Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
by Dr Peter Hutchison, Greencross Vet Centre, Norwood, SA
Heidi Health is an AI program that records conversation in the consult room and turns them into consult notes. It can be set up to create a surgical procedure note or a discharge note.
What’s good about it
The best thing about this program is that I no longer have to type up my notes during or after a consult. It allows me to give my full attention to the client and to examining the animal. As long as I verbalise what I see, then Heidi Health puts all the information into my notes. This also means that nothing is forgotten. Since I started using Heidi Health, my notes are far better than they’ve ever been.
The program is good at identifying veterinary terminology and drugs. I can talk in simple terms for the client’s benefit and Heidi Health will write it using correct veterinary terms.
When using Heidi Health, you need to remember that it’s not just transcribing the conversation; it interprets what is said. If I say the pet is vomiting or has diarrhoea and it could be gastroenteritis, pancreatitis, dietary indiscretion or a gastrointestinal foreign body, Heidi Health will make a differential diagnosis list. If I mention cost, it will record that the owner has been given a prognosis and an estimate of cost.
The program uses AI to learn the style of speaking of the practitioner. Things it had recorded incorrectly in the past, it now records accurately. The more you use it, the more accurate it becomes.
What’s not so good
It’s always necessary to give the notes a once over. Occasionally, it will make things up or record slightly different drugs. This is usually due to the program not understanding the meaning of what you’re saying. It only takes about 30 to 60 seconds to check the note, compared to five to 10 minutes to write the note.
