Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre kicked off a small pilot program. In part through artificial intelligence, this program helps move ER patients through the system faster. The pilot program began in July. Its AI-enabled app—DAX Copilot—not only improves patient care, but significantly reduces wait times.
It captures and codes patient encounters. It listens to, understands, and transcribes conversations with patients – cutting the time doctors spend documenting by 70%. Further, Dr. Justin Hall, who uses DAX Copilot while consulting patients with DAX, has seen an average time savings of seven minutes per encounter. Aside from improving a provider’s workflow, this new development capability helps to create a more cohesive patient experience.
Just as important, the hospital’s initiatives are a response to a clear and undeniable need to serve patients more efficiently. As of 2024, the median length of stay for patients clearing at Sunnybrook was eight hours and 13 minutes. But more recently, large-scale implementations have had a transformative effect. They’ve achieved 30 minutes shorter time to see a doctor in the ED.
The Role of DAX Copilot in Emergency Medicine
DAX Copilot works by passively listening to patient-doctor discussions and then writing down the details in real-time. This physician-friendly, innovative tool strengthens clinicians’ like Dr. Hall‘s ability to keep clinical decision-making first and foremost. It allows them to escape the considerable weight of administrative bloat.
“A better patient interaction and decreases some of the cognitive burden [for the doctor] because it’s taking away some of that thought process … we still have to apply our medical knowledge to that, but it does certainly take away a bit of the administrative burden as well.” – Dr. Justin Hall
Beyond creating a better workflow experience, DAX Copilot helps our customers deliver safer, more effective care to their patients. With less time spent on documentation, physicians can spend more time focused on helping patients receive diagnoses and treatments as quickly as possible.
Dr. Hall emphasizes the positive impact on patient outcomes: “When I see the patient, I can make a decision faster for them, trying to decrease their length of stay here.” This desire to reduce patient time waiting for care ties in perfectly with Sunnybrook’s mission to provide the most efficient and effective emergency care.
Funding and Future Analysis
The pilot program is part of a temporary study funded by private donors, showcasing community support for advancing healthcare technology. The hospital is still calculating the time savings from the trial. From there, they’d like to evaluate its return on investment overall in the emergency department.
Hospital administrators, no doubt, are as anxious to see this pilot project’s accumulating data as we all are. They’re hoping to see, for example, how DAX Copilot improves efficiency without sacrificing patient care. They take a deep dive into their metrics such as patient wait times and length of stay. Their ambition is to make the case for more investments in similar tech innovations.
Sunnybrook has a well-earned reputation as Canada’s largest trauma center and burn center. AI technology such as DAX Copilot is leading the way for innovation in healthcare. The goal is to improve patient experience as demand for emergency services keeps increasing.
