Key points
- Medicare fee-for-service telehealth visits went from under 1 million in 2019 to 53 million in 2020 and 37 million in 2021.1
- Australia's medical regulator expects a telehealth consultation to meet, as far as possible, the same standard of care as one in person.2
- A remote note adds the technology used, any technical problems and, if the consultation is recorded, the consent of everyone present.2
- wai's scribe joins Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams consultations and writes them up for the clinician to review and sign.3
Summary
The scribe joins the video call and drafts the note while the clinician talks, with fixed lines for what a remote note needs. The clinician confirms identity and consent at the start and signs the draft before the next patient joins.
The clinician looks at the patient on screen, and the note is ready to sign when the call ends. A scribe inside the call drafts it to the same standard as a note from the consulting room.
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| Moment | What the clinician does | What the note records |
|---|---|---|
| Start of the call | States name and role, confirms the patient's identity | How identity was confirmed |
| Start of the call | Asks where the patient is and who else is present | Patient location and everyone present, on or off camera |
| Before history taking | Explains the scribe and asks for agreement | Consent to the scribe, and to any recording by every participant |
| If language is a barrier | Arranges a professional interpreter | Interpreter name or service, and that they joined the call |
| During the call | Notes any dropped audio or video | Technology used and technical issues |
| Examination | Examines what video allows, guides self-examination | What was seen, what could not be examined, and the plan for it |
| Close | Safety-nets and agrees follow-up | Safety-net advice, follow-up, and any in-person review arranged |
| After the call | Reviews the draft and signs | Signature and time |
Video is an ordinary consulting room
In the US Medicare fee-for-service programme, telehealth visits rose from under 1 million in 2019 to 53 million in 2020 and 37 million in 2021, according to the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation.1 By the end of 2021, telehealth made up 35% of visits to behavioural health specialists.1
About 5 to 6% of telehealth visits in 2020 and 2021 were with a clinician located in a different state, so the patient's location belongs in the note.1
The standard on screen
The Medical Board of Australia asks a doctor to tell the patient who they are and their role, confirm to the best of their ability the identity of the patient and anyone else present, and apply the usual principles of informed consent.2
The standard of care must be safe and, as far as possible, meet the standard of an in-person consultation, and the doctor keeps assessing whether telehealth is still appropriate and arranges an in-person review where it is not.2 Read your own regulator's wording too. The table below turns the Australian text into lines for a note.
Lines a remote note adds
The Australian guidelines ask the doctor to record the type of technology used, any technical issues during the consultation, and consent from all participants if the consultation is digitally recorded.2
Add the patient's location at the time of the call, since it decides which rules and emergency services apply, and who else is in the room, on camera or off. Record what could not be examined on video, with the plan for it. Fixed headings give the scribe a place for each line and show the clinician what is missing before signing.
Consent on video
Say it at the start of the call. Name the scribe and what it does, say that the clinician reviews every word, and that the patient can ask for it to be switched off at any time.
Where the consultation is recorded, the consent of every participant is noted.2 US state rules are set out in US recording laws, and the wider approach is in the patient consent guide.
How wai writes up a video consultation
wai's scribe joins video consultations on Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams and writes them up.3 wai is built to connect to Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams. We set up your clinic's connection with you.
The note is drafted during the call, structured the way the clinician writes, and the clinician reviews, edits and signs it.4 Letters and patient explanations are drafted from the same call and held for signature.4 For clinics using wai Profiles, video calls run from a quiet lobby to goodbye, with live captions.5 Identity, consent and the decision to stay on video remain with the clinician.
Where to start
Add five fixed lines to the top of the video template (identity confirmed, patient location, others present, consent to the scribe, technology used) and one at the bottom for examination limits and the plan for them.
Run a week of video clinics with the scribe in the call. Check every signed note against those lines, time the gap from the end of each call to the signed note, and adjust the template where a line keeps coming back empty.
Bring a video clinic of your own and watch the scribe join the call, with the note ready to sign when it ends.
Frequently asked questions
Can an AI scribe work on Zoom, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams?
Yes. wai's scribe joins video consultations on Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams and writes them up for the clinician to review and sign.3
Does a scribe on a video call need patient consent?
Tell the patient and record their agreement. Where a consultation is digitally recorded, Australian guidance expects the consent of all participants to be noted.2 US state recording laws add their own rules.
How is a patient's identity confirmed on video?
To the best of your ability, and for everyone present, as the Medical Board of Australia puts it.2 Use the same checks the clinic uses at the front desk, and record which ones you used.
Is a remote note held to a lower standard?
No. The Australian guidelines expect the standard of care to be safe and, as far as possible, the same as in person.2 The note also records the technology used and any technical issues.
Does the scribe decide whether video is appropriate?
The clinician decides. The scribe drafts the note, and the clinician judges whether telehealth remains appropriate and arranges an in-person review when it does not.
Can patients join a video call from their own record?
For clinics using wai Profiles, video calls run from a quiet lobby to goodbye, with live captions.5
Sources
- 1US Department of Health and Human Services, ASPE, 2023Updated Medicare FFS Telehealth Trends by Beneficiary Characteristics, Visit Specialty and State, 2019-2021Read 14 October 2026Read source
- 2Medical Board of Australia, 2023Guidelines, Telehealth consultations with patientsRead 14 October 2026Read source
- 3wai, 2026wai integrationsRead 14 October 2026Read source
- 4wai, 2026AI medical scribe for cliniciansRead 14 October 2026Read source
- 5wai, 2026wai changelogRead 14 October 2026Read source
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