Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the use of AI tools by NHS hospitals to support clinical documentation, including real-time note-taking systems; and what safeguards are in place to ensure that those tools maintain accuracy, patient safety and data protection.

National Health Service hospitals are increasingly using artificial intelligence (AI) tools, such as real-time note-taking systems, to support clinical documentation. Among these, Ambient Voice Technologies (AVT) hold transformative potential to improve both patient care and operational efficiency. These tools have been shown to cut down on the amount of time clinicians spend on paperwork by half, giving them more time to spend on other important tasks, like interacting with their patients.

NHS England is dedicated to enabling the safe deployment and adoption of such technologies, providing clear guidance on approval, implementation, information governance, security, privacy, and controls. National standards and additional guidance will explain how AVT solutions should be selected, deployed, and scaled to ensure they are safe, effective, and eligible for NHS adoption including accuracy.

Strict safeguards are in place across the NHS to guarantee patient safety, and data protection. All NHS organisations must comply with Medical Devices Regulations (SI 2002 No 618, as amended) (UK MDR 2002) and digital clinical safety standards. Providers handling patient data must comply with UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. Each health organisation is required to appoint a Caldicott Guardian, whose role is to advise on the protection and proper use of health and care data, including where AI is involved.