“Nowadays, I really miss it when a patient doesn’t fill it out.”

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Ilse Jannink – a surgical oncologist at the HagaZiekenhuis has been using a smart and structured approach to gather information from patients prior to a consultation since 2015. This results in a higher-quality consultation for both the doctor and the patient—according to Jannink: the patient quantifies the severity of their symptoms using scales and numbers, and the doctor already knows the patient’s medical history, family history, medication use, and the specific reason for the visit before the consultation even begins.

The response rate is high, even among older adults and non-Dutch speakers. The report from the pre-filled self-assessment is comprehensive, structured, and already available in the EPD prior to the consultation, allowing the consultation to get straight to the point. This leads to a better conversation and a more efficient consultation —I now really miss it when a patient hasn’t filled it out.

In many cases, the AI summary is immediately usable during the consultation and saves a lot of typing—and therefore time. The team at ConsultAssistent is flexible, and the software is smart and easily customizable, which makes working together a pleasure. Another thing I really appreciate is that we own the data ourselves and can use it to conduct our own analyses and research.

So does better consultation preparation lead to a better consultation? Yes, I’m convinced of it.