AI medical scribe hallucinates patient drug use causing distress; Australian regulator emphasizes doctors must verify
Error by AI scribe during medical appointment leaves patient devastated
In Australia, a kidney stone surgery patient discovered in a post-operative letter that an AI medical scribe had fabricated content about them taking psychedelic mushrooms and microdosing. The error was sent by a specialist without verification to a general practitioner and was noticed by the patient. A recent report by Digital Rights Watch points out that Australians are exposed to unregulated and sometimes non-consensual AI medical scribes, and such errors could alter clinical decisions. AHPRA states that clinicians must always verify all outputs from AI scribes to ensure they meet professional obligations. Australia's peak general practice body estimates that 40% already routinely use AI scribes in daily work.