Key points
- 3,682 doctors practised in the canton of Geneva at the end of 2025, and 2,509 of them worked in the ambulatory sector.1
- After French at 79%, the main languages of Geneva residents in 2020 to 2024 were English at 12%, Portuguese at 9% and Spanish at 8%.2
- Health data is sensitive data under the Federal Act on Data Protection, and the FDPIC says that Act applies directly to AI.34
- Recording a non-public conversation without the other participants' consent is an offence under article 179ter of the Swiss Criminal Code, and Geneva requires records to be kept at least 10 years.56
- wai hosts each clinic's records in its own country, under that country's rules. We set this up with your clinic. Each AI draft waits for a person at the practice to approve it.
Summary
A Geneva clinic can use AI for consult notes and patient messages once the patient agrees to recording, with every note signed by a clinician and records kept under Swiss data protection law. The rules that matter are the Federal Act on Data Protection, articles 179ter and 321 of the Criminal Code and the cantonal Loi sur la santé, with CARA as the canton's electronic patient record community.
Every Geneva patient answered in the language they wrote in, and every note signed before the doctor leaves for the evening. The canton and the Confederation set the rules article by article, and the figures below show who is writing in.
Part of the Swiss cantonal licensing hub, with the framework explained, a readiness checklist and 7 guides.
See it in your clinicThirty minutes on your own patients and doctors.
Request a demoSee a Portuguese WhatsApp message and an English enquiry turned into drafts your secretariat approves, in fifteen minutes.
| Body or law | Rule | What to ask | How wai meets it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Department of health, Loi sur la santé art. 73 and 101 | Authorisation to practise, and an operating licence for health institutions | Who signs each note and letter | The doctor reviews and signs every note and letter |
| Loi sur la santé art. 57 | Records kept at least 10 years, destroyed after 20 at the latest | How retention and deletion are set | Retention set to the cantonal periods with your clinic |
| FADP art. 5 and 16, FDPIC | Health data is sensitive, disclosure abroad only if adequate or safeguarded | Which country holds the records and every subprocessor | Records hosted in Switzerland, subprocessors named with 30 days notice |
| Criminal Code art. 179ter and 321 | Consent to record, and medical secrecy | What the doctor says before recording | Consent recorded at the start of each consult |
| CARA, electronic patient record | Reference community for Geneva and four other cantons | How documents reach the patient record | wai is built to connect through CARA, set up with your clinic |
The private care market in Geneva
The FMH counted 3,682 doctors practising in the canton at 31 December 2025. Of these, 2,509 worked in the ambulatory sector, 1,119 in hospitals and 54 elsewhere, so roughly two in three Geneva doctors work in practices and outpatient settings.1
Each practice runs its own secretariat and diary, and answers patients who expect a reply in their own language.
The rules a clinic in Geneva works under
Geneva licenses both practitioners and institutions. Under article 73 of the Loi sur la santé, a health professional may practise only with an authorisation to practise issued by the department, and article 101 makes the creation and operation of any health institution subject to authorisation, with individual and group practices outside that chapter.6 Article 57 requires records to be kept as long as they serve the patient's health and at least 10 years after the last consultation, and destroyed after 20 years at the latest.6
The federal FADP governs the data. The Federal Act on Data Protection, in force since 1 September 2023, treats data relating to health as sensitive personal data.3 Article 16 allows data to be disclosed abroad where the Federal Council has found the destination adequate, or under safeguards such as standard contract clauses, and wilful breaches can bring fines up to CHF 250,000 on the individuals responsible.3 The FDPIC has said the Act is directly applicable to AI-supported data processing.4
Recording needs consent. Article 179ter of the Criminal Code makes it an offence to record a non-public conversation you take part in without the consent of the other participants, and article 321 protects what doctors and their auxiliaries learn in confidence.5 An ambient scribe in a Geneva consult room starts with the patient's yes.
Geneva's electronic patient record runs through CARA, a non-profit association created in 2018 by the cantons of Fribourg, Geneva, Jura, Valais and Vaud.7 wai is built to connect to the electronic patient record through CARA. We set up your clinic's connection with you.
wai hosts each clinic's records in its own country, under that country's rules. We set this up with your clinic. wai is compliant with these rules and built for clinics in Geneva. A Geneva practice keeps its records in Switzerland.
