Executive summary
For a busy UK general practice, the accumulation of small, repeatable administrative tasks can lead to significant clinical burden and operational inefficiency. Artificial intelligence is now providing proven solutions to this challenge across three key domains: clinical documentation, workforce and content management, and operational reporting. Concrete, UK-focused proof-points are now widely available.
Accurx Scribe, powered by Tandem, is rolling out across thousands of GP practices, automating the transcription, summary, and coding of notes with direct write-back to EMIS and SystmOne. Agilio has introduced an AI Writing Assistant for its Practice365 websites and continues to expand its workforce management tools like TeamNet. Meanwhile, EMIS-X Analytics is delivering case studies that show faster data discovery, enabling practice leaders to make smarter operational decisions. Safe and effective adoption of these tools hinges on robust governance and a clear understanding of the new guidance from NHS England and regulators.
Why practice managers should care
GPs spend a substantial portion of their day on administrative tasks, a reality that contributes to burnout and reduces time for patient care (Digital Health). As a practice manager, your role is to find scalable solutions that reclaim these valuable minutes. By strategically pairing AI-powered tools that address the core burdens of documentation, staffing, and operational insight, you can create a more efficient, sustainable, and responsive practice.
Where AI saves time — the three big buckets
1. Consultation documentation (Accurx Scribe)
- What it does: Accurx Scribe is an ambient AI tool that securely records a consultation, then automatically drafts structured clinical notes, suggests SNOMED codes, and generates referral letters. The clinician simply reviews, edits, and saves the output directly to the patient record in EMIS or SystmOne (Accurx Help Centre, HTN).
- Adoption signal: The tool is being rolled out to the vast network of practices already using the Accurx platform, and its ability to write back directly to the major EHRs is a key feature highlighted in national coverage (Digital Health).
- Efficiency & quality signal: The Tandem Health engine powering the scribe reports approximately 97% clinical accuracy in independent audits, and users consistently report significant reductions in their end-of-day administrative workload (Tandem Health).
- Governance to note: All use of ambient scribes must follow the latest NHSE guidance on adoption, information governance, and safety. Accurx provides its own clear best-practice steps for capturing patient consent (NHS England, Accurx Help Centre).
2. Workforce, rota & content (Agilio)
- Website content: For practices using Agilio’s Practice365 websites, the new AI Writing Assistant can accelerate the creation of routine patient-facing content, such as service updates, health campaign pages, and practice notices (Agilio Software).
- Team operations: Agilio’s TeamNet platform simplifies compliance tasks, team communications, and rota creation for primary care teams. Their iTeam product streamlines HR and rotas in dental practices, offering useful patterns that can inform wider primary-care workforce planning and reduce rota-related admin time (Agilio Software).
3. Reporting & operational insight (EMIS-X Analytics)
- What you get: EMIS-X Analytics provides practices and PCNs with population-scale views of their data. Case studies demonstrate 92% faster data discovery, supporting the quick identification of demand drivers and revealing "where clinical time is going." This insight is invaluable for making evidence-based decisions about rotas and patient access (Starburst).
- Additional examples: At an ICS level, EMIS-X data is being used to spot system-wide trends, such as A&E attendances that could have been managed in primary care. Practice groups can mirror this approach at a local scale to target interventions and improve efficiency (Optum).
How the stack fits together (a day-in-the-life flow)
- Before clinic: The week’s rota and any mandatory compliance tasks are published and assigned via Agilio’s TeamNet.
- During clinic: A GP uses Accurx Scribe to automatically draft notes and a referral letter for a complex consultation. The clinician verifies the output and saves it directly to EMIS with a single click.
- After clinic: The practice manager uses EMIS-X Analytics to review the week’s activity. The data surfaces demand peaks on certain days and identifies a high volume of calls for a specific condition. This insight is used to adjust future rota capacity and to quickly create a patient information page on the website using Agilio’s Practice365 AI assistant.
Governance & safety (for practice managers to own)
- NHSE ambient scribe guidance: This is the foundational document for safe adoption, covering IG, safety, and procurement.
- Consent & transparency: Follow the best practice scripts provided by Accurx to ensure patient consent is captured clearly and transparently at the point of care.
- LMC briefing: Londonwide LMCs have published a useful checklist on the benefits and risks of AI scribes, which can help set expectations with your GP partners.
Implementation checklist (30–60–90 days)
- First 30 days:
- Pick one clinic or a single session to pilot Accurx Scribe. Train the user(s) on the consent workflow. Capture baseline metrics like average note completion time and self-reported "end-of-day admin" time.
- Enable the Practice365 AI Writing Assistant for routine practice notices and agree on a simple review and approval process.
- First 60 days:
- Turn on the scribe’s write-back to EMIS/SystmOne with a clear clinician sign-off process and ensure the audit trail is active. Codify your consent and usage steps into a practice SOP.
- Start building a basic EMIS-X dashboard to track practice utilisation and demand hotspots. Begin planning rota adjustments based on this data.
- First 90 days:
- Expand scribe coverage to more clinicians based on the successful pilot.
- Use the data to standardise TeamNet rota patterns.
- Publish a dedicated page on your practice website explaining what an AI scribe is and outlining your consent process for patients.
KPIs & “minutes saved” scorecard
- Documentation: Minutes saved per consultation; percentage of notes saved to the record within the session; rate of re-work or edits required after clinician review.
- Workforce/rota: Time taken to finalise and publish the weekly rota; percentage of last-minute changes; rate of compliance tasks completed on time (via TeamNet).
- Insight: Time-to-report for practice data; speed of data discovery (using the EMIS-X +92% case study as a benchmark); number of operational actions taken based on data insights.
ROI snapshot (how savings add up)
You can calculate a simple return on investment by combining the minutes saved across the different domains. Use the trend insights from EMIS-X to target the biggest areas of waste first, such as redesigning services to reduce avoidable re-attendance or managing DNA hotspots. The formula is simple: (avg. minutes saved per consult × consults per day) + (time saved on website updates and rotas) + (time saved via faster reporting).
Risks & mitigations
- Hallucinations/omissions: Enforce a mandatory human verification and sign-off for every clinical note before it is saved to the patient record. Use Accurx’s built-in safety prompts.
- Consent & privacy: Use a visible, standardised consent script at the start of every recorded consultation. Follow all NHSE guidance for ambient scribing.
- Change management: Start small with one clinic or one GP champion. Measure the benefits, create an internal case study, and then scale. The LMC resource is a useful tool for setting expectations with the wider GP team.
FAQ (captures navigational queries)
- Does Accurx Scribe write back to EMIS/SystmOne?
- Yes, clinicians can review, edit, and save the generated notes directly to the patient record in both EMIS and SystmOne from the Accurx Desktop or App.
- Is the scribe a medical device?
- The Tandem AI medical scribe that powers the tool is registered with the MHRA as a Class I medical device, and Accurx provides documentation on its compliance.
- What “AI” does Agilio have?
- Agilio’s Practice365 website platform includes an AI Content Assistant for drafting patient-facing text. Their TeamNet and iTeam products are powerful workforce tools that reduce the administrative burden around creating rotas and managing compliance.
- What is EMIS-X Analytics good for?
- It enables much faster data discovery and provides population-level insights to help you make smarter, evidence-based operational decisions about your practice.
Closing call-to-action
To reclaim valuable clinical and administrative time, consider piloting a three-part AI stack for 90 days. Use Accurx Scribe to tackle documentation, Agilio’s suite to streamline rotas and communications, and EMIS-X Analytics to generate operational insight. Measure the minutes saved and reinvest that time where it matters most: improving patient access and continuity of care.