool works alongside electronic health records and, at Walter Reed, opens directly in MHS GENESIS when a patient’s chart is accessed. Providers ask for patient consent before activating the system during the appointment.
Early users shared feedback on its impact — the top three users out of 228 providers at Walter Reed.
Dr. Elizabeth Berbano, an internal medicine physician at the Primary Care Clinic with 33 years of experience, called the AI scribe a "game changer." She noted that it accurately captures the non-linear way patients often speak and organizes their comments into a clear, structured format. "I wasn’t for using AI before, but this is AI I want to use," she said. “The software organizes patients’ thoughts; the sentences are constructed nicely.”
“It’s wonderful. A retired chief nurse, my first patient [when using the software], we were both smiling and reading over the notes and they were pretty accurate. It’s about 90 percent accurate; I adjust only minor things. My life is so much better, I love it!” Berbano added.
The system is not without limitations. Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner Oluwatoyin “Toyin” Adelakun noted that it can occasionally fail to generate notes, requiring manual input. Even so, she said "it cuts down on note-taking time, you pay more attention to the patient, it helps with the workflow, allowing more face-to-face interaction.”
Lt. Col. (Dr.) Matthew Dugard, also an internal medicine physician, said the system is "smarter than a human scribe" and believes it offers a significant advantage. He estimated it has led to a "60 percent improvement in my note taking performance."
Dugard also shared ideas for future improvements. “Instead of importing [notes] into the patient’s chart, the software would open automatically within the chart; that would be an improvement. It’s great, I really like it,” he said.
Privacy remains a consideration when using recording tools in clinical settings. Berbano reassures her patients at the start of each visit, explaining, “The AI scribe only generates the notes and at the end of the visit I will edit it and the recording will be deleted.” Patients can then review their notes in the MHS GENESIS patient portal after their appointment.
DHA’s move to adopt ambient listening technology is part of a broader trend in health care to leverage AI to improve efficiency and reduce physician burnout. As adoption continues and this technology evolves, it has the potential to become an indispensable tool across MTFs.
To learn more about ambient listening software, visit tricare.mil/MHSGENESISrecords.