This week Oracle presented an update to its EHR software. The main innovation is the addition of AI. Among other things, this allows the EHR to be operated in a speech-driven manner. Not only for entering text, but also for navigating menus and functions. In its own words, the AI-driven, cloud-based EHR will ease healthcare professionals' administrative burden, giving them more time to deliver care to patients.
In 2022, Oracle paid $28 billion for EHR vendor Cerner. The new EHR has been in development since then, but Oracle says it is not based on Cerner's technology. Among other things, this means that existing Cerner clients will eventually have to switch to the new Oracle EHR.
AI-driven with a user friendly interface
The new EHR is browser-based. When the physician or nurse launches the EHR, they see a search bar and a chronological list of their appointments. Ocracle has put a lot of effort into developing a simple and user-friendly interface. By clicking on the microphone in the search bar, the user can ask questions such as, “How much room for new appointments do I have today?” or “How many new patients are scheduled today? The EHR's generative AI interface provides answers within seconds.
“It's not just a scribe. It's not an assistant. It's almost like having your own resident,” Seema Verma, executive vice president and general manager of Oracle Health and Life Sciences told CNBC.
Quick access to the correct information
When a physician opens a patient's record, he or she gets instant access to both AI-generated summaries of the patient's medical history and status, as well as the full record. Immediately, one can see what has changed since the patient's last visit. For example, whether new medications were added, but also lab results, clinical documentation, previous treatments, risk factors, messages, allergies and vital signs.
In addition, the physician can click on the microphone and ask patient-specific questions such as “Has she ever complained of panic attacks or shortness of breath?”, “Has he had a CT screening for lung cancer and are his vaccinations up to date?” or “What antibiotics did you treat her urinary tract infection with?” The option of being able to ask voice-driven, targeted questions reduces the time a physician must “browse” and search through a patient's record to find the desired information. The voice-driven questions can build on each other, and the EHR's AI will begin to learn the physician's habits, such as the types of medications they prescribe and repeat often.
If a physician wants to go into more detail or check an AI-generated answer in the new EHR, they can always click on the citation and view the original record referenced. And answers that contain content such as information on medication dosages or other evidence-based recommendations will link to validated databases.
Rollout starts in 2025
The new AI-driven EHR system will be rolled out in the U.S. during 2025, first through a so-called early adopter program. Based on the experiences of those first customers, the system will continue to be developed, with modifications where necessary. Oracle, meanwhile, has already moved its healthcare customers to the cloud, meaning the EHR implementation process will be much easier.
In addition to the new EHR system, Oracle has also had a generative AI tool for speaking into medical documentation for some time, like Microsoft's Dragon Medical One solution, for example. Oracle's Clinical AI Agent has been generally available in the U.S. since June and is already being used by about 70 customers. This solution is also integrated into the new EHR system.
Physicians access the Clinical AI Agent through an app on their phones and press a button to record their visits with patients. Once they stop recording, Oracle's AI automatically generates a clinical note based on the appointment, eliminating the need for physicians to write their own notes.
