Singapore General Hospital Deploys AI Tool for Clinical Documentation

Singapore General Hospital (SGH) has implemented an artificial intelligence tool named "Note Buddy" to streamline clinical documentation. The system captures doctor-patient conversations in real-time, automatically generating comprehensive medical notes. This allows healthcare professionals to dedicate more focused attention to patient interaction and care.

The Note Buddy tool utilizes ambient scribe technology to transcribe dialogues into written notes across five languages: English, Mandarin, Malay, Tamil, and Cantonese. The development was driven by a multidisciplinary SingHealth team recognizing the need to reduce the administrative burden on clinicians, thereby enhancing patient care quality and staff satisfaction.

Associate Professor Goh Su-Yen, Clinical Lead for the project, stated that Note Buddy enables clinicians to remain fully present with patients and foster stronger connections. The tool is credited with reducing the cognitive load associated with recalling and synthesizing information during consultations, leading to improved patient experiences.

Beyond real-time transcription, Note Buddy also offers text-to-text summarization capabilities, enabling healthcare staff to convert existing documentation into structured formats such as medical reports or referral letters efficiently. Since its launch in August 2024, the tool has been adopted across SingHealth and other public healthcare institutions in Singapore, supporting thousands of healthcare professionals.