The languages Geneva patients write in
In the federal structural survey for 2020 to 2024, residents aged 15 and over named French as a main language in 79% of cases, followed by English at 12%, Portuguese at 9%, Spanish at 8%, Italian at 6% and German at 4%.2 People can name more than one language. English reaches 19% in Cologny and 18% in Grand-Saconnex.2
wai works in any language, so a Portuguese or English message is read in the language it arrives in and answered with a draft the secretariat approves.8
What a demo shows in Geneva
The demo opens on a Portuguese WhatsApp message sent at 11pm from Servette, asking to move a Thursday appointment, and an English email from a family in Grand-Saconnex asking for a first visit. wai checks the doctors' busy times in Google Calendar or Outlook, offers only open slots and drafts both replies in the practice's voice, and the secretariat approves them at 8am.
A deposit in Swiss francs runs through the practice's own Stripe account, and the patient receives a confirmation, a receipt and an intake questionnaire. In the consult, the note and the referral letter are written while the doctor talks, and the doctor signs before anything leaves the room. Bring real messages from last month in the languages they arrived in and judge the drafts yourself.
For health systems, governments and insurers in Geneva
For hospital groups, cantonal services and insurers, wai builds clinical documentation, patient contact and one record across services around one defined pathway, hosted in Switzerland with a full audit trail, and with data, configuration and model rights agreed in the contract. The approach is set out on the page for health systems and governments.
Where to start
First, write the consent sentence each doctor says before recording, in French and English, and record the answer in the file, using the consent form template.5 Second, put the hosting country and every subprocessor in writing and check each against article 16.3
Third, set retention to the article 57 periods. Fourth, count last month's messages by language and by hour, and use that count as the pilot's baseline. Book a Geneva demo and bring it. This page is general information on Swiss and Geneva law as read on 14 October 2026, and the practice's own adviser should confirm how it applies.
Bring a week of your Geneva messages, in French, English or Portuguese, and see the drafts your secretariat would approve.
Frequently asked questions
Does a Geneva practice need patient consent to use an AI scribe?
Yes. Article 179ter of the Criminal Code makes recording a non-public conversation without the other participants' consent an offence.5
Can patient records be stored outside Switzerland?
Under article 16 of the FADP, only where the Federal Council has found the destination adequate or with safeguards such as standard clauses.3 Hosting in Switzerland keeps it simple.
How long must a Geneva practice keep a record?
At least 10 years after the last consultation, and no longer than 20 years unless an overriding interest applies, under article 57 of the Loi sur la santé.6
Is there an AI law in Switzerland?
There is no separate AI act for clinics today. The FDPIC states that the Federal Act on Data Protection applies directly to AI-supported processing.4
What is CARA?
CARA is the non-profit association set up in 2018 by Fribourg, Geneva, Jura, Valais and Vaud that runs the electronic patient record for the region.7
Does wai reply to patients on its own?
No. wai drafts each reply in the practice's voice, and a person at the practice approves it before it sends. Clinical questions go to a doctor.
Sources
- 1FMH, 2026Médecins en exercice par canton et par secteur, état au 31.12.2025 (archived copy read 14 Oct 2026)Read 14 October 2026Read source
- 2Office cantonal de la statistique (OCSTAT), 2026Les langues principales pratiquées dans le canton de Genève et ses communes en 2020-2024Read 14 October 2026Read source
- 3Swiss Confederation, Fedlex, 2025Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP), SR 235.1Read 14 October 2026Read source
- 4Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC), 2025Current data protection legislation is directly applicable to AIRead 14 October 2026Read source
- 5Swiss Confederation, Fedlex, 2026Code pénal suisse, SR 311.0, art. 179ter and 321Read 14 October 2026Read source
- 6République et canton de Genève, 2026Loi sur la santé (LS), K 1 03Read 14 October 2026Read source
- 7République et canton de Genève, 2026Qu'est-ce que le dossier électronique du patient (DEP)Read 14 October 2026Read source
- 8wai, 2026wai changelog, intake answered by voice in any languageRead 14 October 2026Read source
Every Geneva patient answered in their own language.
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