Notetaking has always been an essential part of providing therapy. Writing down or typing out therapy notes in a session allows a provider to track the client’s progress and lets them review the details when they prep for the next session with that client.
But writing notes during the therapy session itself can be detrimental to the therapeutic experience—when a client is sharing their private thoughts or revealing sensitive personal information they want to feel like they have their provider’s full attention. Empathy and connection are an important part of a good “therapeutic alliance,” the connection between provider and client that helps clients make progress, but that sense of connection could be reduced if the provider appears to be distractedly writing or typing as a client talks. In addition, the administrative burden of taking notes can contribute to therapist burnout.
The Promise of AI Notetaking for Care Providers
Artificial intelligence-fueled technology has an important role to play in helping healthcare providers improve the quality of care they provide while reducing administrative work. Studies show that use of AI notetakers significantly reduces provider burnout. At Talkspace we wanted to give our providers the option of using AI to help with note taking, so our technology team created Smart Notes, a HIPAA-compliant feature that generates detailed notes of member sessions (if the provider opts in and the member consents). After a session providers edit and approve each Smart Note summary to ensure accuracy.
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Start therapyHow Talkspace Smart Notes Impacts Care
A year after we launched Smart Notes, Talkspace researchers examined whether this feature impacted therapist satisfaction and efficiency, and if the feature has affected quality of care. Over the study period, 142 full-time providers using Smart Notes averaged 2000 Smart Notes each week.
They found that using Smart Notes saved providers time. They completed more sessions with clients after the introduction of Smart Notes, compared to an equivalent time period before, while working the same number of hours. This finding may indicate that the time therapists saved using Smart Notes was spent on providing care instead of notetaking.
Of course, saving time is only worthwhile if the quality of the AI-generated notes is equal to that of manual ones. We asked the providers to rate the quality of the Smart Notes they generated and reviewed, and 97.7% of the time the notes were approved as accurate and helpful. Provider comments about Smart Notes were overall positive, highlighting that it saved them time and made their work significantly easier. In addition, our research team asked a group of independent licensed clinicians to audit the Smart Notes and they consistently rated the notes to be equal to or better than traditional clinical notes.
Smart Insights boosts member engagement
In addition to Smart Notes, Talkspace also created a tool called Smart Insights, which uses AI technology to review past sessions with that member and create a summary that may be helpful for the provider as they prepare for their next session. These summaries include member symptoms and clinical concerns, the provider’s goal for the member, and evidence-based therapy strategies for the therapist to consider using in the next session. Smart Insights aren’t meant to be definitive or prescriptive, but simply to give providers another tool for session prep.
During the first quarter that Smart Insights was available, 50% of providers have tried the feature and 96% of those gave it positive feedback. Early evidence suggests that use of Smart Insights can make therapy sessions more engaging: When therapists use Smart Insights for session prep, members are one third more likely to book and complete a follow up session promptly. This suggests that by using technology to prep for sessions, providers are able to give more personalized care that enhances member engagement in therapy.
Technology helps humans deliver the best care
The early success of the Talkspace Smart Notes and Smart Insights features suggests that careful and ethical use of AI tools can strengthen the therapeutic connection between provider and client, increase client engagement, and free up providers from administrative work so they can focus more fully on the uniquely human parts of providing care. For more information, download our research reports on Smart Notes and Smart Insights.
