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There is no single consent rule or retention period for AI medical scribes. A patient should be told before recording starts, but whether explicit consent is required depends on the jurisdiction and the provider’s policy. Raw audio, transcripts, draft notes and the clinician-approved medical record can each be handled differently, so ask what the specific product captures, who can access it and when each item is deleted.
What an AI medical scribe captures—and what happens next
An ambient scribe listens to a patient-clinician conversation and uses it to produce documentation for a clinician to review. That can involve several distinct items: audio, a transcript, a draft note and an approved note. A service may also create other artifacts, such as patient instructions or diagnoses. These items do not necessarily share the same storage location, access rules or deletion date.
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A useful way to understand the process is to follow the data through its stages:
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- Processing: The service provider and possibly other suppliers process the captured information to generate documentation. The organization should establish who handles the data and under what instructions.
- Clinical review: A professional checks the generated note, corrects errors and decides whether it is suitable for use.
- Record entry and deletion: An approved note may be added to the health record, while audio, transcripts and working copies may have separate retention rules.
The exact path depends on the provider, product, contracts and local requirements. NHS England’s information-governance guidance recommends documenting controller and processor roles, checking storage locations at each stage, and giving suppliers clear processing and retention instructions. It also says unnecessary processing copies should be deleted where appropriate after transfer to the final location. NHS England’s information-governance guidance
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Does a doctor need your consent?
There is no universal answer. Recording and privacy rules vary by jurisdiction, and an organization’s policy may add requirements. Do not treat one health system’s approach as the rule for every clinic.
England: patients must be informed, and dissent respected
NHS England’s guidance for individual-care tasks in England says explicit consent is not required under its described implied-consent approach. It also says professionals should inform patients at the start of the session, provide information in the organization’s privacy notice and respect a patient’s dissent or objection. The guidance addresses capacity, representatives, prior preferences and best interests as well; this England-specific approach is not a statement of the law elsewhere. NHS England’s professional guidance
United States: AWS places consent responsibilities on its customers
AWS says its Ambient Documentation service can record spoken communications containing protected health information, but AWS does not collect consent on behalf of customers or downstream integrators. Its documentation says those customers and integrators are responsible for applicable consent, recording and privacy laws. It recommends explaining that the visit is recorded, that an AI service provider will use the recording to create notes, that service providers may receive information, and that the patient can decline without affecting care. It also says appropriate consent should cover each patient and anyone else in the room, with consent records maintained according to applicable law and internal policy. These are AWS’s service instructions, not a universal rule for every US provider or AI scribe. AWS Ambient Documentation guidance
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Penn Medicine: one health system’s consent-based policy
Penn Medicine says its system records with consent, participation is optional, and patients can pause or stop recording. It says people who opt out receive the usual note-taking workflow. This describes Penn Medicine’s own practice; it does not establish what another provider does. Penn Medicine’s patient FAQ
What to ask before the visit
- Will the conversation be recorded, or does the tool capture information another way?
- Can I decline, pause or stop capture, and what documentation process will be used instead?
- Does the notice or consent process cover everyone else who may be present?
- Who will process the information, and could it be shared with service providers?
A clinic should explain its own process before capture begins. NHS England says patients should be informed at the start of a session and able to find relevant details in the organization’s privacy notice. NHS England’s patient guidance
Is the recording part of your medical record?
Not necessarily. The audio or transcript may be treated as temporary working material, while a clinician-approved note may be entered into the official record. Ask separately about each artifact rather than assuming that the recording, transcript and final note are all kept together.
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Penn Medicine says its recordings are not saved in the chart, are routinely deleted after a short time and are not part of the official medical record. Its FAQ does not specify an exact deletion interval. NHS England’s information-governance guidance says that a summary placed in the health record should follow the record’s retention schedule, while audio and transcripts could be deleted after a professional approves an accurate and adequate summary, unless additional retention is needed for safety or accuracy monitoring. Penn Medicine’s patient FAQ NHS England’s information-governance guidance
How long are AI scribe recordings and notes kept?
There is no standard retention period established by these examples. Policies differ by product and organization, and the approved note may follow a different schedule from temporary audio or processing copies.
| Example | What its published information says | What it does not establish |
|---|---|---|
| Penn Medicine | Recordings are routinely deleted after a short time and are not saved in the chart; its FAQ does not give a precise interval. Penn Medicine FAQ | A specific deletion date for every recording, or the policy of other providers. |
| Ambient Scribe (Phiniti Assist) | Its policy says listed generated artifacts—including transcripts, notes, patient instructions, diagnoses and recordings—are automatically deleted 30 days after encounter creation. This is a vendor-specific policy statement, not an industry standard. Ambient Scribe retention policy | The retention period used by other scribe products or healthcare organizations. |
| NHS England guidance for organizations in England | Audio and transcripts could be deleted after professional approval of an accurate and adequate summary, except where more retention is needed for safety or accuracy monitoring. A summary placed in the health record follows that record’s retention schedule. NHS England information-governance guidance | A fixed number of days that applies to all tools or all records. |
For a particular appointment, the relevant answer is in the provider’s current notice, product policy and applicable contractual arrangements—not in another organization’s example.
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Who can access the audio, transcript or note?
Access depends on the service configuration and the agreements governing processing. A complete explanation should identify where each item is processed and stored, which provider and subprocessors can access it, what is transferred into the health record, and whether any copy remains elsewhere. It should also clarify whether information is used only for the care task or for another purpose, such as product improvement or model training.
NHS England recommends that organizations document controller and processor roles, instruct suppliers clearly, and consider a data-protection impact assessment where required as well as a security review. AWS likewise makes customers and downstream integrators responsible for compliance with applicable privacy and recording rules for its Ambient Documentation service. NHS England’s information-governance guidance AWS Ambient Documentation guidance
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What should patients and healthcare organizations verify?
Patients can ask their clinic for its privacy notice or a plain-language explanation. Healthcare organizations evaluating a scribe should get answers for each data type and each stage of the workflow, then ensure those answers are reflected in supplier instructions and agreements.
- Capture: What is collected—audio, transcript, speaker labels, draft note, final note or metadata? Can staff pause capture?
- Notice and choice: When are patients told? How can they object or opt out, and what happens to the visit workflow if they do?
- Access and processing: Which organization is responsible for each purpose? Which providers or subprocessors can access the data, and where is it handled?
- Secondary use: Is information used only to produce documentation for care, or also for product improvement or model training?
- Retention and deletion: What event starts the deletion clock for each artifact? What happens to backups and copies after transfer to the record? Is deletion auditable?
- Record destination: Which approved output enters the health record, and what retention schedule applies to it?
- Contract and oversight: Do written terms document roles, permitted processing, storage locations, security responsibilities and deletion instructions?
NHS England’s implementation guidance was first published on 27 April 2025 and updated on 29 July 2026; it is England-specific. Local law, provider policy and vendor terms still need to be checked for the particular service and setting. NHS England publication record
Why clinician review still matters
An AI-generated note can contain errors. NHS England says users must check outputs before they affect a patient or are added to records, correct inaccuracies and consider additional review when translation is involved. Penn Medicine says its care team reviews and approves notes before entry into the medical record. The scribe generates documentation; the clinician remains responsible for checking the final clinical record. NHS England’s professional guidance Penn Medicine’s patient FAQ
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