Every emergency department in New Zealand now uses AI scribes
After successfully deploying AI scribes across every public emergency department in the country, New Zealand is now extending the technology to mental health crisis teams, with early results already reshaping how clinicians work.
New Zealand has completed a nationwide rollout of AI scribe technology across all public emergency departments, with approximately 1,250 emergency doctors and frontline staff now using the tool, 250 more than originally announced.
Health Minister Simeon Brown described the achievement as placing New Zealand among the fastest health systems in the world to move from pilot to full frontline AI deployment in emergency departments.
Early results have been striking. At Middlemore Emergency Department in Auckland, 80% of staff surveyed after one month reported improved productivity or efficiency, and 84% said it had a positive impact on their well-being during shifts.
A pilot study found that the tool reduced average documentation time from 17 minutes to 4 minutes, allowing doctors to see 1 additional patient per shift.
Following strong interest from clinicians, Te Whatu Ora is now preparing to procure over 1,000 additional AI scribe licences predominantly for mental health crisis teams, who were involved in early implementation phases, given their role supporting patients presenting in crisis within emergency departments.
The system is also being explored for outpatient clinics, with significant interest already received.
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